WASHINGTON, DC – Rep. Jackie Walorski (IN-02), a member of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, issued the following statement after the Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Board voted Monday morning to temporarily suspend the license of social worker Robin Paul, the clinic manager on administrative leave at an Indianapolis veterans’ clinic, after allegations arose that she sent an inappropriate and insensitive email to fellow employees regarding veteran suicide in December 2014:
“I want to thank Attorney General Zoeller and the Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Board for taking swift action to prevent Ms. Paul from engaging in any responsibilities related to the care of our nation’s finest while they continue their full investigation of her disgraceful actions. Hopefully this will give the investigation panel at the Department of Veterans Affairs enough time to fire her from her position.”
The press release from the Indiana Attorney General can be found here. A copy of the Voluntary Summary Suspension Agreement can be found here.
Paul is manager of the Seamless Transition Integrated Care Clinic (STICC) at Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Indianapolis. The Clinic focuses on assisting veterans who have recently returned from service.
On Dec. 18, 2014, Paul sent an email to the Clinic team with a subject line “Naughty Elf in the STICC” that included four photos of a Christmas elf character. One photo included a note next to the character that read “Out of Xanax please help!” and a caption that read “Self-medicating for mental health issues when a CNS would not give him his requested script,” according to a complaint forwarded by the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. Another photo depicted the elf hanging from a strand of Christmas lights and a caption that read “Caught in the act of suicidal behavior (trying to hang himself from an electrical cord).”
After the email and photos were made public earlier this month, the Roudebush Veterans Affairs Health Center placed Paul on administrative leave pending an internal investigation.
