The Maryland Department of Health is ordering an independent evaluation of the state’s maximum-security psychiatric facility.

The National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors will visit Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center this week.

“The goal of this evaluation is to foster continuous quality improvement to ensure the hospital culture supports both patients and employees,” Dr. Laura Herrera Scott, Maryland’s health secretary, wrote in a letter to the facility’s staff. “By the end of calendar 2024, evaluators have been tasked with presenting findings, conclusions, and recommendations for improving the safety, security, and efficiency of CTPHC.”

Earlier this year, the hospital’s former CEO, Scott Moran, left his position after employees alleged that he bullied and threatened them.

A temporary restraining order was filed against Moran that kept him away from the facility for six months and prohibited him from possessing weapons.

Complaints about the hospital reach back to 20-11 when workers said some patients were not receiving proper medications and that treatment teams were making dangerous clinical decisions.

An audit this summer also found that the hospital failed to verify if staff properly disposed of highly controlled drugs.

MDH says information provided to the evaluators will not be attributed to the employees.