FDA Resources: Comprehensive Assessment of Staffing, Facilities, and Equipment Needs
HRD-89-142
Published: Sep 15, 1989. Publicly Released: Sep 15, 1989.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO assessed whether the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had sufficient resources to meet its current and future responsibilities, focusing on its: (1) staffing requirements and staff recruitment and retention rates; and (2) laboratory, space, and equipment needs.
Recommendations
Matter for Congressional Consideration
| Matter | Status | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| To provide a more accurate basis for determining FDA resource needs, Congress should require the Commissioner, FDA, to make an agencywide assessment to identify and prioritize its activities and responsibilities. |
Closed – Implemented
|
Congress appropriated funds for a study of FDA resources' need assessments. |
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Food and Drug Administration | The Commissioner, FDA, should assess the agency's responsibilities and the staffing requirements to meet these responsibilities, based on present and future projections. |
Closed – Implemented
The FDA Advisory Committee (Edwards Committee) findings and comprehensive needs assessment were published in May 1991.
|
| Food and Drug Administration | The Commissioner, FDA, should determine the activities FDA can effectively undertake given a specified level of staffing increases (e.g., a 2-percent, 10-percent, or 15-percent increase over 1989). |
Closed – Implemented
The FDA May 1991 comprehensive needs assessment addressed: (1) leadership and management principles; (2) long-term direction and goals; and (3) estimated future resource needs. This study will be used to assess FDA staffing, facilities, and equipment needs.
|
| Food and Drug Administration | The Commissioner, FDA, should identify the management changes FDA would implement to match specified staffing levels with higher-priority responsibilities (e.g., consolidation, shifting of low-priority tasks to third parties). |
Closed – Implemented
The FDA May 1991 comprehensive needs assessment addressed: (1) leadership and management principles; (2) long-term direction and goals; and (3) estimated future resource needs. This study will be used to assess FDA staffing, facilities, and equipment needs.
|
| Food and Drug Administration | In order to effectively carry out the recommendations, the Commissioner, FDA, should determine the agencywide management information systems it will need to ensure that officials have the data to accurately assess: (1) FDA staff and resource needs; and (2) how well its mission is being carried out and how effectively current resources are being used. Due to the urgency of FDA problems, FDA should place a high priority on completing its comprehensive assessment. |
Closed – Implemented
The FDA May 1991 comprehensive needs assessment addressed: (1) leadership and management principles; (2) long-term direction and goals; and (3) estimated future resource needs.
|
| Food and Drug Administration | The Commissioner, FDA, should use the information it develops as a basis to assess its facility and equipment needs. This assessment would be intended to ensure that space, laboratory, and equipment plans are synchronized with the agency's concentration of staffing resources on higher-priority activities. Furthermore, FDA should prepare a timetable for the staffing, systems, and management changes it will implement as a result of its assessment. |
Closed – Implemented
The information contained in the FDA May 1991 comprehensive needs assessment will be used by Congress to assess FDA staffing, facilities, and equipment needs.
|
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