Thursday, November 30, 2006

State of Emergency?

This blog was created to open the eyes of the community to occurrences at our hospital and to provide a forum for discussion. We all have a choice when it comes to deciding which hospital will care for us when we are sick. That choice should be an educated one.

So, let’s talk about the state of the hospital. A brief history will reveal that in 2004-2005 several of our local community leaders serving on the hospital board thought it would be a wise move to sell DRMC (a not-for-profit hospital) and in July 2005 we were sold to LifePoint Hospitals Inc., a for-profit healthcare company. (http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2005_May_9/ai_n13677507).

Since the acquisition, DRMC has experienced such a changeover in senior management that the head spins trying to keep up with the revolving door. LifePoint has appointed our current CEO, chief operating officer (the fourth since acquisition); COO, chief operating officer (the third since acquisition); and CFO, chief finance officer (the second since acquisition)....there is no such thing as longevity or stability at C-level.

Since the changeover in leadership, I have watched the professionalism at DRMC slowly deteriorate. Well, maybe that sounds like a harsh judgment of the people that work there....there are professionals at DRMC in almost every department. They have just become hamstrung by policies (or lack thereof) and unrealistic target numbers. Numbers, I should point out, that are Lifepoint standards based on all their other hospitals....which are much smaller and have very differing levels of acuity. Long-term employees...the skilled folks who formed the braintrust of our hospital...have gotten fed up and moved on to greener pastures.

For some, it’s even cured their desire to work in healthcare.

Those who are still there and still care have observed deviations in standard operating procedures....mistakes are being made....mistakes that are affecting patient safety. These mistakes and observations have been reported to senior management and yet we continue to see the deviations and mistakes being made daily. I work in agony every day wondering if today will be the day a serious event will occur...an event where someone will lose their life as a result of the mistakes being made.

It’s a sad tale when the employees of the hospital are beginning to investigate (and telling their families to investigate) what hospitals in the region accept their insurance and which hospitals their doctors refer to.....oh, and shall we mention the numbers of physicians who have obtained privileges at neighboring hospitals so that they can refer out of the community.

Now, those families with patients in the hospital not only have to face the challenges that serious illness puts on their lives...they also have to plan to drive an hour in each direction...right by the community hospital that used to have their best interests at heart.

Who are these “leaders” LifePoint appointed to “lead” our hospital? Since their arrival, there have been no established goals; no mission. When asked, we are told our mission is still the one established several years ago (before LifePoint); “Delivering Healthcare Excellence Close to Home”. Whose home? Our senior management team doesn’t even live in Danville.....correction...they do live here...in rental houses....Monday thru Friday. Looks like all of them are having trouble selling their old houses and haven’t committed to the move.

Take me back to the days of DePriest!
(Actually, that would be “Larry”...the larger than life CEO that walked the halls and knew his co-workers by name.)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

As a RN working PRN in several other facilities, I am astonished to see the number of patients from Danville visiting other EDs.