Public hearings on the quality of care at Danville Regional are planned for May.
Danville Register & Bee
Thursday, April 19, 2007
DANVILLE - The group handling the $200 million acquired from the sale of Danville Regional Medical Center will shell out $25,000 to pay for a consultant to look into the problems plaguing the hospital.
In addition, three public hearings on the quality of care at Danville Regional have been tentatively scheduled for mid-May.
The Citizen’s Committee Related to the Danville Regional Medical Center selected May 8, 10 and 15 for the hearings during its Wednesday meeting.
“I think the sooner (we hold these hearings), the better,” said Arlene Creasy, who sits on the committee. “The public is very frustrated right now because they don’t see us doing anything.”
Danville City Council members criticized the committee, which was empaneled March 6, for not scheduling the hearings yet when it’s co-chair Jim Houser appeared before them Tuesday night.
Houser said Wednesday that he envisions each of the hearings to last a total of two hours and would give 40 to 50 people the chance to talk for three to four minutes.
Committee members hope to have a hearing in Danville, Pittsylvania County and Caswell County, N.C., but have yet to work out the details for each event.
“This is the time when you need to open your doors and say, ‘come talk to us’,” said Keith Pryor, the health care consultant hired by the committee to help in its efforts.
Pryor told the committee that he has 25 years of experience working in the health care field as both the president and CEO of Berkshire Health Systems, and as a consultant with the Philadelphia-based Health Care Strategies and Solutions Inc.
Houser said the Danville Regional Foundation gave the committee the funds to pay for Pryor’s services and other expenses related to its work analyzing how care at Danville Regional has changed since its July 2005 purchase by LifePoint Hospitals Inc.
But he made it clear this funding would not affect the committee’s overall mission.
“(The foundation) has no input whatsoever into our final recommendations or what the committee is doing,” Houser said. “The citizens are very concerned about the hospital.”
The committee also was joined by Martin Kent with the Virginia Office of the Attorney General. Kent, who grew up in Hurt, has worked in the office for the past six years. He said it would be his job to act as a liaison between the committee and Attorney General Bob McDonnell.
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9 comments:
“'I think the sooner (we hold these hearings), the better,” said Arlene Creasy, who sits on the committee. “The public is very frustrated right now because they don’t see us doing anything.”"
Thank you Arlene.
The bad twist to this story is that we have to pay $25,000 out of the proceeds of the sale of the hospital to determine what LPNT is doing wrong in its management of this key community resource.
Also, has the Commission secured a commitment from LPNT that anything will be done with the findings of this consultant and this Commission? If not, we are expending a lot of time, energy, frustration...and now a significant block of money...for naught. I have heard nothing in the coverage of this that even suggests LPNT cares what the Commission finds and see no sign that they are interested in what happens in that forum. The community and, more importantly the employees, are still in the dark about what Joint Commission found lacking when they preliminarily denied accreditation, so what makes us think that town meetings will do anything more than frustrate us further?
While I realize $25,000 is a bit of money, it is relatively nominal for this type of service. I do have a couple of thoughts regarding the use of the foundation money.
1. WIth the sale of the hospital, the foundation was obligated, per the words of a former DRMC CEO, to use 5% of the proceeds of the sale to improve the health and welfare of the area each year. That would be about $10,000,000 a year. This is the first distribution of funds that I have heard of and the sale took place almost two years ago. Where is the rest of the annual obligation? WE NEED A PUBLIC ACCOUNTING!
2. Spending $25,000 for a consultant on this project may end up being as futile as the last multitude of consultants at DRMC, but it at least seems to fit the description of the intended use of funds. My questions therefore are
a. Who will be accountable for the outcome of the consultant's work?
b. Does he have clearly defined goals?
c. To whom will he report? We all have strings, WHO IS PULLING HIS?
d. Who will be required to implement the Consultant's recommendations, over what period of time, and how will that be insured?
3. Why is a consultant being hired when the citizen's committee has yet to have its first public forum? Is this putting the cart before the horse?
With all that has gone on in the last two years, it seems that we need common sense steps as opposed to political rhetoric and posturing. We have seen the definition of insanity at work with DRMC....doing the same thing and expecting different results. One consultant after another has come and gone.....money in hand, and are we or DRMC any better off? You don't need to be a rocket scientist or the latest in a long line of hospital CEOs to know the answer.
To Art: If you want people to do things for you....even the simplest things....they have to trust you....at this time they do not. Will they? I doubt it, but I am just one person with an opinion. I wrote once before to say that your presence and participation (push a mop) is fundamental to you having the slightest shot. It is up to you. You hold the key to your future at DRMC....if it has not already been decided for you. I don't think you are a bad guy, but right now I cannot say with any conviction that you are a good person either....that is working against you as others on this blog already believe you are not. Make a choice Art. then give it all you have got....in Danville or on the road.
SAVAGE LS
Bravo to Savage!
Since the last few months of rapidly waning trust in the hospital, Art has done NOTHING to try to change things. He does smile a little more but often he is out of the hospital, perhaps going home, and not "hands on" at all. The OR has seen him once in three months. That is the money wheel that drives the hospital, yet the chief hamster does not want to take his turn on the spin.
Associates see him as a fleeting figure, not someone, like Larry DePriest, who knows your name, your job, and will bend down to pick up trash off of the floor. Larry is currently CEO of one of the top hospitals in the country, BTW! Art seems to be marking time and putting a finger in the dyke to slow the bleeding, but doing nothing to revitalize a demoralized staff and patient population.
Art needs to leave quickly. Jess Judy needs to run the hospital on sight for about 6 months to build trust.
LPNT needs to stop playing games and do what they know is right and pack Art's bag for him.
From City Council minutes for the Apr 17 meeting:
"Mayor Williams recognized Citizens Commission Co-chair Jim
Houser. Mr. Houser updated Council Members on the status of the
Commission’s work, stating a meeting was scheduled for Wednesday, April 18, 2007, 5:15 P.M. in the Fourth Floor Conference Room, City Hall.
He reported the Commission had hired Health Care Strategies medical consultant, Keith Pryor, who would be present for the meeting. Mr. Houser further advised Mr. Pryor has considerable experience working with medical facilities transitioning from a non-profit to a private status. Mr. Pryor will be gathering information and reviewing the quality of care at Danville Regional.
Mr. Houser reported the Commission has received $25,000 from the
Danville Regional Foundation for consultant fees and other
expenditures incurred by the Commission, but stated the
Foundation was in no way involved with the Commission’s work.
In response to Vice-Mayor Saunders, Mr. Houser said the
Commission was working tirelessly to come up with dates for the
public forums. The goal is to begin around the first part of May.
In response to Mr. Tomer, Mr. Houser said there had been so much
personal bombardment on the website that was set up for receiving citizen input that it was decided to pull it off the site.
Mayor Williams said there were many who wished to provide input,
but wished to do so without public scrutiny.
Council Member Castiglione said the City was looking for a worldclass facility and asked Mr. Houser to convey such to Mr. Pryor.
Mayor Williams thanked Mr. Houser for the update."
Also from the minutes of that meeting:
"In reference to the number of physicians who have left Danville
since LifePoint purchased Danville Regional Medical Center (DRMC), Rev. Bridgeforth inquired as to what DRMC was doing to regain the confidence of physicians.
Mayor Williams, who is a physician, explained LifePoint was a private does was beyond the reach of the medical staff.
"LifePoint was a private does was beyond the reach of the medical staff."
Please explain
I think this was the quote that should have been posted in the comment above:
"In reference to the number of physicians who have left Danville
since LifePoint purchased Danville Regional Medical Center (DRMC), Rev. Bridgeforth inquired as to what DRMC was doing to regain the confidence of physicians. Mayor Williams, who is a physician, explained LifePoint was a private facility and what it does was beyond the reach of the medical staff."
So, has anyone heard how things are going with the CMS visit?
Just like Joint Commission, I'm sure we won't get any information through official channels.
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