Thursday, May 31, 2007

"Hospital unveils evaluation"

Danville Register & Bee
Thursday, May 31, 2007
DANVILLE - Portions of Danville Regional Medical Center’s Joint Commission evaluation were unveiled to area business leaders Wednesday, but the complete results have not been made public.
The hospital received a “preliminary denial of accreditation” from the national health care accreditation organization in March.
Art Doloresco, CEO of Danville Regional Medical Center, presented the results of the survey Wednesday morning at a Chamber of Commerce breakfast.
Doloresco, however, would not allow members of the media to have a copy of the presentation and did not want it to be recorded by radio station WBTM.
“This is only the second time in the United States that a hospital has revealed a Joint Commission decision,” he said. “This is a unique opportunity for businesses to take a look.”
He explained that the Joint Commission’s scoring was based on the number of standards with which hospitals are not in compliance.
“There are more than 500 standards and we have 21 of those not in compliance,” he said.
There were 22 RFIs, “Required for Improvements,” but the hospital successfully appealed one.
The areas the commission cited as needing improvement include home health, medical staff, nursing, data tracking, pharmacy and leadership.
Doloresco said the hospital is not only scored on compliance but on how long it has been compliant.
“You could be doing the right thing, but not doing it long enough,” he said. “For example, last August there were 180 patient restraint situations a month. Now we are having less than 30 patient restraint encounters a month, but when the Joint Commission was here, it was one of the 21 RFIs because (the decrease) had been less than six months.”
The survey uses a method known as “tracer methodology” that gives the commission a view of a patient’s stay in the hospital from the minute the patient enters to when he leaves and scores how the hospital processes functioned during that stay.
Nurse to patient ratio is not one of the areas scored, Doloresco said.
“We have sent an eight-page letter to the commission with an explanation of mitigating circumstances,” he said.
The commission will meet on June 14 and issue a decision the next day. The hospital could be moved from preliminary to full denial, conditional accreditation or full accreditation, according to Doloresco.
He said the hospital expects it will be conditionally accredited. Even if accreditation is denied, however, there is still an appeals process available.
With conditional accreditation, the commission will return in six months for another full survey.
“The Joint Commission doesn’t exist to put the hospital out of business but to raise the bar,” he said, adding that the commission has “really raised the bar” and the survey isn’t the same as the one the hospital passed before.
Doloresco said the hospital is in the process of recruiting someone whose only job will be to keep the hospital up to date on accreditation requirements.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Doloresco discusses Joint Commission findings

[From WAKG]
"Three months ago, Danville Regional Medical Center (DRMC) received a preliminary denial of accreditation from the Joint Commission On Accreditation Of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). Today, hospital CEO Art Doloresco spoke to local business leaders, telling them that all of the major problems cited by the Commission have been addressed and/or corrected. He cited 22 of the 500+ standards that were judged to be non-compliant by the Commission. Some of the problems dealth with the hospital's method of keeping records, but the medical staff was also called to task for things like failing to put dates and times on orders and using unapproved abbreviations on orders that could be misinterpreted, thereby threatening patient safety. Other problems included expired or unlabeled medications, small holes in the firewalls of the hospital's oldest building and the credentialing of physicians. While Doloresco has not presented the Commission's report in its entirety, he believes they will upgrade the hospital's position to "conditional accreditation" next month."

[From the Register & Bee]
Hospital CEO shares Joint Commission's evaluation with business leaders
Danville Register and Bee - Wednesday, May 30, 2007
DANVILLE -- Art Doloresco, CEO of Danville Regional Medical Center, shared details of the Joint Commission's March evaluation of the hospital with business leaders at a Chamber of Commerce breakfast this morning.
"It is only the second time in the United States that a hospital has revealed the Joint Commission's decision," he said.
For details about what earned the hospital a preliminary denial of accreditation, read Thursday's Register & Bee.

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Citizens Commission - next meeting

The next meeting of the Citizens' Commission is set for Tuesday, June 5, 2007, 5:15 P.M. in the Second Floor Conference Room, City Hall.

Sunday, May 27, 2007

Listen to their stories

Danville Register and Bee
Sunday, May 27, 2007

No matter what people think of Danville Regional Medical Center, its corporate parent, LifePoint Hospitals Inc., or the sale of Danville Regional to LifePoint, the community discussion now underway needs to include the hospital’s doctors, nurses, technicians and other employees who want to speak out.
During the recent Citizen’s Commission hearings in Danville and Yanceyville, N.C., the hospital employees who spoke strongly defended Danville Regional. Their point was that a number of dedicated, caring professionals worked at the hospital despite strong criticism from the community - and that the hospital’s problems were being fixed.
But what the Citizen’s Commission didn’t hear during the community meetings were current hospital employees complaining about the situation.
This week, Commission Chairman Jim Houser said the reason for that was that at least some of them were afraid they might be fired for criticizing Danville Regional. Houser interpreted that as a sign of a possible morale problem among hospital employees.
“If the morale is low, then certainly the type of services offered aren’t going to be what you’d expect them to be,” he said.
While that’s true, it’s also true that most employers don’t want their employees to speak publicly about what goes on at work. Some companies even go as far as to force their employees to sign legal agreements promising not to speak to outsiders under any circumstances.
In the case of hospitals, there are patient confidentially laws that limit what can be said about individual cases.
It’s hard to say if morale problems at Danville Regional - if they truly exist - are the result of the employee’s ability to speak out about the situation or the situation itself. But it’s probably the latter.
The Citizen’s Commission can’t do its job until it hears from current Danville Regional Medical Center employees. The commission has to get to the bottom of this situation, and it can’t do that if the only people it hears from are those who aren’t worried about speaking out.

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Drinking sand

A comment made in today's newspaper article got me to thinking....Ruth McDaniel was quoted as saying that "morale is such a nebulous thing and it's hard to characterize". The newspaper also mentioned that McDaniel denied that there was a morale problem. Personally, I don't see how that statement can be made...it feels as though morale is at an all-time low.

So, the question becomes, what can be done on the personal level? That applies to each and every employee, as well as every patient and family member. And, yes, it applies to senior management at LPNT as well as community leadership in Danville, Pittsylvania and Caswell. Problems at DRMC, whether real or perceived, will impact healthcare choices in the area and people will begin to respond by choosing a facility other than DRMC. This becomes especially painful when those who are commercially insured choose to go elsewhere.

And, for the value of this blog, what we get out of it is only as good as what goes into it. There have been suggestions by some (including from managers at the hospital) that there is no value in comments made anonymously on this blog. True, some folks have used the cover of anonymity to take low shots at community leaders, management and even each other. But the vast majority of posts on this blog (and I've read them all) have taken the conversational tone of employees talking with each other. Some are very well informed and some seem to come to the blog looking for information. If the blog made you sign your name to every post, I feel that posts would drop off by a large percentage. So, I think it's better to make sure that the comments don't get out of hand and delete a few, than to shut down an outlet for anonymous discussion.

Back to the bigger issue...perhaps the recommendations made by the Citizens Commission will give LPNT some valuable insight into issues that need to be addressed. All we can ask is that LPNT is forthcoming with the community about issues (such as Joint Commission). When more people feel that they are getting all the information they need to do their job, then maybe that paves the way to better results.

There was a quote that I used much earlier in the life of this blog, but I'll bring it back here. Maybe more people are relying on the anonymous ramblings of this blog, rumor and fiction because they aren't hearing the real information they need coming from their leaders (whoever those leaders may be)....so I'll stop rambling and leave you with some pretty good words from "The American President"...

"People want leadership. And in the absence of genuine leadership, they will listen to anyone who steps up to the microphone. They want leadership...They're so thirsty for it, they'll crawl through the desert toward a mirage, and when they discover there's no water, they'll drink the sand.
People don't drink the sand, 'cause they're thirsty...They drink it 'cause they don't know the difference."

"Hospital workers' morale in question"

Danville Register & Bee
Wednesday, May 23, 2007

DANVILLE - The recent public hearings concerning Danville Regional Medical Center revealed a lot of the issues revolving around the hospital, but there may be more problems to uncover.
A group of hospital employees didn’t testify at the three public hearings organized by the Citizen’s Commission Related to the Danville Regional Center because they were afraid they might get fired if they spoke publicly, according to Jim Houser, chairman of the commission.
The employees instead shared their concerns with Houser during private moments, he said.
Houser said that this pattern could be indicative of a morale problem at Danville Regional.
“If the morale is low, then certainly the type of services offered aren’t going to be what you’d expect them to be,” he said.
The commission met Tuesday with Ruth McDaniel, acting chief of nursing at Danville Regional, who denied there was a morale problem among the hospital’s employees.
“The word ‘morale’ is such a nebulous thing and it’s hard to characterize that,” McDaniel said, adding her staff was committed to seeing that things improved at the hospital. “We hear every concern that someone has and welcome the opportunity to address the issues in the future.”
She also denied a suggestion by commission member Arlene Creasy that another group of employees was purposefully sabotaging the hospital’s quality of care because they were upset about its July 2005 sale to LifePoint Hospitals Inc.
Houser said the commission is now reading over a 118-page transcript from the hearings the group held over the past two weeks.
The commission also has collected more than 100 surveys from hospital employees and people who attended the hearings.
Houser asked each commission member to compile the data into five different areas they feel the hospital most needs to address and to have the information ready by the group’s June 5 meeting. He also gave McDaniel and other hospital managers a task.
“Describe statistically where you were when LifePoint took over Danville Regional,” Houser said. “Where you are now and where you expect to be in the future.”
Houser said he hopes to have all of this information together by mid-June when the commission meets with its health care consultant, Keith Pryor. The commission and Pryor will then start the final phase of their mission and put together a road map detailing what the hospital can do to improve itself.
“There has been a lot of damage done and it was done in a very short time,” Houser said. “Correcting the damage is not going to happen overnight.”

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Citizens Commission meeting - May 22

There will be a Meeting of the Citizens Commission on Tuesday, May 22, 2007, 5:15 P.M. in the Fourth Floor Conference Room, City Hall, 427 Patton Street.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

"How about some constructive solutions?"

Letter to the editor - Caswell Messenger
May 16, 2007

To the editor:
A little over a year ago I wrote a letter to the editor asking this community to work together in an effort to constructively address issues related to our hospital. I defined our community as both citizens, employees, physicians and LifePoint representatives. I am disappointed to say that I have seen little progress and am deeply concerned that we are still worried about who is to blame and who's responsibility it is to "repair the damage."
It is everyone's responsibility. The issues we are facing are multi-faceted and can not be placed solely on the shoulders of LifePoint executives. Our community and our biggest asset; our hospital are facing the same issues found throughout the United States. Shortages of qualified professional staff, reimbursement issues, regulatory issues and uninsured populations lacking primary care solutions all challenge healthcare throughout our country. I ask all involved which includes everyone who uses or has the potential to use the services at Danville Regional Medical Center to begin to look outside the anger, hate, political motivations and manipulations dominating this discussion to examine the true issues of healthcare in our community.
I agree, we do have problems in Danville. I see it from all sides. I am an employee at the hospital. I am a citizen of this city. My children go to its schools. My husband has chosen this city as the home for his business. I have had and will in the future have family members treated at my local hospital. I am concerned that the present pattern of attacking, bashing, speaking without knowing the facts and pre-judgement on both sides will lead to not only the destruction of this hospital but the destruction of this community.

Do you not see how dysfunctional this entire issue has become?

Acknowledgement of problems and issues is important but the next step, the one I have not seen attempted, is to begin an effort to pull resources from all sides to work toward the common good. I keep hearing the question what is LifePoint going to do about this? I challenge the community in saying what are you doing to assist LifePoint? I challenge the employees to speak up and communicate to all the work you are doing to provide the best care possible. I challenge politicians to stop worrying about making your name be heard but to make your name be known for your honest efforts to work toward the common good. And I challenge all to constructively offer solutions not just more of the mud that is being flung from every angle.

Laurie
Danville

(NOTE: This letter also appeared in the Star Tribune)

Sunday, May 13, 2007

"What's Next?"

Danville Register and Bee
Sunday, May 13, 2007

With two of its three public hearings complete, the Citizen’s Committee investigating Danville Regional Medical Center has inadvertently raised a question that can’t be easily answered.

That question is: What’s next?

If Committee members believe the negative stories they’ve heard from patients and their families outweighs the hard work of the doctors, nurses and other staffers at Danville Regional, then what? The implications of that question are staggering for health care in this community.
Many of the problems heard during the public hearings in Chatham and Danville this week echoed similar complaints that have become a recurring theme in the letters printed on these pages. But at the Danville hearing, hospital employees defended it and offered their own perspective on the complaints.
Take, for example, this issue of the hospital’s cleanliness. One woman who spoke at both public hearings said she saw a cockroach climbing up a hospital wall and a blood-splattered toilet.
But a woman who works for the hospital’s environmental services department said at the Danville meeting that the cockroach in question could have been brought into the hospital - which is certainly true about cockroaches. As for blood on the toilet, that might not have been reported to environmental services in a timely manner.
Her explanations made sense, but it’s shocking that the cleanliness of Danville Regional has even become a public issue.
The debate over Danville Regional Medical Center has shifted in a profound way. People are no longer satisfied with being told LifePoint Hospitals Inc. recognizes that mistakes have been made and things are now being fixed.
What has changed is the hospital’s preliminary denial of accreditation - and the fact that the community hasn’t been given a clear idea of exactly what led to that finding. The preliminary denial of accreditation has given complaints about Danville Regional and LifePoint not only more credibility, but a newfound sense of urgency.
If the Joint Commission had problems with the hospital, why wouldn’t other people? That point was driven home by the speakers in Chatham, including county supervisor and attorney Hank Davis, a city police captain and a life member of the Danville Life Saving Crew.
The problem with promises is that people get tired of hearing them - and that appears to be the case with Danville Regional and LifePoint Hospitals. That’s why for all of its good intentions, the Citizen’s Committee may not be big enough to handle the real solution to the hospital’s problems.

Friday, May 11, 2007

"LifePoint says acquisitions area of renewed focus"

Wed May 2, 2007 10:53AM EDT

CHICAGO, May 2 (Reuters) - LifePoint Hospitals Inc., which has had a rocky past in assimilating acquired hospitals, said on Wednesday that acquisitions would again become an area of attention for the rural hospital chain.
Chief Executive William Carpenter told analysts at an investor meeting that the company had a list of a couple of hundred hospitals that it was grading for potential acquisition.
Carpenter said it had refined its approach to buying hospitals, having in the past grabbed at "low-hanging fruit."
He said not to expect anything immediately.
"As other companies lever up to a point that requires a unique focus on debt repayment .... there will be greater opportunities for us," he said. "We do expect that."

LifePoint shares were up 73 cents, or about 2 percent, at $37.19 in morning Nasdaq trade.

"Public seeks hospital solutions"

Committee holds meetings to gather feedback concerning Danville Regional's quality of care.
Danville Register & Bee
Thursday, May 10, 2007

DANVILLE - Former patients with stories of how they had been mistreated at Danville Regional Medical Center and hospital employees who defended where they worked testified Thursday at a public hearing.
But no matter what they said, the speakers and the 100 people in the audience were united by a desire to see things at the hospital improve and a hope that LifePoint Hospitals Inc. would listen to what they had to say.
“All of the committees, public hearings, lynch mobs, what have you, aren’t going to fix our problem,” Rita Smith said at the second public hearing organized by the Citizen’s Committee Related to the Danville Regional Medical Center.
“(LifePoint will) have two choices: they can accept the solutions or not,” Smith said. “Then we’ll have two choices. We can hang it up or consider bringing a new hospital to this town.”
The committee is holding a total of three public hearings to gather feedback concerning Danville Regional’s quality of care since LifePoint purchased the hospital in July 2005.
The commission held a similar hearing Tuesday night in Chatham. It plans to hold a third hearing at 7 p.m. May 15 at Yanceyville’s Municipal Services Building in Yanceyville, N.C.
Jim Houser, co-chairman of the Citzen’s Committee, said his group would use testimony from these hearings to come up with a series of recommendations on how the hospital could improve and become a place Dan River Region residents are proud to call their own.
“Some of the pieces are falling into place, but right now we’re just working on a puzzle,” Houser said, adding he would present the report to Mayor Wayne Williams and the Danville City Council when it was completed.
But both Houser and Williams said there was nothing they could do to make LifePoint follow the commission’s recommendations because it was a private corporation. They too are relying on hope.
“I sincerely think that LifePoint wants the hospital to be trusted,” Williams said Thursday night. “Following the commission’s recommendations would give them an avenue to earn that trust.”

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

"Angry crowd blasts hospital"

Danville Register & Bee
Wednesday, May 9, 2007

CHATHAM - A seemingly never-ending line of people voiced their displeasure about the quality of care at Danville Regional Medical Center at a public hearing Tuesday at Chatham Middle School.
The public hearing, the first of three, was organized by the Citizen’s Committee Related to Danville Regional Medical Center.
The hearing was moderated by Jim Houser, co-chairman of the committee, which was formed in March by Mayor Wayne Williams.
Houser said the seven-member committee was not formed to “fix things” at the hospital, but to make recommendations on how to improve the quality of health care.
“We want Danville Regional Medical Center to be a place of pride,” Houser told the crowd.
The crowd, consisting of at least 100 people, came armed with detailed accounts of unpleasant experiences at the hospital.
Bettie Bailey told the story of how her father died in her arms in February, vividly describing the lack of attention he received before passing away.
Bailey said had she and her sister not been by his bedside during his time in the hospital, her father “would not have received a bath, had his bed changed or even been able to reach his food.”
When her father’s health began to decline right in front of his daughters, Bailey said they rang the nurse’s bell three times and received no response. By the time help did arrive, her father was already dead.
Lisa Murphy said service at the hospital was pretty good until about 2003. Murphy was fighting back tears as she recalled how she was misdiagnosed and given medicine that she did not need. Murphy said at one point a nurse literally shoved medicine into her mouth.
“I just don’t want this to happen to anybody else,” she said.
People also complained of spending several hours waiting to be seen by a doctor.
Glenna Lingafelt, the mayor of Gretna, said her husband once had to wait seven hours before being seen by a doctor, while one of her friends had to wait 11 hours.
“We beg those of you in control to solve these problems,” Lingafelt pleaded to the committee.
Many in the audience were as critical of Danville Regional’s current owners, LifePoint Hospitals Inc. Lifepoint purchased Danville Regional on July 1, 2005.

NOT JUST PATIENT
The patients of the hospital are not the only one lobbying for improvements.
Karen McClure, representing hospital workers who did not want to publicly criticize their employer, said LifePoint “promised no layoffs, firing or changing of staff” after acquiring the hospital.
“That has been an outright lie,” she said. “The staff change has been significant.”
McClure also noted that much of the equipment in the hospital is “notoriously old,” including computers that were “20 years out-of-date when they (were) purchased by LifePoint.”
Leslie Smith, Danville Regional’s community affairs and media relations coordinator, said that in her 14 years working there she had never seen ownership reach the “political level” that it’s at now.
The workers also feel disrespected by ownership in that they were lied to and are cast away without a second thought.
Calling it a “corporate takeover,” Danville Life Saving Crew veteran Steve Adkins said he witnessed disregard for workers who resigned due to LifePoint’s poor ownership.
“No one was asked why they were leaving or where they were going,” Adkins said. “If that’s not demoralizing for the people still working there, then I don’t know what is.”

TIME FOR A CHANGE
“(In) two years, they’ve gone constantly downhill,” Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors Chairman Coy Harville said. “They do not listen to the community. What (the community) is trying to communicate is that the hospital has changed.”
Art Doloresco, chief executive officer of Danville Regional, said that though he’s been hearing many negative comments, it’s good that the people are speaking out about the hospital.
“It’s never good to hear the negative comments about something you put a lot of stock into,” Doloresco said. “But it’s good that people are speaking up.”
Williams said that he’s heard both positive and negative comments regarding the hospital, and will relay all of them to the committee.
“The first step in improving things is gathering information,” Williams said.
Doloresco agreed.
“I think we need to let the commission finish their work,” Doloresco said. “Then I think it will give us a chance to think positively and change the attitude of the hospital in the community. But it has to be done collectively.”
Doloresco’s comments echoed the parting words Houser left with the crowd.
“Every time someone goes elsewhere for their medical needs, they’re essentially firing Danville Regional,” he said. “For the hospital to move forward, we have to be proactive. The mindset of everyone has to change.”

Tuesday, May 8, 2007

Citizens Committee public hearings begin May 8

Citizen's Committee to hold first public hearing
Concerned residents will get their chance to speak out about Danville Regional this evening in Chatham.
Danville Register & Bee
Tuesday, May 8, 2007

DANVILLE - The first public hearing set up by the Citizen’s Committee Related to the Danville Regional Medical Center will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. tonight at Chatham High School.
A second hearing will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at O.T. Bonner Middle School in Danville, with a third hearing scheduled for May 15 in Yanceyville, N.C.
The committee is asking people who want to speak to sign up at the start of each meeting.
Jim Houser, who co-chairs the committee, said that only 30 people would be guaranteed a chance to speak at each event.
Houser is asking speakers to limit their remarks to three minutes and groups of people who have the same concern are asked to select a spokesperson.
“We want to have as many different concerns brought up as we can,” Houser said.
Danville Mayor Wayne Williams formed the commission on March 6. He asked the group’s seven members to gather information about how Danville Regional’s quality of care has changed since Lifepoint Hospitals Inc. purchased the hospital in July 2005.
Houser said the top two issues of concern have been Danville Regional’s staffing levels and the quality of care present at the hospital’s emergency room.
The Citizen’s Committee will review all the information the group has collected at its next meeting on May 22. Houser said the group will discuss the community’s main concerns with its health care consultant.

How about some good news for a change?

Community Foundation gets $1.1 million grant
Charitable organizations and college-bound students will benefit from the Danville Regional Foundation donation.
Danville Register & Bee
Tuesday, May 8, 2007

DANVILLE - The Danville Regional Foundation announced Monday that it has given a $1.1 million grant to the Community Foundation of the Dan River Region.
“We’re very excited,” said Community Foundation Executive Director Debra Dodson. “This will pretty much double our grant making for next year.”
The Community Foundation, established in 1996, awarded $304,275 in grants to 41 charitable organizations in the Dan River Region earlier this year. It also awarded $200,000 in scholarships to 43 area students in June 2006.
The Danville Regional Foundation, which was formed with the proceeds from LifePoint Hospitals Inc.’s purchase of the Danville Regional Medical Center in July 2005, stipulated that at least half of its gift be used to fund projects in health care and human services.
Dodson said representatives from the two foundations have met several times in the past year. Danville Regional Foundation Chairman B.R. Ashby said the group will take advantage of the Community Foundation’s existing infrastructure as it builds one of its own.
“The Community Foundation can use its organization and grant-making process to address some of the short-term and more urgent charitable needs in our community,” Ashby said in a Monday news release. “In the meanwhile, the Regional Foundation will continue to focus on planning and putting in place policies and procedures for longer term grants.”
Dodson said the Community Foundation would use its regular grant making procedure to award the extra money it received from the Danville Regional Foundation.
The Community Foundation has granted more than $5 million to area nonprofit organizations since its formation.
Any 501c3 organization interested in applying for a Community Foundation grant should call (434) 793-0884.
“We think this is going to be a really good partnership,” Dodson said. “There are a lot of needs in the area and this money could help ease some suffering.”

Monday, May 7, 2007

Letter in Tuesday's paper

They could do much more
To the editor:
Regarding the editorial, “Who pays?” (April 23, page A8), about whether Danville City Council or the Danville Regional Foundation should pay the bill for a consultant to evaluate the situation at Danville Regional Medical Center, I was under the impression that the foundation was established to improve the health, education and the welfare of the citizens served by the hospital.
Putting their proverbial money where their mouth is indicates to me that the foundation is taking action to achieve part of its mission responsibly by paying the consultant’s bill.
The foundation might further consider establishing a free-standing, permanent empowerment and advocacy center for the citizens in this area so they may never again be duped by the likes of boys at the bank. The center could educate ordinary citizens about their rights and responsibilities, not only regarding health care, but civic issues as well. Imagine area citizens having the ongoing opportunity to empower themselves and gaining confidence to speak up for themselves, be informed enough to ask important questions and then become involved enough to expect more of those who lead them!
Perhaps people who are upset that the foundation is footing the consultant’s bill could propose the city contribute that mere drop in the bucket of $25,000 to help co-sponsor the building of such an empowerment center.
PAULA
Danville

Sunday, May 6, 2007

Friday, May 4, 2007

Public Forums - times and rules

PUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN on behalf of the Citizens Commission of the City of Danville, Virginia, that Public Forums will be conducted on the dates, times, and locations listed below for the purpose of receiving citizens’ input about what is both good and bad about the care and services offered at Danville Regional Medical Center.
• Tuesday, May 8, 2007, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Chatham High School, 100 Cavalier Circle, Chatham, VA
• Thursday, May 10, 2007, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
O. T. Bonner Middle School, 300 Apollo Drive, Danville, VA
• Tuesday, May 15, 2007, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Yanceyville Municipal Services Building
158 East Church Street, Yanceyville, NC (Across from Courthouse).

DOORS WILL OPEN AT EACH LOCATION AT 6:00 P.M. SPEAKERS ARE REQUESTED TO ARRIVE EARLY TO SIGN IN AND WILL BE CALLED TO SPEAK ON A FIRST-COME-FIRST-SERVED BASIS. FORUMS WILL BEGIN PROMPTLY AT 7:00 P.M.

GUIDELINES FOR CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
􀂃 Each speaker will sign in at door upon arrival.
􀂃 Speakers will be seated in designated area.
􀂃 Go directly to microphone when name is called.
􀂃 Thirty (30) citizens will be allowed to speak for three (3) minutes each.
􀂃 One (1) spokesperson will be allowed for groups.

For further details, contact Co-Chairman Jim Houser at 434-792-3035 or Co-Chairman Clarissa Knight at 434-836-6277.

BY AUTHORITY OF THE COMMISSION
Annette Y. Crane, City Clerk
Clerk to the Commission

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

Citizens Commission meets tonight

"The next meeting of the Citizens Commission will take place on Tuesday, May 1, 2007, 5:15 P.M. in the 2ND FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, City Hall, 427 Patton Street."

http://www.danville-va.gov/page.asp?menuid=2820&sub1menuid=2824&sub2menuid=10761

Public hearings start next week:
May 8 - Chatham High School
May 10 - O.T. Bonner Middle School
May 15 - Yanceyville Town Hall community room (Yanceyville, N.C.)
7:00 pm

UPDATE: Okay, when I posted this, I posted it straight from the Commission website...the note above said the meeting was on Tuesday May 1. I looked at the Commission website today and the note says that the meeting "scheduled for Thursday, May 3...is cancelled". Why the date switch and, more importantly, why was it cancelled?

Who's on first?