Sunday, May 10, 2009

Danville Regional CEO gets 18-month check up

Register & Bee Published: May 9, 2009

Jerel Humphrey, CEO of Danville Regional Medical Center, took time last week to reflect on what has been accomplished at the hospital during the almost 18 months he has been at the helm.
Humphrey, most often seen without a tie and wearing a sweater vest, laughs and jokes easily, but quickly turns serious when talking about what has transpired for the good and what still needs to be done at the hospital since its purchase by LifePoint Hospitals Inc. four years ago.
In a January 2008 interview with the Danville Register & Bee three months into his tenure, Humphrey said the hospital was still putting its executive team together. He said Tuesday that had been accomplished.
“We’ve now had a year-plus of an administration team working together,” he said. “We have rounded out our team and have Becky Logan as our chief nursing officer and Mark Anderson as our chief financial officer. Eric Barber has been added as a chief operating officer, and our chief medical officer is Tim Starling, a past president of the medical staff, as well as having served 32 years as a nephrologist with the Danville Urology Clinic. Frank Campbell has become the chairman of the board.”
Another area that has become more focused in the past year has been community outreach. Although the hospital has “sporadically” helped with community organizations in the past, Humphrey said this past year the hospital has tried to be more consistent with it.
“(Recently) we’ve done fundraising with the Free Clinic of Danville, signed a contract with PATHS and worked with Salvation Army,” he said.
Other community organizations that have been supported by Danville Regional through sponsorships and donations include Habitat for Humanity, the Free Clinic of Danville, the Boy Scouts, Special Olympics, the Langhorne House, the Danville Life Saving Crew and the YMCA, among many others.
The hospital’s 2008 Community Benefit Report reveals it has spent $21 million on charity care and bad debt; $172.1 million on government-sponsored health care (Medicare and Medicaid); $705,104 in community benefit programs ($35,820 in financial contributions, $94,585 in health professionals education and $574,699 in physician recruitment); and $896,000 in state taxes, $224,000 in local sales tax and $832,000 in property taxes.
Recalling the initial theme for his leadership as building trust with the community, Humphrey said he has made himself available and given talks to several community groups.
“The feedback has been that people appreciate open communication, our recommitment to the community and our recruitment efforts to bring in new physicians,” he said.
In the past year, 12 new physicians have been recruited, a process that can be lengthy.
“We identify people who want to come and then we have to get them properly credentialed to be on our medical staff and then sign any agreements involved,” Humphrey said, adding with a laugh, “And then they have to come.”
The number of physicians leaving the area has “trickled,” he said.
The hospital has received nothing but good comments about the re-affiliation of the Duke Heart Center with the hospital’s Heart Center of the Piedmont at Danville Regional Medical Center for the hospital’s cardiovascular services, according to Humphrey.
“The agreements with Duke are fully signed, and Dr. Richard Embrey, the cardiothoracic surgeon, has seen a doubling of his cases already,” Humphrey said. “The (open-heart surgery) volumes are very much coming back.”
In another partnership, Danville Regional is working with the LifePoint-owned Martinsville Memorial Hospital to provide cardiology care for their patients.
“The need for cardiology coverage in Martinsville is greater than the cardiologists in the area can currently provide, so we met with and requested that the Danville cardiologists assist with the coverage issue,” Humphrey said. “To their credit, they became credentialed and privileged to practice in Martinsville. Duke Heart Services is also lending its support with one of their cardiologists covering two days a week and the Danville cardiologists covering three days a week, which includes some Saturdays.”
He said that was an intermediate measure, since the Martinsville hospital is currently recruiting cardiologists.
Danville Regional has also partnered with the Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine to bring in a residency program, which Humphrey said has brought positive comments from the community.
“The hospitalist program has also been getting a lot of positive comments from physicians and the patients being taken care of,” Humphrey said.
Hospitalists care for the patients in the hospital once they are admitted by their own physician.
Four hospitalists out of the current 15 on staff are scheduled to leave, one to pursue a fellowship and others for family reasons; however, the hospital is actively recruiting for replacements.

Millions in investments
Since LifePoint purchased Danville Regional Medical Center, the corporation has invested about $45 million in the hospital for facility improvements and equipment.
“We really do hear a lot of positive comments about the continued investment into the infrastructure of the hospital,” Humphrey said.
He cited the nursing staff as another big plus for the hospital and said that the usage of contract nursing staff has been eliminated, which he calls a “major accomplishment.”
“We have about a 5 percent turnover rate now, which is outstanding, and we are very proud of that,” he said. “The majority of the class (graduating from the hospital’s School of Nursing) this year will be hired. That’s always our game plan with the nursing school program.”
The nursing staff is “basically” fully staffed at this time, although Humphrey said that there is always some ebb and flow.
The patient census, or the number of admitted patients in the hospital at any given time, also has peaks and valleys, he said, but remains solid.
“We’ve seen a little softening of the census with the economic downturn and people putting elective procedures off as long as can,” he said. “Some of the physicians also say their patient loads are up and down. It’s really uneven right now.”
In other initiatives in the past year, the hospital has just opened a wound treatment center and an inpatient rehabilitation center and purchased another bloodmobile.

Revisiting impressions
New to the area 18 months ago, Humphrey said that his initial impressions of the Danville community were that “the people in Danville are open and friendly, there is a great future with all the economic developments and nobody knows how to merge.”
On Tuesday, Humphrey revisited those observations and said that the Danville community is still open and friendly and that, although economic development has been “stymied,” he remains “cautiously optimistic.”
On that last count, however, he holds to his original opinion, as many others do, that Danvillians are still merging-impaired.

1,159 comments:

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Anonymous said...

Tackling the tough issues at Danville Regional

By SUSAN ELZEY
Special to the Register & Bee
Published: May 9, 2009

Danville Regional Medical Center still hasn’t found the genie in the bottle to twinkle her nose and solve all the problems in the emergency room, but hospital CEO Jerel Humphrey said they continue to strive for improved, faster service.

“We continue to work on the ER,” he said. “When we look at patient satisfaction scores and the feedback we get, for the most part we see improvement. But we are still working and will continue to work on the ER.”

Although the wait times have improved and the ER is fully staffed, he said time spent waiting to get care remains “a problem.”

“We continue to work on that,” he said. “We aren’t giving up on it. It isn’t where we want it to be, but it may never be. We handle true emergencies in an expeditious manner, but it’s the people needing what I consider primary care who wind up waiting the longest.”

The hospital opened its Urgent Care clinic across the street from the ER in July 2007, hoping to funnel patients there who were in need of non-emergency primary care, but that was closed a year later and moved back into the ER because patients were not using it.

“Prior to the opening of Urgent Care, patients seeking ‘primary and/or urgent type care’ were seen in the Fast Track area of the ED,” Humphrey explained. “Urgent Care was opened, and began seeing these type patients; however, we found the service to be greatly underused, and the decision was made to move the ‘urgent care’ back into the Fast Track service offered in the ED.”

He said that as long as patients seek non-emergency care in the ER, it will “continue to be a problem and put a burden on the system.”

An increased volume of patients in the ER also affects wait times. Humphrey said he doesn’t know if the current unemployment situation in Danville has brought about the increased volume, but said that on some days the ER sees 150 patients, as opposed the usual average of 100.

A new clinical and electronic documentation system is being introduced that will hopefully improve wait times, Humphrey said, by “improving information access for all providers (nurses, doctors, other clinicians, etc.) and resulting in an enhanced provision of care to the patient.”

Following up on complaints

The morning of the day that Humphrey was interviewed, a letter to the editor appeared in the Danville Register & Bee that was highly critical of the care one family received in the ER.

Humphrey said the family who wrote the letter had already been contacted and the facts surrounding the incident were being investigated.

“We strive to be perfect, and it hurts when we’re not,” he said. “We take each issue very seriously and follow up on all that. At the same time, I get many letters on a daily basis thanking us for extremely good care, so it’s a balance. But every time we see something like that (letter), we follow up (and) work hard to validate it and take corrective action.”

Humphrey said he and Eric Barber, the COO, are “committed to following up and resolving customer concerns.”

“All of our senior managers work hand in hand with Chenise Blackwell, our patient advocate, in resolving patient issues,” he said.

Anonymous said...

"improving information access for all providers (nurses, doctors, other clinicians, etc.) and resulting in an enhanced provision of care to the patient.”

Kinda hard to do when lifepoint keeps "laying off" and firing clinicians.

“committed to following up and resolving customer concerns.”

How about the one about constantly declining services, layoffs, lack of sufficient staffing and the constant stream of propaganda from lifepoint ?

And of course an Urgent care across the street from the ER
(not really across the street)
didn't work , it needs to be integral to the reception area of the ER, lifepoint is trying to make the general public decide what is life threatening. that is the hospitals job, a better idea would be to have it adjoining the ER so that the triage RN could direct patients to one or the other
(basically the meaning of triage)
But if they could lifepoint would have families staff the hospital and take care of their own family members and collect the insurance/government checks.
More smoke and mirrors...

Anonymous said...

OK, what I see is Humphries is trying to get E.R. to churn them out fast for the quick buck. Good medical care is not his concern, just the profits. Humphries investigating a complaint; give me a break. He takes complaints and sweeps them under the carpet and responding is not part of his agenda. Than is "first hand" knowledge. He does not want to hear about your problems, he is there for a paycheck only.

Anonymous said...

Humphrey speak to the workers? Hahahahahaha that's funny!
Resolve a complaint? Are you kidding?
CEO,CNO,COO answer well...ANY correspondence from employees or ANYONE ? never happen.
They only respond to the media as a source to spread propoganda in an attempt to blow sunshine up everyone's rear. Gimme a break.
lifepoint is and will always be a joke and a money sucking leech.
Any other business(yes it's a corporation now NOT a hospital)would have been run out of town by now by a city council with any intestinal fortitude.
Of course if the city had any sense to start with they would have made sure the ONLY hospital in an economically depressed area was sold to a NONPROFIT high quality facility in the first place instead of sit passively to the detriment of the public they are supposed to serve...
Good thing the REAL hospitals aren't that far away!

Anonymous said...

Just to remind everyone, Danville City Council has NO AUTHORITY over DRMC. The Virginia Department of Health regulates and oversees hospitals

Anonymous said...

Just to remind you and everyone for voting.
The city did have the authority to contact said agency and convey the concerns of the citizens, a move they failed to make due to money and petty politics and ignorance. They are responsible for the safety and services "provision" for the area.

Anonymous said...

Well, how interesting, again those who have not clue are commenting, or maybe you do have a clue but do not want to work any harder than you have in the past. I must say that it is very pleasant to take cigarette breaks every 3o minutes while patients are waiting for help. No wonder the patients are complaining! Lets talk about priorities here! But then you are the first to complain about administration, they don't "listen", and how "short staffed" you are, and how "difficult" it is nowadays. Listen people, things have changed!! you are going to have to actually do some "work" if you want to keep your job. Gone are the good old days when you could just do the minimum amount of work, and everything was fun and easy.
So why would they (admin) want to listen to you complain about how hard it is when they KNOW you are really not working all that hard!! I am tired of picking up your slack , and listening to your constant complaining and dealing with your bad attitudes. I'm just happy I have a job and don't have to collect unemployment. I will do everything in my power to keep this job. I guess some of you don't really care about working. Just collect that paycheck.
So you can't really have it both ways, if you want to really be the professional person that you should be, and want to be heard, start acting like you care about people other than yourselves, and guess what, one day it may be you, and you will know what if feels like to be on the other end and hopefully have someone who actually cares about your welfare taking care of you!!

Anonymous said...

oh yeah, lets blame it on the city council......gotta blame somebody!!

Anonymous said...

City council has let down Danville for decades.
Friends and family forms of gov't don't work.
I guess you don't realize that the poster above you does.

Anonymous said...

oh geez I'm sorry, I thought city council officials were elected!! My bad, I guess the locals had no vote in who sits on the council.

Anonymous said...

They basically don't, the rich have controlled this city for too long whether by fooling people into thinking they had a clue only to be proven corrupt or by appointing each other to whichever board had the influence they wanted to control. The public can't control the "boards" and the crooked self-appointed circles that staff them.

Anonymous said...

"start acting like you care about people other than yourselves"

So I guess you've given your free time to the DLSC or volunteer fire departments? I bet not. But you're such a saint !

You know what professional is ? It's knowing that the facility that you bust your butt for is taking advantage of you and EVERY patient that you care about for 12 or more hours at a time multiple days a week and knowing the facility has degraded it's quality to unbelievable levels and speaking out about it, and leaving to go to a facility that does care about it's patients and staff, and still caring about the facility that was once a quality hospital alas NO MORE. Yet you are to foolish to recognize it.
Danville was a quality facility, now it's a laughing stock even many miles away.
But you'll save it, ignore the danger your patients are in and jump when they crack the whip and it'll all be grand...

Anonymous said...

The buildings at DRMC are having a number of maintenance issues.
There are issues regarding biomedical servicing of equipment and being in arrears getting equipment repaired in a timely manner.
Elevators are old and frequently break down, even those in newer areas have been out of service for extended periods.
There have been a number of plumbing issues in some of the buildings in the past year.
Carts, patient equipment,beds not in use or broken,dirty food trays clutter the hallways, elevator service areas and work areas on most units. on a day to day basis making safe passage for vistors,patients and staff difficult at times.
Nursing stations are cluttered with excess paper,reports, cast aside charts from hurried work,lab requisitins laid here/there as disorganized workers flit about trying to "catch up" wity whatever is the task of the moment.
Physicians question staff in a search for needed patient info that the staff has no clue about as thery are are only vaguely familiar with those in their
care because they just task versus think or plan care.hey see the same struggle in the work of the now "more experienced" coworkers,
It goes on and on these carefree and careless ways. It is all a product of a workplace that has come to be one that recognizes that today can be "all good" or just "get around to it" and it doesn't matter. The management really doen't care, just have a set number of workers show up and make a half way effort to get something done. Employees see it, try it and realize minimal effort really is all that's required no matter how hard you really want to try.

Anonymous said...

Ah yes, too few employees to do a really good job, tasked based nursing, no planned care, doing things haphazardly that (when it WAS a REAL hospital) would have gotten you fired, a substandard computer program (meditech) the lovely(pathetic) lifepoint state of noncare.

Anonymous said...

Good points above we always talk about the nurses but many support folks are gone as well. Biomedical at one time had six people and they did just about anything asked. They keep most parts needed like cables and EKG leads. Now they only have two that know what they are doing. Everything has to be ordered and it can take weeks. Maintenance the same years ago they had twenty guys now may be eight. Both departments could fix just about anything on the spot. Now they come look if it's simple they will repair it if not they have to order parts or call a service company to come and fix it.
Both departments did some much and now do so little kind of like the rest of the Hospital. We call this progress? A better Hospital? I don't get it.

Anonymous said...

This is just getting sadder and sadder. It appears that the only two posters above that are worth anything are the ones that challenge the whining with the truth. Now there's a novel idea.

Anonymous said...

Truth: lifepoint is PATHETIC.
Truth: settling for substandard healthcare even more pathetic.
Truth: not recognizing that fact worst of all.

Anonymous said...

Truth: Standing on the sidelines and throwing rocks cures no ills.

Grow up...go away. Leave the job of improvng to those of us that are still here and trying.

Anonymous said...

Suffered though the "changeover" watched patients suffer the degredation of service.
Left the pathetic mess.

"Leave the job of improving to those of us that are still here and trying."

No more foolish can one be than to be fooled by a fool.
If you think lifepoint's disgraceful corporate strategy will ever change to benefit the patients you're dreaming.
I worry because the quality hospital my family was depending on being there should they need it is gone.
If you can't realize the threat to quality is lifepoint you'll never fix it, they hope everyone will be as easy to manipulate as you are.

Anonymous said...

I've never harmed a patient...and never let a patient be harmed...no matter whose name was on my paycheck. You're out of line and still just need to go away. Find a place you're happy with and hang out there.

Anonymous said...

"Ignorance of one's ignorance is the malady of the ignorant."
Benson Alcott

Those who have left cannot affect change at DRMC. There are many of us who remain or who have come anew, and are working to make the place better. Do not mistake this for agreeing with Lifepoint policies or being manipulated. Those who have chosen to leave have in fact abandoned their responsibilities, their families and their neighbors. You want to make a difference? Come back to DRMC and make a positive contribution: work hard, help colleagues, set a good example and try to gradually change the culture for the better.

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

Teddy Roosevelt

Anonymous said...

Words for us all to live by. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Change for the better is not profitable, therefore, don't expect any one of the many good folks at DRMC to be able to cause change for the better, no matter how hard they try. They will be deemed a nuisance by those in command. Suggestions for improvement meet deaf ears. You want change: go somewhere that actually cares about their reputation.

Anonymous said...

Statistics show (I've done the research do your own) that more patient load on a single care provider increases every other patients risk of death exponentially. By accepting "UNSAFE" staffing levels(and working FOR lifepoint you have)you HAVE put your patients at risk (ie you have harmed them.)
Unless you refused an assignment, I seriously doubt you have the intestinal fortitude to do that even though you have the legal right, but I suspect lifepoint has hidden the forms.
Oh and we who left did not abandon our duty , first we have to have had a "duty to act" we have no such duty to lifepoint until we were to accept a negligent position there.
Our families will be, and have been, provided for by the real hospitals of NC and farther North in VA.
Get a grip lifepoint does not care about you or the patients.

Anonymous said...

Lifepoint is as we already know a horrible institution to work for or be involved withas a patient. As poorly as it is run I am finding that the various hospitals owned by lifepoint are run at different levels of competence. It seems that a few of their CEOs do actually try to im prove things.. I wonder how conducive that is to job security. Case in point: Martinsville: The doctors and patients have a higher satisfaction. Danville is one of the worst (if not the worst) in the corporation due to the deceptive leadership practices of Mr. Humphries. This makes me wonder what this hospital would do under Lifepoint if they actually put a human being at the top. Of course Jess Judy would still be involved and they don't gete any more useless that that.

Anonymous said...

Martinsville had nowhere to go but up. And just as a thought: none of the CEO's danville has had, under lifepoint, have been worth 2 cents.

Anonymous said...

"Statistics show (I've done the research do your own) that more patient load on a single care provider increases every other patients risk of death exponentially. "

Your song's gettig old. Find a new pastime.

Anonymous said...

Ok, how about : Don't worry be happy ?
You can whistle that while your patients suffer from neglect due to overstaffing.

That post above you is right-on

Anonymous said...

Knife point is Knife point..No Change ...

Anonymous said...

Never have seen neglect from over staffing. LOL

Anonymous said...

that was a typo they meant UNDERSTAFFING :)

Or as lifepoint likes to call it : normal...

Anonymous said...

...or maybe more accurately, normal for anywhere but Danville. You see, we're special here.

Anonymous said...

Uh no, states are progressively passing laws on staffing to defeat ... you guessed it corporate hospital understaffing, you see they recognize the threat to lives, danville and lifepoint do not.

Anonymous said...

So...lets talk about the data that California staffing lawas have shown no effect on mortality rate. Add to that anecdotal storeis like my own, where my Grandmother was the lucky recipient of the famous 4-1 staffing and it was the single worse care I had ever experienced as a family member. Top that one.

Anonymous said...

Better check your research again The staffing law will not change anything until ENACTED...when staffing is appropriate mortality does decrease, as for your experience if you worry and pester the staff it is known to lead to staff anxiety and they will avoid doing things in your presence.

Anonymous said...

YOU MORON....you actually have the audacity to blame a patient's family for the poor care. The truth is I watched and observed for hours just hoping things would change. I was as polite as could be...that doesn't excuse the blatant lack of care my grandmother recieved in a 4-1 nurse/pt. ratio. The world of healthcare is so much better off without you. Please do us all a favor and change professions. Any more lame_ss excuses? You're one sick puppy.

Anonymous said...

I also watched as a loved one slipped away uncomfortable and uncared for. Nurses spread too thin, and useless others. The care only improved after she was moved to a different hospital. Complaints to those in authority fall on deaf ears. No response at all.

Anonymous said...

"Nurses spread too thin, and useless others. The care only improved after she was moved to a different hospital. "

This poster verified the point I was trying to make, but from your posts your a bit of a hothead, point made there too.

Anonymous said...

Hothead...or simply one who calls a spade a spade?

Anonymous said...

No, I am not a hothead. I saw first hand how much this hospital does not care and heard that straight from the CEO (not third-party). He pretty much made it clear he has no intention of doing anything about the issues. So, I am not a hothead, just one who knows that good medical care is available ELSEWHERE.

Anonymous said...

"I saw first hand how much this hospital does not care and heard that straight from the CEO (not third-party)."

I did and do agree with you 100 %.
We seem to be at common ground now.
I despise lifepoint and always have, I will not work at a "for profit/corporate" hospital.I care too much about my patients and their families for that.

Anonymous said...

Then quit posting. Close the door...move on...and leave the rest of us that are still here alone. No need for you to voice your opinion unless you're a patient.

Anonymous said...

Everyone has the right to an opinion good, bad, right or wrong. I thought that was what a blog was about. I say if you don't like what you read then don't read it! I bet you are the type to complain about a TV show instead of changing the channel.

Anonymous said...

What kind of statement is "No need for you to voice your opinion unless you're a patient". We need to collectively support those patients who are unable to post here. A patient is lost due to poor healthcare at DRMC....How do they post here. If you can not say anything resembling even a little intelligence, just go away.

Anonymous said...

Please don't play like you're advoacting when all you do with your post is piss and moan.

Anonymous said...

Please don't play like you're advocating when all you do with your post is piss and moan.

Anonymous said...

One of the wicked witches released her monkeys on a coworker. Now, we have to sit back and wait for the house to fall on HER.....again.

Anonymous said...

Is it the witch of the East or the West?

Anonymous said...

Those that know the events know whose broom's GPS is set to take them directly to the nursing director's office.

Anonymous said...

People of Danville, please come to realize Moses Cone Health System is NOT coming to rescue your community by purchasing the hospital !
The Cone system is continuing to grow and reinvent itself and it's current campuses and facilities in it's current market.That healthcare system and it's regional competitors do not have the need to come to Danville. Cone & the other regional providers are content to take the share of consumers that are on the fringe of Danville that would consider going to Cone or elsewhere. Trust me, that's a fair number of fringe customers.
DRMC will continue to capture those that are allegiant to DRMC (fewer each quarter) or have no other choice, for various reasons, to go there. It is despicable that the DRMC organization recognizes that and at the same time knows it has only to provide limited, basic services and at only minimilist standards to appease regulatory agencies.
By the way, DRMC has a Joint Commission visit coming in the next 60 days or less and there is concern about the results. Staff, not just nursing staff, are in a continuous cycle,like a hamster on a wheel to "catch up" and do & say all the right things. At least for the inspection, then there will be a period of relapse and much will fall to the side until it MUST be put right again. We can never seem to get it right and keep it right as there is just not the degree of cohesiveness needed to maintain the standards.

Anonymous said...

Oh look Centra has graciously bestowed a Neurosurgeon upon us..
Wait a Centra office is now open and advertising in Danville.
Hmmm a top 100 safest hospitals with a danville office and right beside immediate care Hmm looks like someone is listening (NONprofit Centra) and a Joint Comm. visit pending ? Wonder what window dressing lifepoint will try to pull this time ?

Anonymous said...

Based on previous history, documented complaints will have Lifepoint doctoring records to prove someone wrong. Fact is, this would not be the first time. I am speaking form first hand knowledge. For the sake of all involved, have no trust, faith, or confidence in Jeral Humphreys.

Anonymous said...

You're right, first hand knowledge here too...

Anonymous said...

Have no fear...paranoia reigns supreme in the good town of Danville. We can all sleep well, knowing that first hand knowledge abounds and that while we rest, goblins are changing records left and right. Who knows, we might all end up with a million bucks in the bank.
If you're so sure, call JCAHO and give them your name and the information...what do you have to lose...except the truth? (800) 994-6610 is the number. Gentlemen, start your fingers!

Anonymous said...

How bout the patient on 6a that died a couple of weeks ago.He had a lawsuit against DRMC for the lack of care he received as a result of a 12hour ER wait a year or so ago.This has been in the local newspaper.
In his most recent hospital stay, he at one point was a do not recusitate patient .At some point, his status was changed and all lifesaving methods were to be carried out if he had cardiac arrest.
The night he had cardiac arrest, no efforts were made by the staff to resusitate him.He died while the staff ASSUMED he was still a do-not-resusitate patient.
No, you won't read about this because it has been kept under raps except for an inside hospital investigation.

Anonymous said...

I am not afraid to make it known what this hospital does to cover its tracks. Call JCAHO? I have filed paperwork with the VDH and an investigation pursued. Investigators were misled. There are 3 doctors and myself who are well aware of what this hospital did to save itself. That is one of 5 instances that I'm aware of. I prefer to stay anonymous on this blog and discussing the others would reveal my identity. You can bet Humphreys knows who this is though. I never give up.

Anonymous said...

So, let me ask a really basic question: If Mr. Scruggs (the plaintiff in the 2006 EMTALA lawsuit against DRMC) received such horrendous care in the DRMC ER that he filed a suit against the hospital, why on God's green earth would he ever allow himself to be readmitted there? That makes absoultely no sense whatsoever. Something doesn't add up here.

Anonymous said...

I would also add that if the VDH investigators were misled by DRMC, then the fault lies with the Department of Health. Any investigator worth a hoot goes into such investigations with their eyes open KNOWING that the people they are investigating might try and misrepresent things. People have been known to lie to the police before ....

Another possible explanation is that VDH investigated and did not find sufficient grounds for pursuing the complaint. Perhaps there is no conspiracy here, just lack of real evidence.

Anonymous said...

"why on God's green earth would he ever allow himself to be readmitted there?"

Probably because he may not have been able to get anywhere else DLSC can ONLY transport to danville, and this is lifepoints game : a "captive audience".

"Another possible explanation is that VDH investigated and did not find sufficient grounds for pursuing the complaint"

Not likely: the state is well known for "building a case" before coming down on corporations.
Besides if you control the records being investigated and you can manipulate them it'd be very easy to fool someone.

Anonymous said...

I'm not as paranoid as all the voices in my head say I am....

Anonymous said...

The why or why not of the patient didn't go elsewhere for care is irrelevent in regards to his death..

The irony is he had sued due to poor care. He was a victim yet again when he had cardiac arrest and the staff didn't rsepond appropriately to attempt to save his life.

Anonymous said...

Altering records, manipulating people, investigations not reaching the conclusions we think they should: conspiracy!!! Yes, that's it! Conspiracy, I say!!!! Where are Fox and Mulder when we need them!

Anonymous said...

"Altering records, manipulating people, investigations not reaching the conclusions we think they should: conspiracy"

Hah didn't happen , neither did the accounting industry frauds of the 90's and that whole Enron deal ? never happened !
It does happen that's why the US Government has a law of prosecution "Conspiracy to commit..." IT HAPPENS. But you're in the ranks of danvillians who believe all will be fine if we close our eyes and click our heels 3 times. Careful your slippers are made of glass...

Anonymous said...

Nope, I'm not even from Danville. I just know a nut case when I see one.

Anonymous said...

It is easy for lifepoint to mislead an investigator. Example: Doctor has no access to MRI report for 18 hours in a critical case. If the doctor has transcribed the results and put the required time/date on it the hospital can get away with it, even if the transcribed results were not available to the doctor. This in fact did happen.....I won't even go into the fact that the radiologist missed the problem staring him in the face.

Anonymous said...

"Nope, I'm not even from Danville. I just know ..."

So just running of at the mouth ?
If you don't know the history of who built the hospital how and why...
don't know how well off the hospital was...
And don't understand the devastation to the safety and medical provision to the danville and surrounding service area then well... You just know nothing. best thing for you to do is learn about lifepoint and the destruction they cause to otherwise viable facilities.
Then you may possibly be able to form some semblance of a cohesive thought....oh but wait you just know ....we forgot you are omnipotent...

Anonymous said...

Listen, I know more about Lifepoint than you can imagine. I know their financials, I know the work history of all the C-level people in Danville, Martinsville and Brentwood. I know who sits on their board. I know how their bonuses are structured. I know how many people they've laid off in Danville, how low their nursing ratios have gotten and how much market share they've lost in southside Virginia. I'm no fan. However, going after them based on hearsay, conjecture and rumor is a waste of everyone's time. Take the conspiracy stuff elsewhere.

Anonymous said...

"I know how many people they've laid off in Danville, how low their nursing ratios have gotten and how much market share they've lost in southside Virginia"

If you really do know this confirms everything everyone on here is saying.

"going after them based on hearsay, conjecture and rumor is a waste of everyone's time"

So either you do know and don't understand that this is what everyone is saying,or You say "I know" that the things being stated are true, but yet you accuse everyone of conjecture and rumor,

Which is it ? Truth or rumor.

either you don't understand that you just verified what everyone is saying is the problem or you're not telling the truth.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone understand the comment above? Sheesh.

Anonymous said...

Yes how could you not. the poster they are referring to says "I know Iknow I know" and basically verifies everything that everyone is saying is wrong. But then the same one that says "I know " contradicts themselves with "but you can't go after Lifepoint with conjecture...."
So the one saying "I know, I know" is either validating everyones arguement against Lifepoint or lying...
How could you not get that...?
"Sheesh"

Anonymous said...

I can't believe someone would supposedly "know " all of those things and still work for a company like that, shows poor morals in healthcare.

Anonymous said...

As the author of the comment about having knowledge regarding Lifpoint, it appears that some erroneous assumptions are being made. First, all the information I described is publically available if you are willing to look for it. As such, I have no special "inside knowledge," I simply do my homework. Second, you assume I must work for Lifepoint to have such knowledge. That, too, is incorrect. Lastly, dismissing all the decent, hard working folks who work at DRMC as having "poor morals" is both incorrect and asinine. They are just trying to make a living, take care of their families, and almost all try and do the best job they possibly can.

Anonymous said...

When you don't advocate for the improved care of your patients its lack of professional morals.

" Lastly, dismissing all the decent, hard working folks who work at DRMC as having "poor morals" is both incorrect and asinine"
No one dismissed them, the majority of posters are in agreement of the lack of corporate scruples of lifepoint.
What has been dismissed is your initial portrayal of insider information and then contradiction of those comments to villify those who you were supposedly backing up.
That is the true definition of asinine.
Your "research" is common knowledge here, everyone knows what you now admit is common knowledge : that lifepoint is a Poor disgraceful pitiful corporation unsuitable for danville and Healthcare in general.
Your word a day calendar however is impressive.

Anonymous said...

OK, our know-it-all friend. If it is public knowledge, where do we find it. Some of the data you refer to is not found in a public forum. If you really know, we would like to see for ourselves. I have justifiable reasons for trying to get rid of Humphreys. He is 110% idiot and his boss Jess Judy is the same.

Anonymous said...

DRMC has been a big part of my life. I moved to Danville when I was in the first grade because my step dad got a job at The Memorial Hospital as a respiratory therapist. My mom went to nursing school and got a job at DRMC. Both of them went on to hold management positions in their respective careers at DRMC. I spent most of my childhood hearing what was happening in the hospital, and vowed that I would NEVER go to work there. Of course at the age of 16 I did - in the hospital snack shop (my first job). And at 18 I got a job as a unit secretary. Then I worked as a nursing assistant. And finally as an RN. The hospital has played a big part in my life, and when I left in February I was completely saddened and disappointed at the conditions. I worked in psychiatry for the last two years, and basically I left because I could no longer, in good conscience, work for a hospital that couldn't even provide for the most basic needs of a patient. I loved the staff and the work, but I was shocked that the people who had the power to make changes, five floors down, thought the unit was acceptable. The ceiling leaked. The heat/AC often didn't work in the patients' rooms or other areas of the unit. Mold covered the ceiling at the nurses' station. The AC unit at the nurses' station often leaked water on the desk, so we had to leave towels there to prevent it from splattering onto the computers or patients' charts. We had approximately 4 bathrooms to share amongst up to 17 patients on the unit - some with MRSA, c-diff, or other contact precautions (also keep in mind we had no sink in the c-diff patients' rooms to wash our hands after caring for them). These patients also all shared one telephone. I could go on and on. It's horrible to hear that they have spent millions on improving the hospital, and all they have done on 6D is replace the bathroom floors (due to a human rights complaint). And yet even now, 4 months after leaving, I am considering going back to DRMC. My parents always told me, "if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem." DRMC has big problems, but it still holds a big place in my heart and I want to help to make it better.

Anonymous said...

You won't fix it,the only solution is for the facility to change hands, but God bless you...

Anonymous said...

I think I speak for everyone except Lifepoint when I say we want a reputable caring hospital. I would like nothing better than to see DRMC get back to the basics of caring for the needs of patients, but until we have a new owner and management IT WILL NOT HAPPEN.

Anonymous said...

Changing hands MIGHT be the answer.
Changing philosophies regarding patient care and employee satisfaction is the key.
I have sat in meeting after meeting with dept heads, where those of us in nursing are reminded frequently, that DRMC is the most heavily staffed of all LifePoint facilities.
While I agree there was some fluff, when taking away resources, NURSING LEADERSHIP NEVER PROVIDED any mentoring or skill building to assist staff on how to manage/prioritize patient care/flow. NEVER. To this very minute nsg staff is constantly backpeddling to keep up.

Anonymous said...

geez people, get out of la la land and look whats going on in the economy and the world!!you cannot compare drmc with moses cone or any of the large systems!!
I don't think that you are really helping this community by always complaining about every little thing. I for myself have had enough of your bad attitudes. I can't even count how many people constantly complain about coleman center!! Just like drmc!!
I think some of you do not like or want change, as long as you can find fault, you feel important!!

Anonymous said...

As a caregiver at the hospital, here is what I have observed:
The most demanding people are those who are really not "emergency" patients and feel like we "owe" them. I'm sorry you might have to wait in the ER for 6 hours or longer. But if you use the ER as your family practioner then you will have to wait untill we take care of the heart attacks, strokes, and mva victims. I guess since you don't go to a regular MD you don't realize that you might have to wait in their office too.I know I have waited and waited and waited myself!
Constantly complaining and moaning about how bad things are aren't helping, and to tell you the truth, I would rather take care of a pleasant patient than a whiner and complainer who feels like they "deserve" something. Go to another ER if you think things are better elsewhere and let us take care of those who really need EMERGENCY help!!
I don't care who is in charge,who owns the hospital or who the CEO is, its the attitude of those who work here and the community that need to change!! People forget so easily, it really wasn't that great before lpnt took over. Talk about outdated facilities!! You would think people would learn by now, I guess not.

Anonymous said...

You are so very wrong. Many of those local citizens have learned and do go elsewhere. This is a sounding board and if you don't like what is said so be it, but your slamming those that complain is useless. The complaints for the most part are justified. DRMC was not so great prior to Lifepoint, but they have managed to take things to a new low. Attitudes do need to change, but that needs to start at the top and they are blind to the needs of their staff, patients, and general public. Take note that we can not recruit quality physicians. Just a little research and they realize this place is bad for their reputation.

Anonymous said...

May I remind that DRMC BEFORE lifepoint ,won national awards for technology. One of the first things lifepoint did was remove the Hi tech computer systems and replace them with Meditech which was too small and so outdated that the computers wouldn't run them because the operating system of the Meditech system was so old.
ICU even went back to paper charting because the Meditech system took so long to chart that overtime went through the roof.
I've had the opportunity through educational requirements to see other facilities, DRMC WAS very up to date and actually doing well. One thing rings true everywhere I've been, every facility I've been to that was "bought" by lifepoint has been destroyed, the MD's that you speak too despise it and the RNs and auxillary staff despise it. Lifepoint is well known as a pitiful, disgraceful corporation that is understaffed and faltering.

Anonymous said...

Regarding my previous post about considering going back to DRMC to work - I changed my mind. Talked to a nursing recruiter this week. The pay has gone up a little (I guess they had to in order for ANYONE to want to work there). Then I started filling out the online application and almost vomited. I decided it'd probably be in my best interest to go elsewhere. :(

Anonymous said...

Extremely wise choice...you, and if you have one, your family, will be much better off and happier.

Anonymous said...

To the nurse thinking about going back. It is easy to tell who you are by what you srote. Don't you think you should tell your current boss you may be quitting before you post it on the web?

Anonymous said...

My current bosses already know I'm looking for other employment. I've already turned in my notice at one of my jobs. And I have no choice but to quit the other one...I'm not making nearly enough money for the amount of work I do.

Anonymous said...

addendum:

I should say, I don't make enough money for the amount of work I do and ESPECIALLY not for the amount of time I have to spend away from my family.

Anonymous said...

WHICH OF THE NURSING DIRECTORS IS IN TROUBLE WITH CORPORATE COMPLIANCE?
I HEARD AN EMPLOYEE COMPLAINED ABOUT HER USING OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE IN REFERRING TO ANOTHER EMPLOYEE'S SEXUAL ORIENTATION?

Anonymous said...

The director with the "mouth" is the same one that has a gay clinical manager. How sad is it for both of them....one has to work for a bigot.

Anonymous said...

One with a biggot, one with a sodomite. hmmm

Anonymous said...

I am trying to think, do we only have 2 Directors and 2 clinical managers now?

Anonymous said...

one for 2a/4a + clinical manager
(guess who the bigot is)

one for 6a/ccu/5a (and odds/ends) + clinical manager
one for Rehab
one for psych
one for womens' services
one for ED + clinical manager
one for OR + clinical manager

Anonymous said...

Not an unusual set up....unless you're a money wasting organization who thiks the answer is just throw bodies at 'em and it'll all be ok. And hey, my cousin needs a job...think we can get her on at the hospital?

Anonymous said...

funny post above...one a bigot, one a sodomite...good lord, it justs gets better and better!!

Anonymous said...

"Not an unusual setup for"... an inept, pathetic, corporation that doesn't understand that patient care cannot be accomplished by a skeleton crew. And there must be workers to provide the service for those taht would seek "care" there.
Stupidity of a corporation born of corruption and greed, and non-familiarity of the financial demographics of any given area will never provide the correct level of care, especially the high level that was before lifepoint...as long as the "O"s bonuses are paid from the suffering of others.
Danville et Al have suffered enough at the hands of this (supposed)hospital corporation.
The small tax they pay is nothing to the disposable income that was spent in danville, no more , now it's sent to Brentwood...

Call me Miz Priss said...

Here's some comic relief.....did ANYONE see a raise yet?? Or was it so itsey bitsey I missed it???

Anonymous said...

well, why don't DRMC folks appeal to their employee council rep for an answer about the delay in raises?

Oh, that's right ,there is no employee council to appeal to.
Ask your director(s)? Oh, that's right, they haven't received a raise either so they're in the same boat.

Anonymous said...

NEWSFLASH: Your raises have gone into bonus payments to the useless top dogs.

Anonymous said...

NEWSFLASH:
Raises were delayed due to: all the changes to the job descriptions that took months to approve and to the directors who did not complete their evaluations on time although they had more notice than others did.

And when they finally appear on the checks...well, we will see.

Anonymous said...

Rumor has it the old smoking area by the ER and the J building will be the preferred place for smokers rather than across the street. I guess no more punching to go smoke. So breaks will be even more abused since no one will punch and it is more convenient. Leaves the nonsmokers pulling even more weight.

Anonymous said...

Oh my god....its absolutely the truth that this blog os ground zero for Piss and Moan. Next you'll be advocating for us smokers beacuse mean ol' administration makes us walk that far. Does it never end??

Let me guess...we serve free pizza and you'll complain that there wasn't enough sausage. Good Lord.

Anonymous said...

lifepoint "campuses" are all NONsmoking in the area within the hospital facilities , if you aare smoking while at work on the grounds you can and should be fired.
No patient should have to suffer care for your senseless, (well let's just call it what it is) STUPID,foolish, suicidal habit.

Anonymous said...

Amen to that, brother or sister.

Anonymous said...

well everyone could walk to their vehicle to smoke like Becky Logan does (even though it's parked on hospital property)..........but if you are the CNO then the rules are "do as I say do, not as I do..."

Anonymous said...

So that's why she doesn't answer emails...and phone calls

Anonymous said...

emails and phone calls aren't answered because she just could care less. it is a JOKE among the nursing leadership group about that situation
i wonder if she responds that way to corporate communication? (doubt it)

smarti-pants said...

HMMM....she's got texting down pat! Several people on the smoking block, across the street from the smoke free campus commented about it after the forum this week.

Anonymous said...

maybe that is how she communicates best with Hopkins

Anonymous said...

Hopkins who?

Anonymous said...

it's a given the last poster who asked "Hopkins who"? doesn't work at DRMC. Hopkins would be referring to martha hopkins the 2a/4a director who is so far up becky logan's ass that when logan burbs or farts it smells like hopkins' perfume.
hopkins is who feeds her all the info on just how great nursing is at DRMC and keeps the smoke blowing up logan's ass

Anonymous said...

Thanks. There are some people here who don't work for Lifepoint, ya know. This isn't simply a disgruntled DRMC staff blog.

smarti-pants said...

Why does someone (Hopkins) need to tell the CNO how great nursing is at DRMC? Can't Becky just see that for herself? Oh, right, I know, she's too busy texting, smoking in her car and evacuating her intestinal system to know how really great nursing is!

Anonymous said...

Danville Regional Medical Center focuses On outpatient registration

Friday, June 19, 2009 1:48 PM EDT

DANVILLE- Recognizing the fact that a hospital can sometimes be a difficult place to navigate, Danville Regional Medical Center has appointed a Patient Access Coordinator to assist patients and families.

Alison DeMott is the new Patient Access Coordinator for outpatient registration. Alison is tasked with greeting patients at check in, working with the registration staff to expedite the wait and overall assisting patients and families during the admissions process.

"Alison's organization and communications skills enhance the overall experience patients and their families have as they check in for an outpatient procedure or any pre-admission testing," said Carol Kallenberger, DRMC Director of Patient Access. "It's our goal to always look for ways to enhance our patient satisfaction, employee satisfaction and physician satisfaction, and Alison has been a great addition to our team in terms of providing whatever assistance is needed at the time of registration."

"Comment cards from patients have recognized Alison for her patient, polite demeanor and the assistance she provided in explaining all aspects of the registration process," Kallenberger added. "We've also seen the registration wait time decrease since her arrival in early March."

Danville Regional is the leading medical center in the Dan River Region of Virginia and North Carolina. Approximately 140 physicians are on the medical staff. The medical center employs approximately 1,200 people. For additional information, visit www.danvilleregional.com.

Anonymous said...

What happened to Paul Barnhardt that use to sit at the registration greeter desk? One day this Allison just appeared.

Anonymous said...

"Danville Regional is the leading medical center in the Dan River Region of Virginia and North Carolina."

Actually it's the ONLY medical center (not hard to be the "leader when there's no one too follow you) and anything outside of 20 miles (except Martinsville) is a HUGE improvement over lifepoints tragedy of a facility.

Anonymous said...

DRMC is only a leader in the patient discomfort category. A few good nurses and staff are not enough. We still have many who could care less, and as long as they are willing to except substandard pay, Lifepoint will keep them over paying more for someone who cares.

Anonymous said...

Thats kinda what the post meant , I think, The only reason lifepoint is a "leader" is because there is no one to "follow" so they are the "best" by default. The veterinary hospitals which are far and above anything lifepoint could provide , oh and the Primecare(s) they are better and the new Centra referral (better) and well anything that provides any medical care is better than lifepoint.

Anonymous said...

so go somewhere else,,nobody forcin you to go to drmc. Geez enough already, sounds like just complainin to complain. What else can we complain about, oh yeah, the grass is not green enough on our side!!

Anonymous said...

I already did, it's a shame you're too ignorant too see that your grass was ripped up and given to someone else all you have now is mud and everyone else around is shaking there head at how pathetic your yard is.
I was born in that hospital and have lived here my entire life thus far (soon to change)and I wouldn't give one rats @#$ about danville if my family didn't live here, it's a shame their lives are in jeopardy from such a substandard facility, oh and look up the word complain, stating the facts are not complaints. Watching Danville and the building that was once a hospital, deteriorate further is worthy of complaint.
You should always aspire to have greener grass, not covet it, but aspire to it, lifepoint will never aspire to any higher level they've proven that.

Anonymous said...

Lifepoint couldn't have any greener grass ! I mean, really, with all that BULLSHIT spread about.

Anonymous said...

hahaha that's great....

Anonymous said...

not ignorant my friend, just livin in the real world. Things change, just have to change with them or we are guilty of stagnation and are left behind in the dust! I see a lot of that in this town... you can't turn the clock back, never could, never will, just have to adjust, try to make the best of things and move on. Thats the way life is, complanin doesn't change things, just makes you feel better for awhile. Takes little energy to complain, more energy to try to work with what you have.

Anonymous said...

After living in Danville for many years I am moving to the Raleigh area for medical reasons. We have a few good doctors here, but I will never step foot in this hospital again for I have seen just how bad it is. I have told my family if an ambulance wants to take me to DRMC, just have them drop me off at Highland memorial park and cut out the middle man. I already own a hole in the ground there. lol

Anonymous said...

"more energy to try to work with what you have"

That's the problem, the employees exert, and waste, energy as lifepoint gains and the employees and patients lose.

Anonymous said...

lets' keep those new nursing grads coming into the LifePoint work force in our thoughts.......it is difficult enough for the "seasoned" staff, one can only imagine how hard and how acute the learning curve will be for hem

Anonymous said...

My daughter had one day surgery at DRMC two weeks ago. She received wonderful care from start to finish. If someone asked me to find something to complain about - I honestly can't think of a single thing. Everyone was very attentive, caring and friendly. The nurses in ODS and in the staff in the OR could not have been nicer to our daughter and to my husband and me. We were 100% satisfied.

Anonymous said...

ODS really never suffers the plight of the inpatient group , the time of contact is so short, also ODS is a huge money maker, of course lifepoint wants DRMC to be a surgery center they always have.Quick in, quick out, good money.

Anonymous said...

One-Day surgery is probably the only bright spot in this hospital. You are lucky your daughter didn't have to be admitted to the floor. That is where hell begins and life ends.

Anonymous said...

True, ODS has been a winner for years, before and after the LifePoint debacle.
The war is fought in the weeds....known as the inpatient care units. Days aren't good and , well, night shifts for the staff and patients are scarey.I is NOT recommended you leave a loved one who can't speak or who has any mobility issue alone there. the care is almost nonexistent on the off shifts.

Anonymous said...

Maybe you all should crawl back into the weeds and let those that have something good to say be able to say it without your useless editorial.

Anonymous said...

"without your useless editorial"
Oh by all means Mr(s) self- important don't let us ruin your parade of "I can save the world because I try hard" open your eyes, we all try hard, lifepoint is USELESS and has no place in healthcare, NO FOR-profit corporation does. The increasing size of EVERY facility around Danville is the public speaking by going elsewhere, Read their statement loud and clear, lifepoint is a joke.

Anonymous said...

South Boston Hospital...97% patient satisfaction rate and 2% walk out rate...must be doing something right!!!

Anonymous said...

DRMC can boast those same numbers...only in reverse! (well,maybe not quite that poor)

Anonymous said...

Centra has really promoting their name around town lately, sponsoring baseball teams, ads, etc. Anyone know anything about the doctors at their new office on 58 east?

Medical Assistant Job Search said...

It is inevitable for things of this sort to happen, especially in today's time. Whether you have a large company or not, I think product managers should really take a look into their Product Opportunity Gap (POG) and really see if they can make a difference or not. Many calculations have to be taken into consideration when looking at the company at an All-Around perspective. Judgment's cannot necessarily be made upon feelings rather logic. Being a business man and reading this, I sincerely think a better alternative could be formed. But, if not, then instead of worrying about losing money, unravel some sort of 'secret plan' to your organization to help boost confidence and productivity rate. That's my personal opinion.

Anonymous said...

oh great....first the bottom feeders and now job recruiters. What a worthless POS blog.

Anonymous said...

"Product Opportunity Gap (POG)" is Business jargon for screw as many people as possible with an inferior product as quickly as you can before they realize it", and also in the case of Centra it means "We recognize that Danville is medically underserved by the inferior system of lifepoint so lets advertise, finish them off and provide high quality nonprofit medical care as we are listed in the top safest and top hospitals in the U.S."

Best thing that could happen to DRMC is for Centra to buy it after the inevitable failure of lifepoint.

Anonymous said...

There is absolutely no reason for Centra to buy DRMC. With the current situation, Centra siphons off the relatively well-to-do patients who have the means to leave Danville for care, and DRMC gets stuck with the chronically ill, uninsured and elderly that can't make that trip. "Cherry-picking" is the term.

Anonymous said...

That's not cherry picking, that's provision of service.
Cherry picking would be to pick the patient , in this case the patient is picking the service.
Centra has made it quit clear that they want a presence in Danville, if not, they would not have opened the new facility here.

Anonymous said...

That's not the point. If Centra buys DRMC, they have to take "all comers" - uninsured, chronically ill and emergency patients. By putting an outpatient presence in Danville, advertising, etc, Centra can attract patients up to their facility in Lynchburg without the financial burden of running the ER in Danville and providing charity care as well as in Lynchburg. Centra ain't gonna buy DRMC. No one is gonna buy DRMC. It's not worth anything anymore, and th esurrounding non-profits get most of the paying patients without any capital investment. Lifepoint would have to take such a huge write down on any sale of the hospital (they overpaid at least $50 million than DRMC was worth at the time) that they will keep it going open so as not to take a hit against their bottom line.

Anonymous said...

The last couple of comments have been the most insightful I have read in a while.They are most correct as I have heard this directly from a couple of board members at Centra.
The bordering systems are happy to welcome customers/business TO their respective facilities. However, are they interested in owning DRMC? Definitely not!

Anonymous said...

"they will keep it going open so as not to take a hit against their bottom line."

They're losing money in DRMC and always have , they're already "taking a hit"

Centra wouldn't be affected by ER, indigent etc, due to nonprofit status ( no huge salaries and bonuses,taxes,that's why non-profit works in medically underserved and economically depressed climates.

The first sign of a hospitals fishing expedition to see if they want an area is a small clinic, this has been shown too many times with Cone Duke UVA and Baptist(NC).

DRMC was a high quality facility, the structure itself still is, all it needs is SUFFICIENT staffing , trust of the community through name recognition and some real level of service and the citizens would return and as a result the facility would be operating in the "black" not the "red" as it is now.

Most on the blog don't realize how good the quality of DRMC WAS because they haven't seen how poor others are. Excluding the obvious high quality surrounding facilities ( Cone Duke UVA Centra)etc. Other farther out facilities are small dirty and poor but of course most of them are HCA/ Lifepoint facilities.
One lifepoint facility I've recently been in is small dirty and a Joint Comm NIGHTMARE.

Anonymous said...

"They're losing money in DRMC and always have , they're already "taking a hit."

Not nearly as big a hit as they'd take from the sale of the hospital. If Lifepoint paid $216 M for DRMC and then turns around and has to sell it for, say $85 M, then the company has to take a $131 M "write down" against their earnings in the quarter they sell the asset. There is no way Lifepoint leadership will unveil such a bad business decision (the excessive purchase price paid for DRMC) to their shareholders. The company will tolerate losing a couple of mil a year just to keep from revealing their blunder. But, it makes you understand why they cut, cut, cut and don't do any strategic investing in Danville. If their operating costs are $0 (or close) and even if the revenue is $0, then their operating loss is nearly $0, too.

Anonymous said...

One report puts them at 7 million dollar loss per year in Danville.

Anonymous said...

One report? are there more? Jeez Louise...they're a publicly traded entity...meaning there is no multiple reports. It's simply called EBIDTA...nothing more, nothing less. You're just one more example of the amateurish fodder that clogs the sewer line of this blog.

Anonymous said...

When a patient chooses a different facility (Central Health in this case) it is called choosing the best service, not cherry picking. Those that use DRMC are either unable to go elsewhere or are too stupid to see what they are walking in to. Inadequate staffing and cost cutting so bad that it has become dangerous to go there for care. The good people still working there are now outnumbered by the "I don't give a crap" people (and that includes Humphreys and Judy).

Anonymous said...

"nothing more, nothing less. You're just one more example of the amateurish fodder that clogs the sewer line of this blog"

Yeh you're right, my Ph.D in accounting is nothing compared to your eloquence.

Anonymous said...

Well, you're both wrong. While LPNT is a publically traded company and has to produce a 10-K each year including financial statements that conform to GAAP as validated by FASAB, they DO NOT have to report the financial results from individual hospitals. So, the only way to know if DRMC is making or losing money is to be an insider at LPNT.

And as for the definition of "cherry picking," Centra knows exactly what they are doing. They are engaging in a very specific strategy to attract patients from Danville without taking on any financial responsibility for uninsured or underinsured patients. It is very unlikely that uninsured patients without a primary care physician are driving up to the ER in Lynchburg, or that nursing home patients are being put in an ambulance and driven up to Lynchburg rather than to the DRMC E.D.

However, many astute and erudite Danvillians are asking their primary care physicians to refer them to specialists up in Lynchburg.

Personally, I admire Centra and think that they are one of the best health systems in the U.S. Forward thinking, locally owned and responsive to the community. I wish we had them here in Danville. But they are never, NEVER, gonna buy DRMC.

Anonymous said...

To the last poster, again, Thank You.
Now, if the rest of the community could only see this as clearly. It is what it is and nothing more.

Anonymous said...

Didn't Centra put a bid in on DRMC when it was on the block?? I guess it wasn't enough for the boys at the bank that are going out of town for their care. Sorry if I am beating a dead horse but since Danville has been my home for over 15 years I am saddened by the change.

Anonymous said...

Never say never.

Anonymous said...

With a PhD in accounting, it's highly unlikely you ever worked at the hospital, so why are ou here?

Anonymous said...

With a PhD in accounting, it's highly unlikely you ever worked at the hospital, so why are you here?

Anonymous said...

PHD in accounting? Does that stand for Piled Higher and Deeper? You are definitely full of it.

Anonymous said...

If you knew what you were talking about you could say that and multiple degrees BACKED with experience means I do know, you on the other hand are as ignorant as those that continue to believe lifepoint is an asset.

Anonymous said...

Ya gotta love blogs, eh? How did we ever put on airs, claim to be people we are not and insult people we don't know before the internet? Do we have Al Gore to thank for all this?

Frankly, if you don't have something useful or potentially insightful to say, just keep your fingers off the keyboard. And, if you aren't willing to make such a statement to your pastor or you mother face-to-face, it doesn't belong here, either.

Anonymous said...

Exactly .

Anonymous said...

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-07-09-baylor-heart_N.htm

Anonymous said...

Hmmm imagine that : DRMC went from winning awards as a local owned facility to a bottom of the barrel joke every year since.

Anonymous said...

After reading these articles the one who wrote "You are definitely full of it"
is the one who is full of it.

Anonymous said...

another ED director is gone.....the Judas that sold out her former director is now exiting the building...the revolving door spins yet again...where she lands...who cares!

Lady HAHA said...

ER director is WHAT??? Gone???? Meditech ER module goes LIVE TUESDAY and she left??? She LEFT or she was shown the door?? Word was that the ER was so much better....what happened??

Anonymous said...

Meditech . OMG that is the WORST program EVER MADE, it sucked when they put in place and it still sucks.
Careview is a million times faster and more user friendly/accurate.
And as for the ER being better, please .......

Anonymous said...

ER is so much better?
Where? What hospital?
Oh, you must be referring to "THE REPORT" to the former Healthcare Advisory for the city council.
LOL, Lady HAHA, the joke's on all of us.
Yes, the luster has tarnished on on the CEO's golden girl says the chief nursing officer.As for the new ER Meditech component;well, it is Meditech.

Anonymous said...

This is from WBTM's site. I do want to add that this never happened before Lifepoint.
-- DANVILLE REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER’S THIRTY-DAY HEART ATTACK MORTALITY RATE IS THE THIRD-HIGHEST IN THE NATION. THAT’S ACCORDING TO A NEW REPORT FROM THE CENTER FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID. IT’S BASED ON A STUDY OF PATIENTS FROM THE SUMMER OF 2005 TO THE SUMMER OF 2008, MEASURING DEATH RATES THIRTY DAYS AFTER TREATMENT FOR A HEART ATTACK. IN PREVIOUS STUDIES, LOCAL HOSPITAL LEADERS NOTED THAT THE SURVEYS RELIED ON A SMALL SAMPLE SIZE AND THAT OTHER HEALTH CONDITIONS OFTEN ATTRIBUTED TO THE DEATHS MEASURED IN THE STUDY.

Anonymous said...

The previous studies reported by CMS included time intervals well before the purchase of the hospital by Lifepoint. You can't blame this one on them alone. However, every year about this time in 2007, 2008, and now 2009, the same report comes out and DRMC is in the bottom 5 hospitals in the country for cardiovascular care. The fact that it hasn't gotten any better in the past three years CAN be laid at Lifepoint administration's feet.

Lady HAHA said...

Lady HAHA still awaits the scoop on the untimely departure of the ER director...what gives, people? Do tell!!!

Anonymous said...

thanks for my daily chuckle!
"boys in the bank", you are right on, talk about beating a dead horse. 10 years from now, still will be comenting on how the "boys from the bank" took advantage of the town.
Lady ha ha wants the "scoop"(gossip)!!
So obvious, no clue about what is going on, just trying to ignite the fires.
We should call this blog, psychology 101. We can see many common personality behaviors that have emerged on this blog, even though they are maladaptive in our environment. It is obvious some of the stereotypical comments reveal information about distorted social interaction and lack of adequate knowledge of the facts.
Obviously some educated people communicating some good information. Also obvious, some people making some "ignorant" remarks.

Anonymous said...

"lack of adequate knowledge of the facts."

I and many others lived the facts and the main fact is" lifepoint was born of fraud and is a poor provider of anything , they are a poor employer and a poor "corporate example" with no sense of community and growth, nor do they have any professionalism or philosophy of quality.
The reason there are "common traits" amongst posts are this : danville was screwed over after decades of building a true quality hospital and was sold to a corporation of greed and incompetency not psychobabel from an amateur Freud.
5 People committed an action that jeopardizes tens of thousands of lives every day.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know if the child that had the heart attack in one day surgery lived or not?

Anonymous said...

But did the "Fab Five" really know what they were getting our community into when the agreed to sell the hospital to Lifepoint? I would bet they didn't, and would venture to guess that if you asked each of the confidentially, they would admit it was a mistake and they wish they had sold DRMC to one of the other bidders. Hind sight is 20-20 ya know.

Anonymous said...

They knew, several if not all have benefited from the money by retaining ownership of several of the structures, etc that have eminated from the theft, er sale.

Anonymous said...

Isn't 20/20 hindsight,has nothing to do with hindsight. Unless you take the time to do the research on the company BEFORE you sell and realize that it's a poorly rated and loathed company (obviously they didn't)then it's just ignorance and stupidity.

Anonymous said...

Actually, that statement may not be correct. When LPNT was spun off from HCA ten years ago, it was lead by a visionary named Scott Mercy. The company had great potential and valued their individual hospitals. LPNT was a highly respected "new kid on the block." Mr Mercy was killed in a plane crash in 2000. His replacement, James Fleetwood, was similarly very respected and was leading LPNT in the right direction until he died of a heart attack only a year later. Then, the current group of hacks took over.

It is quite likely that LPNT was still trading on its reputation from the Mercy/Fleetwood days during the negotiations to purchase DRMC. It was a lot less clear what kind of company LPNT was GOING TO BECOME back in 2004

Anonymous said...

Lifepoint was spun off due to regulatory fraud problems with the Federal Gov't as a "plea deal" you have to dig but it was VERY clear what they were and are, as is HCA.

Anonymous said...

From NASDAQ profile of Lifepoints performance:
" Type: Public
On the web: http://www.lifepointhospitals.com
Employees: 21,000
Employee growth: 0.0% "

That's 0 growth ....EVER

See where your little healthcare company came from: fraud

http://www.scribd.com/doc/11598234/Fraud-at-Columbia-or-HCA-a-corporate-misgovernance-group-of-activities

Anonymous said...

and ........

"HCA Subsidiaries Plead Guilty to Criminal Fraud Charges
The Associated Press reports two subsidiaries of The Healthcare Corp., formerly Columbia/HCA, pleaded guilty Thursday to criminal fraud charges and were fined $65.2 million, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Columbia Homecare Group Inc. and Columbia Management Companies Inc. entered the pleadings in courts in Miami, Atlanta, Nashville, Tenn., and Tampa, Fla., on charges of conspiracy to defraud the federal government, soliciting and receiving kickbacks in connection with healthcare programs, and making false statements.

U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bucklew issued the fine following the plea agreement, which stems from a 3-year investigation concerning overbilling charges against HCA.

HCA said the guilty pleas mark the end of HCA's settlement obligations with the federal government. The embattled healthcare company signed a civil agreement with the federal government in May, agreeing to pay $745 million in fines for overbilling. The criminal pleadings finalized the civil settlement with the Justice Department.

The federal government's Medicare fraud probe targeting Nashville-based Columbia became public in 1997 with a series of raids on several hospitals.

In July 1999, two Columbia middle managers from its Florida operations were convicted of conspiracy and defrauding government health insurance programs. The case stemmed from reimbursements from Columbia's Fawcett Memorial Hospital in Port Charlotte that resulted in nearly $3 million in overpayments to Columbia.

Jay Jarell, former chief executive of Columbia's southwest Florida division, was sentenced to 33 months in prison and Robert Whiteside, a senior reimbursement executive at Columbia's Nashville headquarters, was sentenced to two years. ( including Nashville-based HCA-spin off LifePoint Hospitals Inc.,)....."

Anonymous said...

"The Birth of LifePoint:Late 1990s

There were many factors prompting the formation of LifePoint Hospitals, Inc. The firm was the result of its parent company, Columbia/HCA, spinning off a number of its holdings after the federal government began investigating the hospital conglomerate's aggressive business practices. Columbia Hospital Corporation was founded back in 1987 by two Texans, lawyer Rick Scott and financier Richard Rainwater, to purchase two hospitals in El Paso. Columbia expanded rapidly into other states and merged with Smith Laboratories; next came a series of healthcare acquisitions until the advent of HMOs (health management organizations) and a crackdown of Medicare and Medicaid fraud "

Anonymous said...

Those who tell half truths are liars still the same.

The above poster has taken one paragraph out of an online description about LPNT. All of you should go out and read the rest of the article:

http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/LifePoint-Hospitals-Inc-Company-History.html

It describes many of the events in the early history of LPNT such as the deaths of the first two CEOs and the early company philosophy and strategy:

"Under Mercy and Fleetwood, LifePoint's raison d'ĂȘtre was to invigorate its properties and make them the most desirable medical facilities in their region. Underperforming hospitals were sold in favor of others poised to outperform in their sectors, like the Putnam Community Medical Center in Palatka, Florida, which LifePoint bought from former parent Columbia/HCA (renamed HCA--The Healthcare Company). With a number of its hospitals the only major facility in rural or small towns, LifePoint was determined to keep patients in the area, to not feel compelled to drive to major cities, sometimes hours away, for better treatment. Millions were poured into replacing outdated equipment, remodeling, and hiring physicians away from competitors. New labor/delivery and intensive care units were built, operating rooms were refurbished and enlarged, and more outpatient services and procedures were added."

The artcile is very POSITIVE about LPNT, a lot more so than I would be, but it looks like it was probably written back in 2005 or early 2006. That's about the time the really started squeezing their hospitals for short-term profits.

The original HCA founded by the Frists was an honorable, respected and well run company. The company was bought be Richard Scott who was unquestionably unethical and corrupt (another example of how reasonable people can be deceived by a crook).

Tom Frist went back and took over the company after Scott was ousted, and after settling with the government for Scott's wrongdoings, spun off many of the HCA hospitals so that he could shrink the company and take it private. As such, HCA is still a for-profit company but not answerable to share holders nor the requirements of publically-traded corporations.

One of those "spin offs" was LPNT. It was hardly born of corruption, but rather from the efforts to correct it.

Thus, highlighting the corruption of Columbia is irrelevant to any discussion of Lifepoint. All of those crimes were committed by an entirely different company that no longer exits. None of the current LPNT executives (some of whom did work for HCA in the past) were involved nor charged.

Now, I still think the current LPNT leadership is way off course, knows pitifully little about running a healthcare company, has a flawed business model and is the laughing stock of the healthcare industry. But they're boobs, not crooks.

Anonymous said...

Parent company fraud is parent company fraud , you've spun it to make yourself look smart thus lying as you claim others have, HOW DARE you call someone a liar for their interpretation !!!!!!

Anonymous said...

And not-guilty companies do not pay millions in reimbursement to the government for fraud conviction if not guilty....or did you not read it....

Anonymous said...

I call you a liar because you are purposefully misleading people. Lifepoint DID NOT EXIST when Columbia committed those crimes. Columbia was not and is not the "parent company" of Lifepoint. Lifepoint came into existence several years after Columbia CEASED TO EXIST.

Your analogy is the same as blaming a child for crimes their parents committed before the child was even born.

It is a deceitful and lame ruse.

Anonymous said...

That poster was right, they didn't say lifepoint did exist , they said that the business practices of the previous company have spilled over to the present and they obviously have, if you work at lifepoint or have you'd know that.
HCA also paid large fines for this, and HCA officials frequently show up in lifepoint facilities.

Looks like you should know what you're talking about before you call someone deceitful and lame.

Anonymous said...

And "Columbia assests were laterally transferred into the creation of succeding ventures"

Anonymous said...

I know exactly what I'm talking about. Since its founding, has Lifepoint been charged by the federal government or any state agency with any counts of fraud or misconduct? No, it has not. That's the truth and all that matters.

Oh, and the paper you refer to on scribd.com is an unsigned, self-published manuscript without any supporting documentation or references. Now, thats a reliable source....

You are still deceitful and lame.

Anonymous said...

as are you for perpetuating hope in a corporation that cares nothing for provision of quality care, I just hope you aren't a healthcare provider.

Anonymous said...

Boy, are you off. I am very critical of LPNT. I just don't lie about them, as you do.

Anonymous said...

No one has lied .....end of argument !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Yes, they did lie. The poster was attempting to lead readers of this blog to believe that Lifepoint had committed a crime and been charged with fraud. The poster attempted to achieve this by posting an article and references to charges against and the subsequent settlement of a company (Columbia) that no longer exists. That has nothing to do with the current company Lifepoint.

Trying to cause people to believe something that is not true is lying.

This argument isn't over til I say its over. That's the beauty of an anonymous public blog.

Anonymous said...

I have watched this bashing back and forth and it is plain and simple. Lifepoint is run by crooks and trust is something you have to earn (Lifepoint is unable to do that). I have personally witnessed lies, deceit, and the manipulation of records to hide what they have done.....all at the instruction of none other than the CEO Humphreys.

Anonymous said...

Great! Now I have no probem with the comment above. Even if I don't agree (entirely) with it, the poster is not offering irrelevent, erroneous and unverifiable facts as proof that the basis of their opinion is correct.

Simply stating that one has "personally seen" dispicable behavior on the part of LPNT officials is wholly different from implying that the criminal activities of an entirely different company were the responsibility of LPNT. Rather, the last poster has clearly stated that their opinion is based on actions that they themselves have personally observed. The rest of us have no way to share or verify those same observations, but the poster isn't trying to give us misleading "proof" that they are correct.

Anonymous said...

>census down......
>new "expert" in to teach employees how to work well with one another and relate better with patients...now, there's a chronic problem with it's origins in leadership...
>interim ER director here....

will it go 'round in circles, will it fly high like a bird up in the sky?

Anonymous said...

"personally seen" dispicable behavior on the part of LPNT officials is wholly different from implying "

It's still word of mouth, could be no less of a lie than what you say the other posters is, I agree as I have seen these actions too, but the history of where lifepoint came from is just as relevant...

Anonymous said...

Nope,its not. What you speak of is "hearsay" - that is when one person says "Someone told me they witnessed dispicabe acts." That is not what the poster above said. They said "I have personally witnessed..." Entirely different. And that individual is not posting misleading statements to try and support their argument. The poster is simply stating what their opinion is and what they are basing it on.

This is a huge difference. I just hope you're not a lawyer 'cause you'll get burned in court on this one.

And what came before LPNT is still irrelevant. The company can only be judged on what they have done.

Still a liar and still lame.

Anonymous said...

"I have personally witnessed..."
They said "I have personally witnessed..." Entirely different"

they are different but one is interpretation extrapolated the other is heresay.
You can't prove what "I saw" either yet you take it for more worth. Could be a lie same as you called the other poster.
And as for the comment " I just hope you're not a lawyer 'cause you'll get burned in court on this one."
Glad to know you are smarter than everyone in every field including one you probably don't practice in.

"And what came before LPNT is still irrelevant. The company can only be judged on what they have done."
REALLY are you SERIOUS? Have you been PAYING ATTENTION AT ALL for the last few years??

Anonymous said...

I am very serious. You are spreading lies, and not very good ones at that. Funny thing is, there is so much to be critical of Lifepoint about that you don't need to fabricate a scenario where the company is responsible for criminal acts of an entirely different company. Are you responsible for slavery? Forcibly removing Native Americans from their ancestral lands? Imprisonment of Japanese-Americans during World War II? You are an American citizen, so you must be responsible for these heinous acts.

Anonymous said...

What the heck is this moron talking about ?
Back on topic please...

Anonymous said...

yeh, and how do you know the poster is an american citizen ?

Anonymous said...

"I have personally witnessed lies, deceit, and the manipulation of records to hide what they have done.....all at the instruction of none other than the CEO Humphreys"
Be careful of what you are declaring, must remind everyone about federal internet harrassment and defamation of character laws, esp here in virginia. Ok to post your comments and thoughts, but stating you witnessed illegal activity could get you into a heap of problems if you misinterpreted what you saw or heard!

Anonymous said...

Good advice and absolutely true. Several people have been successfully prosecuted for similar things posted on other blogs.

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