Danville Register and Bee
Thursday, June 21, 2007
DANVILLE -- The group tasked with analyzing what the problems surrounding the Danville Regional Medical Center and figuring out ways to address them is set to start work on its final report this afternoon.
The Citizens Commission Related to the Danville Regional Medical Center will meet Thursday at 5:15 p.m. to start working on a report it will present to the Danville City Council in July.
The commission has already presented council with a report detailing the thoughts of its hospital consultant Keith Pryor. Click here to see a copy of that report.
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"Report: Hospital needs to rebuild trust with community"
Star-Tribune
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
The Danville community and LifePoint both want a high-quality, successful hospital, a consultant wrote in a report released Tuesday, but the two groups need trust, dialogue and leadership.
"The good news is both parties basically want the same thing. The bad news is the relationship is off to a very poor start. So, what is needed to improve this?" consultant Keith T. Pryor said in a report to a citizens commission looking into concerns about Danville Regional Medical Center.
Pryor said the trust between the community and Danville Regional needs repairing.
"Hospitals and the communities they serve rest on a foundation of implicit trust. The hospital invests resources to care for its community, with an expectation and sense of trust that if it provides a needed service well, the community will support the effort. The community trusts that when they need care, if that service is available at the hospital, it will be high quality, and safely and attentively delivered," Pryor wrote.
Repairing the trust can happen through ongoing dialogue about areas that led to the break in trust, how the situation can be addressed and how solutions are implemented.
Most importantly, he said leadership is needed from physicians, community leaders and LifePoint.
"This situation cannot be improved without leadership. ... Leaders are needed here who will command attention in the community they represent. This effort requires physicians who are respected by physicians, community leaders who are respected in the community and LifePoint leadership with vision and perspective."
In closing, Pryor wrote that it's time for leadership in the community and hospital corporation "to move forward. In fact, there is no other way."
Tennessee-based LifePoint Hospitals Inc. bought Danville Regional in May 2005.
Numerous concerns about care followed. A citizens commission was created this spring by Mayor Wayne Williams to listen to the community and make recommendations about improving care.
At a May meeting at Chatham High School, speakers told the commission about a lack of care, slow response, dirty conditions, old equipment and staff shortages.
The commission, which held two other forums and took written surveys, is expected to issue a report soon.
On Tuesday, co-chair Jim Houser said the commission plans to have a final written report with recommendations to Danville City Council on July 3. He said it would likely include some remarks from Pryor, along with recommendations developed by the commission.
"The key to making any type of correction is having a good communication line. That's going to be part of our recommendations as well, that we be able to sit down with LifePoint and talk about the issues and problems in depth and come up with real solutions as how to correct them," Houser said.
Pryor, talking about the community and LifePoint wanting the same thing, said Danville needs a successful hospital as part of its future economy. He said it would be much harder for the city to reach its goals without a trusted hospital anchoring the health care system.
A bad situation here, he said, could affect LifePoint's ability to grow in the future through the purchase of other hospitals.
"LifePoint cannot desire this situation, because, at an absolute minimum, it works against their business model."
Pryor said community distress happens when hospital ownership changes. He said, "the level of discomfort around the DRMC situation, two years in, is quite high."
"It's not going to be a simple solution that will fix it overnight, but I believe it is fixable," Houser said.
Wonder if this is the same group who advised the Bank Boys to sell the hospital http://health-care-management-consulting.com/
meet-our-authors/
Notice Keith T Pryor. WOW now that would be ironic the same people who told the bank boys to sell DRMC are now consulting CITY LEADERSHIP paid for by the BANK BOYS LMAO. Could this be true the drama keeps building. $25,000 dollars people what a wast of money. Did the report tell you anything you did not already know.
Where is the "CITY LEADERSHIP"????
The leaders sold off the hospital and are hoarding the ill gotten gains. Only the Mayor is taking a stand but none of the boys at the bank are sounding a peep. No eggs thrown at Ashby's house yet but as the titular figurehead he should get a lot more grief than he has to date. There are no leaders here. Only hucksters who sell off what doesn't belong to them and them remain silently on the sidelines. SHAME SHAME SHAME
I miss the good 'ol rail ridings! Send the son of a guns packin and rebuild our hospital. That includes the sorry few given the "right" to sell off the place. Lets see how many of them are coming here for medical care. Why are they silent??? Unfortunately whoever buys DRMC from Knifepoint will be a bottom feeder who will sell off anything of value and then leave the town. It is unrealistic to expect DRMC to care for you in an emergency if it cannot care for you for elective care. Emergencies cost money, usually funded by elective procedures. If you scare away the elective people, the emergencies are not going to have a chance. So.. when you have your stroke or heart attack, and Greensboro is too far away, and time is brain or heart, sorry because you did not stay in town for your "elective" care. You have 60 minutes to save your brain or heart. I would not want to count on Moses Cone. So don't give up, make DRMC the place to go!
Physician "leaders" included Mike Caplan, Mike Andrews and Bob Ashby who do not take care of patients in the hospital anymore. Michael Moore has resigned as the Lifepoint Stooge of medical affairs. It really is in the community's best interest to have a successful hospital. The ER will not work if the OR dont work. Emergencies will not fly if paying elective patients don't come. Can walk away anytime and sell off or write off DRMC, leaving our town with nothing. We still emergencies from Halifax and Martinsville. What happens if we close and then someone needs help??
I believe that it is part of the city charter that city officials are obligied to provide emrgency care. Not sure how much or how little but should that happen City budget would have to be allowed to provide. ie. Tax dollars would be required to open a bare bones facility.
the hospital is not going anywhere......dumbasses
We are not dumbasses we are dumbassess with low hanging...oh yes fruit!
We are full scale dumb-a-- and idiots to boot for letting hucksters like Davenport, Ashby, Barkhouser, Majors and Motley ever get in positions of control. They have wrecked our community and run for the hills, laughiong all the way. The only leader who has stood up for us is Coy Harville and the Pittsylvania sup[ervisors who had the vision to come out against what these unsrupulous money grubbers have done.
and to think that these money-grubbers saw all this as a game--just something for them to do to create money for their silly institute that has none absolutely nothing other than provide cushy jobs for these money grubbers friends children who cant find jobs.
Go look in Chatham across from Bank Boy Davenport's office on Main Street. He is using our hospital mpney to build a $3 million useless community center IN FRONT OF HIS OWN OFFICE!!!!!
This is YOUR money from the sale to Lifepoint.
More bad news:
Tonight's ABC News' Evening news broadcast reported new data regarding heart attack survival rates. Of 7 hospitals in the entire country pointed out as being having the worst survival rates, DRMC was mentioned by name. Ugh.
I quote from the ABC News website:
Hospitals With Worse Heart Attack Patient Survival Rates
Sparks Regional Medical Center, Arkansas
Yuma Regional Medical Center, Arizona
Kingman Regional Medical Center, Arizona
Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Center of Brooklyn Queens, New York
Southern Ohio Medical Center, Ohio
Christus St. Michael Health System, Texas
Danville Regional Medical Center, Virgina
"Government Ranks Hospital Heart Care Online"
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/CardiacHealth/story?id=3302737&page=1
"Check Hospitals in Your State"
http://abcnews.go.com/WN/Health/story?id=3304019
"The following are the hospitals that ranked...below the national average for heart attack patient mortality rates:
Hospitals With Worse Heart Attack Patient Survival Rates
Sparks Regional Medical Center, Arkansas
Yuma Regional Medical Center, Arizona
Kingman Regional Medical Center, Arizona
Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Center of Brooklyn Queens, New York
Southern Ohio Medical Center, Ohio
Christus St. Michael Health System, Texas
Danville Regional Medical Center, Virgina"
I'm new around here--almost two years we have been here--and I am stunned that NO city leaders are outraged about the hospital. They seem to think it's no big deal. I can only assume that not a one of them depends on the hospital for hir or her own care. We don't either, but I'm a nobody.
Rally, what sort of crazy town is this that npo one is screaming?
Some poster wrote about hauling Ashby's sorry butt into account, but what about the sleazemasters like Davenport and Majors and others at American National Bank? They are the creeps who made this happen. Ashby is nothing but a toady dumb enough to let them put him out front.
No bitchin, just "real answers"
What CAN we really do to make Davenport, Ashby, Barkhouser, Majors and Motley accountable or at the very least step forward and explain why they did what the did, then if in fact the betterment of DRMC was the reason for their actions, where that concern is now...
Real suggestions please.
OK...I've watched this blog for months and have done so quietly. I have to say that I've never seen a more obvious case of "idiot-itis" in all my life.
It's clear that you're a bunch of folks that throw rocks from the sidelines and bring not one solution. You have no clue about the business of healthcare and yet you wage a war of worthless words.
UnionNurse...let me tell you about what California-legislated 4-1 ratios get...even crappier care than before. I know...my grandmother was in a southern CA hospital and the care was horrific. It's just like education,the answer is not throwing more money at the problem. You say "patients first, profits second"...hmmmm....what about the profits derived from member dues? So...why not run the unions with zero sum accounting?
As for the phrase "low hanging fruit", you simpletons couldn't even translate accurately. It has nothing to do with race or condescension...just the business of looking for optimal opportunity (which was actually a compliment to your alredy pitiful little hospital.)
As to the sum paid for the hospital...where did the deed indicate ownership for any of you? You keep referring to it as "your money" and yet I would doubt that any/many of you contributed materially to the assets,besides having medicaid pay for your children's deliveries.
There must not be much exciting to do in Danville...it's clear that this blog is a favorite way to pass the time.
"As for the phrase "low hanging fruit", you simpletons couldn't even translate accurately"
Sorry. but YOU missed something in the translation, it doen't have anything to do with race but is a condescension.....In the world of corporate takeovers, "low hanging fruit" is less desirable. If it is low hanging and GOOD then it would have been picked first, instead Companies are climbing the tree for better fruit. Hence its been "picked around" left hanging until it falls off the tree or someone willing to settle comes by. So it was in effect a slur.
Now the funny part....you watch the blog for months, then say "It's clear that you're a bunch of folks that throw rocks from the sidelines and bring not one solution. "
Yet your whole post is nothing but throwing rocks and you didn't offer even a hint of a solution.
What you just trying to fit in?
Sorry...respectfully disagree..perhaps you haven't been in a business setting where low-hanging fruit is discussed. It's a quick win...
Yeah, Lifepoint has really proven that! Not. Low hanging fruit is quick and is easy, but it's there because its been "picked around" because it didn't look so good.
Exactly, why else would they say they were in aquisition mode, but weren't going to settle for "low haning fruit" anymore? Read between the lines, they are interested in more appealing hospitals.
Many for profit corporations will first secure low hanging fruit for the "quick revenue", then once they feel that they have effectively secured that revenue, they will target "mid-hanging" fruit. Fruit is the type of revenue.
Thank goodness, government has begun regulating the manor in which the low hanging fruit is harvested. THANK YOU SENTINEL EVENT, FOR REALIZING THAT AMERICAN FRUITS OF ALL LEVELS NEED YOUR HELP AND GOVERNANCE FOR THE GOOD OF ITS CITIZENS AND THANK YOU for giving us a voice.
Hospital management and ownership of this nature are abusive to American Citizens(to both employees and consumers) and they work within a "profitable" fog.
THE ROOT IS OF AN EXECUTIVE NATURE.
There are 50(and more of various degrees) of these in America. SADLY ....in America's healthcare.
Your efforts WILL help make changes and help to bring the quality and costs of America's healthcare back into resonable guidelines. These hospitals are raping so many rural communities, economically, physically, and emotionally and have been held captive by local and state governments for several years. Thanks again for your help. Sincerely.
If one doesn't have the courage to ask the "bank boys" why they did this, then send them a letter. They will not openly express remorse or guilt. In the letter, make sure they understand that everyone knows how to spell "embezzlement" correctly.
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