State of the Hospital-Danville Regional Medical Center: "City Council to discuss commission's report"

Monday, July 2, 2007

"City Council to discuss commission's report"

Danville Register and Bee
Monday, July 2, 2007
DANVILLE – Danville City Council will discuss the hospital commission report at its Tuesday night meeting.
The Citizen’s Commission Related to the Danville Regional Medical Center was tasked by Mayor Wayne Williams to look into the issues and complaints about the hospital since its purchase by LifePoint two years ago.
The report Tuesday night will include comments from consultant Keith Pryor, a budget detailing where the commission’s money went and data collected from the commission’s surveys and public hearings.

4 comments:

unionnurse said...: It will be interesting to see the recommendations from the commission and whether Lifepoint takes heed to any of them. Rumor has it that the commission is recommending minimum staffing ratios.

Let's not hold our breath.; July 2, 2007 at 4:22:00 PM EST
Anonymous said...: Here we go again..........; July 2, 2007 at 4:40:00 PM EST
Anonymous said...: I would really like to be optimistic about the Commission and its recommendations...there are, after all, some people on the Commission who really do care and who have been dedicated to doing a good job with their mission. The only sticking point is that LPNT has offered no commitment to do anything whatsoever for the Commission or to act upon any of its recommendations.
To those on the Commission, thank you for your time and effort.; July 3, 2007 at 11:20:00 AM EST
Anonymous said...: Guys, Face reality. Lifepoint is a multibillion dollar corporation. Danville will not hurt it, no matter what happens. Trying to throw stones at Goliath will not work in this century. There are quality problems that are being addressed. Staffing levels are concerning but not horrendous. Things could be much worse, believe it or not. To keep "boycotting" the hospital does not hurt Lifepoint, they will make money selling gas to you leaving town. It only hurts the quality people staying behind doing their jobs. Then when things hit the fan, you will have a "transfer station" that hopefully will take care of you. In reality that does NOT exist. You are not going to build another hospital. The Boys at the Bank will grovel until the furor dies down and not contribute anything to help us. Lifepoint will go on, with or without you. Face reality! This is, what it is. If there are specific concerns, bring them up, to the newspapers, to the attorney general, to your doctor. Blanket condemnations do not work and do not bring about change. We asked for a new CEO, now we have one. Stop for a minute and give him a chance. Do you even know what to ask for next?? If so, be specific! Otherwise the only losers in all this will be the doctors, staff and patients (now and future) that live in Danville. You can bet Lifepoint and the Boys could not care less.; July 3, 2007 at 2:29:00 PM EST

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Letter to Employees, February 7, 2007

Dear DRMC Associates, Physicians and Volunteers: Thank you for all your efforts to provide healthcare to the citizens of the Dan River Region. Providing healthcare, saving lives, and improving the quality of the lives of our friends, family and neighbors is a high calling, and you are answering that call each and every day. Delivering on the high expectations of those we serve is a tremendous responsibility, shared by everyone – physicians, nurses, technical and support staff, volunteers, managers and administration. It’s no secret that to be successful in meeting this responsibility, we must work together. We have seen in our Emergency Department the good things that can happen when staff, physicians and management work together effectively. The reduction in wait times and fewer patients leaving without treatment are ample proof. You should all be proud of this accomplishment. It is our hope that all of us on the hospital team, and indeed the entire community, can come together around Danville Regional and make it a source of genuine pride and positive economic activity for this area. Coming together is way overdue. When Mr. Bill Carpenter, CEO of LifePoint and three other corporate officers were in our hospital in January, they openly apologized for mistakes made at the onset of the hospital sale. Knowing what they know at this point in time, they would have definitely done things differently. LifePoint has committed the support and resources needed to make DRMC a hospital of which we all can be proud. In addition, we, as leaders in different areas of the hospital, commit our time and energy to that same goal. The important thing to remember is that on one person or small group can make this hospital successful. It will take the support and commitment of every single one of us who are connected to DRMC in any way. We need your help to make this happen. Going forward won’t be easy. Any organization of this size and complexity has issues. But it is time to move on, and move ahead. Constructive suggestions are always OK, and in fact welcomed, because there is almost always more than one “right way” to accomplish goals. Bitter, destructive criticism isn’t OK. There’s a reason they call it “holding grudges,” because the only person who feels bad is the one holding them. It’s time for us to let these go. Good things can happen if we channel our energies on positive activities. Never has this been more important than now. During 2006 and 2007 $26 million is being invested to create some good things – the build out of the 5th and 6th floors, the new radiation/oncology equipment, addition of PACS and a new state of the art CT machine. These improvements, coupled with your caring approach, will provide better, more complete care for our patients, close to home. Recent patient satisfaction scores have improved, and will continue to improve as long as we focus our efforts on providing the best care for our patients and support for each other. We also fully recognize the importance of improving staff and physician satisfaction, and the positive impact this will have on the patients we serve. We also have a big challenge that will require everyone’s best – our Joint Commission accreditation review, which will occur sometime in the next couple of months. When you think about it, it is not a stretch to say that the lifeblood of this community is dependent upon Danville Regional maintaining Joint Commission accreditation. Joint Commission accreditation is a key to the continued success of one of the largest employers in the region, and the place where the majority of our citizens come to receive healthcare. An accredited hospital makes the community more attractive for residents who already are here, and also for those people and their employers who are looking for a good place to live, work, play and invest. It also directly impacts the livelihood of all associates and physicians. We need to place a tremendous amount of importance and urgency around preparing for Joint Commission, because accreditation is vital to all of us. While some might think loss of accreditation hurts LifePoint, the real losers are those of us who live and work in this community. We must join together to protect one of our most valuable community assets. Our region’s economic recovery depends on it. So we go back to our original points: we are fortunate to be in a position to serve others, which is a tremendous responsibility we accept every day. All of us want to make this a better place to work, and a better place for our neighbors to receive treatment. We are committed to supporting you and know that together we will make DRMC the very best it can be. We appreciate each of you. Sincerely, Dr. Betty Jo Foster Chairman, DRMC Advisory Board Arthur M. Doloresco President/ CEO Richard A. Smith, M.D. Chief of Staff

State of the Hospital-Danville Regional Medical Center

Monday, July 2, 2007

"City Council to discuss commission's report"

4 comments:

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Letter to Employees, February 7, 2007