2011-04-11·westranchbeacon.com · WordPress (West Ranch Beacon)·Wayback capture

Commentary: The only Hospital we have, let’s discuss it!

By admin

Dave Bossert Local Opinion Santa Clarita Valley

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I love our charming little Santa Clarita Valley! It’s such a funny, quirky and diverse place where it is almost predictable on how some will react when they read something that they don’t like. It’s a place where people don’t want any kind of confrontation; they’d rather avoid it at all cost and will hide behind the anonymity.

I can always tell if I’ve struck a nerve based on the phone calls and emails that I receive. The best call that I’ve ever gotten in the past was a person complaining about what I wrote and when I said it was the truth, they responded by saying; “I know it’s true, but why did you have to say it!”

So it was no surprise when I heard from some this past week who asked me why I “hate” the hospital and why we were publishing Dr. Gene Dorio’s commentaries!

First to be clear, I do not hate our hospital, Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital (HMNMH). In fact it is the only local hospital we have and there are some excellent care givers at that facility. There are plenty of residents that have had great experiences at that hospital and I have no doubt a large number of the students in the local schools were born at HMNMH.

But as we all know, no one individual, organization or facility is perfect. There is always room for improvement and there is any number of ways to approach those improvements. Personally I think one of the most important places to start is at the top with a board of directors that is free and clear of any conflicts which allows for unbiased decision making focused on best practices. In the case of our local hospital that would be health care.

We know that the HMNMH Boards of Directors has a number of members that may have, on the surface, some conflicts. I had detailed last November in a piece titled “Is the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital board too cozy?” what appeared to be, some cozy arrangements on the Board.

For instance, the HMNMH Board Chair is James Hicken, President & Chief Executive Officer of Bank of Santa Clarita and Elizabeth Hopp, Sr. Vice President/Director of Client Services for Bank of Santa Clarita, are on the hospital Board of Directors. What’s interesting about this is that the hospital apparently has millions of dollars in the Bank of Santa Clarita.

Another example sighted was one of the owners of a construction company that appears to have a multi-million dollar contract with the hospital is on the board of directors. I’m curious how many folks believe that having a contractor who is building large, multi-million dollar structures for the hospital should be on the board of directors? I think it would stymie frank discussions about those construction contracts and any overages, change orders, etc. that may need to be discussed at a board level.

Those are just a few examples of what needs to be discussed in an open and honest way and without any censorship. It’s obvious that a number of people think so by the documentation that is being passed off to The Beacon by insiders that also feel that there are issues that need to be discussed.

So when I received a complaint about the fact that we are publishing Dr. Dorio’s commentaries my response was very simple; there are two sides to every coin. If you want a balanced discussion then by all means submit a counter argument.

Anyone that wants to submit a commentary with an intelligent and well thought out point of view or opinion is welcome do so and we will publish it. If the hospital, or anyone else for that matter, disagrees with what Dr. Dorio has written they are more than welcome to submit a written piece expressing their own view.

If the hospital wants to stop what we publish; good luck, it won’t happen. But, if the hospital wants to express their own view of the issues we’ll happily publish it as is and with no edits or censorship.

One of the reasons that we started The Beacon was because there is blatant censorship and misinformation going on with other media outlets in the Santa Clarita Valley. Those old media outlets are regularly censoring local residents that are expressing differing views that may be counter to or shed a negative light on that media outlets advertisers or “friends.” That censorship has been experienced by me and countless others in this valley.

Other publications will bend to those special interests or their advertisers but we are dedicated to making sure anyone and everyone that wants to have their voice heard can. Other publications will feed you inaccurate or misleading facts to protect their revenue source; we will not. In an attempt to play catch-up, another publication continues to lift stories and quotes freely without attribution to The Beacon because we are receiving information from inside sources because they know it won’t be ignored or buried.

That’s what makes The Beacon a true community publication. So anyone that wants to submit a comment or opinion can have it published including the hospital, the City or anyone else; unedited, unmolested and without space restrictions. That’s called freedom of speech!

Dave Bossert- Commentary

Dave Bossert is a community volunteer who serves on a number of boards and councils. His commentaries represent his own opinions and not necessarily the views of any organization he may be affiliated with or those of the West Ranch Beacon.

Comments

4 · as published

LarMcc
LarMcc Says: April 11th, 2011 at 11:31 am The Signal is currently working on an in-depth investigative report detailing the goings on at the hospital. Oh, wait a minute. They are not. They did however publish yet another library story supporting the city on their takeover. Thanks Dave for publishing this.
No More At HMN
No More At HMN Says: April 11th, 2011 at 12:49 pm I have only recently found The Beacon and have just begun to follow the debate about HMN. As an aside, The Beacon would have made Scotty Newhall, whom I knew, proud. I have a personal interest in this since I was treated some four years ago by Dr. Cocco for pneumonia like symptoms . I was being treated by an urgent care on HMN’s campus when I became extremely ill. The doctor arranged for my admission to HMN and treatment by Dr. Cocco, whom the urgent care doctor said was the best, and whom my wife feels saved my life. I was there six days. Dr. Cocco seemed to always be there and I found the nursing staff very wonderful as well. I have also been treated by various local doctors – some much better than others. One of the much better was Dr. Jean who did a colonostomy on me at HMN. I mention this because of the very cramped, small, and dingy room he had to work in. I remember thinking at the time that the hospital could do much better in providing work facilities for their doctors. I have also had other experiences in the emergency room and such and have always found competent and caring doctors. Not so for the administration. Several years ago, for a specific example, we volunteered to help at their emergency preparedness drill. I can tell you the firefighters and sheriffs on scene were excellent but the administrative staff left me with fear if they are to be in charge during a real disaster. Example, during triage the dead were left on the green tarp while very able and healthy were on the red tarp because the paid people were busy eating and gossiping on their cells while they had kids doing their jobs with no supervision. Also some of us, as simulated victims, were bussed to Facey for their part of the citywide exercise. There, a very competent Facey nurse did exactly what would have been necessary in a disaster. She was the only professionally competent hospital person we would encounter that day. When the exercise finished, HMN forgot about us and it was several hours before HMN could find a way to transport us back to HMN. I determined who was in charge and wrote a detailed letter and didn’t even get the courtesy of a response. I was later told by a friend who volunteers at HMN that the administration really does’t care – just what I see from reading your blog. Since then I have moved on to USC hospital because as I mentioned some HMN doctors are better than others and I have had my share of others. At that time, a doctor out here just wanted to cut and, thank God, my wife asked that we get a second opinion. That doctor sent me to USC where one of the teaching professors found a medical regimen to control my pneumonia like symptoms – on the first visit while the specialist doctor out here had been treating me for almost three years without success. I also had a urologist out here who couldn’t care about communicating with me about my problems – just kept saying, “I’ll watch it.” I saw a urologist at USC – the senior professor and head of the department – who took some tests and found the “watch it” I had was prostate cancer. I mention this because my prostate was removed using the DaVinci robot of which they have seven and more on the way. This machine virtually eliminates the associated risks of prostate surgery. I doubt HMN has even one. I am now going where I get excellent care with the latest equipment and, most importantly, by staff that is ALWAYS happy and motivated to assist the patients because the administration supports them.
WorriedInsider
WorriedInsider Says: April 11th, 2011 at 11:01 pm Unfortunately, The Signal is a high school level bundle of paper of minimal value. An in depth reporting over an extended period of time needs to be done, putting everything in context, exploring the real issues. Maybe the LA Times? The current dynamic between Admin/Board and Medical Staff is at an all time low.There is an element of fear and helplessness among many doctors. A new found aggressiveness against hospital physicians sweeps the nation, and HM knows the game. As they say, follow the money. This is not just local, as Dr. Dorio’s blogs have alleged, but the new Healthcare environment will encourage complete control by the hospital businessmen over the doctors. The bland press releases in The Signal give no inkling of the tremblings under the ground at Henry Mayo. We all want success. Can’t we just get along?
NancyNurse
NancyNurse Says: April 12th, 2011 at 8:19 pm Dave, just where would you like to start on our small community? Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital has so much potential for the cutting edge resource in Santa Clarita that it sickens me to see how far it continues to sink under the current administration. We went from being unable to obtain supplies because we couldnt pay our venders to building new facilities for procedures that could cost someone their life because should something go wrong (and it has and will again)there is no way to get people out to the care they require in a timely manner. (or at least in time to save their life)Cant we all get along? ARE YOU BLIND Santa Clarita? Have you any idea how many lives are affected in negative ways because of administration at our little Health Haven? We, as a community, need Quality Healthcare, not cut corners! We need to know that under the HMNMH roof, we will be cared for and not forgotten. That our “Insurance Status” is NOT the basis for care, treatment or length of stay! The mission statement clearly states: Mission “To improve the health of our community through compassion and excellence in healthcare services.” Yet, compassion? The morning Case Management meetings discussing the census is all about who has the best insurance and how much more we can get from the company. How to cut back on care and procedures when insurance is running low or is questionable. Excellence in healthcare services? The staff are functioning at the BARE MINIMUM state required, this is talleyed from the end of the previous shift and based highly on the potential discharges, not actual numbers. The staff are working with short supply counts and high acuity patients. Mistakes ARE made and not reported. Lets have a look at the Vision statement: Vision “To create the ideal healthcare environment to surpass expectations.” Whose ideal? Administration? Those who have no clue of what it takes to manage the infirmed? Surpass expectations? I guess if the community doesnt have a clue what things SHOULD be, then they are content with substandard healthcare. This moves us to the Values statement…. Values Integrity Trust & Respect Accountability Teamwork Clinical Competence & Quality Compassionate Care This has turned into nothing more then lip service. The administration has proven time and again they are far from trustworthy. There is no trust or respect between the administration and the workng staff. Just take a look at the night shift sometime. Administration shuns accountability onto single staff members instead of shouldering it where it belongs. Need I go on? I personally have waited 9 hours in the ER waiting room before even being triaged. I have held pressure on lacerations for total strangers while waiting to be seen in the ER. Where is the Clinical competency and Compassionate care? All I see any more is the grand Roger Seaver telling the community at large what he thinks they want to hear. Wake up people and take a good look. The wool is being pulled over your eyes.