Sutter Press Round-Up 5/13/05

PERSISTENT PATIENT CARE PROBLEMS PUT SUTTER HOSPITALS'
"REPUTATION AT RISK"

Sutter's Marin General Hospital threatened with Medicare
termination, while Alta Bates Summit Medical Center faces
possible accreditation denial

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MEDICARE PAYMENTS IN PERIL AT MGH
Hospital threatened for second time in four months

Marin Independent Journal, May 12, 2005

"... It is the third time since February 2004 that government
inspectors have found problems with pharmaceutical services and
the second time deficiencies in nursing services have been
cited.

"'It is shameful that Sutter/Marin General Hospital has again,
so soon, been found to have care so poor that it violates
Medicare's minimum standards,' Rothman said. Management of the
hospital is overseen by Sutter Health, a not-for-profit health
care organization that operates 25 hospitals statewide.

"... One of the incidents that triggered Medicare's scrutiny of
Marin General was the death of a patient who was admitted for
surgery to treat degenerative disc disease of the spine. It was
later learned the alarm on the patient's cardiac monitor had
been switched off and that the nurse in charge of the patient,
not a regular employee of the hospital, lacked training with
cardiac monitors.

"During an inspection in May 2004, auditors found a drug cart
containing syringes with no dates or incomplete labels, making
it unclear what the needles contained or how long they had been
exposed.

"In September, inspectors determined that a cardiovascular nurse
at the hospital was providing care beyond her scope of practice
- placing patients in immediate jeopardy. The nurse was deciding
when patients were sufficiently stable to have chest tubes or
temporary pacemaker wires removed. She also removed them without
physician supervision. The hospital halted the practice."

Full article:
http://www.facts-online.org/ct/311MGt11qPgy/MarinIJ

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EAST BAY HOSPITAL UNDER FIRE

Contra Costa Times, May 12, 2005

"With its reputation at risk, Alta Bates Summit Medical Center
will seek today to reverse a preliminary decision that threatens
the hospital's accreditation.

"The loss of accreditation would deal a huge blow to the
prestige of the 100-year-old medical center, the East Bay's
largest. Accreditation certifies that a facility has met basic
standards set forth by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of
Healthcare Organizations, a nonprofit organization sponsored by
the hospital industry.

"An unfavorable decision could also threaten Alta Bates' funding
for Medicare and Medicaid patients, as well as certification to
run its residency programs.

"'Clearly, this is not a trivial situation,' said Assemblywoman
Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley. 'It could really affect the future of
health care in the East Bay.'"

"Concerned about the hospital's future, Hancock, along with
Wilma Chan, D-Oakland, held a public meeting last week to
discuss the issue.

"There, the legislators, as well as Berkeley and Albany city
council members and other members of the community, learned that
of 1,500 hospitals surveyed in 2004 by the joint commission,
only 13 received a preliminary denial.

"In issuing the Alta Bates Summit denial, the commission cited
17 'requirements for improvement,' including assessing pain in
all patients, obtaining informed consent from patients and
responding appropriately to medication errors."

Full article:
http://www.facts-online.org/ct/xp1MGt11qPgU/ContraCosta

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ALTA BATES FACES ACCREDITATION LOSS

Berkeley Daily Planet, May 10, 2005

Read article:
http://www.facts-online.org/ct/x71MGt11qPgE/DailyPlanet
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