Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Frothingham..."Retired"

Anonymous said...

I heard the same thing yesterday afternoon and to say I was shocked beyond belief is putting it mildly! I can't wait to see what the 'official' statement is going to be on this one!

Gracious I'm sure. 'It is just that time'... kinda thing.

I've had the pleasure of working with this physician in the past and he would never publicly announce if they were forcing him, especially to cut costs. He's not that way. He has always given 110%to that hospital and always been an advocate to the patient and employees he works with. He would go along with this 'in the interest of the hospital'.

From what I heard yesterday there are a lot of employees feeling shocked and hurt over at the West Campus. The news has already started trickling over to DRMC and out into the community and from what I understand, everyone over there still doesn't know. How sad and underhanded is that? I'm sure I'm not the only one wondering what will happen to their jobs after all of this is done.

Anonymous said...

It is a shame that the hospital continues to be managed in such a horrible fashion. These employees who have been laid off or asked to leave in the past did not deserve it. Most of them were long term players who, like the physician mentioned above, had gone above and beyond for patients and the hospital. They were not only hurt by his terrible decisions, but their families were as well.

I can tell you, there will be a huge party thrown when Ray and his entourage are escorted out of that building. All you have to do is drive 30 minutes each direction and take a stroll down the halls of nearby hospitals. There you will find many familiar Greenville faces who are employed at those facilities because of Ray's indecent and unjust behavior.

This insider still doesn't know which MD is to be laid off as the blog referred to yesterday. I'm telling you the very folks working inside DRMC are always the last ones to be informed of issues that affect them! Hopefully time is ticking down on Ray's empire.

Anonymous said...
It's Dr. Frothingham, I hear. How sad. And yes - he is way too classy to publicly denounce this last shenanigan of Ray's. A terrible loss.

Anonymous said...
It looks to me like Ray may be trying to silence any potential "songbirds" who have first hand knowledge of his heinous little club. Dr. Frothingham has more respect in this community than Ray and all of his bible-thumping deacons ever could. It is sad that a medical doctor who has devoted his life and practice to Greenville can be cast aside by the likes of Ray Humphreys. My question is: Who is next?

Anonymous said...
What is wrong with this picture??? I am appalled by the board's constant blind eye. They all need to be removed and let's start over.

Anonymous said...
Dr. Frothingham? No No No!!!!!!!!!! He is such a great Physician/Man- a real class act- what a bunch of total Bullshit. A real loss- this is so unjust and unfair!!!

Yes, we all await the public spin that will be put on the "ousting" of Dr. Rodney Frothingham... the first "sacrificial lamb" of Ray's desperate struggle to stay in power.

Dr. Frothingham, a well respected physician and long time Greenville resident, has served as liaison between DRMC and KDH since the acquisition. To many employees and patients, he represented the one harbinger that "better together" was more than a mere marketing slogan to justify what is now known as "Ray's final folly".

I agree that Dr. Frothingham is far too much a gentleman and a professional to engage in the back-handed politics of Ray and his lot. It is indeed regrettable that skilled medical professionals have to become scapegoats for corrupt and incompetent administrators... but such is the cost of a dictatorship. As questioned by an anonymous author: Who will be next?

Greenville... if not now, when?

Forthright

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Indeed, Dr. Frothingham's character is leagues above Ray Humphreys. Frothingham is one of the ONLY positive administrators in the entire facility. Ask any of the numerous employees. Every time, without fail, when you meet him in the hall, he greets you with a smile (and usually a heartfelt hug)and a "how are you doing today?" Address him with the same, "How are you Dr. Froth?" and his reply will be along the lines of "this day can't get any better, its wonderful". His warmth confirms that he is sincere. This is one man that doesn't strike fear and dread in the hearts of employees when he rounds the nursing floors. He doesn't resort to manipulation and scheming, but treats patients, employees, and other MDs with respect. It is unfathomable that we are losing him and Ray is still lurking in his cush office watching his flat screen TV, surfing the internet, and playing with his latest palm pilot. As Forthright has said, this is another desperate ploy for Ray. Surely there is some way to run Ray and his entire crew out of here. The only ones who are left are all YES Mr Humphreys men/women. Its time we all said NO.

Anonymous said...

When will the people of Washington County wake up? Not only has Ray Humphreys and his entourage got to go, but evidently the hospital board and the Supervisors who have allowed this kind of behavior to continue must go also. The only way to stop this madness, is to just stand up and say NO MORE!!!
We refuse to let you destroy our community like you tried to do in Hattisburg. Too many loyal and experienced employees have lost their jobs at DRMC due to the fact they could not and would not be part of the yes men/women of the RAY-RAY team. I for one will host a party in the DRMC parking lot the day that man (who I believe to be the biggest criminal in Washington county)is lead out of the building in handcuffs!!! I know I am not the only one who feels this way.

Anonymous said...

Just days ago, in this same blog, everybody was complaining about the excessive number of highly paid, incompetent, Coke-sipping administrators and "officers" at DRMC.
Well, Dr.Frothingham (Chief Medical Officer) "resigned" and now everybody is complaining about it.
Looks like no matter what this administration at DRMC does, it will be condemned by the public.

Anonymous said...

Apparently you don't know Dr. Frothingham or his job at the hospital.

The condemnation comes into play because they are getting rid of a highly "COMPETENT", "HANDS ON", non Coke-sipping administrator who is always there for you weather you are: a Patient; Family member; Nurse; Aide; Doctor; Guard; Cook; Environmental Worker...

No matter what your job title or 'who' you were. Dr. Frothingham always had a smile, a hug or a pat on the back, warm/kind words, and made you feel like your problems were very important to him. He brightened every floor he walked onto. Everyone would hear him say "It's the best day of my life" or "If it was any better, I wouldn't be able to stand it!".

If he told you he was going to take care of something, he DID it! Anyone felt comfortable going to him with any concern or problem. He actually makes rounds on the patients so he is a very "hands on" type of physician who cares very much! I have never met a patient yet that didn't love and respect him or know someone who he has done surgery on in the past.

The history he has here at DRMC is beyond reproach. He has always gone above and beyond his duties in best interest of the patients and in the interest of this hospital. He is one of the very few that understood the fine line between being cost effective and also keeping enough staff to have a safe environment for staff and patient alike. He has always been creative in ways to save money and has taken his number of low census days or 'flex' days along with a lot of other employees over the last few months.

He also spends a lot of his free time on other commitees unreimbursed as he is a strong advocate for the health care of Mississippi!

If everyone only knew what a loss this is going to be...

Many a spirit has been crushed this last week over what they have done.

*hangs head low*

Anonymous said...

My previous comment was not to question the character of Dr.Frothingham. You are right, I am not familiar with the role of Chief Medical Officer.
My point was that we are very critic of DRMC administration, yet we do not provide any suggestions how to improve things. Also, we often fail to mention any positive accomplishments.
It looks like this is personal against Ray Humphreys.

Anonymous said...

*yet we do not provide any suggestions how to improve things*

As citizens, the most we can do and what we should be doing is protesting by calling our County Supervisors, DRMC Medical Board and perhaps the MS Medical board. Venting here is only limited comfort, actions speak louder than words!

As for Ray Humphreys, it is definite that he has his own agenda, how it benefits him, who knows? Power, status, kickbacks??? There has to be more to it than we see.

Meanwhile, if it concerns you enough to complain here, complain where it counts! Or as they say, "Put up or Shut Up!"

Anonymous said...

Dr. Frothingham is NOT one of the coke sipping administrators who does nothing all day long. And yes, this must be personal against Ray Humphreys - as he is the very one who has been charged with the administrator of DRMC. He has run the place into the ground. Suggestions? Get rid of Ray Humphreys for starters. Follow up by cleaning house in his "leadership team". Third, the board of trustees for the hospital needs to be removed and replaced. It is all corrupt. If you don't believe it, you are living in a dream world. Dr. Frothingham is just the latest casualty. He did not deserve this. Shame on Ray and the Board.

Anonymous said...

Which leadership team... senior leadership or the others (department directors)? They cannot all be bad and corrupt.

Anonymous said...

Dr. Frothingham is one of my favorite people at DRMC. He is always in a great mood and happy to see everyone - truly a person that anyone can feel comfortable talking to. He will be missed by many. I can only hope that enough attention will be come from this that something will be done about the current state of things at DRMC.

Anonymous said...

Which leadership team? The one Ray deems "senior leadership". That would include Allyson Williams, Mazie Whalen, Alphe Wells, and Florence Jones. It's time to clean house. And if you want to scrutinize salaries, check theirs out.
Additionally, during Ray's tenure there have been numerous high dollar jobs created which amount to nothing. They are definitely non-revenue generating jobs. Another place we need to check the books!
I know for a fact that reports concerning finances change with the wind. One minute you might be told you are ok with your volume and then poof you are a losing player for DRMC and you no longer have a job.