GREENVILLE — Delta Regional Medical Center is outperforming hospitals on both the state and national levels according to Joint Commission reports, Ray Humphreys, the hospital’s chief executive officer told the Washington County Board of Supervisors last week. He said the hospital’s Joint Commission report was very good. The Joint Commission accredits and certifies more than 17,000 health care organizations nationwide, and its certification is recognized as a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to meeting certain performance standards.
“We’ve had a very good year, and we’ve got a lot to be excited about,” said Humphreys. “We’ve seen significant growth in our emergency care and within the heart center.”
There’s been so much growth in those areas that Humphreys referred to it as “booming.” The renovation of the two departments has garnered growth in utilization of the facilities, allowing DRMC to enlist the services of a board-certified emergency physician — there are only nine in the state. In addition, Humphreys said, DRMC ahs received a verbal commitment from a heart surgeon to join the staff of the hospital’s heart center.
“Heart procedures have been increasing and our heart center is outperforming state and national averages with ‘door to balloon’ procedures which is the time a heart patient arrives and to the time they’re being treated for a heart emergency. The average is 90 minutes, and our time at Delta Regional is 59 minutes,” said Humphreys.
“Heart procedures have been increasing and our heart center is outperforming state and national averages with ‘door to balloon’ procedures which is the time a heart patient arrives and to the time they’re being treated for a heart emergency. The average is 90 minutes, and our time at Delta Regional is 59 minutes,” said Humphreys.
July 2010 is the anticipated opening for the Delta’s only neonatal intensive care unit which will provide a high level of intensive care to premature infants. There are currently 11 NICU’s in the state, and Delta Regional has hired a neonatologist to fill this dire need.
“It is unacceptable to have the highest death rate among infants in the state,” Humphreys said. “If Delta Regional doesn’t do it, it wont be done.”
Humphreys too reported that DRMC could see a higher profit on it’s bottom than anticipated. He said the hospital could see approximately $800,000 more than their $3 million estimate for the end of the fiscal year. The final numbers according to Humphreys should be available from the auditors by the end of December.
Atta boy, Ray! Baffle them with BS when you need statistics on your side. The truth is that the "Joint Commission" is an elective, purchased certification that costs the hospital upwards of $40,000 a year. It increases the hospital's reimbursement they recieve from Federal programs and is the equivalent of having a "player's card" in a casino.
Now, if you pay me $40,000 a year to "certify" you as a safe hospital, the chances are good that you will pass! It's like hiring your brother as your home inspector... duh?
Sure, DRMC is doing well! It is the only show in town. The numbers of sick and indigent patients are steadily increasing while taxpayers are fleeing the Delta. Medicaid and the state are broke and we are about to experience Obama-care, which will "level" us all.
So, here we go again Ray! More promises of new services and delusions of grandeur. If DRMC opened a tattoo parlor and bought out all of the competition... that would make DRMC the BEST tattoo parlor in Greenville!
Gotta luv it!
Forthright
Posts
23 comments:
Forthright--
You are always dogging the DRMC even if the news is good. You can hardly give a fair assessment yourself.
This is what the Joint Commission does (from their website www.jointcommission.org):
Accreditation and/or Certification is the process of requesting an independent review of your organization’s performance against national quality and safety requirements. Joint Commission accredited or certified organizations have demonstrated that they meet the highest standards in their field."
So....how EXACTLY is an independent review a BAD thing for our hospital. I suppose YOU'RE more independent?
How else is DRMC to improve (or see improvement) if it doesn't have an objective viewpoint. Is there no value in this?
Ps...I don't work for the hospital, so I have no dog in this fight other be some objective voice against Forthright's biased opinion.
8:38 post....Have you EVER been a patient at DRMC?
Have you EVER had a family member at DRMC?
Have you EVER had to be taken to the ER at DRMC?
Come on...'fess up!
The Joint Commission has no problem failing an institution. Boliver Medical Center has experince at getting hammered by a Joint Commission inspection. Check it out.
8:38 PM Post: If you don't agree with Forthright's views and opinions,(which you call "biased"),
then, why bother to even read his blogs?
Do you enjoy "objecting"?
Are you an attorney?
DRMC IS THE WORST HOSPITAL IN THE STATE. I HAD THE PLEASURE OF GOING TO THE GREENWOOD HOSPITAL, THE STAFF WAS CORDIAL, PROFESSIONAL AND CARING. OH YES AND CLEAN. NONE OF WHICH EXIST AT DRMC. MY SON WAS A PATIENT, MY FRIENDS HAVE VISITED THE EMERGENCY ROOM, IT IS SAD TO SAY THE LEAST AND TRUST ME THIS IS THE LEAST. DRMC HAS SO MANY LAW SUITS FILED IT WILL TAKE TWENTY YEARS TO GET THROUGH THEM ALL
Here is a fair report from my recent experience.
Staff -very attentive
Room -clean
Treatment-in surgery and out...very good.
Physician-Very good. Near to excellent.
Shortcomings - nurses failed to follow surgery with Doctor's orders on breathing/lung treatment to prevent fluid build up and pneumonia. Not critical; but when I broght it to the attention of the doctor, she became very agitated, double checked her orders to be sure she had included this instruction, left the room momentarily to correct the situation and then she stated: "Let's get you out of here, before they make you sick!"
I was fine enough to be released that day.
Slip ups happen in most any hospital, in my case it was not life threatening...but next time?? It pays to be an educated patient, not only at the hospital; but in visits with your physician, as well.
I am so glad someone spoke the truth. They are treating people and sending them home, two hours later they are dead. Maybe they were going to die anyway but what about all this quality care he is talking about. The rooms are filty, beds are not changed daily, the staff is rude and the turn over in the waiting room is a joke, and I am talking about people with insurance.
My dad has chronic heart problems. He has been to DMRC probably more times than anyone in G'ville. The emergency room and ambulance drivers know him by name. But still to this day it takes them sometimes 8 to 10 hours to check him into the hospital. Just this past Sunday he woke up with chest pains and couldn't breathe, The ambulance picked him up around 10 in the morning. He finally got checked into the hospital at 11:30 that night. Tell me how that is considered within the time limits.
It was within the time limits for them. And the Emergency was probably empty.
I don't care WHICH hospital a patient is in...someone within the family...needs to stay with patient at ALL times to ensure that proper care is taken and that orders are followed. The majority of the time...the patient is too sick to know what is going on or to complain.
This is a family "rule" that was passed down to me from my own parents, about 30 years ago.
They both have had family members in both hospitals in Greenville, (yes, back then, there were TWO hospitals), Cleveland, Jackson, Memphis, TN., and Houston, TX.
Once, in Jackson, MS., we were told that our mother could not be "checked into" a room, until the room had been cleaned. I had traveled from Greenville, MS--a two hour drive--and she was STILL on a stretcher in the hallway, with my father in a chair beside her.
I told them, that if THEY would give me a mop, broom, and a bottle of Clorax, I would clean the "damn"
room myself. Surprisingly, she was given a room in about 20 minutes!
Family members...take care of your own hospital patients!
To 8:38: Have you ever had your car "inspected" where the technician never looked at your car, simply scraped off your old sicker, put a new one on and said, that'll be five dollars?
Yes, there is corruption at every level of our democracy. JCAHO is no exception. I agree with Forthright that you get what you pay for. I have worked in numerouos hospitals and JCAHO certification doesn't mean a damn thing!
I have had an inspection where it was looked at.
There are honest workers and organizations out there.
3:32 POST...You are ABSOLUTELY correct. As stated by a family member physician who is head of a department at University Hospital in Jackson, "We have discussed in meetings on several occasions that it is very vital to have a family member with the patient at ALL times when they are in the hospital". This goes for any hospital anywhere. Trust me, I have had this experience on numerous occasions with both of my parents before their deaths. I have caught both doctors,nurses and CNA's making horrible mistakes while my parents were in DRMC, and Baptist Hospital in Jackson. PATIENT BEWARE....make sure a family member stays with you 24/7.
P.S. And make sure that family member is astute & asks lots of questions.
I had the same experiences with the big hospitals in Memphis...living will provided to them on ck in but never made it to the chart, allergy to penicillin not noted, too many patients and too few nurses at nite, etc. Yes, you have to have family there to make sure the staff is aware of the patients' needs. They are only human...
Well , If I have to stay and watch everything the nurses and doctors do to protect my loved one then how can that hospital be given a good score. It seems all of that would be at the top of the the list for grading purposes. If I don't work I don't get paid. I can't stay at the hospital for 2 to 3 weeks at a time to watch what a supposedly good hospital is doing. They should pay me if I had to stay and keep an eye on them like an incompetent care giver they are according to all of you above.
11:26 AM
What's more important?
Going to work...or staying at the hospital with your mother or father?
We ALL have to make choices in life.
I'm so glad that I made the right choice...concerning both of my parents!
2:11 post...I am so glad that I made the right decision as well, with both of my parents. I held both of their hands as they drew their last breath and I watched their spirit leave their body. It was such a blessing. No amount of money could have bought that experience.
I encourage everyone to look at the biggest waste of money in the history of the earth!! Many people are getting rich off of the tax paying workers!!!!!!!!!
http://www.recovery.gov/Pages/home.aspx
Thats not the point. If a hospital is supposed to have all these great scores then why should you have to live in the hospital for weeks to watch what the hospital is suppose to know. Sounds to me like DMRC did buy their accreditation. We shouldn't have to be there to watch every move they make if they were worth a damn. They are supposedly professionals and should know what they are doing.
Additional advice:
Save your "leave" time, or vacation
time...and use it for family medical emergencies. That way, you'll be able (financially) to take off from work when your family needs you.
If you are a hard, dedicated employee, that saves their leave time for family emergencies, instead of going on two week trips to the beach, or cruises...then the majority of the time...the employor will be understanding and allow the "sudden" need to use available "leave" time.
How to avoid falling victim to a hospital mistake....
www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/ll/ll/hospital.mistakes/index.html
Everyone needs to read this article.
My mother was a patient at DRMC months ago maybe even last year during preparation for a JACHO survey. I will just hit a few highlights.
1. The nurse's station was in a complete uproar, which we could hear in the room with the door closed. I happened to walk out to ask about getting some ice to see a ton of filth being being swept out from behind cabinets. This could not have been cleaned for years. Nurses were cursing about the desks being moved and they could not sit in their chairs. When the cleaning was finally finished several nurses had gotten their drinks and the gossiping began, which included the names of physicians other nursing staff, and administration. Boy the stories I could repeat and I do not know these people!
2. My mother's room looked clean until you looked closely. The dust on the light was an inch thick. The IV pole had several pieces of tape stuck on it and something spilled all over the pump when they brought it in. I asked them to get a clean one but how often does this happen? What are their statistics on Nosocomial infections?
3. My mother tells me after we get her home about the Recovery Room experience...She asks for something for pain as her nurse sits at a computer. She thinks her nurse is working so she waits. The nurse never gets up. She asks for pain medicine a total of 3 times and another nurse tells the one on the computer to "get off Facebook and quit farming" and see about her patient. Her nurse says I am "almost through" and after answering her cell phone several times to tell her child she does not have any money she finally gets up to give her something for pain. "Quit farming"???
JACHO does not allow food or drink in a patient care area such as, a nurse's station. Do they stop eating, drinking, and gossiping in the nurse's station only when JACHO is in the house? Patient not their families care to hear some of the things we heard and should not be subjected to it. Did I say something to the department director? Well no because she was in the conversation with the others.
To touch on the farming incident in the Recovery Room. I really think I am speechless at the thought of a nurse playing a computer game while her patient is needing something! Especially right after surgery. Just how many employers allow their employees to play games at work?
I could go on and on but I will spare you. My whole point is, I have been a nurse for 26 years and have been through many JACHO surveys. There is no perfect hospital but JACHO can be a useful tool if the administration of a hospital is truly concerned about the well being of the patients. This place obviously is not. I am so glad we talked my mother into living with us away from Greenville
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