Monday, January 23, 2006

It's My Mind: Advocate slashing services at West Side hospital

Levois over at It's My Mind blogged on Advocate Health Care slashing services at West Side's Bethany hospital. Citing a Crain's Chicago Business article he noted,

Bethany would close its emergency room next month and phase out other services over the next few months under a plan that needs to be approved by state officials, said Tony Mitchell, Advocate’s vice-president of communications and government relations.

By March, the 125-bed hospital would become a long-term specialty facility serving patients recuperating for an average of 25 days. The hospital would also shut its detox, intensive care and psychiatry programs, reducing total number of beds to 85.
I saw Forest Claypool on TV a few days ago fighting Advocate's plan because of the pressure it will put on Cook County Hospital; which, as Claypool notes ,is run none too well itself with some Duff family style sham minority-women owned front companies,
Claypool said there is much to debate regarding the success of Stroger Hospital. He pointed out the hospital is plagued with days-long waits for simple services such as dispensing of medicines, and months-long waits for specialists. The hospital is managed by a top-heavy bureaucracy that is removed by several layers from the critical service of administering front-line patient care. And only two days ago, the United States District Attorney indicted the Siemens company and several individuals for a fraud scheme that cheated the taxpayers and, perhaps more importantly, thwarted the process of allowing qualified minority and woman-owned vendors an equal chance at county business.
Maybe the solution to Cook County's Health Care system is an All Kids style program with bad out-reach and hope to save money because the beneficaries won't understand they can use it.

4 comments:

Levois 6:43 PM  

Wow thanks for the link. It's unfortunate that an area that needs a hospital may lose it. I do understand why they do it. It's better that a private hospital is there to serve those who need treatment that it is for them to wind up in Cook County Hospital.

Anonymous,  11:30 AM  

"Wind up" in Stroger Hospital. Please. If you get shot, get AIDS, need a burn unit or if you need neonatal services, you pray yuo go to Stroger Hospital.

The place is bulging at the seams as it is. Go take your uniformed elitism somewhere else.

Levois 9:01 AM  

Hmm. Elitism? Well I understand that Stroger Hospital is bulging at the seams but that doesn't mean they want to be there. Or that Stroger Hospital is their first choice.

Bill Baar 10:13 AM  

anon: What's elitist about having a problem with a sham minority owned business?

How do I oppress the masses if I suggest Stroger does business with real minority owned firms instead?

It the minority business set aside programs are jokes, which is what these sham companies make of them, then maybe we best scrap the program and look for other ways to foster minority and women owned companies.

That's not an elitest idea either.

  © Blogger template The Professional Template by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP