DAVID PRISANT: Are things better at Phoebe?

On Nov. 5, 2013, Phoebe Health System President/CEO Joel Wernick convened a rather large gathering of hospital executives, board members and others in the main lobby of the hospital for the purpose of announcing a partnership of Phoebe and xG Health Solutions, a Geisinger Health System affiliate.

Geisinger is a respected leader in health care delivery and Mr. Wernick said that this partnership demonstrates that “Phoebe is committed to improving patient care and making health care more affordable.” The entire 27-minute program can be seen on YouTube under the title, “Phoebe announces a partnership with xG Solutions.”

So now, almost two years since that press conference, how has this partnership evolved with these stated goals, and are things better at Phoebe?

On Jan. 23, 2014, two months after the Geisinger announcement, Moody’s Investors Services downgraded Phoebe’s long-term bond rating because of their previous two years of financial downturns. The chief driving force for the downgrade was primarily attributed to Phoebe’s long-held and expensive agenda to eliminate competition from Palmyra Hospital, an acquisition that probably cost Phoebe about $205 million, factoring in $195 million paid to HCA for the hospital and four to five years of complicated and expensive legal battles that substantially diverted hospital resources. Yes, resources that could have been used to improve the delivery of quality health care throughout Southwest Georgia, as well as provide funding for the construction of a Level 1 trauma center.

As we all remember, Phoebe proclaimed that their reasons for wanting to purchase Palmyra were to secure much needed additional hospital beds and other facilities. Since the acquisition, however, Palmyra’s operating rooms have been closed, the pharmacy and other services have been downgraded or eliminated, and nearly 200 employees have lost their jobs.

One month after the Moody’s downgrading, Standard & Poor’s also revised their outlook for Phoebe from stable to negative. Then in May 2015, S&P lowered its ratings on Phoebe’s revenue debt based on the hospital’s “worse-than-expected projected results for fiscal 2014 and its weak operating performance in fiscal 2015.” Further, an S&P credit analyst indicated there could be an even lower rating “if management cannot successfully implement its strategic initiatives that would allow it (the hospital) to meet budgeted expectations in fiscal 2015 or if the balance sheet was to weaken significantly.”

In a move to improve their weakened financial position, Phoebe implemented a 4.2 percent increase for inpatient hospital charges, effective Sept. 1, 2015. When you consider that the hospital’s overall patient costs are presently among the highest in the country, isn’t it fair to question why quality care hasn’t improved proportionately with what the patient is charged?

The recent revelations about Phoebe in the U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals report, dated July 21, 2015, is, by any measure, an indication that the hospital has very serious problems when it comes to patient safety and care. The infection rates and exceedingly low ratio between nurses and patients have been identified as the two worst areas for Phoebe. Additionally, it should be pointed out that the report’s scorecard gave Phoebe’s cancer services a grade of 26.6 out of 100. Cardiology and heart services received an overall grade of 18.7 out of 100. Gastroenterology and gastroinestinal surgery was given 23.5 out of 100, and a gynecology score was 44.1 out of a possible 100.

Certainly, it’s reasonable to ask if these very low scores are due to mismanagement by the hospital’s senior staff, cost-cutting or a combination of the two. Whatever the reason, these findings make it extremely difficult to believe that “world-class medicine” is available at Phoebe.

There are many people who see the deterioration in both the health care delivery and financial situation at Phoebe as being the result of an evolving culture. It is a culture of an isolated small group of individuals who have operated truly free of oversight from conflicted boards of directors and an ineffective Hospital Authority.

As the public is learning to better appraise the value, cost and quality of health care it receives, so should these boards responsible for the oversight of Phoebe appraise the value provided by senior executives and administrators who are among the highest salaried group of any organization in Southwest Georgia.

The Phoebe brand has been greatly tarnished over the last decade and there have been comments made, in and out of the hospital, that the time may be at hand for a new hospital administration made up of individuals from outside of Albany and one that is truly committed to excellence at all levels of the organization. While this may be difficult and unlikely to occur now, it presents a much better option to the status quo, which seems to be creating a toxic work environment that benefits no one, especially the patients.

In an open letter that appeared in the Dec. 26, 2010, Albany Herald regarding Phoebe’s announcement about the “unification” of Phoebe and Palmyra hospitals, Joel Wernick wrote, “We welcome observations and we understand criticism. But our Board’s resolve to improve the delivery of excellent healthcare to all in Southwest Georgia is strong, and their commitment to the strengthening of local governance for healthcare decisions is unwavering. … We embrace the increased expectations for measurable improvements in quality and safety.”

Like so many pronouncements that come from Phoebe, this one rings hollow. Clearly the expectations for there being “measurable improvements in quality and safety” at the hospital has not been embraced by those who have promised these changes.

Whether Phoebe really welcomes observations or has the capacity to understand criticism, I can’t say. But is is abundantly clear that monumental changes need to occur at the hospital, because the current leadership has failed in its responsibility to the community.

By the way, as strange as it may seem, we haven’t heard anything more about the Phoebe partnership with xG Health Solutions and a lot of people sure would like to know why. Could it be time for another press conference?

David Prisant, a lifelong resident of Albany, is an insurance agent.