Phoebe Putney Hospital responds to CMS request for plan

ALBANY — Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital officials say they have provided the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services with a corrective plan that CMS requested following a recent incident.

The Albany Herald reached out to Phoebe officials after receiving a report that the incident could adversely impact CMS funding later in the month. In response, hospital officials said an incident requiring corrective measures did occur and that a followup survey would take place to ensure the issue had been addressed.

“We routinely participate with survey agencies such as DNV-GL, the (Georgia) Department of Community Health and CMS,” said Dr. Steven Kitchen, chief medical officer at Phoebe. “When incidents occur that have the potential to impact quality or safety, we rightfully report them as a means to apply corrective measures to prevent future incidents. Such an event did occur recently and was appropriately reported, resulting in a request from CMS for a corrective action plan, which we promptly provided.

“CMS will conduct a follow-up survey prior to Aug. 19 to ensure appropriate quality and safety measures are in place. Phoebe and its independent medical staff have cooperated fully with the CMS protocol to satisfy any concerns of CMS.”

Phoebe did not provide any additional details regarding the incident that took place.