Coastal Post Online
MARIN COUNTY'S NEWS
MONTHLY - FREE PRESS
(415)868-1600 -
(415)868-0502(fax) - P.O. Box 31, Bolinas, CA, 94924
November, 2004
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Marin General Still In Certification Jeopardy
By Karen Nakamura
Election day is here again and the political future one of the Marin County's more contentious boards is again being decided. In this case, five
candidates are running for the Marin Healthcare District Board. Three
candidates, Sharon Jackson, Terry Rosenthal and Judy House have long histories
of conducting business and being part of/with either Sutter Health or similar
health care administrations. They solidly support greater consolidation between
Sutter Health Care and Marin General Hospital.
Two other candidates are opposed to Sutter's operations and apparently for
good reason. These two are Jonathan Frieman and Dr. Archimedes Ramirez.
Frieman, with a MPA, will promote "the improved health care and corporate
responsibility vital in requiring Sutter to fulfill its obligations to provide
the best care at reasonable fees." Dr. Ramirez was the neurosurgeon who
alerted the public to Sutter's failure to provide neurosurgical emergency care
at MGH. He states in his press release, "Jonathan Frieman and I will make
improved quality of care our immediate priority."
Why is this important and not just politicians spouting off?
Several months ago, the COASTAL POST discussed a report on Sutter/Marin
General Hospital's numerous health code violations. The violations were cited
by official state and federal hospital certification boards connected to the
national and state Departments of Health Services and found when inspectors
were either conducting routine inspections or responding to complaints.
The violations might very well affect Sutter's ability to service Medicare
patients, a huge segment of their patients. What will Marin's elderly do if
Marin General can no longer accept Medicare patients? Desertification could
also affect Novato Hospital as it's run by Sutter along with hospitals
throughout California. While government officials have engaged in a series of
compliance reviews, Sutter hasn't fully complied. A second review found even
more violations..
A version of these violations was released September 1st by the Marin Safe
Healthcare Coalition and begs review. The consequences and implications are
staggering while solutions, so far, (the final October 16th deadline for
compliance has come and gone with no acknowledgment by Sutter), Sutter Health
has been less than adequate. Even though Sutter was cited over a hundred times
in the two inspection reports and with its Medicare status in jeopardy, it has
shown little public inclination to reverse the situation in its entirety.
Instead, it continues running costly ads purporting to show the satisfaction of
its staff and patients. However, if patients knew what was going on around
them, one must wonder if that satisfaction would hold.
Here are some violations exposed by the Marin Safe Healthcare Coalition
(mshc@well.com). Consider the position of the candidates as you do.
Sutter/MGH charges Kaiser trauma patients twice what it charges other
insurance carriers. It charges uninsured patients 200% more than those who have
insurance. Blue Shield claims Sutter charges 80% more than the average in California.
There was Sutter/MGH management failure leading to a padlocked, emergency
cardiac arrest cart rather than the typical breakable seal. This resulted in
making prompt access impossible in life-threatening situations. Medications
were stored at higher, unsafe temperatures predisposing the growth of
infectious bacteria. Patients' food was kept in unsanitary conditions. Dishes
were washed in warm rather than hot water leading to the risk of food born
contagious illnesses.
Patients with swallowing problems were fed incorrect diets that could lead
to aspiration pneumonia due to choking. There was no mechanism for timely
dispensing of medications with one instance where a patient waited seven hours
for medication. There was an unreported case of a patient being sexually
harassed by a staff member. Nurses weren't always checked to ensure they knew
medical procedures. An incontinent elderly patient wasn't changed for several
days. Tests were given to patients whose doctors never ordered them. A patient
died when a morphine drip wasn't regulated properly. Another patient didn't get
their medication for 7 hours. There was improper care, which led to the death
of an infant in childbirth.
These are not a bunch of nuts charging these violations. These come from the
Department of Health. Look again at the positions of the candidate and get out
and vote.