Fourth Meeting of UofL Hospital Operations Review Committee.

Some good work, but continued disappointment.

On May 9, the UMC Ad Hoc Operations Review Committee held its next to last meeting.  One additional meeting is scheduled for May 23, at which time the final report of the consultant organization, Dixon Hughes Goodman (DHG), will be presented.  Given the level of detail presented at yesterday’s meeting, I do not expect any major new elements to be presented.

The meeting agenda was brief, including an “update” to DHG’s analysis to date, and a presentation of case studies of hospitals deemed similar to University of Louisville Hospital. Most of the committee members appeared to be present as were some half-dozen of the consultants. Reporter Laura Ungar of the Courier-Journal and myself were the only members of the public that I recognized. Continue reading “Fourth Meeting of UofL Hospital Operations Review Committee.”

UofL’s Ramsey Urges Board Members and Officers to Lobby over QCCT Fund

My advice to the Mayor and Metro Council.

I received a copy of a message University of Louisville President Jim Ramsey sent today to a star-studded list of politically connected board members, University executives, at least one employee of Louisville Metro government, and other folks of the sort that regularly get invited to UofL events.  It urges these high-profile individuals to use whatever political influence they have to lobby decision-makers over Derby Week with a goal of convincing the Louisville Metro Council and Mayor’s office to fully fund the QCCT fund that supports some of the non-compensated care provided by University Hospital. Here it is. Continue reading “UofL’s Ramsey Urges Board Members and Officers to Lobby over QCCT Fund”

Final Meetings of UofL Ad Hoc Operations Review Committee.

The University of Louisville has just announced the dates of two additional meetings of this internal review committee. Come on out and watch the fun!

MEDIA ADVISORY:
The next meeting of the UMC Ad Hoc Operations Review Committee will be held on Wednesday, May 9th @ 3:30 p.m. in the Glass Room in the basement of the Ambulatory Care Building at University of Louisville Hospital.

The agenda will include:
1) Update by Dixon Hughes Goodman

Note: A date of Wednesday, May 23rd has been set for Dixon Hughes Goodman to present its final report. Time would also be @ 3:30 p.m. in the Glass Room in the basement of the Ambulatory Care Building at University of Louisville Hospital.

Comment:
The Ad Hoc Committee was initiated by the University following revelations that it had failed in its oversight responsibility for of the Quality Community Care Trust (QCCT) that pays for some uncompensated care at University Hospital, and on the heels of a scolding and requirement by the Commonwealth to repay at least some of the funds intended for Medicaid patients that were diverted into other uses. I have written extensively about the background of these matters [Search for ‘QCCT’ in the box above.] and the conduct of the first three meetings of the committee elsewhere on these pages.

The University had originally promised openness in the conduct of its committee, but I have been less than impressed. We have been told that any final public report will not necessarily have any of the underlying data attached. To me that means that any report would be unverifiable. That is a shame and indicates that the University continues to operate in same secrecy that has served it poorly in regaining the trust of its public owners, and allows skullduggery by University employees to incubate more easily than it should.

Originally the University had hoped that the Committee’s work would be finished during the first week of May before the Kentucky Derby. Of course the University also had intended that its Request for Proposals to find a new partner for its academic, business, and clinical responsibilities to have been completed earlier this month. That process has been extended indefinitely among reports that the process collapsed completely. [I will report on my understanding of this matter later.] The University’s downtown medical center seems to be in chaos. Come on UofL, let your public help you! To do so, we first need to trust you and see the transparency appropriate for a public entity. If I am the only one who feels you are not living up to these obligations, then I apologize, but I do not believe that to be the case.

Peter Hasselbacher, MD
April 26, 2012

Behind Closed Red Doors at UofL.

What, if anything, is happening?

In their original RFP, the University of Louisville and University Medical Center, Inc. announced their intention to sign a Notification of Intent to close a deal with their preferred new partner/owner during the week of April 16. To be honest, I do not have a verifiable clue about what is going on. I have, however, heard many rumors from people closer the the potential players than I am. Since I have nothing better to write about, let me share a few of the most interesting of these. I do so to illustrate the span of concerns or perspectives that other observers have. Finally, in the absence of hard facts, l will suggest in a companion commentary what I think an agreement that is in the best interest of both our public University and the community it serves should look like. Continue reading “Behind Closed Red Doors at UofL.”