California Hospital News Roundup for the Week of February 27, 2015
Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, Oakland
A California appeals court has upheld $375,000 in damages against the Alta Bates Summit Medical Center for a case in which two women alleged that inadequate care led to the death of their relative, the AP/San Jose Mercury News reports.
In September 2008, Madeline Knox received thyroid surgery at the hospital and died nine days later from choking. In their suit, Knox's sister and daughter alleged that the hospital showed no urgency as Knox struggled with breathing problems following the surgery (AP/San Jose Mercury News, 2/25).
Daughters of Charity Health System
On Thursday, Prime Healthcare Services put on hold its planned purchase of Daughters of Charity Health System after a long and contentious approval process, the San Francisco Business Times' "Bay Area BizTalk" reports.
State Attorney General Kamala Harris (D) last week approved the sale of six California safety-net hospitals to Prime but with a number of conditions.
Prime says it will take the company time to "fully analyze" the effects that Harris' conditions could have on the deal (Rauber, "Bay Area BizTalk," San Francisco Business Times, 2/26).
Dignity Health
Dignity Health has transferred operation of MercyClinic Norwood to Peach Tree Health, a federally qualified health center, the Sacramento Business Journal reports.
According to the Business Journal, Dignity transferred ownership of the clinic to Peach Tree because Dignity was facing difficulty providing care for under-served areas amid regulatory changes. Under the partnership, Dignity will no longer own the clinic, but aims to maintain its employees on the staff or relocate them (Young, Sacramento Business Journal, 2/19).
Encino Hospital Medical Center
Prime Healthcare will open Southern California's first geriatric emergency department at Encino Hospital Medical Center on March 2, the San Fernando Valley Business Journal reports.
The program also will include a geriatric inpatient center, and it will be staffed by medical professionals specially trained in geriatric care. According to the Business Journal, the facilities will be constructed to care for older patients, including skid-resistant flooring, thicker mattresses and handrails (Russell, San Fernando Valley Business Journal, 2/24).
Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford, Stanford Children's Health
Under a new partnership, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford and Stanford Children's Health now offer fertility and reproductive health services, according to a release.
Barry Behr, director of Stanford’s in vitro fertilization laboratory, said the partnership will help better integrate the hospitals' services (Stanford release, 2/23).
Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center
Two lawsuits have been filed against medical device company Olympus Corporation of the Americas following an antibiotic-resistant superbug outbreak at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center that was linked to the company's endoscopes, KPCC's "KPCC News" reports.
Earlier this month, the medical center began notifying 179 patients who might have been exposed to Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, from contaminated medical endoscopes. UCLA said seven patients had been infected and two patient deaths had been linked to the bacteria.
The attorney who filed the lawsuits against Olympus said he might include the medical center as a defendant in future wrongful death lawsuits related to the outbreak (Plevin, "KPCC News," KPCC, 2/26).
This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.