California Hospital News Roundup for the Week of August 7, 2015
Cedars-Sinai Health System
Next year, Cedars-Sinai Health System plans to open a new medical office in the technology hub of Playa Vista, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The office will include about 24 providers, including primary care physicians and specialists. The office is projected to treat about 500 patients per day (Shively, Los Angeles Times, 8/4).
Daughters of Charity Health System
A potential buyer of the Daughters of Charity Health System has promised to keep the hospital network open for at least five years, the San Jose Mercury News reports (Seipel, San Jose Mercury News, 8/5).
Last month, BlueMountain Capital Management agreed to make an initial $250 million investment in the health system (California Healthline, 7/24). California Attorney General Kamala Harris (D) has not yet commented on the deal (San Jose Mercury News, 8/5).
Highland Hospital, Oakland
Highland Hospital has reversed its decision to close its substance use disorder program, the San Jose Mercury News reports.
The Alameda Health System board of directors executive committee's decision to keep the program open followed public comments and a recommendation from management. The health system had planned to end the program because of low participation (Parr, San Jose Mercury News, 7/30).
Kaiser Permanente, Santa Rosa
A recent patient suicide at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Santa Rosa has renewed concerns about the hospital's mental health care services, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reports.
In July, a patient who had been treated at Kaiser committed suicide at the facility, and critics say Kaiser is failing to provide timely individual mental health care appointments. Kaiser had rejected such claims, noting that a review of the case found the hospital had provided a "tremendous amount of care" to the patient (Espinoza, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, 8/1).
Los Angeles Community Hospital
The new Los Angeles Community Hospital opened in late July and offers inpatient mental health services, filling a gap in such care in the community, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.
The hospital has a 32-bed voluntary inpatient behavioral unit for treating depression, among other mental health conditions (Zonkel, Long Beach Press-Telegram, 8/1).
Saint Mary Medical Center, Long Beach
Saint Mary Medical Center has received accreditation by Baby-Friendly USA, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.
The hospital received the accreditation for encouraging early bonding between mothers and newborns. The facility is part of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, which encourages breastfeeding (Long Beach Press-Telegram, 8/4).
Scripps Health, San Diego
Scripps Health was ranked the 20th best workplace in health care by Fortune and the Great Place to Work Institute, Fortune reports.
According to the list, 90% of workers said Scripps has a great work atmosphere, citing its various wellness perks (Lorenzetti, Fortune, 7/28).
St. Joseph Health, Irvine
St. Joseph Health is considering a potential merger with Providence Health & Services, a Catholic health system based in Washington state, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reports.
The two health systems are in "the very early stages" of talks, which will continue over the next few months (Swindell, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, 7/31).
Tri-City Medical Center, Oceanside
Tri-City Medical Center has started auditing its water use in the midst of California's drought, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The hospital contracted Water Saver Solutions in Long Beach to help identify ways to cut back its water use, and the company has developed a plan that is projected to save 10 million gallons of water annually. Among other things, the plan calls for upgrading shower heads and toilets and replacing refrigeration compressors (Sisson, Los Angeles Times, 8/6).
VA Central California Health Care System, Fresno
The Department of Veterans Affairs' Central California Health Care System has hired additional medical staff to help reduce wait times, the AP/Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.
The hospital plans to add more than 130 staff members, including physicians, registered nurses, and physician assistants. According to acting Director Wessel Meyer, as of June, the addition of specialists already has reduced wait times from 61 days to eight days (AP/Long Beach Press-Telegram, 8/5).
Watsonville Community Hospital
In the first quarter of 2016, Community Health Systems will transfer ownership of its Watsonville Community Hospital and 37 other hospitals, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reports.
The hospitals will become part of Quorum Health, which will take over Quorum Health Resources, a subsidiary of Community Health Systems. Wayne Smith, chair and CEO of Community Health Systems, said the move aims to create two companies "better positioned to take advantage of growth opportunities while creating additional value for our stockholders" (Gumz, Santa Cruz Sentinel, 8/5).
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