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Okay, You All Knew This Was Coming
Aug. 30th, 2014 04:27 pmRiverbend Hospital in Springfield, Oregon, now operates nine medical centers in Washington, Alaska and Oregon. That's a robust business. For the fiscal year ending June 2011, PeaceHealth listed $1.638 billion in total revenue and an operating profit margin of $112 million.
They are a nonprofit with no shareholders and grow by absorbing rival hospitals. Since there are no shareholders, this "nonprofit" corporation seems to be able to provide astronomic increases to upper management while cutting jobs.
This is completely apparent at Riverbend where you enter a 3 story high opulent lobby complete with hired pianist for soothing sounds. The lobby is immaculate and does indeed have a whole clan of volunteers wielding wheel chairs to help patients, only not me as I was told there was no help getting me from the pickup to the ortho unit for my classes and pre exams.
Then you have surgery and are lodged in the ortho unit where you see a sign indicating that your room is professionally cleaned by a volunteer each and every day. Don't believe this. None of it. These are not professionals nor do they clean the room. They come in with a wet rag and wipe handles and toilet seat and sink and all with the same rag who knows if they bother to rinse it. Then the floor sweeper comes out and before you know it, like in a matter of three minutes, your room is sanitary and professionally cleaned.
I believe I posted about my responsibilities before surgery, the cleaning of sheets and scrubbing with antiseptic each day for 3 days in advance. Then I had surgery on a Friday and another on the next Wednesday.
On Wednesday I was rolled down to surgery and had to tell the prep nurse that I was dirty, hadn't had a bath, the blankets around me had been on me since last Friday and so with my special hospital grippy-socks.
She was livid. I was doused waist down with that orange iodine goop which doesn't come off when you rub it. Every time I look at my feet I hear the Oompa Loompa song in my head. I'm orange. and will be until Monday when I can finally get into the shower. I can shower 5 days after surgery, but 5 days after surgery I was in surgery again. So now it's been almost 2 weeks before I can shower. My hair feels waxy and is stuck to my head. I'm slathered in orange that won't come off but fortunately have the special giant Band-Aid over my incision. These things do work, thank all that is professionally non-profit.
But I'm ahead of myself here. The surgery nurse was so mad she called Risk Management, who promptly showed up in my room, after surgery, asking what my complaint was. I told I had none, just that I had to inform surgery I was dirty before surgery.
Then I took the opportunity to let her know that there was an issue with communication in that each person who came in couldn't quite seem to chart the meds they'd given me, nor my vital signs. No one was paying attention to the 2 systems, one manual on a white board, and one right at the room's computer, for any accurate information to be passed between shifts. I was constantly asked about the drugs I'd been given only to answer with I have no idea as each time I'm given drugs it's a different drug and I have no idea when I'm supposed to have them; isn't that kind of your job? And, NO, I didn't have 9 bowel movements at 1:00 p.m., I had 1 bowel movement at 9:00 p.m.
The next afternoon someone else showed up asking what my complaint was with the 2 new CNAs. I was confused as these 2 were friendly, were helping each other learn, were thorough and at least seemed willing to learn to do their jobs well. They were the only 2 who seemed capable, but because someone left them with the impression I'd complained about them they shied away from me every time they were on shift.
They actually performed better than a couple of the nurses I had, one who talked only of her expensive hair tint and upcoming coast trip, the other about her drunk abusive boyfriend.
~~sigh I give you today's description of "non-profit" corporate health. And they wondered why I didn't want to go from hospital to rehab center. It's nice to know the CEO gets paid enough to buy that summer home and put his kids through college. I have absolutely no gratitude for their charity absorbing my costs when I know they'll pad the costs they turn over to insurance. They'll get paid what they were worth. And I'm ecstatic that I have no infections and seem to healing well. But then that's to the doctor and surgery department's credit.
They are a nonprofit with no shareholders and grow by absorbing rival hospitals. Since there are no shareholders, this "nonprofit" corporation seems to be able to provide astronomic increases to upper management while cutting jobs.
This is completely apparent at Riverbend where you enter a 3 story high opulent lobby complete with hired pianist for soothing sounds. The lobby is immaculate and does indeed have a whole clan of volunteers wielding wheel chairs to help patients, only not me as I was told there was no help getting me from the pickup to the ortho unit for my classes and pre exams.
Then you have surgery and are lodged in the ortho unit where you see a sign indicating that your room is professionally cleaned by a volunteer each and every day. Don't believe this. None of it. These are not professionals nor do they clean the room. They come in with a wet rag and wipe handles and toilet seat and sink and all with the same rag who knows if they bother to rinse it. Then the floor sweeper comes out and before you know it, like in a matter of three minutes, your room is sanitary and professionally cleaned.
I believe I posted about my responsibilities before surgery, the cleaning of sheets and scrubbing with antiseptic each day for 3 days in advance. Then I had surgery on a Friday and another on the next Wednesday.
On Wednesday I was rolled down to surgery and had to tell the prep nurse that I was dirty, hadn't had a bath, the blankets around me had been on me since last Friday and so with my special hospital grippy-socks.
She was livid. I was doused waist down with that orange iodine goop which doesn't come off when you rub it. Every time I look at my feet I hear the Oompa Loompa song in my head. I'm orange. and will be until Monday when I can finally get into the shower. I can shower 5 days after surgery, but 5 days after surgery I was in surgery again. So now it's been almost 2 weeks before I can shower. My hair feels waxy and is stuck to my head. I'm slathered in orange that won't come off but fortunately have the special giant Band-Aid over my incision. These things do work, thank all that is professionally non-profit.
But I'm ahead of myself here. The surgery nurse was so mad she called Risk Management, who promptly showed up in my room, after surgery, asking what my complaint was. I told I had none, just that I had to inform surgery I was dirty before surgery.
Then I took the opportunity to let her know that there was an issue with communication in that each person who came in couldn't quite seem to chart the meds they'd given me, nor my vital signs. No one was paying attention to the 2 systems, one manual on a white board, and one right at the room's computer, for any accurate information to be passed between shifts. I was constantly asked about the drugs I'd been given only to answer with I have no idea as each time I'm given drugs it's a different drug and I have no idea when I'm supposed to have them; isn't that kind of your job? And, NO, I didn't have 9 bowel movements at 1:00 p.m., I had 1 bowel movement at 9:00 p.m.
The next afternoon someone else showed up asking what my complaint was with the 2 new CNAs. I was confused as these 2 were friendly, were helping each other learn, were thorough and at least seemed willing to learn to do their jobs well. They were the only 2 who seemed capable, but because someone left them with the impression I'd complained about them they shied away from me every time they were on shift.
They actually performed better than a couple of the nurses I had, one who talked only of her expensive hair tint and upcoming coast trip, the other about her drunk abusive boyfriend.
~~sigh I give you today's description of "non-profit" corporate health. And they wondered why I didn't want to go from hospital to rehab center. It's nice to know the CEO gets paid enough to buy that summer home and put his kids through college. I have absolutely no gratitude for their charity absorbing my costs when I know they'll pad the costs they turn over to insurance. They'll get paid what they were worth. And I'm ecstatic that I have no infections and seem to healing well. But then that's to the doctor and surgery department's credit.
