Hospital Closing, Announcement May Come In 1st Quarter

[Jim O'Bryan]

I just posted a story on the front page of the Lakewood Observer...



CLINIC ANNOUNCES CHANGE TO LAKEWOOD HOSPITAL FIRST QUARTER
http://www.lakewoodobserver.com/

For nearly as long as this Deck has existed Bill Call has foretold of Lakewood Hospital closing. For years I found much of it to be nonsense. I spoke with Bill and knew why he thought what he though, and while it made some sense, some of it was crazy talk. I thought.

I tracked down most rumors and found them to be rumors, smoke. But as we all know where there is smoke, there is fire. So Bill kept it smoldering. In recent months the talk has changed from IF to WHEN, and from changing to closing. Then came the rumors, not really that Mayor Summers wanted a Rec Center, an idea that makes no sense, as even wealthy communities cannot afford a Rec Center, with how poor this city becomes without a hospital that would make it a true Fool's Errand.

In the last six weeks the rumors have solidified, and now have a time-frame associated with them. As I spoke to the players in this game, NONE would go on the RECORD, ALL would admit to the basic facts about what was going on. The story on page one, I wrote three weeks ago, and sent letters to the Mayor and Council, no denials.

The Professional Building just to the West of Lakewood Hospital's renters have been told to find another office location by June. Contractors have no contracts going past June that I have found. Doctors are leaving the Clinic going to UH and Metro, as they have been dropped or phased out of Lakewood Hospital.

But the real reason I post this now is, CAN ANYTHING BE DONE? How livable is a city if the closest hospital is 20 minutes away? How bikeable is a community if when you get hit by a car or fall you do not get into trauma for 25 minutes? What happens to Lakewood Emergency Service when ambulances are making hour tips to and from hospitals in other cities? How do we hold on to the Senior Centers that have told me 65% of their residents come from Lakewood hospital referrals? What happens to our tax base, when we loose 600 high earning doctors, and replace them with 4 towel boys?



Read the story, then let's see what can be saved, and who dropped the ball. Since 1911 Lakewood has controlled its health care, why did this group throw it away?

http://www.lakewoodobserver.com/read/2014/12/29/clinic-announces-changes-to-lakewood-hospital-1st-quarter

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[Bill Call]

The time to do something was 10 years ago. No one was interested.

When I pointed out the obvious they just responded with silence and an occasional slur. The slurs didn't bother me but the silence did.

The new Clinic facility in Avon was planned over 10 years ago, financed in part by Tim Hagan's dirty Ameritrust deal. The Avon development only made economic sense if the $150 million in medical dollars spent in Lakewood were spent in Avon. As long as Lakewood Hospital was properly maintained and improved the Avon facility would be on thin ice. Hence the need to first destroy Lakewood Hospital.

The Clinic has acted in bad faith for at last 10 years and maybe longer. In retrospect all of their decisions at Lakewood Hospital only made sense if they intended to deliberately destroy Lakewood Hospital. Is that restraint of trade? Is that breach of contract?

Is this how regionalism works?

What is one third of one billions dollars?

[Jim O'Bryan]

When I pointed out the obvious they just responded with silence and an occasional slur. The slurs didn't bother me but the silence did.

Bill

Lakewood, the town without pity, slurs, marginalization, elected officials deciding things in back
rooms, peer pressure, and real pressure is why Lakewood is afraid to talk. My god has this city lost
its way over the past ten years.

I did not post this to cause fear, or anger, but conversation.

If the City does not need a hospital, then let's talk about it, and what healthcare will be offered?

I passed on 8 acres along Rocky River because I would be 20 minutes from a hospital. Now I
am ten minutes away. Not a big deal for those of us along the Emerald Canyon, but north of Lake?
East side of Lakewood? Downtown Lakewood?

I wanted to add something a little more solid to the discussion, but as one person put it, "We spent
4 years arguing over chickens, when Council should have been saving the hospital." I would add that
a small group directed the city to spend millions on Downtown to complement a hospital that is not
just leaving, but making sure it will never be replaced. Funny how many were on both boards.

Jobs, taxes, distance, keeping downtown viable, keeping the city viable, now is the time to have a
plan but the only plan coming out of city hall is "Hiring a full time PR Guy to handle the
spin" because we had had such terrible PR the last 10 years! And helping friends get what they want,
parking for bars, changing traffic, closing off streets, and on and on and on.

The city needs the discussion more than ever.

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[Jim O'Bryan]

As I just said to Bill, sure attack the messenger.

But this city knows the talks have been ongoing, and the city needs to be part of them.

Do we need a hospital?

If no, can we take the hit to taxes? From what else closes?

LakewoodAlive, our development group had a tough year raising funds, Lakewood Hospital pays a
huge percentage of their funding, what happens to them?

I went to the Fairview Wellness page last night, going over all my notes, and all I got was...
404 Page not found. I clicked on the schedule of events at Fairview Wellness Center, 404 page
not found, simple mistake, possibly. But let's look at our own history, the Hilliard Medical Building.
Given to the clinic, that ended up land-banking it, then selling it off.

If we lose the hospital, is it wise to sell them the property locking out anyone who might come in?

Do we want to give ourselves to the Clinic? Maybe we do?

But this is a big deal, and Lakewood needs to be at the table, and the discussion needs some sunlight.

FWIW

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[Kyle Weigand]

It's a fact. It will close (first hand knowledge from a LH board member). The vast majority of this city's officials, past and present, disgust me. Hiding my feelings is no longer an option. I'm so fed up. The city is successful in all the ways it is successful in SPITE of them. When were we going to be told? A city of 53k (and surrounded by 100+k on all of its borders) shouldn't have a hospital? Was replacing the generators and building a new ER and birthing center all a guise? This "non profit" behemoth is exempt from public scrutiny?

At least we'll have fucking chickens...

[Bill Call]

It's a fact. It will close (first hand knowledge from a LH board member). .

That's interesting. A few years ago I applied for a spot on the Lakewood Hospital Board. During the interview process I made clear that if I served on the board my intention was to question the Clinics future plans for Lakewood Hospital and to demand they live up to their contractual obligation to maintain a full service Hospital. I said those demands would be made often and in public.

I don't know if I got any votes but I wasn't selected.

I suspect that in a week or two the Plain Dealer will print an article explaining how it's really a good thing that Lakewood Hospital is closing. They might even include a line I've hear often, "It's only twenty minutes away!." My response is always: "If everything is 20 minutes away why not move 20 minutes away and be where everything is?"

Here are some questions for Amrond Budish:

Is this regionalism in action?

If Cuyahoga County taxpayer funded and supported institutions like the Clinic, CSU and Tri-C are leaving town why should the people stay behind?

This is Armond Budish's first crisis. How he handles it will determine his success or failure as County Executive.

[Michael Deneen]

As I've said in previous Hospital threads, this decision was made a very, very, long time ago.
The medical industry has changed drastically over the past half century, so there isn't enough demand for both Fairview and Lakewood Hospitals.
Fairview had room to expand the facility....Lakewood's footprint is small, and noone wants to displace neighboring homes.

The question is: What to do with the building when it closes?
I think it should be converted into a nursing home.
Has anyone approached O'Neil about this possibility?

[Jim O'Bryan]

It's a fact. It will close (first hand knowledge from a LH board member). The vast majority of this city's officials, past and present, disgust me. Hiding my feelings is no longer an option. I'm so fed up. The city is successful in all the ways it is successful in SPITE of them. When were we going to be told? A city of 53k (and surrounded by 100+k on all of its borders) shouldn't have a hospital? Was replacing the generators and building a new ER and birthing center all a guise? This "non profit" behemoth is exempt from public scrutiny?

At least we'll have fucking chickens...

Kyle

Thank you.

A longtime Lakewood resident that I thought would never move, said the other day at coffee, "This
city has all of its priorities in the wrong places. While they argued over chickens, they lost the gold."

Yesterday I talked with a previous mayor who was almost in tears talking about how hard for over
a century they kept the Hospital viable.

But as you say, we have chickens, and a couple more places to get mediocre Kraft Beer.

Talk about planning and great management!

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[Jim O'Bryan]

As I've said in previous Hospital threads, this decision was made a very, very, long time ago.
The medical industry has changed drastically over the past half century, so there isn't enough demand for both Fairview and Lakewood Hospitals.
Fairview had room to expand the facility....Lakewood's footprint is small, and noone wants to displace neighboring homes.

The question is: What to do with the building when it closes?
I think it should be converted into a nursing home.
Has anyone approached O'Neil about this possibility?

Mike

Lakewood was not going to compete with 132 tax free acres, a paid for freeway exchange, and a
chance to build the medical city of their dreams. It's like trying to compete with Cleveland with their
30-year-tax abatement on new homes. We can't afford it nor do we need to do it.

I have spoken with the O'Neils, the talk was not of expanding. One of the funny things I found out was
that senior centers need hospitals nearby, for service and referrals. You have a state of the art
hospital going in right next to a 32 acre senior living center. All new, all tax abated, all 3 minutes
from the hospital. Or put Granny in Lakewood with emergency care only 20 minutes away.

How will this affect our services? We have a great emergency crew, thanks to the Clinic. We have
been able to add more ambulances and more trained people. When they leave what do we lose?

All viable questions that were not being talked about.

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[Bill Call]

[quote="Jim O'Bryan

Yesterday I talked with a previous mayor who was almost in tears talking about how hard for over
a century they kept the Hospital viable.
[/quote]


When Muhammad the XII left Spain as an exile legend has it that he looked at the City he lost from the Suspiro del Moro and wept. His mother turned to him and said:

“Do not weep like a woman for what you could not defend as a man.”

[Bill Call]

Before the Clinic disappears this information I thought I should download the most recent audited financial statements. Keep in mind that the $140 million in revenue was after the Clinic began its sabotage.

It seems the Clinic will offer some token reimbursement for it's deliberate destruction of the Hospital. The City should tell them we will see them in court unless they pay the $1 billion in damages.

[Bret Callentine]

Is secession an option? Canada would probably want to keep at least a clinic in Lakewood, Ontario.

[Scott Meeson]

[ryan costa]

Hospitals have been on a mergers and acquisition trend for the last few decades.
this is promoted as making them more efficient and competitive.
this indicates the more efficient and competitive they become, the faster healthcare costs rise.

[Bill Call]

Hospitals have been on a mergers and acquisition trend for the last few decades.
this is promoted as making them more efficient and competitive.
this indicates the more efficient and competitive they become, the faster healthcare costs rise.

That's a true fact.

The closure of Lakewood Hospital is the first crisis of the Armond Budish era. How he responds will determine the future of Cuyahoga County. If he quietly accepts the transfer of wealth and economic activity to Lorain County the flood gates will open.

Buried in a recent Plain Dealer article was mention that Cuyahoga County will soon reach its bonding limit. (The PD always seems to bury the really important news). Declining population is leading to declining tax revenue. One decline feeds the other and the longer it goes on the harder it is to reverse. At some point everyone in Cuyahoga County will realize that the last person to leave will be left holding the bag containing all of those future tax liabilities.

The trickle will become a flood and then a deluge.

My prediction is that the decision makers in Cuyahoga County and Lakewood government will accept the replacement of the Hospital with a minute clinic, declare victory and say that Cities like Lakewood should embrace regionalism.

What is regionalism and how will that affect services, taxes, development and quality of life? Don't ask because they have no intention of telling.

I suspect that regionalism is just a ploy.

They need local tax dollars to continue subsidies for downtown development, Crocker Park development and money to finance projects in Lorain and Medina Counties. Regionalism is the vehicle they will use to get the money they need.