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I would like to respond to the mayor's health care comments. When he became such an expert on medical issues and health care, I do not know, but he is entirely wrong. His pronouncements sounds eerily like the line that the Cleveland Clinic would like to put out there, and here's why. It's easier to blame the victim, the sick and ill, than to deliver healthcare.
People do not choose to get cancer, to develop a genetic disease, catch a virus or communicable disease, get in an accident, or to age and suffer the debilitating ravages of old age.
A medical lecturer at Harvard Medical School lays out the case for why the latest buzzword is "wellness," and its pretty compelling. I hope all will read this and realize that the mayor is parroting the insurance companies' and hospitals' line that is taken strictly to increase their profitability.
The notion that illness is largely optional plays into the hands of private insurers, who have financial interests in concentrating on services for healthy people -- sometimes called the "worried well." If they put their resources into yoga classes and massage therapy, which are cheaper than caring for sick people, they will preferentially attract the young and fit. Since the healthy outnumber the sick, these plans will also look good in satisfaction surveys. The focus on the well is reflected in our new vocabulary. Instead of medical care, we now talk about healthcare, which is delivered not by medical groups, but by health maintenance organizations. And we speak of consumers, not patients, as though they were choosing from a dinner menu rather than being treated for a disease. We are seeing a tyranny of the healthy, backed by commercial interests -- and also by a public health establishment so committed to the laudable goal of preventing disease that it sometimes promises more than it can deliver in our current state of knowledge.
Mayor Summers has chosen to side with the rich and powerful, not with the average Lakewood resident, by whom he was elected to serve. I'm ashamed that my city has people that would throw us under a bus for false promises of "wellness."
I find it interesting that he dismisses the Observer's "Rec Center" revelations as "distortion"....but never actually rules out building a rec center after the hospital is destroyed.
If the mayor really wanted to improve the health of Lakewood citizens - wouldn't he get rid of all the bars and liquor licenses -- instead of the hospital? The bars where drunks beat people to death, cause traffic accidents (monthly, in our part of town), drive through brick walls and iron fences (Ward 1), run over fire hydrants and hit telephone poles, etc. . . Strange that Dru Siley in Econ Development, mainly thinks of bars and restaurants when he's hoping to get new businesses in town. Wouldn't want a REAL employer--or a dozen doctors' offices-- to fill the Lakewood Center North tower, now, would we?
The Mayor, Dru Siley et al have created an environment that is not inviting to Many Industries. While I am not opposed to having a drink and eating in restaurants, these establishments create low paying jobs in addition to creating more health risk.
Instead, Mayor Summers and some members of our local government are trying to eliminate our biggest industry and employer without putting the effort to bring other companies into Lakewood that would fill our retail spaces, live in our homes and more business to our current businesses including Lakewood Hospital. In fact the mayor has advertised that the new Health Center will contain a Pharmacy. We have 5 huge Drug Stores in Lakewood and now we are going to put them out of business so that CC can make this income as well?
Part of the "tear down Lakewood Hospital" argument is that the hospital's "payor mix" does not produce enough income. Translated: we have too many Medicaid and Medicare patients in Lakewood. Translated again: we have too many lower income and Seniors in Lakewood. 1) This stance should NOT be taken by our Mayor or by the CC (as they are owned by CCF, a non profit). 2) AGAIN, Lakewood's Development should find industries and employers that pay good wages and invite them to locate their operations in Lakewood.
If the Mayor et al were truly caring for all of Lakewood's residents, they would not have allowed CC to dismantle this hospital in the last 10 years. Mayor Summers, Mr. Butler, Nicky Antonio and others were around (Council) for the June 9, 2010 letter from CCF's David Bronson which stated: " The Clinic seeks the same goals (Highest quality care as the City), but also the business flexibility to respond to changes rapidly, without unnecessary barriers to reformatting the services provided.
We (CCF) believe that we can achieve these goals by providing the following assurances to the City: (I am only including assurance #1-pam)
1) At least 60 days prior to the LHA Board of trustees taking any vote that would permit elimination or transfer of any of the VFT Centers of Excellence services- neurosciences, geriatrics, endocrinology/diabetes, and orthopedics - for the duration of the lease term, or otherwise at least 60 days before those services would be eliminated or transferred without board action, LHA will notify the City of such proposed change in services and permit the city to make inquiry of the LHA board members and appropriate Clinic officials regarding the proposed changes. ( A service would be considered eliminated ot transferred if it were to result in serious reduction in such service as to be an effective elimination of such service at the Hospital.) This will give the City an opportunity to be heard with respect to such change before it may occur, while respecting the role of the LHA board."
Where was Mike Summers care for the health of Lakewood's Residents when this and the preceding April 6, 2010 letter to Ed Fitzgerald, CC to Council, Director of Finance etc basically created a license to kill all services outside of the 4 named in the June 6th, 2010 letter could be eliminated WITHOUT ANY Notification. I would be interested in seeing any proof of any notifications of any reductions or terminations/relocations of services or equipment given to the City in the last 5 years.
Mayor Summers is trying to replace Lakewood Hospital with a building that is basically a Doctor's Office. Furthermore, we have A "Health Center" on Madison (Dr's office) and North Coast offers many Wellness services as have Cleveland Clinic and other local hospitals over the last 20 years.
The new TREND is to have BOTH Hospitals and enhanced Wellness Centers - not to replace hospitals. The NET percentages of closed hospitals in the US is very small.
Mayor Summers needs to do some of his own research on hospitals and services before he so readily accepts the Subsidium and states the Huron Report supports Subsidium's. The Huron report, in particular, should have addressed the fact that inpatient admission numbers (and ER) cannot be a definitive criteria for the numbers of beds needed in a region. In the last 2 years, Medicare has been penalizing hospitals who have readmissions within 30 days of initial discharge. The "TREND" is to place patients in "observation status" instead of admitting them. along with the horrible result of insurance companies not paying for these patients, comes the fact that more observation beds will be needed. Right now, some hospitals are letting these patients spill over into the ER. What happens when you need ER beds that are holding observation status patients so that a hospital can prevent being fined? Mayor Summers needs to ask how many beds are really needed, beyond admissions and ER.
If the Mayor really cared about total healthcare for Lakewood's residents, he would absolutely insist that Lakewood Hospital services and equipment be restored by the Clinic. Lakewood Hospital would be financially viable if it offered the services it had in the past. The Mayor should insist that CC stop sending our patients to Fairview or other hospitals.
Lakewood already has Recreational facilities, Lakewood needs comprehensive healthcare including our full service hospital. The Mayor needs to know that we need to care for people no matter how or why they became ill.
It is always a pleasure speaking with you at the meetings. I am glad to see you jump in here on the Deck. In regards to your comment about the alcohol/bar industry in Lakewood, I must say that I agree with you.
According to my research of the Ohio Division of Liquor Control's database, I have counted that there are roughly eighty alcohol establishments in Lakewood as of now.
Over the past few months, it appears as though there has been an increase of vehicles parked on side streets being hit-skipped between 2 and 4 A.M. I also believe our amount of disorderly conduct citations has increased. I also believe six establishments in Lakewood have been cited by the Ohio Investigative Unit recently for serving alcohol to minors.
I feel badly for our police, as they now have to police roughly eighty liquor establishments, along with 93 miles of street, and over 51,000 residents.
I will say that I also enjoy some of the eating/drinking establishments. However, I feel that some of the economic development should move on to more lucrative businesses.
"Wellness" sounds so positive, doesn't it? But does "wellness" foster healthier people? Not so, according to researchers. As many corporations turn to "wellness" programs to manage health care costs, the data do not support their effectiveness in improving the health of the participants. What they DO do is allow corporations to shift more of the cost of health care onto the employee.
Beware of the word "wellness." It's one is the buzzwords of the industry that sure sounds good, but there is NO clinical evidence that any wellness program results in lower healthcare costs for an individual or overall better health for the population.
