New LGBT Facility Will Have a Surgery Center.

[Bill Call]

• 24/7 full-service Emergency Department
• Center for Family Medicine
• Internal Medicine
• Imaging and Lab services
• Diabetes Services, including diabetic eye exams
• Cardiology
• Geriatrics
• Pulmonary
• Center for LGBT care, with providers who understand the health needs of LGBT patients, and access to specialists with expertise in their care
• Behavioral health services with a team of psychiatrists, therapists, advanced practice nurses and other specialists who are trained to manage complex mental health issues
• Center for Brain Health specialists providing diagnosis and ongoing treatment for patients with cognitive disorders and support services for family members who care for them
• Access to the Cleveland Clinic Mobile Stroke Treatment Unit, an ambulance equipped for on-site stroke diagnosis and treatment
• Pharmaceutical support for all Lakewood Family Health Center services
• Many other specialty services including endocrinology, urology, nephrology, allergy, general surgery, colorectal surgery and neurology

The services are listed on the web site.

Here is the link to the Clinics information about the new health center:

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/location ... -fhc/about

The Clinic was advertising their open house on Pandora last week. The ad stated that the new health center would offer LGBT services. Everyone and everything else was included as “other services”. The Master Agreement was clear that the new medical building would offer a new LGBT facility but that nothing else was guaranteed.

But what about the above list, is it a list of services offered at this facility or is it a list of services offered at other facilities? While the Clinic is advertising “surgery” at the Lakewood building we know that NO surgeries will be done at this site. What the Clinic means when they say “surgery” is that they will provide directions to a Clinic facility that provides surgeries.

What about the rest of the items on the list?

• 24/7 full-service Emergency Department

The emergency department is a standalone ER. Standalone ER’s offer minute clinic services with emergency room prices. About 30% of the patients who use the current standalone ER in Lakewood are transferred to an ER attached to a hospital. Most of the other 70% can get treatment at an urgent care facility that charges substantially less. Whoever negotiated the Master Agreement gave no thought at all to urgent care services. Other standalone ER’s in the region have an attached urgent care facility. Why not Lakewood?

• Center for Family Medicine
This is a meaningless term. An independent sole practitioner can hand out a shingle and say the office is a center for family medicine.

• Internal Medicine
Ditto.

• Imaging and Lab services

I guess that includes CAT scans and X-rays. Those services are always part of ER’s so their inclusion as a separate line item seems more an attempt to make the list longer. CAT scans and X-rays performed by the Clinic can be 300% more expensive than those same tests performed by others. Again, the Master Agreement fails to account for the additional costs associated with the Cleveland Clinic.

• Diabetes Services, including diabetic eye exams
• Cardiology
• Geriatrics
• Pulmonary

Again, the above services can be performed by an independent practitioner in the doctor’s office.

• Center for LGBT care, with providers who understand the health needs of LGBT patients, and access to specialists with expertise in their care

The Master Agreement includes a lot of references to LGBT services. Earlier versions of the Agreement did not. I suspect that the LGBT services were added to buy votes or silence. That’s fine, that’s how the system works. But what about men’s services, children’s services or veterans services?

• Behavioral health services with a team of psychiatrists, therapists, advanced practice nurses and other specialists who are trained to manage complex mental health issues
• Center for Brain Health specialists providing diagnosis and ongoing treatment for patients with cognitive disorders and support services for family members who care for them

There is no evidence that this facility will offer a full range of mental health services. I suspect what they mean is that they can refer the patient to Avon or the Eastside campus.

• Access to the Cleveland Clinic Mobile Stroke Treatment Unit, an ambulance equipped for on-site stroke diagnosis and treatment

Really? If you go to this facility and the ER physicians think you are having a stroke they call the mobile stroke unit? I doubt it. I guess if you think you are having a stroke you could call 911 and say I am having a stroke and then the dispatcher can call the mobile stroke unit that could be anywhere in Cuyahoga County. What does the new Lakewood facility have to do with that? Can’t any doctor anywhere in Cuyahoga County advertise “Access to the mobile stroke unit!!”?

• Pharmaceutical support for all Lakewood Family Health Center services

So the Cleveland Clinic will use its tax free status to compete with Drug Mart. Are we supposed to be excited about that? The Clinic has used its tax free status to destroy the private practice of medicine in Cuyahoga County. That has resulted in more vacant office buildings, higher costs and fewer choices. Is there a reason we should welcome this development?

• Many other specialty services including endocrinology, urology, nephrology, allergy, general surgery, colorectal surgery and neurology

The Clinic has admitted that NO surgeries will be performed at the Lakewood facility but they are still advertising “surgery”. I suspect that what they mean is that if you need surgery they can give you directions to Avon. Is that the case with these other services?


The Clinic is also advertising “same day appointments” at the Lakewood facility. I suspect what they mean by that is:

Patient: I need to see an urologist.

Clinic rep: I will be glad to help you with that. At which facility?

Patient: Lakewood, please.

Clinic rep: Certainly. We can see you in Lakewood in 3 months.

Patient: 3 months! I need to see someone right away. I though the Lakewood facility offered same day appointments?

Clinic rep: The Lakewood facility does offer same day appointments but those appointments are at our Avon facility.

Patient: ????

Still no word on the facility fees charged to the people of Lakewood for the privilege of using the taxpayer financed Lakewood Family Health Center.

[Bridget Conant]

Great post.

Some corroboration: ECG at my primary care doctor -$150. Same ECG at CCF Main Campus: $1470.

This is a common, short duration non-invasive test that is “machine read.” How can they justify $1400?

Same Day Appointments! Plastered on every bus and billboard and on the radio -Same Day Appointments!

A complete lie - nothing more than false advertising. What they “mean” is, if we have an open appointment somewhere, with someone, we’ll try to get you in. That’s all. Oh, and better call at 8am sharp or they’ll say, “all the same day appointments have been filled.”

I don’t know why they haven’t been sued over that.