CCF Caught In Lies, But Summers Still Sides with CCF
Posted: Fri Aug 21, 2015 12:33 pm
Back on August 4, 2015, I wrote the LHA Trustees, including Mayor Summers, Mary Madigan and Tom Bullock the emails below. I told them that an investigation had verified that CCF's Shannan Ritchie (Lakewood Hospital's President) had pulled the plug on a valuable money making program in February 2015. Ritchie had told LHA trustees in May, 2015, that the loss of that program was the number 1 driver of hospital losses in 2015 and that the government pulled the program--that was not true. Nevertheless, Summers and the LHA and their lawyers are still siding with and defending CCF in court. I've heard nothing from any of the Trustees in response to multiple emails that I have sent...except..."don't contact me" from Tom Gable. The trustees, including Madigan, Bullock and Ward 3 Candidate John Litten remain silent---apparently choosing to ignore the evidence and side with the Mayor and CCF. If I am wrong, I should think that they will contact me to discuss. It all seems so cowardly to me.
So Mayor Summers is supposed to be our most powerful steward at the hospital but..
SUMMERS CANNOT BE TRUSTED IN WORD OR DEED. keeping company with other folks who lie to us.
Here are a couple of my emails in RED:
On Aug 4, 2015, at 11:47 AM, Brian Essi wrote:
Dear LHA Trustees,
LHA’s leadership and CCF have misled you and failed you. Documents have surfaced that prove that CCF had a 2012 plan to “Decant” Lakewood Hospital to the benefit of Fairview Hospital. That plan apparently culminated in the January LOI where the Clinic would benefit from all of LHA’s equipment, programs, and service lines (all property belonging to the City) without paying any money to LHA or Lakewood. The documents reveal the 2012 plans were commissioned in 2011 and that Ankit Chhabra was involved in the planning on behalf of Fairview Hospital from early on.
Even before the documents surfaced, Mayor Summers and Council President Madigan could not get the votes to do anything close to the terms in the LOI. It was also clear that Mr. Gable’s and Mrs. Brzytwa’s efforts to influence Council backfired---Councilmembers and the public saw right through those efforts. No words, no professional studies, no dramatic financial reports of losses and no court decisions will change the current stalemate from now until January. Ms. Madigan’s replacement on Council is running unopposed and is solidly against the plan to close the hospital. One other Ward seat and the Mayor’s office are up in the air. The current leaders simply can't deliver. The more that the hospital losses mount, the more obvious it becomes that CCF and LHA are to blame. The new documents reinforce that dynamic so the Clinic/LHA plan is now dead.
On July 17, 2015, I informed Ken Haber that I possessed facts and evidence that showed CCF had seriously misled LHA Trustees and that Mr. Gable had in turn provided misleading information to City Council---I have no opinion on whether or not Mr. Gable knew the information that he gave to City Council was misleading. Mr. Haber said he would contact Mr. Gable to recommend that I present the facts and evidence to the full LHA Board. In an email below, Mr. Gable has indicated he does not want me contact him. So it appears that Mr. Gable, as chairman of LHA, does not want to hear evidence that opposes CCF's narrative to you as trustees. It also appears that Mr. Gable also does not want to be questioned about his own role in the matter. I have attached Attorney General Mike DeWine’s guide for charity board members that recommends that you “review the performance of the charity’s executive director or chief executive officer.” There are many other guidelines that are relevant.
I present herein just a few of the several points that I would like to present to the LHA Trustees in person (and with others who have helped gather the facts).
Lakewood’s Therapeutic Cardiac Catheterization Program was Terminated by CCF, not by ODH
At the May 13, 2015 LHA Trustee meeting, Shannon Ritchie and other CCF administrators said the primary reason for the drop off of emergency admissions was the loss of the therapeutic cardiac catheterization license. In the ensuing discussion, CCF administration said that the “bureaucrats” at ODH were to blame and there was “no appeal.” Mr. Gable and Tom Bullock repeated the CCF narrative to City Council on more than one occasion.
An investigation was conducted that included gathering relevant correspondence and documentation as well as discussions with relevant personnel from the Ohio Department of Health. The documents and interviews proved that Shannon Ritchie actually terminated the program, i.e. ODH did not terminate the cardiac program. The Ohio Department of Health has confirmed that CCF/Lakewood Hospital made the decision to stop providing the non-emergency therapeutic cardiac catheterizations in February.
Any one of you can contact the Department of Health using the following contacts to verify this independently:
Address: 246 North High Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215
Chris Glass, PPR, Chief, email: greg.glass@odh.ohio.gov Tel.: 614-752-9125
Russ Kennedy - ODH Communications - email: russ.kennedy@odh.ohio.gov Tel.: 614-995-7973
I have copied Messrs. Glass and Kennedy on this correspondence and they can correct me if I have misstated anything. FYI, I have not had any contact with ODH—other credible individuals conducted the investigation.
So what CCF administration told you in May was the leading cause for the financial losses was actually caused by the administration’s own actions. It appears that Mr. Gable and Mrs. Brzytwa want to defend that conduct.
Other Facts Point to Trustees Having Been Misled As To Hospital Operations.
In the past 120 days or so, I have spent more than 1,200 hours on the hospital matter including review of hundreds of documents, speaking with dozens of witnesses, doctors, healthcare professional, lawyers, citizens, many of you as trustees and others concerning Lakewood Hospital. I am not serving as an attorney, I do not represent any party in the hospital matter---I have no financial, professional or political motives. I have much to report to you and I am available to present my findings to the complete Board, small groups or individually trustees. There are other very credible people who can present with me.
By way of example, CCF has actively hired away Lakewood Hospital employees to create more failure. Mr. Gable claimed to City Council that these employees were being hired by “other systems” and were leaving on their own. That is not accurate. Please read what Dr. Terry Kilroy recently wrote in the Observer:
http://lakewoodobserver.com/read/2015/0 ... -and-facts
Please also note Dr. Terry Kilroy’s statements to Lakewood City Council on July 20, 2015 at 1 hour 45 minutes into this video: Lakewood City Council, July 20, 2015
Lakewood City Council, July 20, 2015
View on http://www.youtube.com
I have attached a couple of documents to this email for your consideration in your deliberations.
On May 18, 2015, Mr. Gable told City Council that if the “limbo” continues there would be “liability, accountability and responsibility” for the ongoing losses. That “liability, accountability and responsibility” must begin at the leadership level of LHA. It appears that Mr. Gable and Mrs. Brzytwa have lost credibility with key Councilmembers and the public. It is time to change leadership and change course by abandoning the CCF plan and announcing that the hospital will remain open. There is much work to be done with CCF to restore service lines.
Under the current and evolving circumstances, it would be irresponsible for LHA trustees to expect the political and legal process to resolve matters while LHA leaders sit idle and nod their heads with approval while CCF dismantles the hospital.
I thank those of you who continue to interact with me for your valuable insight. I also thank Mr. Huntsberger for his acknowledgement that I am able to communicate trustees.
The future healthcare of thousands of Lakewoodites, especially the most vulnerable, is in your hands. Please do not let them down.
Sincerely,
Brian J. Essi
----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Tom Gable
To: Brian Essi
Sent: Monday, July 20, 2015 12:25 PM
Subject: Re: LHA Reporting to City Council
Mr. Essi, Please do not contact me. And please be advised that we do not intend to pay our attorney to carry on a dialouge with you. Please direct any and all comments to Lakewood City Council. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. Tom Gable
Sent from my android device.
-----Original Message-----
From: Brian Essi
To: Thomas Gable Ellen Brzytwa
Cc: "Jeffrey R. Huntsberger" , Mary Madigan, Ryan Nowlin, Tom Bullock, David Anderson, Cynthia Marx, Sam O'Leary, Shawn Juris
Sent: Mon, 20 Jul 2015 11:40 AM
Subject: LHA Reporting to City Council
Dear Mr. Gable and Mrs. Brzytwa,
You should know by now that I have contacted Mr. Haber and others concerning various facts that have come to light that point to CCF administrators misleading the LHA Board about the causes for the financial and other losses that LHA has suffered since the January announcement. I believe that City Council has been misled by LHA relaying misleading information. I await your decisions on how LHA will proceed.
Nevertheless, since the two you are headed back to City Council again, I thought that I would make a few initial suggestions for the two of you:
•Start by issuing the City of Lakewood an apology and accept full responsibility for LHA failing in its mission to maintain a full service hospital.
•Explain to Council that despite posting a net profit of over $2.5 million in 2014, the hospital quickly began losing money immediately after LHA’s January announcement. Acknowledge that LHA’s decision to sign the LOI and the announcement itself cobc zcaused substantial losses that LA is experiencing. Explain again how those losses were exacerbated by the termination of LHA’s lucrative cardio intervention program. However, this time around, explain in detail exactly who in addition to Shannon Ritchie gave you information concerning the cardio intervention program and precisely what you were told.
•Mr. Gable, may I also suggest that you explain in detail why in November, 2013, you told a member of City Council that you would be at City Council in January, 2014 to propose a family health clinic to replace the hospital. Explain how this statement does not show your predisposition for CCF’s FHC prior to the RFP process. If my information is mistaken please explain in detail how that is so.
•Explain in detail your answers to the questions posed by Dr. Terry Kilroy in the following article and how your facts differ and who you obtained them from: http://lakewoodobserver.com/read/2015/0 ... -and-facts
•You might also explain to Council why LHA has never adopted, as recommended by Attorney General Mike DeWine, terms limits and rotation off the board to “avoid stagnation, tunnel vision and the perception that the board is merely an insiders’ club.”
Sincerely,
Brian J. Essi
So Mayor Summers is supposed to be our most powerful steward at the hospital but..
SUMMERS CANNOT BE TRUSTED IN WORD OR DEED. keeping company with other folks who lie to us.
Here are a couple of my emails in RED:
On Aug 4, 2015, at 11:47 AM, Brian Essi wrote:
Dear LHA Trustees,
LHA’s leadership and CCF have misled you and failed you. Documents have surfaced that prove that CCF had a 2012 plan to “Decant” Lakewood Hospital to the benefit of Fairview Hospital. That plan apparently culminated in the January LOI where the Clinic would benefit from all of LHA’s equipment, programs, and service lines (all property belonging to the City) without paying any money to LHA or Lakewood. The documents reveal the 2012 plans were commissioned in 2011 and that Ankit Chhabra was involved in the planning on behalf of Fairview Hospital from early on.
Even before the documents surfaced, Mayor Summers and Council President Madigan could not get the votes to do anything close to the terms in the LOI. It was also clear that Mr. Gable’s and Mrs. Brzytwa’s efforts to influence Council backfired---Councilmembers and the public saw right through those efforts. No words, no professional studies, no dramatic financial reports of losses and no court decisions will change the current stalemate from now until January. Ms. Madigan’s replacement on Council is running unopposed and is solidly against the plan to close the hospital. One other Ward seat and the Mayor’s office are up in the air. The current leaders simply can't deliver. The more that the hospital losses mount, the more obvious it becomes that CCF and LHA are to blame. The new documents reinforce that dynamic so the Clinic/LHA plan is now dead.
On July 17, 2015, I informed Ken Haber that I possessed facts and evidence that showed CCF had seriously misled LHA Trustees and that Mr. Gable had in turn provided misleading information to City Council---I have no opinion on whether or not Mr. Gable knew the information that he gave to City Council was misleading. Mr. Haber said he would contact Mr. Gable to recommend that I present the facts and evidence to the full LHA Board. In an email below, Mr. Gable has indicated he does not want me contact him. So it appears that Mr. Gable, as chairman of LHA, does not want to hear evidence that opposes CCF's narrative to you as trustees. It also appears that Mr. Gable also does not want to be questioned about his own role in the matter. I have attached Attorney General Mike DeWine’s guide for charity board members that recommends that you “review the performance of the charity’s executive director or chief executive officer.” There are many other guidelines that are relevant.
I present herein just a few of the several points that I would like to present to the LHA Trustees in person (and with others who have helped gather the facts).
Lakewood’s Therapeutic Cardiac Catheterization Program was Terminated by CCF, not by ODH
At the May 13, 2015 LHA Trustee meeting, Shannon Ritchie and other CCF administrators said the primary reason for the drop off of emergency admissions was the loss of the therapeutic cardiac catheterization license. In the ensuing discussion, CCF administration said that the “bureaucrats” at ODH were to blame and there was “no appeal.” Mr. Gable and Tom Bullock repeated the CCF narrative to City Council on more than one occasion.
An investigation was conducted that included gathering relevant correspondence and documentation as well as discussions with relevant personnel from the Ohio Department of Health. The documents and interviews proved that Shannon Ritchie actually terminated the program, i.e. ODH did not terminate the cardiac program. The Ohio Department of Health has confirmed that CCF/Lakewood Hospital made the decision to stop providing the non-emergency therapeutic cardiac catheterizations in February.
Any one of you can contact the Department of Health using the following contacts to verify this independently:
Address: 246 North High Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215
Chris Glass, PPR, Chief, email: greg.glass@odh.ohio.gov Tel.: 614-752-9125
Russ Kennedy - ODH Communications - email: russ.kennedy@odh.ohio.gov Tel.: 614-995-7973
I have copied Messrs. Glass and Kennedy on this correspondence and they can correct me if I have misstated anything. FYI, I have not had any contact with ODH—other credible individuals conducted the investigation.
So what CCF administration told you in May was the leading cause for the financial losses was actually caused by the administration’s own actions. It appears that Mr. Gable and Mrs. Brzytwa want to defend that conduct.
Other Facts Point to Trustees Having Been Misled As To Hospital Operations.
In the past 120 days or so, I have spent more than 1,200 hours on the hospital matter including review of hundreds of documents, speaking with dozens of witnesses, doctors, healthcare professional, lawyers, citizens, many of you as trustees and others concerning Lakewood Hospital. I am not serving as an attorney, I do not represent any party in the hospital matter---I have no financial, professional or political motives. I have much to report to you and I am available to present my findings to the complete Board, small groups or individually trustees. There are other very credible people who can present with me.
By way of example, CCF has actively hired away Lakewood Hospital employees to create more failure. Mr. Gable claimed to City Council that these employees were being hired by “other systems” and were leaving on their own. That is not accurate. Please read what Dr. Terry Kilroy recently wrote in the Observer:
http://lakewoodobserver.com/read/2015/0 ... -and-facts
Please also note Dr. Terry Kilroy’s statements to Lakewood City Council on July 20, 2015 at 1 hour 45 minutes into this video: Lakewood City Council, July 20, 2015
Lakewood City Council, July 20, 2015
View on http://www.youtube.com
I have attached a couple of documents to this email for your consideration in your deliberations.
On May 18, 2015, Mr. Gable told City Council that if the “limbo” continues there would be “liability, accountability and responsibility” for the ongoing losses. That “liability, accountability and responsibility” must begin at the leadership level of LHA. It appears that Mr. Gable and Mrs. Brzytwa have lost credibility with key Councilmembers and the public. It is time to change leadership and change course by abandoning the CCF plan and announcing that the hospital will remain open. There is much work to be done with CCF to restore service lines.
Under the current and evolving circumstances, it would be irresponsible for LHA trustees to expect the political and legal process to resolve matters while LHA leaders sit idle and nod their heads with approval while CCF dismantles the hospital.
I thank those of you who continue to interact with me for your valuable insight. I also thank Mr. Huntsberger for his acknowledgement that I am able to communicate trustees.
The future healthcare of thousands of Lakewoodites, especially the most vulnerable, is in your hands. Please do not let them down.
Sincerely,
Brian J. Essi
----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Tom Gable
To: Brian Essi
Sent: Monday, July 20, 2015 12:25 PM
Subject: Re: LHA Reporting to City Council
Mr. Essi, Please do not contact me. And please be advised that we do not intend to pay our attorney to carry on a dialouge with you. Please direct any and all comments to Lakewood City Council. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. Tom Gable
Sent from my android device.
-----Original Message-----
From: Brian Essi
To: Thomas Gable Ellen Brzytwa
Cc: "Jeffrey R. Huntsberger" , Mary Madigan, Ryan Nowlin, Tom Bullock, David Anderson, Cynthia Marx, Sam O'Leary, Shawn Juris
Sent: Mon, 20 Jul 2015 11:40 AM
Subject: LHA Reporting to City Council
Dear Mr. Gable and Mrs. Brzytwa,
You should know by now that I have contacted Mr. Haber and others concerning various facts that have come to light that point to CCF administrators misleading the LHA Board about the causes for the financial and other losses that LHA has suffered since the January announcement. I believe that City Council has been misled by LHA relaying misleading information. I await your decisions on how LHA will proceed.
Nevertheless, since the two you are headed back to City Council again, I thought that I would make a few initial suggestions for the two of you:
•Start by issuing the City of Lakewood an apology and accept full responsibility for LHA failing in its mission to maintain a full service hospital.
•Explain to Council that despite posting a net profit of over $2.5 million in 2014, the hospital quickly began losing money immediately after LHA’s January announcement. Acknowledge that LHA’s decision to sign the LOI and the announcement itself cobc zcaused substantial losses that LA is experiencing. Explain again how those losses were exacerbated by the termination of LHA’s lucrative cardio intervention program. However, this time around, explain in detail exactly who in addition to Shannon Ritchie gave you information concerning the cardio intervention program and precisely what you were told.
•Mr. Gable, may I also suggest that you explain in detail why in November, 2013, you told a member of City Council that you would be at City Council in January, 2014 to propose a family health clinic to replace the hospital. Explain how this statement does not show your predisposition for CCF’s FHC prior to the RFP process. If my information is mistaken please explain in detail how that is so.
•Explain in detail your answers to the questions posed by Dr. Terry Kilroy in the following article and how your facts differ and who you obtained them from: http://lakewoodobserver.com/read/2015/0 ... -and-facts
•You might also explain to Council why LHA has never adopted, as recommended by Attorney General Mike DeWine, terms limits and rotation off the board to “avoid stagnation, tunnel vision and the perception that the board is merely an insiders’ club.”
Sincerely,
Brian J. Essi