The Observation Deck

We have a sick healthcare system in this town. It's toxic - the intense competition does not serve patients, it's to enhance the prestige and patient base of the major players. Lakewood Hospital is a victim of this bizarre competition, but REAL PEOPLE suffer because of it. When will we wake up and put a stop to this destructive situation? It's going to get worse.

Note the current fight over adding a second Level 1 Trauma Center -after the Clinic closed Huron, both Metro and CCF are opposing UH's intention to open the center at their main campus. We are the ONLY larger Ohio city with only one Level 1 trauma center. Even Akron and Toledo have more.

As noted in this article, people HAVE died while they fight over where patients go and which center gets them.

Eckert said he and the city's EMS commissioner have received repeated calls from the competing hospital systems asking why more patients are transported to the other systems than their own.

In a stunning display Friday of this competitive tendency, a UH official at the meeting openly criticized NOTS for transporting a young gunshot victim recently to the MetroHealth pediatric level 1 trauma center from the Clinic rather than to the closer level 1 child trauma center at UH. The child died of his injuries.

This is what we are up against. The system is horribly broken.

http://www.cleveland.com/healthfit/inde ... short_home

So, does this validate the "editorial" at http://www.lakewoodobserver.com/forum/v ... =7&t=13990?

As reported by the PD:

Brie Zeltner, The Plain Dealer wrote:Eckert said he and the city's EMS commissioner have received repeated calls from the competing hospital systems asking why more patients are transported to the other systems than their own.

In a stunning display Friday of this competitive tendency, a UH official at the meeting openly criticized NOTS for transporting a young gunshot victim recently to MetroHealth's level 2 pediatric trauma center from the Clinic rather than to the closer level 1 pediatric trauma center at UH. The child died of his injuries.

http://www.cleveland.com/healthfit/inde ... short_home

I'm calling the police.

It certainly borders on "criminal" in a moral sense if big corporations calling themselves charities tasked with taking care an people are making life and death decisions based upon $$$$$$$$$.

Dare I say that those involved bear serious personal responsibility for their actions.

Brian Essi- " Dare I say that those involved bear serious personal responsibility for their action".

Brian, You can say that, but know that if Ms. Beebe has her way your house will be surrounded by the Lakewood Swat team at any moment.

If Ms. Beebe, who is running for re-election to the School Board, can't discern the difference between an actual threat and political speech how can anyone trust her to discern what is best for Lakewood's students?

Beebe is well past her prime; like any career politician, they start to stink after awhile. She needs to be replaced.

Another point on the UH/Metro/CCF struggles, if you scroll down to the comments on the article you'll see Councilman Jeff Johnson making a few comments. It's clear that the Clinic carefully hones its image by manipulating the types of patients they take. Mortality rates, and other factors affect their CMS and (gasp) USNEWS rankings. Johnson's conversation seems to acknowledge that they don't actually want those severe trauma cases, e.g., gunshot wounds, because they often are uninsured and they frequently die.