The End Is Near
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Update: 10/12/08
In addition to firing employees, I have also learned that DMH HAS SOLD ALL THEIR BUILDINGS NOT PHYSICALLY CONNECTED TO THE HOSPITAL. The financial situation for DMH administration is getting progressively worse. First, the bank accounts are drained, then they lighten expenses with hiring freezes and the mass-firings, and now they are forced to sell their buildings to keep the cash flow going to be able to afford the exorbitant salaries for administration and their employed doctors. What's next? Once the liquid assets are gone, then you'll see Ken Smithmier, Tim Stone, Gary Peacock and others mysteriously leave town with some "inconsistencies" in the bank books (the PUBLIC set of books, that is.)
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For almost 150 former employees of DMH, the end is already here.
Last week, Tim Stone and DMH administration manufactured reasons (when they gave reasons) and got rid of well over one-hundred employees at DMH. Many of these good people had been there for 20+ years!
All this came, by the way, BEFORE the banking problems, bailout and take-overs. Rumor has it that DMH LOST GREATER THAN ONE MILLION DOLLARS DURING THE MONTH OF AUGUST. As predicted, DMH administration's mismanagement of funds has led to a financial crisis within the organization. DMH administration has been paying employed doctors three and four times the national average for their salary, paying themselves three and four times the local average for their own salary, constantly spending money building new offices, buying more and more advertising, and putting up billboards for doctors who don't work all that hard.
My contacts within DMH tell me that there are virtually NO PRIMARY CARE DOCTORS that go to DMH anymore. Since patients usually follow their doctor, those patients are going to St. Mary's now. Couple that with the fact that people are getting more and more annoyed with quality of care the few remaining employees are able to deliver, the cutbacks on staff, and the purge of experienced nurses in critical areas, and you have an exponential loss of patients from DMH.
Mass overspending on salaries, offices, and billboards + mass exodus of patients = DMH losing over a million dollars.
Who pays the price? Not DMH administration! They continue to pay themselves HUGE salaries, and instead of doing the RIGHT THING, they fire 150 employees.
DMH Board...how long are you going to let this ENRON administration continue to rape the city of Decatur?
posted by Watcher2300 at 10/04/2008 11:57:00 AM
15 Comments:
I wonder if DMH is having to liquidate assets to pay a big.....FINE?
That's the rumor. Pay a big fine now or we will keep digging and you wont like the results says teh investigators. party line however is that DMH has realized that it is in the healthcare business not the real estate business. Yeah right.
The "big fine" is in addition to indictments, arrests and convictions. The US DOJ does not plea bargain or take cash in exchange for looking the other way.
They will build their case, file indictments, make arrests, send people to jail, and then levy fines. In this case, even if DMH converted EVERYTHING to cash, they would not have near enough to pay off the fines they'll be getting.
Check out the "Whistleblower Information" link above and see just how much money PER COUNT of fraud DMH administrators will be liable for!!
I guess it is true that DMH sold their office buildings for 30 million dollars. Now that this buildings are owned by a for profit organization Decatur should benefit from its real estate taxes. Mmmm....maybe we should thank uncle Ken. On the other hand I wonder what would happen to their tennants who have had modified rental agreements. I can only imagine.
As a family member of someone who works at dmh I will be happy when the government does whatever they are going to do so that I don't have to watch my family struggle to make ends meet by taking a second job. Since DMH has declared no overtime I am responsible to watch grandchildren so that my family can go to a second job. The troubles that DMH are mired in do not just affect the employees it is affecting their immediate and extended family as well. It is shameful the way employees are treated there. I have seen the salaries pulled down by administration posted on this website and I feel this is deplorable. I know how much my family member makes and I know the hard work that is poured into that facility on a daily basis. People who work that hard for a facility should be rewarded not punished by having their overtime taken away or their christmas party replaced by a three hour hot dog lunch!
Exactly who is on the Board of Directors for Decatur Memorial Hospital? Which of our citizens serve at the pleasure of Ken? I'd love to see names. I googled both hospitals' boards.......but I could only find the board members for SMH.
Where in the world is Ken? Haven't seen him around the hospital in MONTHS! Has he dropped out of the social scene, too? Maybe he's home packing money in boxes in case he has to leave town like a thief in the night.
WOW...HEAR YE, HEAR YE! The Governor involved in a corruption "crime spree!" I wonder if any personal campaign contributions have come from the Decatur area to get a few of our crooks out of hot water? If anyone knows (and cares about the people/patients of Decatur), he or she should give the Chicago FBI office a jingle. (And wouldn't it be just WONDERFUL if our crooks are caught on the tapes!!!)
In reference to the 4th comment on this page, the amount was 300 + million, not 30
Wow...guess the investigation must have come to a close. Why is there no news of a resolution? Just curious, how many people who have gone to the ER at DMH have been put through the exhaustive, expensive, lucrative-for-the-hospital stroke profile unnecessarily? Show of hands?
I think that the Federal team that's been looking into all the issues are good, noble, honest people. Unfortunately, as I had heard first-hand both Smithmier & Stone brag that they were the second most influential/powerful people in the region behind ADM. And it seems to me that they were right. They new and had connections in politics, which in my belief has quashed much of the fervor the good guys had in pursuing & prosecuting them. I once thought that this would ge sorted out for the benefit of the community, tax payors, etc. BUT I feel that they have gotten away with this.
I predict the next cash saving move for DMH will be replacing LPN's with CNA's. Big difference in their salaries. Unfortunately for the poor patients who are forced to go to DMH by their insurance companies, there is also a big difference in the quality of care. CNA's are great and are very much needed, but the loss of LPN's would just add to the work load of overworked, stressed out RN's. Not good for outstanding patient care. Qualified RN's are already bailing or retiring early from this sinking ship leaving it staffed with lower paid new graduates with little or no practical experience.
No matter, though, apparantely to admininistration. They can save quite a bit of money by getting rid of the LPN's. More money to keep their army of lawyers paid and administration salaries and/or bonuses up.
By the way, I heard Ken made a big deal out of announcing that administrators would not be getting raises. No word was said about bonuses for these crooks, though. Anyone have any info about that?
Previous poster was right - Ken and Tim will leave town in the middle of the night.
The city, media, DMH owned physicians, and even insurance companies have much blame to accept for this fiasco by allowing it to go on for so long. That's what happens when you sleep with the devil.
I am sure that the administrators, accountants, and involved doctors have their money well protected so they will lose little, if anything financially WHEN NOT IF DMH GOES UNDER.
Will the state or federal government have to come up with a huge bailout package to pay salaries, vendors, etc., and taxpayers be stuck with the bill?
I see little difference between the crooks responsible for the housing crisis, stockmarket meltdown, and financial depression the country is facing because of the greed of the financial wizards running the banks and the dire straits DMH is facing today because of the greed of its administrators. Are the taxpayers going to have to pay for the crimes of these immoral people at DMH too?
Would be happy to see Ken, Tim, Gary, Mike, Linda and the entire board of directors pay money out of their own pockets in fines and even spend some time behind bars for scr***** the people of Decatur for all these years but doubt it will ever happen.
What about the people of the area though? Will we have to pick up the tab for a bailout of DMH (just like we are picking up the tab for greedy banks nationwide)?
Will St. Mary's be able to pick up the slack if DMH goes under?
So who will have to come up with the money to pay salaries, suppliers, contractors and so on when DMH finally bites the dust? Who will have to pay the unemployment claims?
Taxpayers? The city, state or federal governments?
Will there be another taxpayer bailout - something the people of this city and nation are growing sick and tired of?
Can St. Mary's absorb all the patients in the area when DMH goes under?
Went to St. Mary's for a doctors appointment yesterday (yes I finally had the guts to switch to a doctor who would allow patients to be seen at St. Mary's)and was intrigued.
Nurse knew I used to work at DMH amd asked me if the feds were still investigating DMH. Didn't know what to tell her since I have been out of the DMH employees loop for so long.
Is the investigation over?
I couldn't find any posts on this site for the last 5 or 6 months and am wondering if this has all been much ado about nothing.
So much time has been spent on this blog it would be nice if the people who really care what the outcome has been done.
Are DMH and Smithmier innocent of the charges? Or have they managed to beat the charges?
The people of Decatur deserve answers.
Watcher you alerted us to this scandal Please let us know what the outcome has been completed or whether the feds are still investingating.
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