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NEWS & LETTERS, February-March 2006Fight to save hospitalLos Angeles--The Save King/Drew Medical Center coalition gathered at the Watts Labor Community Action Center on Dec. 10 to update everyone on ongoing events, including changes in the leadership of the county's Department of Health Services and the Medical Center. The Save King/Drew Coalition’s goal is to improve King/Drew as a comprehensive medical center and to prevent it from becoming privatized. King/Drew Medical Center was founded after the1965 Watts uprising to serve the Black community. Today, it serves over a million poor Blacks and Latinos in South Central L.A. A panel of King/Drew staff, union members, community activists and religious personnel spoke on various related issues. They included local grassroots organizations working on issues such as homelessness and drug rehabilitation. A spokesman for SEIU Local 660 representing L.A. County employees stated that the immediate goal is to pass an upcoming Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services inspection. Failing would mean a loss of $200 million of federal funding annually, without which King/Drew will be in danger of closing. Dr. Thomas Garthwaite recently resigned as chief administrator of the L.A. Department of Health Services to take a job with Catholic Health East, a national Catholic hospital association. Prior to his resignation he stated that the medical center is unprepared to pass the coming inspection and that if funding is lost "he would recommend closing King/Drew or handing control of it to a private hospital chain." Garthwaite recommended closing the trauma center in order to save the rest of the hospital. This resulted in a mass protest by thousands and hours of hearings by outraged community people at the King/Drew site. After the trauma center was temporarily closed in March, he recommended closing the obstetric, pediatric and neonatal units while expanding outpatient services. This recommendation was voted down by the county board of supervisors. After the King/Drew trauma center was closed, the private California Hospital 10 miles away opened a trauma center with funding assistance from the L.A. Board of supervisors. It was during the three years while Department of Health Services was led by Dr. Gaithwaite that King/Drew’s accreditation faltered. He failed to fill the many vacant nurse slots with competent replacements. Some temporary nurses were hired with higher compensation than permanent nurses, adding to the low morale among the staff. Congresswoman Maxine Waters, who moderated the event said, "Don’t ever think we’re too weak. We are, through self-determination, fighting for a well run, comprehensive medical center to serve the urgent needs of this poor community." --Basho |
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