Councilman Hawkins just received the following announcement from Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s HealthCare:

Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s Health Care Announce Staff Reductions

500 positions will be eliminated

I wanted to make you aware that Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s HealthCare (JHSMH) announced today that due to the continuing economic recession and its impact on healthcare delivery, the organization is implementing a comprehensive expense management plan that will include workforce reduction as well as a variety of other measures.

This decision comes as a result of the general downturn in the economy and its effect on hospitals across the nation, including JHSMH, which has experienced reductions in patient volumes, rising levels of uninsured, bad debt and charity care.

In a prepared statement Janice James, JHSMH’s Transition CEO, said, “Staff reductions are always a last resort, and these were difficult and painful decisions. The people we are losing are trusted colleagues, and we appreciate their contribution and support over the years. But these decisions were necessary to ensure that through the economic downturn and the changes in healthcare, JHSMH remains financially strong and operationally healthy to continue to deliver quality healthcare to the Louisville community, as it has for more than a century.”

Approximately 500 positions will be eliminated throughout the system.  This will be achieved through attrition, layoffs and productivity improvements.  Affected team members will receive separation packages based on years of service and employment status. Transition assistance will also be provided to affected team members where possible.

In an effort to limit the number of team members leaving the organization, JHSMH has implemented over $55 million in cost saving measures through change in supplier assignments, process improvements, etc.  Going forward, the organization also is implementing standardized practices in terms of pay and paid time off (PTO), and is evaluating services that do not have enough customers to adequately cover their costs, and others that duplicate services offered elsewhere in our community. Most of these changes will not be visible to patients or the community.

“Hospitals across the country are experiencing declines in volumes as people are deferring elective medical procedures because of change in employment status and health insurance coverage.  Hospitals are also seeing increases in uncompensated care. With 900,000 Kentuckians now without health insurance, we are not immune from this turn of events,” said James.  “In 2008, we provided $52 million in uncompensated care.  In 2009, that number increased to $68 million.  As a result of this, the reality is that we are experiencing a perfect storm of declining volumes and increasing levels of uncompensated care.”

“Operating in such a challenging environment, we remain committed to providing quality healthcare to this community. The measures we are announcing today will not only enable our dedicated team to continue to deliver quality services, but will also strengthen the organization for the future,” James stated.

Comments are closed.