HCA, VUMC get Grassley request for IT info

By Geert De Lombaerde Posted on January 21, 2010 at 7:17 am

HCA’s TriStar division and Vanderbilt University Medical Center are among the more than 30 health systems that have been asked by Republican Senator Chuck Grassley to respond to a series of questions about their information technology successes and shortfalls. Among the questions:

7. Please provide a list of HIT problems or complaints that have been identified by or reported to your facility since January 2008 that directly or indirectly impacted patient safety or the delivery of care, including any complications or adverse events that have occurred as a result of HIT product design and/or usability. Please describe whether and how each of those problems or complaints was resolved and whether these issues have resulted in a change in policy to prevent the problem in the future.

Hmmm, wonder how voluminous a set of responses he’ll get to that one…

SEE ALSO: Some thoughts of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and other Health Care Council panelists on why IT lags in health care.

permalink | Comment on this post

Tags: Charles E. Grassley, HCA Inc., hospital management, information technology, information technology: health care, software, TriStar Health System Inc., Vanderbilt University Medical Center  

Southern Hills settles discrimination suit

By Geert De Lombaerde Posted on April 29, 2009 at 9:55 pm

The HCA-owned hospital will pay a Muslim ex-employee $70,000 after denying him vacation to go to Mecca. Which prompted a local pastor to say: “We cannot afford for every Christian doctor to not work on Easter.”

permalink | Comment on this post

Tags: comparative religion, discrimination, HCA Inc., hospital management, Islam, litigation, Mecca, pilgrimages, Southern Hills Medical Center, TriStar Health System Inc., U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission  

StoneCrest gets new CEO

By Geert De Lombaerde Posted on March 30, 2009 at 12:09 pm

HCA’s TriStar Health System plucks the boss of its Parkridge East hospital in Chattanooga to succeed Neil Heatherly at the Smyrna facility. Mark Sims will take over in a month.

permalink | Comment on this post

Tags: executive leadership, HCA Inc., hospital management, Mark Sims, Neil Heatherly, Stonecrest Medical Center, TriStar Health System Inc.  

Stonecrest CEO resigns

By Kleinheider Posted on February 26, 2009 at 6:12 pm

WKRN reports that StoneCrest Medical Center CEO Neil Heatherly resigned yesterday. The departure was announced Wednesday in a department director level meeting within TriStar Health Systems.

Heatherly has been the only CEO since the center opened in late 2003.

SEE ALSO: TriStar can’t move beds to StoneCrest and California HCA hospital boss out

permalink | 1 Comment

Tags: executive leadership, HCA Inc., hospital management, Neil Heatherly, Smyrna, Stonecrest Medical Center, TriStar Health System Inc.  

TriStar freezing salaries

By Geert De Lombaerde Posted on January 14, 2009 at 6:06 pm

From The Tennessean:

“We believe these steps are necessary and prudent in order to respond to the economic pressures facing our industry,” said Larry Kloess, TriStar’s president.

permalink | Comment on this post

Tags: HCA Inc., hospital management, TriStar Health System Inc.