The Argonaut, 9/11/03
National joint commission conducting survey of patient care at Daniel Freeman Marina HospitalBY CINDY FRAZIER
The national Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) is conducting a survey of patient care at Daniel Freeman Marina Hospital.
The national organization will gather information from patients about hospital operations.
Agency officials will visit the hospital Wednesday and Thursday, October 1st and 2nd, to conduct an onsite survey to determine if the hospital will remain accredited by the organization.
Accreditation by JCAHO is not a requirement for California hospitals, but is an indication of excellence, said hospital spokeswoman Cyndee Woelfle.
"It [accreditation] is required by Tenet," she said, referring to the Tenet Healthcare Corp., hospital owner.
The hospital was surveyed by the JCAHO in December 2001, after it was purchased by Tenet, and received a designation of "accreditation with requirements for improvement," according to information on the organization's Web site.
The hospital's sister facility, Daniel Freeman Memorial Hospital in Inglewood, also received a similar designation.
The Inglewood hospital was surveyed again in June by the JCAHO and achieved "accreditation with full standards compliance," according to the JCAHO.
In the interim, Tenet has spent $7 million on upgrades at Memorial hospital and plans to spend $4 million on repairs and improvements at the Marina hospital, but has not begun the improvements at the Marina site as yet, Woelfle acknowledged.
"But those improvements aren't of the kind necessary for basic health services," she said.
The improvements planned at the Marina hospital include a new roof and upgraded equipment, among other projects.
Shortly after purchasing both hospitals, Tenet announced that Marina would be sold.
The sale of the facility was halted after a community outcry resulted in a lawsuit against Tenet by California attorney general Bill Lockyer.
The suit has been settled and Tenet has promised to keep the hospital open "indefinitely."
But community members continue to express concerns that the hospital — and its emergency room — may be in jeopardy.
Tenet has launched a marketing campaign seeking to increase the proportion of patients who choose the Marina facility, as opposed to those who become patients after being brought to the emergency room.
The JCAHO is an independent, not-for-profit organization, governed by a board including physicians, nurses and consumers, that "sets the standards by which health care quality is measured in America and around the world," according to the group's Web site.
Anyone who wishes to respond to the survey about the Marina hospital must write to the JCAHO by Wednesday, September 24th, at:
Division of Accreditation Operations,
Accreditation Service Specialist,
Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations,
One Renaissance Blvd.,
Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181
Information, www.jcaho.org