SCH officials speak to public

Critics say hospital hasn’t done enough
 to earn back trust following resignations

• The Independent (RI)
• 7 Nov 2024
• By Flora Fan Staff Writer ffan@independentri.com

South County Health leaders held a community meeting last week at The Towers in Narragansett to address concerns about the healthcare system’s financial sustainability and recent staffing changes.

The meeting aimed to clarify what CEO Aaron Robinson referred to as “misinformation” circulating about South County Health, Rhode Island’s only independent healthcare system.

“Do I feel good about the misinformation that’s out there in the community, and the fact that people have chosen to litigate their concerns in the media and in the public, causing unnecessary concern and anxiety in the community and moral harm to our patients, to our community members? No, I don’t feel good about that,” Robinson said during the meeting.

Chief Financial Officer Tom Breen presented an overview of South County Health’s financial status, highlighting how the system struggles with lower reimbursement rates than neighboring states.

He attributed rising operational costs to increased demand for hospital-employed physicians and a shift in orthopedics from inpatient to outpatient procedures, which he says has reduced revenue.

Breen assured attendees that South County Health maintains 136 days’ cash on hand, indicating a stable financial foundation.

“We have to overcome this loss. Is South County in trouble? The answer is no ... We have to generate a profit, or we won’t be able to make those investments that we’ve made over those previous 10 years,” Breen said.

Regarding the recent departure of three out of four oncologists from South County Health’s Cancer Center, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kevin Charpentier attributed these resignations to the board’s decision against a proposed partnership with the American Oncology Network, which would have required significant staffing and structural changes to the Cancer Center.

“We viewed that [AON’S] proposal as very risky. And it’s a model that we know doesn’t work ... in the microeconomic environment of Rhode Island, with depressed revenues and without a 340B program, we know how that story ends,” Charpentier said.

The 340B Drug Pricing Program is a federal program that allows eligible healthcare organizations to purchase outpatient drugs at a discount from pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Chief Nursing Officer Anitra Galmore confirmed that no support staff positions were cut from the Cancer Center.

“These reports have resulted in significant distraction for the executive team, leadership, and staff ... all three surveys resulted in no findings, and the allegations of the issues with governance were unsubstantiated, reaffirming our commitment to quality and safety,” Galmore said.

She also stressed South County Health’s five-star CMS rating and its continued “A” grade from the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade.

The forum concluded with a question-and-answer session during which attendees voiced concerns about healthcare costs, staffing morale, and the lack of available primary care providers.

Rep. Carol Hagan Mcentee of South Kingstown and Narragansett spoke about the community’s concerns regarding physician turnover and the need for familiar care providers.

“People in this community want to know their doctor. They don’t want to have to meet a new doctor every time they go in. So please tell me. What are you going to do?” Mcentee asked.

South County Health leaders, including Charpentier and Galmore, attributed part of the turnover to broader national and state issues, including low Rhode Island reimbursement rates and rising workplace violence against healthcare providers.

Charpentier shared recent examples of threats against staff.

Galmore acknowledged community concerns and stated that enhancing physician and staff retention has become a central goal for the executive team in fiscal year 2025.

She outlined steps the leadership team has taken to address specific requests from primary care providers, including meeting with each department to consider changes aimed at improving work-life balance and resource allocation.

Dr. Steven Fera, a former South County cardiologist and member of the group Save South County Hospital challenged these explanations and pointed to internal frustrations over insufficient resources.

He shared that local cardiologists had explored partnerships with multiple healthcare systems before aligning with Care New England, seeking a supportive work environment with resources to meet patient demand.

“We were expected to do more and more with fewer resources. We told them if we had more techs, we could do more diagnostic testing, see more patients, do more with more resources. But we were told, ‘Make do with what you have,’” Fera said.

Attendees also addressed what some described as a “toxic” work environment at South County Health. A former healthcare consultant called on leadership to prioritize creating a positive workplace culture, arguing that fostering respect and communication is “easy to fix, and it’s cheap to fix.”

South County Health board member Jim Farrell acknowledged that leadership is actively gathering feedback from hundreds of staff members to assess morale and communication issues.

“Culture eats strategy for breakfast. If we don’t have a healthy, vibrant culture, we’re not going to move any programming or initiative forward,” Farrell said.

To provide better continuity of care, South County Health leaders are exploring service-line partnerships similar to its current collaboration with Care New England for cardiology.

“Our true north was keeping the group deployed in the community. But we are simply not at the size and scale to implement a system like Epic. An integrated electronic health record system would be one of the goals of a partnership,” Robinson said.

To watch the full meeting, visit southcountyhealth.org/ about-south-county-health/ addressing-the-facts.

Community members protest hospital leadership

Members of Save South County Hospital gathered outside The Towers ahead of last week’s meeting to protest South County Health’s leadership.

The protest, which drew about 20 supporters, saw members voice frustration with South County Health’s administrative decisions, staffing issues, and what the group described as a lack of transparency and genuine community engagement.

Protesters began assembling at 4 p.m., carrying signs and speaking with the local press.

“We’re protesting not only the administration and the mismanagement, we’re protesting the fact that they picked a small venue where they have limited space for community members to come and express their concerns. There is no facilitator, there’s no, they haven’t invited critics to be on the stage to debate what’s going on.” said Dr. Steven Fera, a former South County cardiologist and an advocate with Save South County Hospital.

Save South County Hospital, which has gathered nearly 2,000 signatures on an online petition calling for leadership changes, argues that South County Health’s current management style has driven away healthcare workers and created a “toxic” work environment.

“The people that lost their cancer doctors are particularly upset, and the idea that you can just substitute a local tenant’s cancer specialist into the mix is going to be sufficient — not when you have a life-threatening disease and you’ve forged a long-standing and trusting relationship with the provider. It’s not like going to a walk-in clinic for a sore throat where anybody can do it,” Fera added.

Fera also pointed out recent financial losses, “Financially, they’ve said we need a partner to be sustainable, but they haven’t found anyone willing to partner with this administration.”

Inside the meeting, South County Health leaders, including CEO Aaron Robinson, addressed these concerns.

Robinson and other executives reiterated their commitment to preserving quality healthcare for South County residents, though their statements were met with skepticism by Save South County Hospital supporters.

In a press release issued the afternoon after the meeting, Save South County Hospital condemned the event as a “sham,” accusing hospital leadership of misrepresentation.

The group reiterated its call for the removal of Board Chairman Joseph Matthews and CEO Robinson.

“Hospital leaders have driven out doctors, overseen an exodus of doctors and staff from a community-cherished cancer center, and disregarded the voices of nearly 2,000 concerned residents, donors and other community hospital supporters calling for accountability.” the release stated.

The press release also claimed that a video recording of the meeting, initially livestreamed, was later marked “Video Unavailable,” a move protesters believe was an attempt to suppress evidence of dissent. The video is available at southcountyhealth.org/ about-south-county-health/ addressing-the-facts.

The group criticized Robinson’s $800,000 salary and pointed to a recent $6 million deficit. “What company pays its top leader such a large sum while repeatedly facing deficits?” the release questioned.

Hospital leaders were alleged to have presented an inaccurate portrayal of the hospital’s cardiology partnership with

Care New England. Several cardiologists have resigned, leaving South County Hospital to reactively negotiate without addressing critical support requests.

Save South County Hospital criticized the lack of a strategic plan, alleging that the loss of staff jeopardizes the future of the Cancer Center.

Matthews and Robinson were accused of fostering an adversarial management style. Robinson, in particular, was criticized for an exchange with a state legislator during the forum that some attendees reportedly described as an aggressive stance.

“It is time for these remaining trustees to either step up or step out should they fear a take-no-prisoners and intransigent attitude of Trustees Chairman Matthews and Hospital President Robinson,” the group said.