Making Their Case

Alabama Nurse,  Dec 2003-Feb 2004  by Glynn, Frankie

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Nabors pointed out that the ambulatory care center purchased by CRMC in the '80s was closer to Woodland than the proposed Woodland facility is to CRMC.

Asked why Woodland did not team with CRMC on the project, Heider said CRMC had approached him about a joint surgery center but wanted to retain 51 percent of the ownership.

To charges the project was designed to "take patients away from CRMC," Heider said, "I have been on record since Day 1 that we are not trying to put (CRMC President) Jay Weatherly out of business. This center is to stop the out-migration of surgeries to other cities."

The hearings are scheduled to continue at 9 a.m. today at the Cullman Electric Cooperative, with HealthSouth/Woodland presenting further evidence in its case.

Group of doctors side with WMC

Cullman Regional Medical Center's (CRMC) efforts to incorporate ambulatory surgery into its services and prevent Woodland Medical Center from doing the same thing is "a very expensive way the hospital is trying to control health care in this community," Dr. Greg Windham said in a hearing Monday morning. "Competition is good; I don't care of you're selling milk or Kool-Aid or health care."

Windham was testifying before a judge assigned to hear contested cases on CRMC's and Woodland's rival proposals to build an ambulatory surgery center in Cullman. He said he and a group of doctors "out of frustration with the system" filed an application to build the center, and CRMC "found out and filed one." The CRMC center would "do everything for everybody," and "all of a sudden, they decided they wanted to be in the outpatient surgery business." Having an on-campus center would be outpatient surgery, "but much more inconvenient and costly," he said.

He said he had been an owner of Cullman's first ambulatory surgery center in the '80s, one of the first in the state. After two years, the physicians sold 40 percent of the facility to CRMC, with the understanding the hospital would maintain it. CRMC made the case that it needed the center in order to get a bond issue passed. He didn't believe the argument but got outvoted, he said. CRMC then closed down the outpatient surgery center and opened WorkFirst and an urgent care facility in its location. Surgery costs escalated, once outpatient surgery was returned to an inpatient setting, and surgeons were again competing for operating rooms, he said.

"The only reason they bought it away from us was to close it and incorporate it back into the hospital, so they can charge more for it," he said. "Now all of a sudden, it's 'We want to do it.' Well, why did you close it? I don't think they (CRMC) know how to run it. HealthSouth, despite their financial problems and cooking the books, are the No. 1 management company in the world. They know how to do it."

Windham, who has been a surgeon in Cullman for 21 years, said more than a dozen local physicians have signed on to open an ambulatory surgery center in conjunction with Woodland and Health South.

"This project would allow CRMC to focus more on their primary market - acute care. It would allow them to cut staffing and the things they scream about losing money on and focus on the things they do well. If they would not try to be all things to all people, they would be well-served, the people would be well-served, health care dollars would be better spent, and they would avoid duplication of services.