UTMC Reduction in Force
This week The University of Toledo Medical Center (UTMC) eliminated approximately 56 FTE positions in the hospital and its outpatient clinics. This is a sad day for those employees. I’d like to provide a brief explanation as to why this is happening.
First, it is important to note that there has been a purposeful attempt to take money out of this nation’s healthcare system for many years. Beginning in 1984, Medicare significantly revamped how hospitals were reimbursed with one main goal in mind—reduce payments to hospitals. That trend continues today. Most of the rhetoric coming out of Washington, D.C., is how this nation’s healthcare system costs too much money. The bottom line going forward is that healthcare will see less and less money—both hospitals and physicians. For many years, hospitals and physicians have had to find ways to be more productive and cost-effective to make ends meet. As a result, healthcare has seen a shifting of care over time to more cost-effective settings; from inpatient to outpatient, from outpatient to home health, from home health to the workplace, etc.
Add to this persistent long-term trend of cost-cutting a national and regional economic recession over the past year that has resulted in high levels of unemployment. Hospitals and physicians are now seeing more and more uninsured patients and fewer and fewer commercially insured patients. Furthermore, Medicare and Medicaid patients are moving to managed care plans that pay hospitals less for services. Hospitals across the country and in this region are laying off large numbers of employees and cutting low-margin services to keep their economic models viable and sustainable. The healthcare market continues to be a dynamic and fast-changing industry. Those organizations that adapt to the speed of change remain viable and thrive. Those who are slow to change usually fold, or they merge with another organization that is quicker and more nimble.
At UTMC, we have seen a steadily increasing number of uninsured patients, and like most hospitals, UTMC is adapting its healthcare delivery and economic models to adjust to these new demands. The good news is that UTMC has great physicians and nurses who have been innovating daily for many years—always finding ways to do more with less—always finding ways to deliver university-quality healthcare with increasing levels of cost-effectiveness.
My heart goes out to those employees to whom we must say goodbye. They deserve our thanks and our best wishes. Similarly, the employees who remain deserve our thanks and support. Once again, we will find ways to do more with less. We will combine professional experience with new technologies and paradigms to deliver university-quality care while simultaneously teaching the physicians, nurses, and other healthcare providers of tomorrow. I am honored to be a member of this team.
Scott Scarborough
October 14th, 2009at 12:26 pm
Scott,
Thank you for your explanation. I think a lot of us are curious about the furloughs. The plan was to be executed between Christmas and New Years, and then suddenly the plug was pulled. Why did they change their minds and would it have saved jobs?
October 14th, 2009at 2:17 pm
In my opinion we should not be laying off our most vulnerable employees during this economic crisis given that this may be a particularly hard time for them to find other jobs. This can only have a worsening impact on them, their families and our community at large. I propose that instead of taking pay raises and administrative bonuses that faculty , unions and staff and all administration on the Health Science campus should defer our pay raises for now in the service of sparing jobs of our fellow employees and coworkers. Speaking for myself, I can much more afford not to get a 3% pay raise and would prefer to delay that so that others might keep their jobs. D Rapport MD
October 15th, 2009at 10:03 am
I strongly agree with Dr. Rapport. I am willing to have my salary reduced and to take furloughs if these help laying off. I work in main campus, not everyday goes by without missing friends who got layoff in April.
October 15th, 2009at 4:06 pm
Bravo Dr. Rapport for telling it like it is–I agree completely. We should all scarifice a little to keep our staff. Not only does losing staff mean we are losing friends but it does make a difference to patient care. A lot of other hospitals have weathered this crisis by doing just what you suggest, only people don’t hear about it because it is not on the news. I would have a lot more respect for those who choose not to take a bonus. Thank you for your honesty.
October 16th, 2009at 10:30 am
Kudos to Dr. Rapport for his compassion and insight.