Good Samaritan Hospital Chief Medical Officer Resigning

2 years ago 236

After 18 months connected the job, Good Samaritan Hospital Chief Medical Officer Dr. Klaus Thaler volition beryllium stepping down from his presumption successful October. The pending departure comes aft the Investigative Unit confirmed with aggregate infirmary sources different enforcement – Associate Chief Nursing Officer Damian Gulbransen— precocious near her presumption astatine Good Sam aft 11 months.

In a connection to NBC Bay Area Wednesday, a infirmary spokesperson said Good Samaritan Hospital does not sermon personell issues, but “the strength of the pandemic during the past twelvemonth and a fractional has made it communal for healthcare professionals to re-evaluate their beingness priorities, choosing to walk much clip with their loved ones oregon furthering their careers.”

The 2 departures travel soon aft a bid of investigative reports by NBC Bay Area exposing superior staffing shortages, diligent attraction problems and allegations of blatant deficiency of care.

In June, the Investigatuve Unit archetypal reported connected concerns of unsafe diligent attraction astatine Good Samaritan Hospital. Issues ranged from a breached elevator delaying an exigency patient’s attraction to flies successful facility’s intensive attraction unit. One inspection study noted flies and maggots wrong a patient’s chemoreceptor and nonaccomplishment by unit to study the insects.

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In July, regulators with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) blasted Good Sam’s enforcement team, including its CMO, CEO and CNO, saying systemic and re-occuring failures by infirmary executives enactment diligent successful harms mode repeatedly. Federal regulators deed Good Samaritan Hospital with a “notice of termination,” which places the facility’s Medicare declaration successful jeopardy. The infirmary is inactive moving with CMS to close the violations.

In August, the Investigative Unit broke the communicative of Good Samaritan Hospital and its sister installation Regional Medical Center mishandling and adjacent losing respective diligent bodies. In a statement, infirmary acklowledged the occupation calling it rare; it besides apologized to the families affected.

Then successful September, the Investigative Unit obtained an interior infirmary memo wherever Good Sam’s CEO Tomi Ryba confirmed Dr. Thaler’s resignation. She wrote helium volition beryllium joining his household connected the East Coast.

“Klaus came to america 18 months ago, taking implicit a cardinal relation astatine the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic,” she wrote. “His enactment during the pandemic efficaciously rewrote the publication for Good Samaritan Hospital connected however we attraction for COVID-19 patients.”

On a telephone Wednesday, Dr. Klaus told NBC Bay Area helium had nary comment. Good Sam’s erstwhile subordinate main nursing officer, Damian Gulbransen, ne'er responded to our requests for comment.

After months of repeated requests for an interview, nary 1 from Good Samaritan Hospital oregon its genitor company, HCA Healthcare has ever agreed to an interrogation with NBC Bay Area. The infirmary precocious embarked connected a nationalist relations run releasing respective pre-produced videos of Ryba connected Facebook. Over the play it took retired a full-page paper adhd to merchandise an open missive to the community. In the letter, the infirmary said it is expanding safeguards, adding much nurses, recruiting much doctors and investing millions connected caller instrumentality and diligent attraction supplies.

Ryba told unit successful the interior memo she would beryllium providing an update connected Dr. Thaler’s replacement “in the coming days.”

Candice Nguyen is an investigative newsman with NBC Bay Area. To interaction her astir this communicative oregon others, email candice.nguyen@nbcuni.com.

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