[StBernard] Parish officials consider hospital options

[Westley Annis]

Lets see, 	A hospital that will cost the parish nothing even if it is
smaller or one that will cost 60 million dollars.
		A certain hospital proposes to build with capability to make
expansions.
		Where do people go now or for the last 3 years for hospital
care certainly not in this parish.
		Oh and doesn't Dr Verrett work for OLOL group, biased? Ya
think.!!

	Warren 

-----Original Message-----
Generally, when something appears too good to be true, it isn't.

My concern with Ochsner's proposal is that this small "clinic" with beds
will be only a triage stop-thru and feed to their larger facilities in the
area.  Both of my parents were hospitalized at one time or another at
Chalmette Med Ctr and received decent care.  The times they did not use that
hospital were when the doctors they were using did not choose to use CMC for
their procedures.  I think most people would prefer to be hospitalized
closer to home and loved ones if given the choice.  No one wants their
family members/friends to have to drive 20 to 30 miles to visit them in the
hospital.  If I were on the hospital district board I would want to know
from Ochsner what types of services they intended to offer in this small
setting.

On the other hand, I would also want to know, from the Our Lady of the Lakes
group, where they might have to send a patient if needed care or procedures
were beyond the scope of their proposed hospital in the parish.  Since they
are based in Baton Rouge, will they form an affiliation with a local
hospital in the metro area?  They aren't going to have many choices since
Ochsner seems to be gobbling up hospitals right and left.  It seems that the
choices would be limited to East/West Jeff, Tulane and Touro.


I agree with Dr. Verrette the 20 bed thing seems to small unless only being
used to feed patients to the other Ochsner facilities and without them
saying it, I believe that's what Ochsner has in mind.

Jim