I Hate Dialysis Message Board
Dialysis Discussion => Dialysis: Centers => Topic started by: DialysisNurse on April 28, 2007, 08:09:26 PM
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Ok, for all those Davita "teammates" this little statement K.T. tries to convince us of is a BIG JOKE!! It's more like All for K.T and K.T for himself. And his guru's. Give me a break. Davita is such a joke. They sure as hell don't practice what they like to preach. I guess if your blinded by his light and follow his cult, you would believe the bullshit, but that is all it is bullshit. I have been in dialysis as a nurse for a long time. I was with Gambro before Davita bought us out. Gambro was such a good company to work for, and treated the patients wonderful. The money that is spent is such a waste. Party, party, party. You know, you the patients have every right to say something to this man and his guru's. Because of your disease, he is living high on the totum poll along with his followers. And not to mention us the "teammates" or should I say us the peons, work our asses off, being short staffed, long hours, more and more extra duties piled on us to do, and not to mention the most important thing taking care of the patients. With cheaper supplies, old crappy machines, and busted up chairs. Oh and our 401k forget about it. Davita does not put into the "teammates" 401k like Gambro did. If you want to plan on retiring, you have to invest into Davita's stock to make the money, but lining K.T's pockets and his guru's in the process. Did you know that K.T. made over 22million in his stocks last year, not to mention his $750,000 bonus, and the company made over 5 billion last year. Gee, it must be nice getting rich off the patients, and cutting staff, and supples, and what not.
I just wonder how someone like that can look himself in the mirror, and know he is doing right. I guess you would have to be a little off your rocker to think that what you are doing is ok, but come now, I am talking about grown men who run around in tights, dressed up like the 3 musketeers, at those stupid waste of money cults, or think that they are some character from Star Wars. I shit you not. They want you to call them by their nicknames. Like the Jedi Master "Yoda". Being an "teammate" I am sooooooo disappointed, in this company. But most of all I feel sorry for you the patients.
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Woohoo, nice rant my friend. Our beloved Epoman would love you for sure cuz he dispised Davita and all K.T. said it was (but wasnt) Would you please go to the introduction section and tell us a little more about yourself so we can properly welcome you to ihatedialysis.com. Looking forward to hearing more from you...
Goofynina/Admin.
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Then DaVita came out with a Plee for all us patients to write congress on how we needed more money! I'll write congress alright, but is won't be for more money. It will be to CUT funding. They make WAY too much money as it is.
How can they get away with this? They are sucking Medicare dry.
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I know, this is a sad situation. Me being a Nurse and trying to help the patients as best as I can, I know somedays to them it looks like I don't care, but I really do, and love my job, but when you are short staffed, and have 30 other things on your mind you have to do, it is hard to be one on one with them. Basically, the pts suffer in the long run. And the sad thing is without you guys, there would be no jobs for us, and I wish certain individuals would understand that.
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As one who works in the billing area of Davita, and a former Gambro employee, I can only second what Dialysis Nurse has to say. The Davita situation is truly sickening. I have never seen so much waste and stupidity in all my life.
I cannot imagine how this company can continue along the path it is now going down. KT and his cronies must think we are a bunch of complete idiots if they think we believe any of the crap they spew. I can't wait for them to be audited and the truth to come out about what on earth they do with the money they bring in. They are nothing but immoral liars and they advantage of ill people.
Gambro was so much better, they treated us like grownups. In my building we have less than zero respect for the ridiculous people that populate the Casa, as they call their headquarters. We all have to have stupid names for our offices just like we have stupid names for everything here. They try to BS us about the 401k situation by trying to tell us how great their profit sharing program is. The thing is they make goals for us to reach in order to share in this profit that they then make impossible to attain due to none of the systems working correctly. We cannot bill correctly and the money cannot be correctly applied due to the horrible system they have. Of course that is on purpose and we all know it. That way they get us to work our butts off for these incentives and they make sure we cannot reach them. It is so degrading and depressing. There are those of us who have put in years though, have children in college etc...so we can't really just up and leave.
We just received an e-mail about how we will be updated on the daily goings on at the National Meeting in Orlando this week. Those reports will no doubt be sickening. Another enormous waste of money that could go to us and most importantly the patients.
I don't know how KT and his ridiculous cronies sleep at night.
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DialysisNurse and Reno, i am so happy you have found the place to rant about this, it is sickening and sad, i hope someone, somewhere, sometime soon speaks up and out. The way it looks, its just going to get worse before it gets any better. Rant on my friends, we are here for you too ;) :2thumbsup;
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I know we think DaVita is bad, but if you read some of the posts of other clinics I have to take a step back.
At some clinics no visitors are allowed, no food, no cell phones.
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I'm sorry you're having issues with your employer. The only time I've seen real change in the way companies treat their employees is when an exodus of staff begins and the employer's reputation makes recruiting new people tough. There is always a better job out there. The grass isn't always greener though. Good luck.
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I was one that did leave Duh-Vita. I took about a 20 thousand dollar pay cut to get out of there. The stress of all of the Duh-Vita bullshit was killing me. I hated every minute that we were Duh-Vita. God how I missed Gambro. We had a great company and it just disappeared in a blink of an eye. Yea, we did have our problems too, but nothing, NOTHING like the crap with Duh-Vita.
You can't imagine how it felt just days after becoming Duh-Vita to be told by your RD that all of a sudden, you had too much staff on the floor and too many hours being worked. It was an immediate cut in hours for people that you promised when you hired them, 40 hours a week. Now, they are lucky to get 30. I don't understand why they are still there other than at least in Dialysis, its no nights and no Sundays. You can't say that in a hospital.
My RD was an okay guy. I honestly don't think he buys into the drinking of the kool-aid, but he knows that if he does not walk the walk, he will be gone too. I have to laugh when I say how many good people have left. And you know, the Duh-Vita people make it look like the ones that left were not team players, and thats not true at all. Most of us, just could not take the cheers, dancing, and alcohol. Oh, yea, as many of you saw on the CD I sent epoman, the alcohol runs free at the national meetings. Is there anyway we can get those screen shots back up for people that were not here earlier? I sent Empman my only copy of the CD so its up to lil epoboy to get them posted I guess.
God bless all of the ESRD patients, you deserve much better than this!
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Well, bioya, I hope you're better off and enjoying life again because DaVita is better off without you! However, I'm not so sure you've moved on with your life...you apparently left the company in June of last year yet you're still posting your "duh-vita" rants.
The DaVita/Gambro deal was closed in Oct. 2005 and you left in June (?) 2006. You abandoned your patients and teammates to the evil "duh-vita" after only 8 months with the new company. A true leader and patient advocate takes the situation they are handed and makes the best of it for their people. Quality patient care is performed daily under the circumstances you complain/rant about...you apparently didn't have the skills or leadership traits to be a successful DaVita FA. And, that's ok...DaVita is not easy and only the best survive. You can't argue with the clinical results old and new DaVita has had in the last 7 years.
If you had given it more time, you would have seen that DaVita is sincere about the Mission and Values talked about all the time. I'm sorry you missed this last Nationwide Meeting...there was much more of the substance you were looking for in the first meetings. However, when you are in the midst of integrating 2 large companies, it's important that everyone understands what has become our (DaVita and now Gambro) shared history. You have to walk before you can run...you have to know from whose hymn book you're singing from before you can make beautiful music....I digress....
You chose to let the superficial color your overall opinion...an opinion you are certainly entitled to. There are few perfect units out there and DaVita is in no way perfect. It's up to the leaders at the facility level to determine what kind of company DaVita will be...a theme that KT has carried since day one!
Mongo
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Along with Bioya I can speak for a huge majority of the employees who were with Gambro prior to the Davita acquisition. I work in one of the CBO's. You appear to be one of the brainwashed.
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Mongo - have you read any of the posts from patients with Davita on this site? There are other sites also and there are a lot of sad comments from patients regarding what actually happens in clinics. Obviously you are a fan of KT but others who started out on the "outisde" can see (from comparison with Gambro) how truly greedy and wasteful the executives of this company are. We were literally shocked at some of the policies of this company. Do you not see the absurdity of adults dressing up like mythical characters from the middle ages along with Star Wars?
I'm sure you are well intentioned with regards to defending Davitas policies but from a standpoint of being former Gambro employees we can see the difference and things have really gone downhill.
Good luck when the SOX auditors start to really take a look at how the Medicare, Medicaid and other payors money is handled.
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Along with Bioya I can speak for a huge majority of the employees who were with Gambro prior to the Davita acquisition. I work in one of the CBO's. You appear to be one of the brainwashed.
How do you speak for the majority of former Gambro employees who are now teammates?
Again, there will be a period of time when people that hold beliefs about DaVita similar to yours will leave the company...and that is welcomed. If you don't like what's going on, work to fix it or get out.
I work in operations. I'm not perfect, my part of the Village is not perfect and DaVita is not perfect. But I will continue to take care of my patients, teammates and live the core values regardless of what goes on around me...because they are true and they resonate with me. To paraphrase Ghandi...I will be the change I want to see in the world. There's much, much, much more right about DaVita than there is wrong. I will continue to work to make a positive impact on the lives of those around me and to make us the "greatest dialysis company the world has ever seen." How can you not aspire to that regardless of what you may think of the CEO, etc.?
I'm not brainwashed...just been around since the beginning and have seen what this company has become = a company that leads the industry in clinical results (you're nothing if you don't provide quality care), patient advocacy (reimbursement issues affect the company and patients on so many differentl levels), and strong financials (you can't keep the doors open if you are not good stewards of your money).
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Mongo - have you read any of the posts from patients with Davita on this site? There are other sites also and there are a lot of sad comments from patients regarding what actually happens in clinics.
Reno -
Yes, I have. I can't speak to the conditions in those clinics and what is or is not going on...often time perspective, point of view, etc. comes into play.
But I can speak to what is going on around me...and I follow the same DaVita P&P and expectations. Again, I am not perfect but it's not about being perfect...it's about serving those around you and being responsive when problems do arise. It's all about what we as leaders in the company do to live the mission and values. Unfortunately, not everyone is up to the challenge of what DaVita is all about. I am committed to making DaVita the best dialysis company the world has ever seen...how about you??
Mongo
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others who started out on the "outisde" can see (from comparison with Gambro) how truly greedy and wasteful the executives of this company are.
Do you not see the absurdity of adults dressing up like mythical characters from the middle ages along with Star Wars?
I'm sure you are well intentioned with regards to defending Davitas policies but from a standpoint of being former Gambro employees we can see the difference and things have really gone downhill.
Good luck when the SOX auditors start to really take a look at how the Medicare, Medicaid and other payors money is handled.
How do you quantify "how truly greedy and wasteful the executives of this company are"? Since 2000, $65,000,000 in BONUS MONEY not salaries) has been given to PCTs. This number doesn't include nurses, social workers, dieticians, etc....just techs. How is that greedy?!?
Given my background, education and experience, for a company the size of DaVita, KT is actually underpaid from a base salary standpoint. If you are referring to his stock options as greed, those are set by the board and many of them were given to him when the stock was almost worthless. In the business world, which you appear to be a part of, the CEO's job is to make the company profitable and to increase the stock price. And in many companies, that is all the CEO cares about. DaVita is the one and only company that I have ever been associated with that talks more about it's clinical outcomes than it's financial outcomes.
It's all a matter of how you function in your part of the Village. I have found that if I just take care of my patients and teammates, everything else seems to take care of itself. There is nothing better for the "bottom line" than happy patients and teammates. Do I actively manage my budgets, watch productivity, supply costs?...absolutely! I keep it all in perspective...I control what is controlable and try to minimize what is not...
Mongo
EDITED: Fixed Underline - Rerun - Moderator
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Mongo everyone is allowed their opinion on this site including you, but you will find that most of the patients and staff that have dialized at or work(ed) for Davita don't like it or have moved on for very good reasons. Seeing that you are all gung hoe about how things should be done should also make you aware that there are rules in place to make things run smoothly. It would be appreciated if you would also follow the rules here and visit
http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?board=34.0 (paying close attention to http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=540.0) & http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?board=14.0
and introduce yourself so we can get to know more about you and what background you are coming from so we can better understand your point of view. Thank you.
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DaVita is all for KT and his higherups. Yea, there has been bonus money paid but at what expense. Why did I HAVE to move a medicare patient from his time/chair that he held for about six years just so a Hipper (insurance patient) could have the time/seat that he wanted? That, in my opinion, is discrimination against those with no insurance. Oh, and lets not foget cutting staff and hours so that KT and his big boys could make more of a bonus. You want to argue with me that "catch the wave" at DaVita is not a attempt to cut hours and staff? I don't think you can or will argue that point.
Yes, Mongo, I have left, but I have dedicated my energy to denouncing Duh-Vita and its cult followers. I bet you were one of them that danced on the table at the academy huh? LOL
You and those like you make me sick. Out of 85 hemo patients that I had, at least 80% disliked what the experienced when Duh-Vita took over. We were no longer able to take care of them due to cuts in staffing. Now, they are a number, just a number with no caring and compassion allowed because we no longer have TIME to take care of them. Duh-Vita only cares about the bonus KT and his 'knights' receive and those of the stockholders. Oh, don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with that, but NOT at the expense of the patient.
You go Mongo, go drink some more kool-aid and have an orgasm each and every time you see KT. You are sickening.
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DaVita is all for KT and his higherups. Yea, there has been bonus money paid but at what expense.
You have yet to quantify this!! Just because you say doesn't make it so...Come on, bioya, let's hear why you think DaVita is all about KT. I triple-dog dare ya!! ???
Why did I HAVE to move a medicare patient from his time/chair that he held for about six years just so a Hipper (insurance patient) could have the time/seat that he wanted? That, in my opinion, is discrimination against those with no insurance. Oh, and lets not foget cutting staff and hours so that KT and his big boys could make more of a bonus. You want to argue with me that "catch the wave" at DaVita is not a attempt to cut hours and staff? I don't think you can or will argue that point.
In my time as FA, I was faced with that situation 3 different times. And each time, it was resolved to everyone's satisfaction. Just takes a little patience, good negotiating skills, and an ability to reason and solve the situation. You see it as discrimination because you failed. I've seen where a couple of Hippers have made the difference between a clinic staying open and closing it's doors due to lack of funding. The FA with the ability to see the whole picture and not fixate on wanting to find an issue is the FA who will succeed!
Tell us about the cuts you had to make. What ratios did you work with Gambro? What ratios were you "forced" to accept with DaVita? We've all been there, bioya. Change is a b***h and it takes time to adjust...tell us more about your situation.
Catch the Wave was not one of my favorite things to implement. But you know what, I did. I ended up having to hire teammates due to the wave. And, contrary to your belief. it was not an attempt to cut hours. Think about it...if it were all about cutting hours, DaVita would just cut the damn hours!!! It's a safety thing...limiting the number of "events" to the number of hands you had available to deal with them. With the wave, you bring in half of you patients in the morning along with half of your team. Later in the morning, you bring in the other half of your first shift with the remainder of your teammates. Explain how that is cutting hours? At one time...a long time ago, we had "hard" shifts...everyone on, everyone off...set up for the second shift...everyone on, everyone off. This is an incredible waste of labor hours and made the days incredibly long. Once again, it took every skill I had as a leader to implement these changes. It wasn't easy and there were problems to be worked out on the fly. but we did it. Hours per treatment and productivity are an afterthought for us now as my teams have gotten to the point of managing this themselves. Bioya...it begins and ends with the leader.
Yes, Mongo, I have left, but I have dedicated my energy to denouncing Duh-Vita and its cult followers. I bet you were one of them that danced on the table at the academy huh? LOL You and those like you make me sick....You go Mongo, go drink some more kool-aid and have an orgasm each and every time you see KT. You are sickening.
Not much of a dancer so it wasn't me on the table! LOL
I make you sick because I think a company can actually have mission and values that are more than words on a page? I'm sorry you're so cynical and negative. Obviously, DaVita isn't for you but why such vitriol towards those who think DaVita can be something special?
Mongo
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Dhu-Vita will never be successful. When the federal government gets the information they need to start an investigation into activies that are not in compliant with CMS guidelines, well, it will be nothing more than one more company in a pinch with the feds.
Somewhere on this site (IHD) is a list of the monies paid to KT and his sucks for bonus and salary (and oh lets not forget) stocks. I looked a few minutes ago, but I can't find it, but its here somewhere. I think, if my failing memory is not too bad, KT made something like 5million in a year. now YOU tell ME its not about him LOL
You state moving a pt. for a insurance pt. is skill in negotiations.. One word for that.. BULL$HIT! The man I was forced to move per my RD had been in his chair for six years, same time, same chair. My chicken$hit RD would not tell him, he made me. Any why you ask, because the insurance patient wanted to look out a window, thats all it was. So I had to tell a man that had friends to his left and to his right that I had to move his chair (and time by 30 min). You tell me mongo, since you know everything there is, why that was good... I want to hear your logic in that.
You ask how I had to cut staff, well let me tell you. We were a 4:1 clinic. We had one RN on the floor with four PCTs and a charge. I made a profit EVERY MONTH. not one time did I lose revenue for a month. But oh no, here comes Duh-Vita and I am cut to 3 PCTs for 16 stations and one RN who is ALSO the charge nurse. tell me Gumbo, if I was making a profit for Gambro, how was I NOT making a profit for Duh-Vita. In my state, only the RN can do assessments, pass meds, take orders, etc, etc. It became a safety issue that the state was called in about. I may also mention that the state said they would not dictate staffing levels but they were NOT happy with what they perceived as a safety problem. They pretty much said,,,,,, we will be watching and there better not be any incidents (and thank the good lord my staff kept the patients safe). You see Gumbo, its not all about more bonus for KT and his Jedi knights and all of the idiots on the stage in their three-musskatee rs (sp) outfits. Its about giving back. Something that Duh-Vita only does as a token.
Oh, were you at Dallas when we had to sign "oh when Cantor. comes marching in, oh when Cantor comes marching in" (of course it was sang to the tune of when the saints come marching in). Where you there when we were DIRECTED to shout "Cantor, Cantor, Cantor". Why, because he was trying to get more money for Duh-Vita in a increase in reimbursement. What kind of company flies a Virginia Rep, (Eric Cantor Virginia 7th dist) all the way to Dallas to stroke him and love him, just so he will vote for more money for dialysis? Are you one of the sick ones that actually sang to him and shouted his name? ROFLMAO! I bet you were!!!!!!!!!!
Trust me, and you can tell your beloved KT, that the feds will be given enough information to hang Duh-Vita by those that know what is going on and what is illegal. I promise you, by 2009, Duh-Vita will be begging for the feds to go easy on them. That my friend, is a promise!
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Why have health insurance if you don't get treated differently?
People that WORK, and pay premiums, should get what they want. When my transplant failed I went to a hospital affiliated dialysis center. They would not work with me at all. I got the spot they had open and whatever chair they had available. No consideration to my work schedule so I could pay TAXES to support MEDICARE. How dumb can you get. Who do you think pays the bills?
Then I moved to DaVita down the street and I get the chair I want and the time I want. It took awhile, but I got it. I had already put in for disability.
I still pay insurance premiums... but if someone who was working needed my chair and time slot they can have it. I know what side of the bread the butter is on.
I don't much like DaVita because they are greedy. The make tons of money and then want more. They don't have enough people on the floor. Why are they all Filipion?
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I mentioned NOTHING about working. This person did not work, but they had health ins. so they got what they wanted. I do, I truly do understand about moving pts. for those that hold a job, etc. But just to take a chair/time for no reason, when the man had it for six years is unacceptable (except to Duh-Vita).
Again, the man did not work.
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Dhu-Vita will never be successful. When the federal government gets the information they need to start an investigation into activies that are not in compliant with CMS guidelines, well, it will be nothing more than one more company in a pinch with the feds.
Where have you been? ??? Since it's inception, DaVita has had the feds looking at every aspect of our business practices from lab reimbursement to JVs to Medical Director contracts. If you had paid attention at the DaVita meetings you did attend, you would have known this! Every time, DaVita has been found to be adhering to sound business practices and operating well within applicable laws and statutes. No fines...No penalties...No Brag, Just Fact!! Now, your beloved Gambro paid...wait for it...over $350 MILLION in fines and penalties during similiar federal investigations.
GAMBRO HEALTHCARE AGREES TO PAY OVER $350 MILLION
TO RESOLVE CIVIL & CRIMINAL ALLEGATIONS IN MEDICARE FRAUD CASE
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2004/December/04_civ_774.htm
GAMBRO HEALTHCARE, INC. AGREES TO PAY $53 MILLION
FOR OVERCHARGING MEDICARE, MEDICAID & TRICARE
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2000/July/399civ.htm
In fact, new DaVita is still operating under the CIA put in place as part of Gambro's penalty. I guess you know first hand about getting pinched by the feds because you were part of Gambro when it happened!
Somewhere on this site (IHD) is a list of the monies paid to KT and his sucks for bonus and salary (and oh lets not forget) stocks. I looked a few minutes ago, but I can't find it, but its here somewhere. I think, if my failing memory is not too bad, KT made something like 5million in a year. now YOU tell ME its not about him LOL
It's printed in black and white on the company's 10-K statement just recently submitted to the SEC...do a simple Google search and I'm sure you'll find everything you'd ever want to know about DaVita's financials. Gambro was a privately held company so you never knew what your senior management made but I would guess it would be "KT money".
Publicly/Privately held, for-profit companies are about making money...that is the bottom-line truth. CEOs are charged with making a company profitable and improving the stock-price. And they are paid well when they accomplish those goals. Like it or not, that is the truth. KT is has positioned DaVita for long-term growth and financial health while at the same time obtaining clinical results that not only lead the US industry but, in some cases, lead the world in outcomes. DaVita is the first healthcare company that I know of that has been able to make a profit while improving outcomes.
You state moving a pt. for a insurance pt. is skill in negotiations.. One word for that.. BULL$HIT! The man I was forced to move per my RD had been in his chair for six years, same time, same chair. My chicken$hit RD would not tell him, he made me. Any why you ask, because the insurance patient wanted to look out a window, thats all it was. So I had to tell a man that had friends to his left and to his right that I had to move his chair (and time by 30 min). You tell me mongo, since you know everything there is, why that was good... I want to hear your logic in that.
Bioya, I don't know everything there is...it's all in how I choose to look at it. If I were in your situation and felt as strongly as you do about the situation, I would have worked it out so that all parties were happy...period...end of story. You didn't...you caved...and now you're pissed. Hippers are important to the survival of any unit but it's my patient's well-being that always takes precedence.
You ask how I had to cut staff, well let me tell you. We were a 4:1 clinic. We had one RN on the floor with four PCTs and a charge. I made a profit EVERY MONTH. not one time did I lose revenue for a month. But oh no, here comes Duh-Vita and I am cut to 3 PCTs for 16 stations and one RN who is ALSO the charge nurse. tell me Gumbo, if I was making a profit for Gambro, how was I NOT making a profit for Duh-Vita. In my state, only the RN can do assessments, pass meds, take orders, etc, etc. It became a safety issue that the state was called in about. I may also mention that the state said they would not dictate staffing levels but they were NOT happy with what they perceived as a safety problem. They pretty much said,,,,,, we will be watching and there better not be any incidents (and thank the good lord my staff kept the patients safe). You see Gumbo, its not all about more bonus for KT and his Jedi knights and all of the idiots on the stage in their three-musskatee rs (sp) outfits. Its about giving back. Something that Duh-Vita only does as a token.
16 stations = 1 Charge and 4 floor teammates. If you were a 4:1 clinic, with 6 bodies on the floor, you were overstaffed by one body. Me personally, I would run a 16 station unit with an RN Charge, a RN/LVN floor nurse and 3 PCTs. If you're telling the whole story here, I wouldn't have been happy with the reductions you mention above and would have found a way around it. This sort of staffing issue would never happen in my division but I often have some give and take with my ROD about budget matters and can usually convince them that my way is best for our patients and I find another way of achieving the desired budget effect. If you had the attitude with you ROD that you do on this board, there is little wonder why you always had you hand held and were always told what to do.
You keep referring to KT and the musketeers on the stage in their outfits, people having orgasms around KT (your facination with this topic in particular is a discussion for another board...LOL)...do you realize that those things happen 4 days out of the year at the Nationwide meeting? The other 361 days, it's us and our teams taking care of our patients in our units. We have ultimate control of what goes on in our unit...and depending on your skill level, you are either micromanaged by your boss or your boss let's you run with the big dogs because you know how to take care of your business.
Did you rename me "Gumbo"? Keep flamin', Bioya...it's obvious why you didn't make it with DaVita! :clap; You were incapable of making the idea of DaVita a reality in you unit!!
Oh, were you at Dallas when we had to sign "oh when Cantor. comes marching in, oh when Cantor comes marching in" (of course it was sang to the tune of when the saints come marching in). Where you there when we were DIRECTED to shout "Cantor, Cantor, Cantor". Why, because he was trying to get more money for Duh-Vita in a increase in reimbursement. What kind of company flies a Virginia Rep, (Eric Cantor Virginia 7th dist) all the way to Dallas to stroke him and love him, just so he will vote for more money for dialysis? Are you one of the sick ones that actually sang to him and shouted his name? ROFLMAO! I bet you were!!!!!!!!!!
I'm even less a singer than I am a dancer so I just clapped! LOL
Think of it this way...what other company do you know that has the pull in Congress to get a powerful member of the Ways and Means Committee to leave Washington, D.C...during session... to fly to Dallas to attend DaVita's Nationwide Meeting? DaVita is an industry leader on the advocacy front...more money for DIALYSIS isn't just more money for DaVita but for all other providers that accept Medicare...all the smaller companies...and even non-profits! But no, you're so fixated on KT and your hatred of DaVita that you miss the obvious that is right in front of you!
Trust me, and you can tell your beloved KT, that the feds will be given enough information to hang Duh-Vita by those that know what is going on and what is illegal. I promise you, by 2009, Duh-Vita will be begging for the feds to go easy on them. That my friend, is a promise!
See my response above to this ridiculous assertion!
Mongo
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I'm getting the lounge chairs out, it's been awhile since IHD has seen a debate like this one ;)
:popcorn; :popcorn; :beer1; :popcorn; :popcorn;
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I'm getting the lounge chairs out, it's been awhile since IHD has seen a debate like this one ;)
:popcorn; :popcorn; :beer1; :popcorn; :popcorn;
Sitting there with you :popcorn; :popcorn; :wine; :popcorn; :popcorn; (Not a beer drinker)
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Seems that you have an answer for everything, every possible issue that arises, you know the correct thing to do. You still did not tell me how you would resolve the issue of moving a six year pt. to another chair simple because an ins. patient wanted his chair and time (note not a working patient, just one with insurance). You say you would "work it out", well how would you work it out when the gentleman that was there for six years did not want to lose his spot for no reason? Could you go into detail? Lol
You are so ate up with DaVita you can't, or won't see the forrest for the trees. You can say how nice it is and how they do everything so peachy but you know its not true. Your statement on the staffing is another issue your wrong on. Again, we made a huge profit for Gambro the way we were staffed, but that was not good enough, Duh-Vita wanted more profit so we cut staff and cut hours and gave the patients less of our attention (less time and less staff = less care). Oh wait, I forgot, you are super FA and you could arrange it that with less staff you could have taken better care of the patient right? LOL
Your ego is as big as KT's love for a bonus. No matter how you cut it, dice it, slice it, bend it, or break it, its still the same ole Duh-Vita. Nothing you say, no matter how you twist it, will make it any better.
If Duh-Vita is so great as you state, then why so many negative posts on this one site about them? And no, not just from me or other current and former employees, but from many of the patients that have experience with Duh-Vita. Have you read "their" posts? Why don't you tell the patients on here how bad they are for feeling that Duh-Vita is a horrible place to dialysize. And don't go the "go to another company" rant. For many people, Duh-Vita is the only show in town.
Yea, billing for dead people, billing for people in the hospital, etc, etc, is okay with you, as long as your beloved company is okay. I can't, I won't, tell you how I know about the illegal billing that Duh-Vita is doing, but I will tell you its being taken care of. There are MANY MANY MANY in your beloved company that is putting it all on the line to blow the whistle on their illegal activities. There is an entire network working behind the scenes to gather data (and its working)
You are right about one thing, I can't stand Duh-Vita, and I can't stand KT and his running around in his Three Musketeers outfits with his hench men at his side. He can turn on the tears at the drop of a hat, that much is amazing about him. His phony tears at the meetings are a disgrace to the patients that have passed away.
Mongo, I am going to quote your post to me today
"I was referring to the majority of dialysis patients in the general population...I'm sure I am in the minority on IHD. It is the angry, disenchanted, and wronged that usually "complain" on these sort of sites. I never claimed that DaVita was perfect. How you can spew such vitriol at DaVita and give Gambro a pass is beyond me. They're like Republicans and Democrats...there is really no difference between the 2! LOL
OK...so you point to one poster (and I will stipulate that you can probably find a ton more), but hardly is this a scientfic way to prove your point.
IHD has 1009 members...DaVita dialyzes over 100,000 patients. So...if every one of the 1009 members of IHD dialyzed at a DaVita center and each and every one of them hate DaVita as much as you do, it would only amount to 1% of the total dialysis patient census of DaVita as a whole. You are correct that I am the minority on IHD (not that it really matters) but you have no ground to say how the majority of patients in the US feel." END OF QUOTE
I disagree Mongo. Since you are so loving of Duh-Vita, then ask Duh-Vita to do a poll and ask former Gambro patients if they are better taken care of now, or when they were with Gambro. I can tell you without doubt, that 80+ percent of my patients in my hemo clinic will tell you that they had better outcomes, better care, and better treatments when they were Gambro, than when Duh-Vita bought Gambro and started making cuts. Yea, KT wanted more profit for his bonus!
You know, a good Duh-Vita teammate would let the jedi knights know about this site so they could cover their a$$es even more!! LOL Enjoy your kool-aid and keep up the good work. I will be here to remind you about your beloved company when the walls are falling down around it.
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Seems that you have an answer for everything, every possible issue that arises, you know the correct thing to do. You still did not tell me how you would resolve the issue of moving a six year pt. to another chair simple because an ins. patient wanted his chair and time (note not a working patient, just one with insurance). You say you would "work it out", well how would you work it out when the gentleman that was there for six years did not want to lose his spot for no reason? Could you go into detail? Lol
Sheeeesh...you've been gone for almost a year and you still want someone to tell you how you should have done your job! No wonder your ROD made you handle this...he/she was probably sick of always holding your hand and doing your job for you! LOL
I will repeat...if I felt as strongly about this matter as you do/did, I would have left my patient of 6 years in his original spot and worked out something else with the Hipper. I don't know how specific you want me to get as I'm sure you're only giving us the details you want us to know. And...my ROD would have never been involved in this matter because I would have had it handled long before his involvement became necessary. I don't know how more detailed you want me to get?!?
You are so ate up with DaVita you can't, or won't see the forrest for the trees. You can say how nice it is and how they do everything so peachy but you know its not true. Your statement on the staffing is another issue your wrong on. Again, we made a huge profit for Gambro the way we were staffed, but that was not good enough, Duh-Vita wanted more profit so we cut staff and cut hours and gave the patients less of our attention (less time and less staff = less care). Oh wait, I forgot, you are super FA and you could arrange it that with less staff you could have taken better care of the patient right? LOL
No, I see DaVita for what it is...a company that wants to have an impact in health care. Everything isn't "peachy"...we are far from perfect as we are made up of people...we screw up just like anyone else. It's called efficient staffing...why not run 1:1 while you're at it. Yes, productivity is an important metric that is followed in DaVita because labor hours are your biggest expense. All I can say is that I run efficiently and take good care of my patients. Instead of seeing your team through the transition, you abandoned them AND the patients. You were in a position to affect change and instead you bolted.
Thanks for the "super FA" moniker...I'm way too humble to accept such a label, but it is an honor just to be nominated! :2thumbsup;
Your ego is as big as KT's love for a bonus. No matter how you cut it, dice it, slice it, bend it, or break it, its still the same ole Duh-Vita. Nothing you say, no matter how you twist it, will make it any better.
You're right...words aren't the answer...action is! And I will continue to act in a way that serves my patients. I will see what needs to be fixed and fix it. I won't cry and complain about how bad things are and wish for "the good ole days" (actually, the good ole days for DaVita is not something we want to go back to!) You had your chance to be a part of the solution and you are now content to sit on the outside throwing rocks...how sad!
Yea, billing for dead people, billing for people in the hospital, etc, etc, is okay with you, as long as your beloved company is okay. I can't, I won't, tell you how I know about the illegal billing that Duh-Vita is doing, but I will tell you its being taken care of. There are MANY MANY MANY in your beloved company that is putting it all on the line to blow the whistle on their illegal activities. There is an entire network working behind the scenes to gather data (and its working)
Illegal activity is illegal activity regardless of who engages in it. But, forgive me if I don't take YOUR word for it. You are so bent on seeing DaVita crash that it wouldn't surprise me if you've truly snapped and am imagining all of this.
Again, you'd know better than any of us about Medicare fraud being a former Gambro employee, wouldn't you?
GAMBRO HEALTHCARE AGREES TO PAY OVER $350 MILLION
TO RESOLVE CIVIL & CRIMINAL ALLEGATIONS IN MEDICARE FRAUD CASE
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2004/December/04_civ_774.htm
GAMBRO HEALTHCARE, INC. AGREES TO PAY $53 MILLION
FOR OVERCHARGING MEDICARE, MEDICAID & TRICARE
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2000/July/399civ.htm
You keep feeling important with your little network, insider emails, and those working behind the scenes to bring DaVita down. How sad! :'(
Mongo, I am going to quote your post to me today
Nice...thanks for giving everyone a clear picture of your character, bioya! Posting a private conversation that we have been having shows me (and everyone else on the board) the type of person you really are. You are much more than the coward I pegged you for.
But, that's cool! I have no problems with patients who have complaint about their units or DaVita for that matter. I just want everyone to realize that the majority of the problems experienced in a dialysis unit is due to poor unit leadership. Bioya, you are copping out by blaming DaVita. There are 1000 other FAs out there doing the job you couldn't do...and they are doing it well, with the same "restrictions" or "work conditions" that you couldn't handle. I encourage anyone with a complaint to take it to the administrator of the unit. Often times, I don't know about a problem until a patient brings it to my attention.
My whole point of engaging you, bioya, is to show you to be the blowhard that you are! You are a DaVita-hater and there is nothing that they can do right (except maybe Snappy! :)) Stop projecting all the feelings you have about your inadequacies as an FA onto DaVita and fess up that you were the problem in your unit!
Mongo
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There are instances, many really, where unfortunately patients that passed away or were hospitalized had claims submitted to their insurance companies for services they did not receive. These are mostly PD patients however and most of them Medicare.
Do you have PD patients in your clinic and if so, how do you handle keeping track of thier hospital stays?
You may not like it but Bioya was correct when he, or she- I don't know which, stated that this goes on. It's an ongoing problem that doesn't seem to be improving. If you have any pull at all maybe you could get the powers that count to really look into this.
Also since you are on the clinical side can you explain why Davita is lobbying against bills that would require techs to be licensed. I understand this is an issue at this time in Colorado. Being an FA can you explain what would be the cons of having this happen?
Please take these questions as an attempt to gain some knowledge rather as an attempt to instigate more of some of the rather mililtant posts that have shown up lately. Those of us that don't work on the clinical end but in a CBO would just like to know a little more about these topics.
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They lobby against the Dialysis Tech bill because it would force Duh-Vita to hire more qualified staff and to give them training that would better take care of the patient. I am in one of the states that require state certification though the Board of Nursing for dialysis techs, and you should have seen Duh-Vita try to fight that bill in the state house. They even hired a legal begal in our state capital city to go and lobby the state legislatures to vote the bill down. Hell, even FMC was for the bill and they were even allowed to participate with the state in developing the training requirments because FMC was a TEAM PLAYER, unlike Duh-Vita that was only worried about the cost associated with the state bill.
This dude is so ate up with the Duh-Vita way that nothing anyone says will have a negitive impact on his views. He thinks that Duh-Vita is really out for the patient when it is not. But, having said that, its okay for him. He has no ability to get a job in another area of nursing like the hundreds of us (CD's) that left because of mismanagment. You can say I cut and run, thats okay too. I know when there is nothing left to fight for. Sometimes, it has to be the patient that makes a stand because they may be listened to (at least for awhile). Think I am wrong about how many CD/FA's have left Duh-Vita? Look at their career site and scan each state and look at how many FA positions are open each and every week. There will be a day when just as Gambro and FMC were caught with their pants down, so will Duh-Vita. This I am sure of.
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Just remember Enron! People at the corporate level got greedy. If DaVita is doing illegal activities they will get caught.
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All I can say is I am glad my unit went to RAI and Davita did not target us for their improvements. RAI has brought in brand new chairs and machines and fixes things as soon as they break in the unit. Whent hey were Gambro we had high turn over of staff and changes daily in routines. It is much better now. Still sucks, but a little better.
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I understand your point of view. However, in my humble opinion, I don't think anyone should be treated any different based on simply whether they have ins. or not. I have worked and carried insurance every day of my life since I joined the work force in 1972. I understand what you are saying.
Of course, I am the same person that thinks that every kid in the U.S. should be able to go to college no matter what their finincial status if their grades were good enough. I just see so many good kids not getting an edication they want and deserve. Also, I see people struggle for healthcare when this, the ricest land in the world could do more.
Thats just me, its kind of like religion, you don't want to talk about it with friends!!!!
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There are instances, many really, where unfortunately patients that passed away or were hospitalized had claims submitted to their insurance companies for services they did not receive. These are mostly PD patients however and most of them Medicare.
Do you have PD patients in your clinic and if so, how do you handle keeping track of thier hospital stays?
You may not like it but Bioya was correct when he, or she- I don't know which, stated that this goes on. It's an ongoing problem that doesn't seem to be improving. If you have any pull at all maybe you could get the powers that count to really look into this.
You have as much pull as anyone...if not more...because you appear to be dealing with it first-hand. Have you taken this to your supervisior? Have you reported it to the Compliance Hotline?
I don't have PD in any of my clinics so I don't have any good answers for you. However, I think this is more of a systems problem than it is a fraud issue.
Also since you are on the clinical side can you explain why Davita is lobbying against bills that would require techs to be licensed. I understand this is an issue at this time in Colorado. Being an FA can you explain what would be the cons of having this happen?
Please take these questions as an attempt to gain some knowledge rather as an attempt to instigate more of some of the rather mililtant posts that have shown up lately. Those of us that don't work on the clinical end but in a CBO would just like to know a little more about these topics.
Just because a law is introduced doesn't mean it's a good one. Look at all the laws on the books that started out as good intentions but, after the politicians got a hold of it, it is unrecognizable or no longer addresses the issues initally intended (i.e. HIPPA).
Yes, the idea of licensed techs sounds good on the surface but the devil is in the details. 3/4's of my PCTs are "Certified Clinical Hemodialysis Technicians" (CCHT) through the Nephrology Nursing Certification Commission...paid for by DaVita. I don't know about the law which you are referring to nor do I claim to know why DaVita would be against it (same with bioya...he thinks he knows but he really doesn't...all he can do is look at it through his anti-duhvita).
I don't know if the law forces units to hire licensed techs...which will make it more difficult to staff units with PCTs because licensing will naturally create a shortage. I for one, would much rather hire PCTs like I already do (98% come to me with no dialysis experience), train them and then send them for certification or licensure. If I were forced to only hire licensed PCTs, I would be up a creek.
I appreciate your questions and the fact that you appear to want to look at them with an open mind!
Mongo
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I'm sorry you're having issues with your employer. The only time I've seen real change in the way companies treat their employees is when an exodus of staff begins and the employer's reputation makes recruiting new people tough. There is always a better job out there. The grass isn't always greener though. Good luck.
That has already happened and that is why so many clinics are short-staffed, and why some of the techs speak broken English and can barely read or write. The overcrowding is causing more clinics to add second and third shifts, but some clinics can't because they can't get any additional staff to work the other shifts. If the company would cut just 1% of their profit and kick it back down to the people actually working in the clinics, staffing wouldn't be a problem and the quality of care would improve. The good people, who are forced to work side by side with people I wouldn't trust to walk my dogs, deserve better and I admire their dedication to their patients.
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I'm sorry you're having issues with your employer. The only time I've seen real change in the way companies treat their employees is when an exodus of staff begins and the employer's reputation makes recruiting new people tough. There is always a better job out there. The grass isn't always greener though. Good luck.
That has already happened and that is why so many clinics are short-staffed, and why some of the techs speak broken English and can barely read or write. The overcrowding is causing more clinics to add second and third shifts, but some clinics can't because they can't get any additional staff to work the other shifts. If the company would cut just 1% of their profit and kick it back down to the people actually working in the clinics, staffing wouldn't be a problem and the quality of care would improve. The good people, who are forced to work side by side with people I wouldn't trust to walk my dogs, deserve better and I admire their dedication to their patients.
Amen, I agree with this statement. I work for Fresenius. I am one of the "good people" :2thumbsup;
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I work for Fresenius. I am one of the "good people" :2thumbsup;
I work for Fresenius too, and you cant tell me the situation at the clinic level is any better as far as staffing issues are concerned. Clinics seem to be more like training facilities than clinics some months with the high turnover rates. As far as the higher ups are concerned if they splurge they don't get caught, but it would definitely be beneficial to pass on more of the profits to the clinical staff than the corporate level. On average Fresenius employees make around $5.00 less an hour than our counterparts at other companies. If any of the newly acquired employees from RCG would be willing to talk starting salaries and yearly raises you would see that they are all making more than Fresenius employees even now that they are Fresenius.
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I personally think those costumes are pretty stupid. I work for FMC and many DaVita staff have quit and come to FMC. Davita employees are NOT happy campers.
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I work for FMC and many DaVita staff have quit and come to FMC. Davita employees are NOT happy campers.
...and I know of many former FMC employees that have come to DaVita. Far be it from me, however, to over-generalize that all FMC employees are "NOT happy campers" from that simple observation. :urcrazy;
Mongo
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If the company would cut just 1% of their profit and kick it back down to the people actually working in the clinics, staffing wouldn't be a problem and the quality of care would improve. The good people, who are forced to work side by side with people I wouldn't trust to walk my dogs, deserve better and I admire their dedication to their patients.
I wish it were that easy. You either love or hate working in dialysis...and, unfortunately, more people find that they hate working in dialysis than those who love it thus the turn-over you see.
DaVita has paid it's PCTs $65,000,000 in bonuses since 2000. I am paying my techs, on average, $13/hr...which where my clinics are, is a very good wage. Still, however, I have turnover because of the early mornings, late evenings, the physical nature of taking care of patients, and everything in between.
I have teammates that go the the mat for our patients and I have teammates that just do enought to get the job done. It is my #1 struggle as a manager to get all of my teammates to go to the mat for our patients and it will be something that I will work on for a long time to come, I would imagine.
Mongo
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Just out of curiosity, what state are you in and what is the avg pay for RNs?
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I work for FMC and many DaVita staff have quit and come to FMC. Davita employees are NOT happy campers.
...and I know of many former FMC employees that have come to DaVita. Far be it from me, however, to over-generalize that all FMC employees are "NOT happy campers" from that simple observation. :urcrazy;
Mongo
I have seen many FMC employees go to Davita and come back again, and they same true for Davita employees that have come to FMC and then returned to Davita. I have seen more come from Davita and stay and more leave FMC and return again, but that really means nothing. Each company has it's own way of doing things and sometimes the switch works out for the best, but sometimes the change is too much and they return. Either way it doesn't point to either being a bad company to work for, just that they operate differently. In the end Fresenius employees will complain that Fresenius is screwing them over and Davita employees will do the same about Davita. So lets get off the trying to compare companies because it just wont work. Each side will say they are right and will argue it till there are blue in the face.
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Yep you're right there! Davita does promote more educational opportunites for their staff than FMC does, however. FMC is pretty cheap with sending their employees to conferences, etc.
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I really don't mean to be negative all the time but Gambro was terrible to me and the others seem even worse.
regulatory agencies must insure that patients are getting quality treatment under safe and sanitary conditions
and back it up with surpise spot checks, fines and sanctions for repeated discrepancies.
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I really don't mean to be negative all the time but Gambro was terrible to me and the others seem even worse.
regulatory agencies must insure that patients are getting quality treatment under safe and sanitary conditions
and back it up with surprise spot checks, fines and sanctions for repeated discrepancies.
It's all about the money and funding. It's sad that Dialysis patients aren't protected better than this.
...bdpoe/orlando
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I really don't mean to be negative all the time but Gambro was terrible to me and the others seem even worse.
regulatory agencies must insure that patients are getting quality treatment under safe and sanitary conditions
and back it up with surprise spot checks, fines and sanctions for repeated discrepancies.
It's all about the money and funding. It's sad that Dialysis patients aren't protected better than this.
...bdpoe/orlando
That is exactly the problem. The health department is better funded for restaurant inspections than the bureaucracy responsible for dialysis inspection.
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The simplest, cheapest (basically no cost) first step would be to make each unit's Dialysis Facility Report public. The best disinfectant is sunlight - releasing the DFRs would shine sunlight on the dialysis operations of each individual unit.
Here is a sample http://www.sph.umich.edu/kecc/usr/samplereport.pdf . Every facility gets one every year. Time to post each one on the internet.
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Thanks, Bill. Why aren't they on-line already? I'd guess $$$ have something to do with it, that it would take many, many $$$ to make it happen.
What happens if a patients asks to see those reports at their own center?
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They get air in their lines!!!
:rofl;
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Thanks, Bill. Why aren't they on-line already? I'd guess $$$ have something to do with it, that it would take many, many $$$ to make it happen.
What happens if a patients asks to see those reports at their own center?
As of September 2006, each state's surveyors will receive the DFRs for all dialysis facilities in their state. We should all ask our state survey departments for the DFRs. I think States can not keep this sort of stuff private ... who's willing to call? I'll try Washington State (I've already seen my provider's, I think they are available for the asking from NKC to their dialyzors).
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Thanks to all of you who are telling the truth about Davita. I worked for this organization for a short time but quit because I felt many of their philosophies were questionable. The bonus system for employees would encourage bullying of patients to stay on their diets. AND I mean bullying!! The problems should be addressed but it is ultimately up to the patient. The FA only talked about getting good lab values so we could get the bonus, not because she was concerned for the patient. There was a lot of money spent on buying lunch (and I mean expensive ones) for staff. Since they work them short handed they thought by buying dinners/lunch would keep them quiet. The treatment between patients with insurance and those with medicare was beyond belief and they were very blatant. I am not a Davita basher, I am just sick and tired of seeing organizations presenting themselves as pro patient and using people who are ill and less fortunate for their own gain. Give me a break, I thought I was going to fall out of the chair when someone said the mayor "cried at movies"... We are talking about people on dialysis, who have more courage and go through so much hardship daily. They have to endure pain, loss of a way of life they were use to, financial ruin, multiple medical issues, fear of their access having problems. And this mayor idiot is suppose to get credit and acknowledgment because "he cries" at movies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Those of us who really care in this business get burned out fighting the system and trying to protect our patients. We are tagged as trouble makers, disgruntled employees etc. We are nothing but advocates for those who deserve the best and just don't have the energy to fight the bully anymore. I am not a dialysis patient but I do live with a life threatening disease that helps to make me fight for patients rights and stop big corporations from profiting of others misfortunes..... I believe they are always looking for a loop hole, like the epo, to make money.
Many of these money making corporations have the same MO. They are all smiles with games and fun but I believe that they are the only one smiling. I can't have fun eating expensive meals, playing stupid games, attending expensive seminars with everyone dressed as idiots, accepting bonus's for increased census or patient accomplishments when I have to go on that floor and watch the suffering and hardships caused failed kidneys.
Thanks for letting me vent. To all you dialysis patients out there. You are my Hero, your courage and strength are beyond belief.....
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Very well said groggy. :2thumbsup;
If you'd like to introduce yourself please go to http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?board=14.0 - thanks.
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Dear nurse,
I am an inchoate administrator. Please tell me, specifically what you would change? I am VERY interested because my home health company is developing a center. We are independent and strive to be patient-centered. Let me ask a specific question: what staffing levels would you suggest? We are opening a 20 chair center, assuming full capacity, how would you staff it? Give me your dreams. How would you change the physical environment to make patients more comfortable?
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treat your patients as human beings. Involve them in their plan of care, just don't talk about it, do it!! Hire people who are not already burnt out on dialysis. try to find people that have worked for the great Duh-Vita and FMC. The reason is that many of the chain employees as mentioned above, are burnt out by promises and pompus a$$es. Have a bright unit, keep it clean. Talk to your patients like they know what your talking about because guess what... they do know what your talking about. When you get a non-compliant patient, work with them, just don't threaten them, teach them.
Let the patients families have a say in the unit and how it is run. They are the ones that sit in the waiting room for 3 to 5 hours a day, three days a week. Allow them to have some input into a coffee machine, a snack machine, etc, etc. Don't have a stupid wall of fame to impress surveyors, they see right through that. Instead make the patient a part of the team and they will take care of the surveyor for you.
Just be human... don't be like the corp. chain dialysis units.
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Put trash cans that the patients can reach by the chair.
Keep the place reasonably warm. It shell to sit in a colder than col building for four hours at a stretch. Have more than one person able to adjust the temperature.
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I have been reading some of the responses and I need to say something. My comment is about FA's. This is not a generalization, this is just my own experience. Our unit was only 8 chairs with an average census of 18-21 patients. We were a M-W-F clinic. There were two LPN's working as techs and an RN. The RN passed meds, doctor calls, and adjusted med doses. I was one of the LPN's. I was also responsible for inventory and the other LPN did the labs. We also did monthly progress notes on the patients, all patient education, foot checks, monitoring labs, assessments, dressing changes, town crier, access champion, water checks, and etc... We arrived at 3 am and usually worked til the last patient was off the machine. Then we stayed to disinfect the machines....usually til about 5 o 6 pm. Our FA was hired about a month after the big "D" took over our clinic. Rumors were that she would rather file her nails then do patient care or, for that matter, work at all. Our FA would arrive anywhere from 9 am til 1 pm. That is if she arrived at all. There were weeks when we saw her at the most 18 hours. She spent her days talking on the phone with other FA's about what gown they were gonna wear to the national convention or what snack they were gonna bring to the next FA meeting. Her cell phone was constantly ringing from her husband or kids. The one thing she did do was round with the doctors. She would be giving reports to doctors about the patients that she didn't even know what had been going on with them. Of course the doctors would believe her as she was the FA. the doctors would then give orders but the FA wouldn't put them in the computer for maybe two days or at times it was two weeks or more...sometimes not at all. Reports to the ROD did no good because they were drinking buddies at the conventions. Several other incidents happened involving the FA and poor decisions involving criitcal patient safety issues. These isues were reported to the ROD by the LPN's and the results were both LPN's lost there jobs and the FA was transferred to a clinic closer to her home. Calls to the Compliance Hotline, Risk Management, Ohio Board of Nursing, and the Ohio Board of Health did no good. This FA is still working for the big "D" and two very devoted LPN's are no longer in dialysis. I even e-mailed K.T. himself and was informed the decision stands.
LIke I said, I don't feel all FA's are lazy and unsafe, but I think the big "D" needs to monitor their actions or lack of actions more closely.
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Way to go! K.T. is so full of himself. I don't know why they say they are all "teammates". There is no team to it, especially if you don't fall for the hoopla. This company doesn't care about the patients or employees. Do you realize that the Lufkin, TX unit has been temporarily closed down due to a spike in deaths? They won't say how many, but I left there 2 yrs ago and I recognized 9 names in the obits just from when I was there and that was just in the month of April. I hope they get their pants sued off!!
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Hi formerteammate - please introduce yourself here http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?board=14.0 Thanks!
The Lufkin story is in our News Articles section http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=8233.0
okarol/admin
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The simplest, cheapest (basically no cost) first step would be to make each unit's Dialysis Facility Report public. The best disinfectant is sunlight - releasing the DFRs would shine sunlight on the dialysis operations of each individual unit.
Here is a sample http://www.sph.umich.edu/kecc/usr/samplereport.pdf (http://www.sph.umich.edu/kecc/usr/samplereport.pdf) . Every facility gets one every year. Time to post each one on the internet.
Three and a half years later and the Dialysis Facility Reports are on line.
http://www.propublica.org/article/dialysis-data-once-confidential-shines-light-on-clinic-disparities (http://www.propublica.org/article/dialysis-data-once-confidential-shines-light-on-clinic-disparities)
Thank you Pro Publica.