Anaheim General Hospital loses accreditation – Orange County, CA

Anaheim General in Orange County has been in the news of late and this is one last blow to the facility. Others were trying to purchase the facility, including Prime Health Care, who has been in the news of late over the balance billing situation in California.

Financially, there’s the same struggle going on here as faced by many other hospitals, the mix of funds between commercial payments and charity care and without contracts that pay enough from insurers and additional charity care piling up, the numbers just don’t make it.

The owner of the hospital, Pacific Health is also under investigation for fraud, although not related specifically to Anaheim General. The Joint Commission themselves was also recently under the eye of Congress. There are several hospitals overseas through medical tourism that have been accredited by the Joint Commission and in one of the wealthiest counties in the US, we still have hospitals here on the home front that have been deemed to pose a danger to patients, something to think about.

In my opinion one of the most glaring issues where citations were issued was failing to ensure that medical devices were safe and functioning within manufacturer's guidelines. This could indicate some areas of education and procedures that perhaps were not initiated or administered properly. As we continue to grow in the area of medical devices and their use, so does the education process become vital and important to make sure they are used according to the manufacturer's guidelines as approved by the FDA.

Anyway, add all of these conditions together and here’s another hospital struggling for it’s continued existence. You can read up here about the recent series on the blog called “Desperate Hospitals”, as was featured on Reuters and the Fox News of late. BD

Anaheim General Hospital, which cares for a large share of Orange County's poor, has lost its national quality accreditation in the wake of scores of safety citations by three sets of regulators. The 143-bed hospital has been struggling financially and the loss in standing could make matters worse by jeopardizing its ability to attract privately insured patients.

The commission ultimately withdrew Anaheim General's accreditation after concluding that conditions found during a March inspection posed a threat to patients.