Latest news with #BristolHospital
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Bristol Hospital highlights efforts to reduce domestic violence on National Have Hope Friday
BRISTOL, Conn. (WTNH) — May 6 is National Have Hope Friday. It's a day when hospitals highlight efforts to reduce violence in their workplaces and their communities. Bristol Hospital highlighted efforts to reduce domestic violence. Speaking at the press conference Friday was Naseem Walker-Jenkins. He and his brothers lost their mother Shenia Walker 12 years ago. Her boyfriend stabbed her to death in her Bristol apartment. Lamont 'a lot more inclined' to run for 3rd term 'A day that forever changed our lives,' Walker-Jenkins said. 'There's an emptiness in our hearts that nothing can ever fill. We still find ourselves asking why? Why did it have to be you?' This was the first time Walker-Jenkins spoke publicly about his mother. He did so as part of Bristol Hospital announcing a partnership with the Prudence Crandall Center, which offers lots of help. 'Emergency shelter for those fleeing danger, transitional and long-term housing, counseling, court advocacy and more,' Barbara Damon, the Prudence Crandall Center President & CEO, listed. Part of the partnership is that the Prudence Crandall Center will hold training sessions for the hospital personnel most likely to encounter victims of domestic violence. That includes training in how to spot domestic violence, what to ask suspected victims, and what to do if you identify a victim. 'All staff members who have been trained will be provided with a purple ribbon to place on their badges, and I have one of those on me today,' Christine Laprise, the vice president of operations for Bristol Health, said. The goal is not just to help domestic violence victims, but to stop the violence itself. 'We must prevent it before it begins, and that means raising awareness, building resilience, and working hand in hand with out community,' Damon said. Which is the only way to save children from going through what Walker-Jenkins and his brothers did. 'We just wish we had one more moment with you, one more chance to say how much we love you, one more hug and one more I love you,' Walker-Jenkins said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Telegraph
22-05-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Maternity hospital evacuated after solar panel fire
Pregnant women were evacuated from a hospital in Bristol after a solar panel fire broke out. Large plumes of black smoke were seen emerging from St Michael's Hospital, near the city centre. The maternity ward at the hospital has reportedly been evacuated, with pregnant mothers and babies being led across the road to another building. The cause of the fire, which has now been extinguished, is currently unknown. Footage shared on social media showed women cradling babies being escorted past fire engines and under police tape to safety. Jess Hutchinson, 22, whose waters have broken, told the BBC it was 'scary' hearing the fire start on the roof. Matt Burden, from Weston-super-Mare, was inside the maternity unit when the fire started. He told the BBC that his wife was in labour with their third baby and he was 'really eager to get back' to her. He said: 'I went out to get some food, came back and obviously the alarm went off. They said all partners had to leave. Everyone was going down the fire exit quite fast. A BBC forecaster shared a still image from a skycam located a short distance away, which showed the scorched remains of the hospital's rooftop solar panels. Ian Fergusson said there was 'virtually nothing left of the rooftop solar panel array after this fire'. He added: 'A very worrying and scary event for folks at the maternity hospital.' Some patients have reportedly been taken to the Bristol University Life Sciences building. In a statement, a spokesman for Avon Fire and Rescue Service said: 'We're currently responding to a fire on Southwell Street, Bristol. 'We encourage people to avoid the area while we deal with the incident. 'We can confirm that the fire has safely been extinguished. 'The cause of the fire will be investigated.' Avon and Somerset Police said the fire had been reported at around 4.30pm. A spokesman said: 'St Michael's Hill is closed to vehicles and pedestrians and people are urged to avoid the area if at all possible.' A University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust spokesperson said: 'We're responding to an incident at St Michael's Hospital, we will provide a further update shortly.'
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
One of CT's few remaining independent hospitals axes jobs but posts first surplus in years
The Connecticut hospital is cutting 60 administrative and clerical jobs — about a third of them through layoffs — but has been able to finish the first five months of the new fiscal year with a modest surplus instead of continuing a two-year pattern of losses that topped $30 million. Soaring payroll costs, the state's underinvestment in Medicaid and unreasonable taxes on hospitals are combining to attack the finances of independent hospitals around Connecticut, according to the Bristol Hospital administration. In a January report, the Connecticut Office of Health Strategy said that the state's 27 hospitals had a $3 billion increase in revenues from day-to-day operations between fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2023. But at the same time, expenses increased by $3.2 million. 'The majority of increased expense is attributable to three categories: Salaries and wages (29% increase), supplies and drugs (33% increase) and other operating expenses (33% increase),' the report said. One of the biggest culprits in the worsening trend by Medicare Advantage insurers to delay or deny pre-authorizations, and later either underpay for clients' legitimate medical expenses or refuse to pay altogether, according to hospital president Kurt Barwis. 'The amount denials and the amount of underpayments from these plans is extreme,' Barwis told the Courant on Monday. 'You're supposed to get paid Medicare (rates), but what you end up getting is 11 to 12% less.' Bristol Hospital has about 750 employees, and Bristol Health Group, which also includes an EMS service, Ingraham Manor and a network of private physicians, employs another 700 to 800. Barwis estimated that as many as 50 workers are assigned to working with insurance providers to secure pre-authorizations, work out billing disputes and appeal rejections or underpayments. He said each physician in the group probably spends two to four hours a week in phone consultations with insurers' medical staff to negotiate services and authorizations. 'And we don't receive payment for that time,' he said. The American Medical Association and U.S. Congress have each expressed concerns about Medicare Advantage denials. The AMA said research in 2022 is clear, though, that the track records of individual insurers vary widely. 'The vast majority of requests that were appealed in 2022 were subsequently overturned: 83.2%. This number has remained steady over the past few years,' the AMA said in a report last fall. 'Medicare Advantage insurers varied in how often they denied prior authorization requests, with CVS denying the most (13%) and Anthem denying the fewest (4.2%).' 'Between 2019 and 2022, UnitedHealthcare, Humana and CVS each denied prior authorization requests for post-acute care at far higher rates than they did for other types of care, resulting in diminished access to post-acute care for Medicare Advantage beneficiaries,' said a U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations report in October. The insurance industry has disputed some of those findings saying they're based on outdated data. Barwis has been publicly speaking of insufficient and delayed payments by Medicare Advantage insurers for years. He has also condemned some insurers for putting out confusing or misleading marketing materials to lure senior citizens into signing up for their plans without realizing how many services, procedures and medical providers aren't covered — or how long patients and their physicians may end up waiting for pre-authorizations. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services typically doesn't get involved in hospital-insurer disputes, he said. 'When Congress created these plans it pretty much said (billing) issues between the plans and hospitals or doctors are outside CMS's purview. They created a virtual Wild West, it's a lawless environment,' he said. Bristol Hospital has experienced several consecutive years of operating losses, but Barwis said it is positioned for improvement now. In the first five months of the new fiscal year, it has posted a $637,017 gain. The hospital said the annual savings from eliminating 60 jobs, many of which were vacant already, will save about $3.5 million over the course of a full year. Reduction in payroll expenses also includes cuts in overtime and a voluntary wage rollback for administrators. Batrwis emphasized that the job cuts don't affect patient services. He said the hospital remains committed to also serving Southington, Plainville, Burlington, Farmington and Plymouth, where it has added physicians offices, clinics and other facilities in recent years.
