Latest news with #MercyMedicalCenter
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Springfield hospital nurses ratify 3-year deal
SPRINGFIELD — Mercy Medical Center registered nurses represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association ratified a new contract they say will aid in retention and staffing. The deal, announced Monday by the union, included a 5% raise in the first year, followed by 3.25% increases in years two and three. There is also a redesigned wage scale that shortens the time to the top step from 35 years to 21 years, while increasing the number of wage steps from 15 to 18. Top of scale pay will rise from $61.12 to $71.49 by the end of the agreement. The hospital also agreed to longevity bonuses of $2,000 for nurses with 30 years of service and $3,000 for those with 35 years. The contract also has increased pay differentials, that include increases in on-call and overnight pay to $10 an hour. The contract has competitive wages and working conditions that will retain nurses and aid in recruiting, union spokesman Joe Markman said. There are 385 nurses in the Mercy bargaining unit. And they'd complained of 6,000 missed meal breaks in just 10 months because of short staffing, and violations of intensive care unit staffing laws that placed patients at risk. Nurses also called attention to the erosion of maternity care and emergency services linked to corporate cost-cutting. 'This agreement sends a clear message about the importance of Trinity Health investing in Mercy nurses and the future of our hospital,' said Dee Doyle, co-chair of the MNA bargaining committee. The new contract follows 10 months of negotiations and 25 bargaining sessions. The agreement takes effect immediately and will run through 2028. Mercy, in a statement, said it is glad to move forward. 'At Mercy Medical Center, we are grateful to our nurses, and all colleagues, who work together to provide a safe, high quality care environment for our patients,' the hospital said in a statement. 'This contract, which provides fair and sustainable compensation for our nurses, is the positive result of realistic discussions aimed at meeting their needs, as well as the needs of our organization.' Stories by Jim Kinney Actor, advocate, author Ed Begley Jr. to speak about his 'wild man' days at Springfield event In West Springfield, 33 Westfield St. building is sold for $827K Hasbro's tariff response? In part it is to increase toy production in this WMass town Read the original article on MassLive. Solve the daily Crossword
Chicago Tribune
11-07-2025
- Health
- Chicago Tribune
Mercy Medical Center in Aurora gets high grades from another national group
Mercy Medical Center in Aurora has received high grades from yet another national group after big changes and challenges at the hospital. The Lown Institute, an independent health care think tank, gave Mercy Medical an overall 'A' on its 2025–26 Hospitals Index. The grade measures the hospital's 'social responsibility' through metrics about equity, value and patient outcomes. 'We're honored to be recognized by the Lown Institute,' Fernando Gruta, CEO at Mercy Medical Center, said in a news release. 'Our team remains committed to continuously focusing on delivering safe, equitable care to all we serve.' Mercy Medical also recently received top marks for the spring 2025 period from hospital watchdog The Leapfrog Group. Detailed breakdowns of the scoring showed that the hospital performed at or above the national average in most areas. However, like those given by Leapfrog, the Lown Institute's grade of the hospital may not necessarily capture what is currently going on at Mercy Medical Center. Both organizations based their grading on data collected in 2024 or earlier, but the hospital has recently gone through some big changes. Perhaps the largest of the changes at Mercy Medical was Prime Healthcare's purchase of it and several other hospitals from Ascension in March. In addition to the change in leadership, Mercy has also been dealing with the loss of a significant number of doctors after Advocate Healthcare slowly pulled out of the hospital over the past year or more. Then, in April, the hospital lost its Level II Trauma Center designation over allegations of understaffing. Hospital officials have said that, despite the changes, Mercy Medical Center continues to provide health care services including emergency and critical care without any gaps in coverage. A news release from Prime Healthcare recently said Mercy's top grades from both The Leapfrog Group and the Lown Institute 'highlight a strong, sustained commitment to patient-centered, high-quality care.' Up to 54 metrics were compiled to create the Lown Institute's scoring of a hospital, according to the organization's website. From those metrics, scores were given to specific categories like 'pay equity' or 'avoiding overuse' which then contributed to broader grades of a hospital's equity, value and outcomes, plus combined into an overall social responsibility score. For its broader grades, Mercy Medical Center received an 'A' in equity, a 'B' in value and a 'B' in patient outcomes. Within the equity category, Mercy saw an 'A' in each category: Pay equity, which measured the difference between executive and low-level worker compensation; community benefit, which measured the hospital's investment in free care and community health; and inclusivity, which measured how demographically similar patients were to those who live in the surrounding community. In the value category, the hospital received a 'D' in avoiding overuse, which measured how often the hospital did inappropriate tests or procedures with little benefit, but an 'A' in cost efficiency, which measured outcomes as compared to cost. For the outcomes category, Mercy Medical got an 'A' in clinical outcomes, which measured how well the hospital kept patients alive and prevented return trips, and a 'B' in patient satisfaction, which measured patients' self-reported experience with the hospital, but received a 'D' in patient safety, which measured preventable safety errors. Overall, Mercy Medical Center ranked in the top quarter of acute care hospitals nationwide and as the 15th best acute care hospital in the state. Prime Healthcare's news release about the results said Mercy stands out among the other hospitals in the Lown Institute's Hospitals Index for 'its commitment to delivering high-quality, equitable care.' Rush Copley Medical Center, the other hospital in Aurora, received an overall 'B' ranking for its social responsibility. It received a 'B' in equity, a 'C' in value and an 'A' in outcomes.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Prime Healthcare cutting about 100 jobs across its Illinois facilities, months after acquiring hospitals from Ascension
Prime Healthcare, which bought eight Illinois hospitals earlier this year, is eliminating more than 100 jobs, the hospital system confirmed Monday. Prime made most of the reductions Friday, and will continue cutting other jobs through July. 'As we continue to offer and create opportunities, we are also evaluating alignment with best practices and support from our national and regional teams,' Prime said in a statement. 'Through this process, there is a small number of positions that are duplicated or not aligned with the care model and service line offerings — most of them not directly providing patient care — that will be consolidated.' None of the affected jobs are union positions, according to Prime. Prime hired 13,000 workers from Ascension when it bought the hospitals from that health system, and has created nearly 1,000 new jobs since the acquisition. The job cuts represent less than 1% of the combined 14,000 employees, according to the statement. 'Importantly, these efforts will not affect the quality of care we deliver to the communities we serve and in fact will help expand best practices from across the nation,' Prime said in the statement. 'All decisions made at our Illinois facilities are guided by our mission to improve quality, strengthen care delivery, preserve access in underserved areas and ensure long-term sustainability.' The California-based Prime bought the Illinois hospitals for more than $370 million in March. Six of the hospitals sold to Prime changed from being nonprofit hospitals to for-profit hospitals as part of the sale. Hospitals that were sold include St. Mary's Hospital in Kankakee, Holy Family Medical Center in Des Plaines, Resurrection Medical Center in Chicago, St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin, Mercy Medical Center in Aurora and St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital in Chicago. The job cuts are the latest in a string of changes Prime has made since closing the deal, drawing criticism from elected officials and a nurses union. Prime announced in April that it planned to suspend inpatient pediatric care at St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, saying at the time that the unit had been averaging less than one patient a day, while the need for other services such as advanced surgical, neurosurgical and spinal care had grown. The Illinois Nurses Association condemned the move, arguing it would hurt the community, which only has one hospital. Also, Mercy Medical Center in Aurora lost its designation in April as a Level II trauma center. Prime also suspended obstetrical services at St. Mary's in Kankakee after the hospital's 'nearly sole obstetrics physician' retired, and because of low demand, Prime has said. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth sent a letter to Prime's chairman, founder and CEO Dr. Prem Reddy in May expressing concern about those changes and asking Prime to elaborate on the reasons behind them and its future plans for the hospitals. Prime responded to that letter last week, emphasizing its mission of turning around struggling community hospitals across the country. Prime said that before it bought the hospitals in Illinois they were losing about $200 million a year. Prime said maintaining services with low patient demand is not sustainable, nor good for the quality of care. Prime also told the senators it plans to expand behavioral health care services for seniors at its Illinois facilities. In its statement Monday, Prime said it has started fulfilling a previously stated commitment to invest $250 million across the Illinois hospitals. Prime said those affected by the job cuts are invited to apply for any of the more than 900 open positions across its Illinois facilities. The job cuts were first reported by the Herald News.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Prime Healthcare cutting 100 jobs across its Illinois facilities, months after acquiring hospitals from Ascension
Prime Healthcare, which bought eight Illinois hospitals earlier this year, is eliminating more than 100 jobs, the hospital system confirmed Monday. Prime made most of the reductions Friday, and will continue cutting other jobs through July. 'As we continue to offer and create opportunities, we are also evaluating alignment with best practices and support from our national and regional teams,' Prime said in a statement. 'Through this process, there is a small number of positions that are duplicated or not aligned with the care model and service line offerings – most of them not directly providing patient care – that will be consolidated.' None of the affected jobs are union positions, according to Prime. Prime hired 13,000 workers from Ascension when it bought the hospitals from that health system, and has created nearly 1,000 new jobs since the acquisition. The job cuts represent less than 1% of the combined 14,000 employees, according to the statement. 'Importantly, these efforts will not affect the quality of care we deliver to the communities we serve and in fact will help expand best practices from across the nation,' Prime said in the statement. 'All decisions made at our Illinois facilities are guided by our mission to improve quality, strengthen care delivery, preserve access in underserved areas and ensure long-term sustainability.' The California-based Prime bought the Illinois hospitals for more than $370 million in March. Six of the hospitals sold to Prime changed from being nonprofit hospitals to for-profit hospitals as part of the sale. Hospitals that were sold include St. Mary's Hospital in Kankakee, Holy Family Medical Center in Des Plaines, Resurrection Medical Center in Chicago, St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin, Mercy Medical Center in Aurora and St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital in Chicago. The job cuts are the latest in a string of changes Prime has made since closing the deal, drawing criticism from elected officials and a nurses' union. Prime announced in April that it planned to suspend inpatient pediatric care at St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, saying at the time that the unit had been averaging less than one patient a day, while the need for other services such as advanced surgical, neurosurgical and spinal care had grown. The Illinois Nurses Association condemned the move arguing it would hurt the community, which only has one hospital. Also, Mercy Medical Center in Aurora lost its designation in April as a Level II trauma center. Prime also suspended obstetrical services at St. Mary's in Kankakee after the hospital's 'nearly sole obstetrics physician' retired, and because of low demand, Prime has said. Sen. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth sent a letter to Prime's chairman, founder and CEO Dr. Prem Reddy, in May expressing concern about those changes and asking Prime to elaborate on the reasons behind them and its future plans for the hospitals. Prime responded to that letter last week, emphasizing its mission of turning around struggling community hospitals across the country. Prime said that before it bought the hospitals in Illinois they were losing about $200 million a year. Prime said maintaining services with low patient demand is not sustainable, nor good for the quality of care. Prime also told the senators it plans to expand behavioral health care services for seniors at its Illinois facilities. In its statement Monday, Prime said it has started fulfilling a previously stated commitment to invest $250 million across the Illinois hospitals. Prime said those affected by the job cuts are invited to apply for any of the more than 900 open positions across its Illinois facilities. The job cuts were first reported by the Herald News.
Chicago Tribune
09-06-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Prime Healthcare cutting 100 jobs across its Illinois facilities, months after acquiring hospitals from Ascension
Prime Healthcare, which bought eight Illinois hospitals earlier this year, is eliminating more than 100 jobs, the hospital system confirmed Monday. Prime made most of the reductions Friday, and will continue cutting other jobs through July. 'As we continue to offer and create opportunities, we are also evaluating alignment with best practices and support from our national and regional teams,' Prime said in a statement. 'Through this process, there is a small number of positions that are duplicated or not aligned with the care model and service line offerings – most of them not directly providing patient care – that will be consolidated.' None of the affected jobs are union positions, according to Prime. Prime hired 13,000 workers from Ascension when it bought the hospitals from that health system, and has created nearly 1,000 new jobs since the acquisition. The job cuts represent less than 1% of the combined 14,000 employees, according to the statement. 'Importantly, these efforts will not affect the quality of care we deliver to the communities we serve and in fact will help expand best practices from across the nation,' Prime said in the statement. 'All decisions made at our Illinois facilities are guided by our mission to improve quality, strengthen care delivery, preserve access in underserved areas and ensure long-term sustainability.' The California-based Prime bought the Illinois hospitals for more than $370 million in March. Six of the hospitals sold to Prime changed from being nonprofit hospitals to for-profit hospitals as part of the sale. Hospitals that were sold include St. Mary's Hospital in Kankakee, Holy Family Medical Center in Des Plaines, Resurrection Medical Center in Chicago, St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin, Mercy Medical Center in Aurora and St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital in Chicago. The job cuts are the latest in a string of changes Prime has made since closing the deal, drawing criticism from elected officials and a nurses' union. Prime announced in April that it planned to suspend inpatient pediatric care at St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, saying at the time that the unit had been averaging less than one patient a day, while the need for other services such as advanced surgical, neurosurgical and spinal care had grown. The Illinois Nurses Association condemned the move arguing it would hurt the community, which only has one hospital. Also, Mercy Medical Center in Aurora lost its designation in April as a Level II trauma center. Prime also suspended obstetrical services at St. Mary's in Kankakee after the hospital's 'nearly sole obstetrics physician' retired, and because of low demand, Prime has said. Sen. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth sent a letter to Prime's chairman, founder and CEO Dr. Prem Reddy, in May expressing concern about those changes and asking Prime to elaborate on the reasons behind them and its future plans for the hospitals. Prime responded to that letter last week, emphasizing its mission of turning around struggling community hospitals across the country. Prime said that before it bought the hospitals in Illinois they were losing about $200 million a year. Prime said maintaining services with low patient demand is not sustainable, nor good for the quality of care. Prime also told the senators it plans to expand behavioral health care services for seniors at its Illinois facilities. In its statement Monday, Prime said it has started fulfilling a previously stated commitment to invest $250 million across the Illinois hospitals. Prime said those affected by the job cuts are invited to apply for any of the more than 900 open positions across its Illinois facilities. The job cuts were first reported by the Herald News.
