There are no excuses for gutter language and inappropriate behavior while performing official duties. Physicians in the emergency room should be thanked for working in an environment that provides little or no support for providing vital services. Lives cannot be saved without the right medicine, tests, and equipment or administrative support.
But decision-makers have made a choice to sacrifice medical care for political hires. That is the trade-off made in the last elections, and there is no one to blame but the electorate.
One part of the reported incident in the emergency room that seemed genuine was outrage. It is time someone was outraged by the condition of healthcare delivery in the commonwealth and if someone comes unhinged in response, this is an indication that at least one person in the commonwealth isn’t comatose. The anger is misplaced, however. The outrage should be aimed at the leadership, the very people who appointed the new healthcare board of trustees and CEO. Moreover, the real challenges are yet to come. Those who are now saddling up to the new CEO are probably the same individuals who should be relieved of their jobs immediately. And cutting the housing benefits of medical staff to save cost is stupid. The next complaint we will hear from hospital officials, judging from past statements, is that they are having a hard time recruiting physicians and other critical staff. It isn’t hard to discern why that would be the case when contract terms are readjusted arbitrarily.
Can the trustees repair the damage with positive responses in the form of changes to personnel, funding for tests, supplies, equipment — or will they simply rearrange the chairs on the deck?
The pile of pink slips on the desk of the CEO should not be phone messages but termination notices. With the lack of medicine and supplies, nonessential staff should be cut. This should be an easy and quick answer to the perpetual “we don’t have enough money” cry. Indeed, the ratio of “administrative staff” to doctors, nurses, therapists and other technicians is ridiculous. The ratio of “all others” to “personnel” is equally ridiculous.
It shouldn’t take weeks and months for the healthcare corporation to figure this out and take action. But it won’t. The public should now realize that although the island’s only hospital may change it will not be for the better as long as this administration is in charge.
None whatsoever
THE governor’s spokesman responded to the ER controversy by reminding the public that the hospital’s board of trustees has an “advisory” role only. What does this mean? Well, the hospital board is a clone of the CUC advisory board which exists only in paper. CUC itself admitted that even though it wanted to disconnect delinquent government accounts it couldn’t because “higher powers” said no. CUC is an independent public corporation but the governor still tells it what to do — or not to do. Which is precisely how CUC got into its fiscal mess in the first place. This is also how the Retirement Fund found itself unable to provide benefits beyond three years.
Were there any lessons learned? See the title of this editorial.
Demagoguery is not a substitute for leadership
CONGRATULATIONS to Jerry Tan for flying tourists to the CNMI in answer to the lack of visitors to the islands and its hotels (several of which are his). Government officials, meanwhile, are cheering the imminent departure of nonresident workers, but what they will be greeted with in return will not be the full employment of U.S. workers and a better economy, but quite the opposite. That’s not a prediction.
