Becker's Hospital Review

78 CMO / CARE DELIVERY Atrium Health releases 90 physicians looking to break away By Alyssa Rege C harlotte, N.C.-based Atrium Health said April 25 it will grant the request of a group of physicians looking to separate and end their employment agree- ments with the health system Sept. 1, accord- ing to e Charlotte Observer. In an emailed statement to Becker's Hospital Review April 25, Atrium confirmed it will release a group of roughly 90 Mecklenburg Medical Group physicians from their non- compete agreements, effective Sept. 1. e physicians will continue practicing as part of the health system until Aug. 31. "While we were hopeful that our many months of discussions would lead to an ac- ceptable solution for everyone involved, we will not seek to prevent these physicians from forming a standalone practice," the health system told Becker's. Atrium said it will also offer the physicians new employment agreements "in the hopes they remain at Atrium Health and their MMG practice … and join the other 1,900 physicians who provide care for our patients," the health system told Becker's. e group of roughly 90 Mecklenburg Medi- cal Group physicians filed a lawsuit against Atri- um April 2, arguing the health system engaged in monopolistic and anticompetitive behavior. Atrium said the same day it would allow the phy- sicians to leave the organization. On April 16, the physicians filed a complaint against the health system with the North Carolina Medical Board, alleging the health system violated board reg- ulations by intentionally misleading patients. "We are pleased that today Atrium Health appears to have granted the request by Meck- lenburg Multispecialty Group's 90 doctors to operate independently of Atrium Health and release the doctors from the non-compete provisions of their contracts," Mecklenburg Medical Group said in a statement, obtained by Becker's. "We hope to work together with Atrium Health to make this transition as smooth as possible and avoid any inconve- nience to patients and staff." Atrium acquired Mecklenburg Medical Group in 1993, according to e Charlotte Observer. In a statement to the publication, the physicians said their attorneys will meet with Atrium's lawyers to further assess the situation. Atrium Health CEO Eugene Woods told e Charlotte Observer the health system is in the process of hiring roughly 20 physicians to help fill the vacant positions le by physi- cians planning to leave Mecklenburg Medical Group. e health system also previously of- fered to give employees who choose to stay a bonus of up to 10 percent of their salary if they remain through the end of the year. "We feel for our staff, and our first concern was making sure that they feel that we're with them," Mr. Woods told the publication. "We offered them retention bonuses because some of them were scared about what the future is going to be." n Where are the 22 Leapfrog 'F' hospitals? By Mackenzie Bean T he Leapfrog Group gave 22 hospitals failing grades in its spring 2018 Hospital Safety Grades released April 24. This figure marks an increase from the 15 hospitals that re- ceived an F in Leapfrog's fall 2017 Safety Grades update. Of the 22 hospitals assigned Fs this spring, eight also earned Fs this past fall. These hospitals are denoted with asterisks below. Here is a list of this spring's F hospitals broken down by state. California San Gorgonio Memorial Hospital (Banning) Hemet Valley Medical Center* Parkview Community Hospital Medical Center (Riverside) Memorial Hospital of Gardena* Olympia Medical Center (Los Angeles)* Mission Community Hospital (Panorama City) Adventist Health Sonora Florida Larkin Community Hospital-Palm Springs Campus (Hialeah) Sebastian River Medical Center Iowa Broadlawns Medical Center (Des Moines) Illinois South Shore Hospital (Chicago) Maryland Fort Washington Medical Center Michigan Hurley Medical Center (Flint) Mississippi University of Mississippi Medical Center Grenada* New Jersey University Hospital (Newark) New York Brookdale Hospital Medical Center (New York City)* Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center (Patchogue) Interfaith Medical Center (New York City)* Maimonides Medical Center (New York City) Richmond University Medical Center (New York City)* Washington, D.C. Providence Hospital of Washington Howard University Hospital* n

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