Inspectors from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid on Monday visited the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital and Medical Center, but through Tuesday had not given an update on the status of the St. Croix hospital, according to JFL spokesman Samuel Baptiste.
“They came in and went straight to work. They didn’t give us an update Monday,” Baptiste said. Baptiste said he expects the CMS team to report to hospital executive and medical staff on Friday. After the last inspection in December 2013, Baptiste said CMS gave its report around 8:30 p.m.
The seven-member team is expected to inspect the entire facility, the medical areas and all floors of the hospital, this week, Baptiste said. There are 23 areas the inspectors survey to determine if the hospital will retain accreditation.
According to CMS, its partner health facilities are inspected usually once a year – more often if there are problems.
CMS is the federal agency that certifies hospitals for participating in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. During evaluation, CMS grades medical services, medical records and staff. Inspectors also review hospital units on infection control, equipment, quality control and patients’ rights.
While the agency does not close hospitals, they can deny payments for services which could cause the St. Croix facility, already under dire financial stress, to implode.
In the last several years, JFL has struggled to maintain its relationship with CMS. In 2012, a CMS evaluation comprised 79 pages of deficiencies, according to the report. The hospital failed to comply in 11 of 23 areas. At that time, JFL had not been in compliance for at least 18 months, according to a CMS spokesman.
By December 2013, three written plans of correction had been submitted by the hospital before a plan was approved by CMS. According to Dr. Kendall Griffith, JFL’s interim chief executive officer, some of the inadequacies were corrected by then, such as congestion in the emergency room. Griffith said at the time that a change in the nurse to patient ratio, hiring more nurses and adding beds to other units streamlined the stay in the ER.
On Monday, Griffith said he met with the CMS team in the morning to discuss how the team would conduct the hospital inspection and address complaints.
“We have known for some time that CMS would return to JFL to conduct a hospitalwide survey. I also know and feel extremely confident that all the work which has been done by JFL’s staff to prepare for this visit will result in a favorable recommendation towards our certification,” Griffith said.
On Tuesday, Baptiste said the hospital’s administration still feels confident the report will be positive. He said he will notify the media and the public of the inspection results on Saturday.
