Harbor-UCLA Medical Center recently failed government inspections, including failure to keep its operating rooms clean and failure to keep patients safe from possible infections, as reported in the October 30th edition of the Los Angeles Times. Violations included the hospital staff not washing their hands, operating rooms kept at the wrong humidity level, and building violations, including dusty ceilings and holes in the ceilings.
The failure of the hospital to keep a sanitary environment puts the patients at risk for infection. This is not the first time Harbor-UCLA Medical Center was warned for keeping an unsanitary environment. In fact, earlier this year, infection control problems were so serious, that the federal government sent a letter threatening to revoke their Medicare funding, which in essence would financially cripple the medical center. Federal inspections such as this provide important protection for the public. Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas stated, "Thank God for the federal inspection. It is necessary for the purposes of accountability and quality of care."
The hospital's chief executive Delvecchio Finley stated that the hospital had addressed all the concerns with the exception of issues relating to the age of the hospital. Los Angeles county is investing $323 million to build a 190,000 square foot building at the hospital that will replace the emergency room and surgical facilities. This move is necessary as the current conditions of the hospital are unacceptable and will not be in compliance. The Times states the hospital had 80,600 patients visit the emergency room and 23,000 patients were admitted to the hospital in the last fiscal year. Harbor-UCLA Medical Center also took on additional patients after the closure of Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center in 2007. James Lott, executive vice president of the Hospital Association of Southern California stated, "The reports should put Harbor-UCLA on alert that it needs to improve - quickly. We only have to recall what happened with the former King/Drew Medical Center. The downfall of that hospital started with these types of alerts."
The California Department of Public Health has also fined the hospital four times for medical errors that put the patients at serious risk of injury or death. The state also claims a patient who was hit by a car died in the hospital because a nurse failed to closely monitor his condition. A union representative for the nurses, Katarina Del Valle Thompson believes inadequate staffing has also contributed to the problems. "The best thing we could do to minimize the chances of errors would be to staff adequately."
