Article Image Alt Text

Cefalu will chair hospital district board, says negotiations going well

Dr. William "Bill" Cefalu is the new chairman of St. Mary Hospital Service District 2. Cefalu wasn't in the center chair long at Wednesday's meeting at Morgan City Court before he reported progress in negotiations to bring in Ochsner Health System to operate Morgan City's Teche Regional Medical Center.

Cefalu, who joined the district's board only recently, will be joined by newly elected officers Gary Stansbury, the vice chairman, and Bill McCarty, secretary.

Outgoing Chairman Heath Hoffpauir got a word of thanks from Stansbury.

"There was a lot of ups and downs with the situation with LifePoint," Stansbury said. "I applaud him for hanging in there to this point."

LifePoint Health has operated Teche Regional for 14 years under a lease with the district. After LifePoint announced its intention last year to leave its Louisiana operations, the district found itself simultaneously negotiating LifePoint's departure and looking for new hospital management.

The search settled on Ochsner of Jefferson Parish. That system operates about a dozen hospitals and clinics, mostly in south Louisiana.

The board's stated goal has been to keep Teche Regional operating without an interruption in service during the transition.

Along the way, the board heard vocal and sometimes impassioned criticism from Teche Regional staff members about the negotiations, which have occurred largely outside public view.

Much of the controversy has settled down.

On Wednesday, Cefalu said LifePoint "has been very helpful and very open to ensure that we have all the information that we need to make sure the transition happens seamlessly, that patient care is not interrupted."

As for Ochsner, 'those discussions have been very insightful and very promising."

Representatives of Ochsner have been visiting Teche Regional and have met with a committee of physicians there, Cefalu said.

The district has also received a draft lease from Ocshner, Cefalu said, and the negotiations continue.

Also at the meeting, the board heard about the need for architectural and engineering appraisals as well as an appraisal of Teche Regional medical equipment.

Ochsner has agreed to provide the engineering evaluation report. The district board will pay for the architectural and equipment evaluations.

(The story has been corrected to reflect Ochsner correct role in assisting with the engineering, evaluation and architecture reports).

ST. MARY NOW

Franklin Banner-Tribune
P.O. Box 566, Franklin, LA 70538
Phone: 337-828-3706
Fax: 337-828-2874

Morgan City Review
1014 Front Street, Morgan City, LA 70380
Phone: 985-384-8370
Fax: 985-384-4255