Jewish General faces criticism for deficit

Projected to be $17.5M in the red

A power struggle has erupted between bureaucrats of the Montreal Health and Social Services Agency and doctors at the Jewish General Hospital over the delivery of care to patients who do not belong to the institution’s “catchment” area.

Agency officials had previously complained to the executive director of the Jewish General, Dr. Hartley Stern, that the hospital’s Segal Cancer Centre was treating too many off-island cancer patients, and urged him to “repatriate” them to health facilities in their regions, even though he demonstrated that his staff were delivering care at a lower cost.

Now, the agency has turned its attention to the Jewish General’s financial books, upset that the Côte-des-Neiges hospital is projecting a deficit this year of $17.5 million, a reflection of the fact that the institution is providing more acute care than ever before.

The Jewish General has already made $6.9 million worth of “non-clinical” cuts, but the agency wants more. To break the impasse, the hospital has invited independent auditors to find additional cuts that would not affect clinical care.

“We have not come to a resolution on the best way to proceed with a plan to balance the budget, so we thought it would be a good idea to have auditors from the outside who could have a fresh look on the situation and help us and the agency come up with a plan of action,” said Laurent Zini, the Jewish General’s director of finance.

“We’ve made cuts that don’t affect the patient,” Zini added.

“The hospital acknowledges that we don’t want to serve all the patients on the island of Montreal. But the question is: What’s the right number of patients? And to determine that right number, we have to see what are our strengths and our weaknesses.”

François Lemoyne, director of finance at the Montreal health agency, refused requests by The Gazette for an interview. La Presse quoted Lemoyne on Thursday as say- ing that “the indicators have shown us that there has not been an increase in the clientele” at the hospital.

In fact, the number of outpatient visits at the Jewish General has soared by 72 per cent from 2007 to 2012. That includes visits to the emergency room.

Zini noted that the hospital has also reported a 20 per cent increase in the number of patient-days requiring acute care in the past five years. Such care translates into higher costs, he explained.

In addition, the hospital opened eight new beds in the intensive-care ward, requiring 24-hour monitoring.

The Jewish General’s approved operating budget this year is $335 million. In efficiency ratings established by the health agency, it ranks first among major hospitals and second of all hospitals in Montreal.

Marie-Josée Thibert, a spokeswoman for the Montreal Health and Social Services Agency, declined to comment on the Jewish General’s financial situation, saying: “We have nothing to add.”