January 12, 1999

In the previous Currents newsletter, I attempted to clarify some of the confusion concerning the MUSC case before the Supreme Court regarding the affiliation proposal. Mr. Joe Good, MUSC General Counsel, attended the Jan. 12 communications meeting to discuss this case further and his comments are highlighted below.

Recently, through the President’s Office, we received a letter commending the Medical Center staff for the wonderful treatment and compassionate care given to a patient on 7 East. This particular letter, in my opinion, indicates our success in fulfilling our values. We sometimes need to be reassured that things are going well in terms of our highest priority, excellence in patient care, even though our financial outlook has not been as bright. I see many positive letters about the excellent care and service the Medical Center provides and I’m proud to be a part of this organization. Thanks to all concerned for a job well done.

Affiliaton Lawsuit Update

• Joe Good, MUSC General Counsel, gave an update on the status of the lawsuit filed against the Medical University regarding our proposed affiliation with Columbia/HCA. Good explained that in recent news reports it was stated that the pursuit of a “deal” with Columbia/HCA is still valid. Good went on to explain that in order for the Supreme Court to rule on an issue, it must be an active situation. If the Medical University withdrew its proposal to affiliate with an outside entity, then technically, the State Supreme Court would have no reason to make a ruling.
• Good explained that issues raised by the lower court’s decision affect not only MUSC, but other agencies and how our Legislature passes laws. By appealing this case to the State Supreme Court our board can get clarification of its legal authority and resolve matters of interest to other colleges and the Legislature. q Good indicated that he believes the court will issue a ruling in the relatively near future.

Shuttle Bus Trial Service

• Melinda Anderson, director, Parking Management, announced a new pick-up time would be added to the shuttle bus service on a six week trial basis. The new time of 4:45 a.m. at the Fishburne/Hagood Lot will hopefully benefit those individuals who work the 5 a.m. shift as well as others. The next scheduled pick-up time at this site is 5:15 a.m. Anderson asked that employees be made aware of this trial shuttle bus schedule.
• Parking Management has been working with the City of Charleston to obtain additional parking spaces on Fishburne Street. It is anticipated that an additional 85 parking spaces will be made available across the street from the Fishburne/Hagood Lot. Notification will be given as soon as these spaces become available.
• Anderson introduced Steven Mingler, MUSC’s new director of University Transportation Services. If anyone has any questions or needs any information concerning transportation services available at MUSC, you can contact Mingler at 577-0473.
• Anderson also made the following announcements:
• A passenger shelter for the Fishburne/Hagood Lot will be installed by the City of Charleston in approximately six weeks.
• The Morrison Drive Lot still has approximately 25 spaces available. The shuttle bus picks up and delivers at that lot beginning at approximately 6:30 a.m. and ending around 8 p.m. If you are interested in parking at the Morrison Drive Lot, please call the Parking Management office at 792-3665.

General Announcements

HBSI Presentation

• Lisa Montgomery, administrator for Financial Services, reminded the management team that Kelly Burkett from HBSI will be at the next communications meeting on Jan. 19 to discuss the HBSI reports. Individual meetings can be arranged with Burkett while she is at MUSC by calling Pamela Marek at 792-8793.

Hospital Communications

• Jane Lunn, manager, Hospital Communications, reminded everyone of a phone system upgrade scheduled for Jan. 30 at 2 a.m. This upgrade will result in a telephone outage to specific telephone numbers lasting anywhere from 2 to 4 hours. The telephone numbers to be affected are: 792-0020 to 792-0199; 792-5140 to 792-5159; 792-5200 to 792-5239; 792-5420 to 792-5459; 792-5500 to 792-5789; 792-5800 to 792-5819; 792-5900 to 792-5999; 792-6360 to 792-6379; 792-6880 to 792-6899; 792-6940 to 792-6979; 792-7260 to 792-7399; 792-7488 to 792-7494 and all 953 numbers on the MUSC campus.
• University Communications will be working with the departments affected to insure a smooth upgrade and to provide telecommunications to the critical departments while the upgrade takes place. They will also provide informal training and documentation for change in telephone set operation as a result of the upgrade. Audix should not be affected. If you have questions or concerns, please contact University Communications at 792-9980.

Recognition

• Carol Dobos, director of Children’s Services, Hospital Services Coordinators, and Hospital Options Pool, recognized Carolyn Viall, nurse manager for 7A, 7B, and 7C, for her recent professional achievements completed in addition to managing her three patient care units. Carolyn’s book chapter titled “Maintaining Nutrition” was recently published in the new edition of the AACN Critical Care Reference, published by Mosby. She has completed another book chapter titled “Home Parental Nutrition Finance” which will be published this summer. She will also speak on Financial Reimbursement Strategies for home nutrition support at the 23rd Clinical Congress of the American Society for Parental and Enteral Nutrition in San Diego later this month. Congratulations, Carolyn!