Workers laid off by new operator at area hospitals
WARREN — The new operator of Trumbull Regional Medical Center and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital has laid off employees.
But statements Monday from Insight Health System — the Flint, Michigan-based hospital operator that Wednesday was cleared by a U.S. bankruptcy court judge to acquire the facilities — lacked specifics.
“In order to stabilize operations” at Trumbull Regional in downtown Warren and Hillside in Howland “for long range viability, it was necessary to evaluate positions where staffing was not meeting our current patient volume needs,” a spokesperson with Insight Health stated in an email. “As our patient volumes continue to increase, positions will be brought back.”
Later Monday, the Insight Health spokesperson emailed, “The hospitals continue to work with the bargaining units and our employees to identify other opportunities available to those affected as we are currently hiring in needed areas. Patient care will not be impacted in any way.”
The second statement was sent in response to questions trying to clarify how many employees were laid off and in which departments.
Chrissy Lewis, Region 2 coordinator for SEIU District 1199 WV/KY/OH, which represents about 150 health care workers at Trumbull Regional, stated in an email it was unknown how many District 1199 members were affected.
“We do not know exactly how many at this time because the list they gave us was not accurate and our requests for an accurate list have not been responded to as of yet,” she wrote in a Monday afternoon email. “There are definite concerns though.”
Later, Lewis wrote “Insight has taken a very difficult situation and made it unnecessarily worse with horrible communication and a lack of foresight. We will enforce our rights.”
Emails asking questions and for comment also were sent Monday to a spokesperson with AFSCME Ohio Council 8, which also represents health care workers at Trumbull Regional, and to the Ohio Nurses Association, which represents nurses at Hillside.
The hospitals’ former operator, Steward Health Care, filed mass layoff notices with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services on Aug. 22, one day after issuing closure notices for the facilities and affiliate satellite locations that stated a planned closure of Sept. 20.
The closure never happened because of a global settlement in Steward Health’s Chapter 11 case that paved the way for Insight Health to take control, but the effective layoff date for all four notices was Sunday.
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Christopher M. Lopez on Wednesday approved the sale of Trumbull Regional and Hillside between Steward Health and Insight Health, which has been operating the facilities with non-for-profit entities since Sept. 11 — first as interim operator and then designated operator, which it was named earlier this month by Medical Properties Trust, the landlord for Steward Health, under the global settlement agreement.
The not-for-profit groups affiliated with Insight Health are Insight Foundation of Trumbull and Insight Foundation of Hillside.