Physician layoffs mulled at two valley hospitals

CBS Local 2/KESQ has learned that Tenet Healthcare, the Dallas-based company that manages Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, and owns JFK Memorial Hospital in Indio, among dozens of other hospitals across the country, may contract with nationally based firms instead of using local providers for some services.

Valley physicians tell us local medical groups that provide anesthesiology, emergency department, and hospitalist care would be affected. They believe this will lead to doctor layoffs, and no doubt affect patient care. Some doctors plan to hold an emergency meeting to prevent this from happening.

Officials from JFK Memorial Hospital confirm this is being evaluated right now, but say no formal decisions have been made.

In a statement released late Friday evening, Linda Evans, JFK’s Director of Business Development said, “With a large organization like Tenet, there are always opportunities to evaluate various services and fixed costs based on the rising costs of healthcare. Our priorities remain to provide high quality care for the communities and patients we serve.”

A final decision is expected within the month.

Stay with CBS Local 2/KESQ for more details on this developing story.