Hospital cuts critic plans BR protest

LAFAYETTE - The mother of a child who receives occupational and speech therapy at University Medical Center is taking her activism to restore the hospital's $4.2 million in midyear budget cuts off her Facebook page and onto the State Capitol steps on Tuesday.

"I'm chartering a bus for anyone who wants to go," Linda Reddoch said. "A lot of people, they can't afford to go. I wanted them to be able to go and let their voices be heard."

Reddoch is collecting donations to cover the expense of chartering the bus and so far has raised about $300 or half the cost, she said. Je'Nelle Chargois, manager of KJCB radio station, is also trying to fill another bus for the rally, Reddoch said.

Reddoch organized the Facebook page, "Save UMC of Lafayette Jobs," earlier this month after the hospital had to cut some patient services and an estimated 80 jobs. The changes will take effect March 4 and are part of LSU's efforts to cut $29 million to $34 million so it can end the fiscal year with a balanced budget.

LSU Health Care Services Division, which oversees UMC and six other public hospitals, also has submitted for state civil service approval an employee layoff plan, which affects about 645 positions.

Through her Facebook page, Reddoch has organized rallies outside the hospital, launched an online petition appealing for the restoration of its budget cuts and caught the attention of the Jindal administration.

The mother of two said the governor's health policy adviser, Anne Cassity, wants to meet with her next week when she is in Baton Rouge for the rally. Reddoch said her goal is "that we get all the funding restored and all our departments back."

"They're just chopping off our arms and legs," Reddoch said of the hospital's cuts. "We need everyone of these departments. We need the people who have been laid off to be rehired."

At UMC, the cuts by LSU translated to the closures of labor and delivery services, its newborn nursery and neonatal intensive care unit, the pediatric clinic, pediatric inpatient services, the KidMed Louisiana Medicaid preventative pediatric health program, its transplant clinic, coumadin clinic, disease management clinic and its detox unit.

UMC was able to protect its residency programs through partnerships with a private hospital, enabling family medicine residents to continue required training in pediatric and obstetrics at UMC. The hospital's family medicine and internal medicine clinics will also see more patients to accommodate the closures.

The hospital's community advisory committee adopted a resolution this week that urged Gov. Bobby Jindal, the LSU hospital system, state Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary Bruce Greenstein and legislators "to take all steps possible to fully restore and stabilize the budget of the LSU Health System in order to avoid further cuts to UMC."

The committee represents communities and patients in the seven-parish Acadiana area, said Donna Baltakis, committee chairwoman.

Baltakis said she's concerned about the impact on direct patient care and on the area's future pool of physicians. More cuts could affect the hospital's residency programs, she said.

"I think everyone needs to speak up. We need to take care of our people," Baltakis said.

To reserve a spot on the bus, call Reddoch at [phone].