Thursday, February 15, 2007

Do we need a UPMC Watch blog?

I have toyed with starting a UPMC watch blog. Here is another interesting story today of how these assholes continue to make more and more money, yet provide shitty service with 50% bitchy nurses (and to be fair 50% wonderful nurses who can't stand their employer), expensive parking for family and patients, and slow and unorganized discharge plans, where people just sit...and wait...to get out, and the insurance companies and families get stuck with the extended bill. Who is watching UPMC? They never have to pay taxes, they have no one to answer to because they run 90% of the area hospitals, and they whine about their costs like a corporation, while they have two loaves of bread under their arms.

Look at this article about the revenues and profits UPMC has made in a half of its fiscal year. Sick.

Who is asking the questions? How does a hospital make so much money yet provide such shit service? I am not talking about the amazing doctors. I am not talking about that portion of compassionate nurses. Visit a close family member there for a few days and understand what I mean. Why can't they provide parking for families of terminal patients? Why can't they provide TV for free? Why can't they charge store cost for pills and meds? A tylenol can cost the price of a bottle.

Stop being jagoffs and blaming the insurance companies. No wonder they don't want to pay for shit because they are getting ripped off too! Why can't UPMC sell shares like a public company, because I would love to be in on some of this cash.

I can diss Romoff all day, but that jerkoff and his minions are sharp, and while making that kind of money he will never leave that unaccountable position.

Hey Ravelchild, this is your chance to be a real mayor and ask some questions, instead of an overgrown frat boy tough guy.

7 comments:

history of me said...

Wonderful blog. I hope more people read it. I am a vet and we are force to recieve care from new Doctor's who are training at UPMC. They do their internship at our va hospital and most of the time the care is bad. these interns wont even give you the time of day at the va because they know you are not a paying customer. These doctors pratice of us and alot of times they get it wroug and no one cares. It is wonderful to see that someone elase feels the same way.

Gravis said...

HOM,

That is a shame the way you and other vets are treated. I try to stay away from to much national stuff (plenty of hot air blogs out there) but it is HORRIBLE the way the way Walter Reed is run.

Our society is 60% entitlement, a far cry from the 60% defense spending of a few decades ago. The only folks "entitled" to anything in this country are the vets who miss out on life and lvie thousands of miles from their families so that jagoffs like me can write this blogoff. The pay and retirement benefits are pathetic...they should be at least double what they are.

Thanks for your service, and I can't disagree with you more about how much the VA stinks.

The Preposterous Rhinocerous said...

As a former employee (non-nurse) of UPMC, this blog was found and accepted with a smile. UPMC is one of the worst run organizations I have ever encounted in my short (26 year) life. Every day I was there for 2 years was sheer hell for me. I was harassed, bullied, and basically forced from my position. A day didn't go by that I didn't want to just scream and yell at everyone in the office because UPMC promotes and employs completely incompetent frat boys, minorities, and basically all around assholes. The one guy that used to harass me 24/7 that I worked beside had been FIRED from one of the facilities, and because my ex-boss was friends with him she felt it necessary to hire him on to the team. I left as soon as I could after that.

Needless to say I am with a much better company now, cannot believe the freedom I have, and no longer dread my life waking up in the morning. Thank you, Dick's Sporting Goods.

And thank you for your blog :)

Anonymous said...

The care is very bad at UPMC. I had the head of the sleep clinic there swear up and down there was nothing wrong with me. Yet when I went to a new sleep clinic they recorded me stop breathing 34 times that night and now I have a cpap machine. But all my experiences with Pittsburgh doctors are really bad. I actually had to move to new york to get real care. I wish there was a way to log my experiences per doctor and all the things they did wrong but there is no such site.

Anonymous said...

UPMC IS SO DIRTY HOW IS IT THAT ALMOST HALF OF THE PTS THAT ARE THERE END UP WITH MRSA HOW IS IT THAT THEY PAY THE EMPLOYEES LOW WAGES WHEN HALF OF THEM GOT A FAMILY HOW IS IT THE EMPLOYEES GET A $6.OO MEAL TICKET FOR CHRISTMAS THEY GOT ALL THIS LAND BOUGHT UP BUT CANT PAY THE HARD WORKING CARE WORKERS THAT ARE THE BACK BONE OF THE HOSPITALS CRAP YA YA I KNOW IF I DONT LIKE UPMC WHY AM I WORKING THERE EVERYONE NEEDS WORK BUT THE RAISES THEY GIVE ARE HORRIBLE THE MOST YOU CAN GET IS A 30 CENT RAISE NOW IS THAT WORTH IT THE GOOD EMPLOYEES NEVER STAY OR HAVE TO CAUSE THEY CANT GO TO ANOTHER HOSPITAL CAUSE UPMC OWNS THEM ALL IF YOU WORK THERE YOU KNOW WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT

freedom first said...

I have to agree with all that you have to say. I know 3 people that work for UPMC, and they all have similar complaints. They have lost coworkers to layoffs, and are expected to pick up twice the work with barely any significant raise at all. They talk about hostile work environmet, and lack of respect. How are they supposed to be compassionate to the needs of others when they are taking care of twice the amount of patients that they should be? Nor are they provided the supplies to succeed. All because UPMC took too big of a hit in the stock market....PLEASE!!!!!

James Morgan - Puritan Financial Advisor said...

They never have to pay taxes, they have no one to answer to because they run 90% of the area hospitals, and they whine about their costs like a corporation, while they have two loaves of bread under their arms.