Hospitals Send 42 Workers Home On Unpaid Leave

Health care is not recession-proof after all.

When people are broke and out of work, they are less likely to go to the hospital.

Last week, 42 employees at Spring Hill and Brooksville Regional hospitals were given "unpaid leave" for up to two months. They were notified the day before Thanksgiving.

"It's a shock," said Ken Russ, a spokesman with the Pasco-Hernando Workforce Board at Career Central. "You figure with this economy, not even health care is immune."

Calls to Chief Executive Officer Kathy Burke, who oversees both hospitals, and her aides have not been returned. Both hospitals are Health Management Agency-owned hospitals. Phone calls and e-mails to the HMA home office in Naples also were not answered.

Messages have been left since last Friday.

Employees and hospital visitors have contacted Hernando Today, but would not give their names for fear of retribution from the hospital.

They said the cutbacks have affected secretaries, nurses and managers.

The 42 workers at both facilities have not officially been laid off. They were told they could not work until January, when executives hope patient volumes increase.

Because they are technically on leave, no one has received any severance.

At least three employees have reported to the Workforce Board seeking assistance, Russ said.

"It makes sense to me," said Russ as he contemplated the situation of so many broke or unemployed residents. "If you don't have the dollars ... you're first thought is putting food on the table or paying the electric bill. You're not going to the hospital."

The news comes less than a week after the unemployment figures were released for October.

While unemployment in Hernando County reached 9.7 percent - the highest it has been in 16 years - the kernel of good news came in the way of education and health services.

Those two categories ranked first and second among Florida's major industries in the number of new jobs.

In all, more than 35,000 jobs were created statewide during the previous 12 months, due to growth in hospitals and ambulatory health care services, according to the Agency for Workforce Innovation.

That positive trend has come to a halt among hospitals in Hernando County.

"There are a couple dynamics going on right now," said Rich Linkul, a spokesman with Oak Hill Hospital. "People who are getting laid off can get COBRA, but that can get very expensive. Many people who have lost their jobs can't afford insurance."

Linkul said Oak Hill has no plans to make any cutbacks in personnel.

"We are working diligently right now," he said. "Obviously, it's a major concern of ours so that it doesn't happen."

"The key for every hospital is maintaining volumes," he continued. "We're hitting just about every target we have."