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Trump's message, with tact, was necessary
Published Sunday, May 18, 2008
You’re fired! Donald Trump made the phrase seem somehow funny a few years ago on his TV reality show “The Apprentice.”
American TV viewers reveled as the New York real estate developer skewered young hopefuls before eventually bluntly saying, “You’re fired!”
Trump even worked to register the phrase as a trademark. Unfortunately, he is not the only person who has had to terminate an employee, though most probably don’t do so with the cockiness of Trump.
Driving past Natchez Regional Medical Center Friday night, thoughts of the day’s events ran through my head along with a fleeting thought of Trump and how his brash style if far from reality for most managers.
Natchez Regional cut 65 jobs on Friday, with a promise that between 20 and 25 more will be cut in the next 60 to 90 days.
My heart goes out to the employees who were cut and their families, but also to the people who had to make the decisions and ultimately deliver the message.
Despite how cool and sexy Trump may have attempted to make the phrase, firing someone is never easy or fun.
As someone who has had to terminate a number of people through the years, believe me, it’s not something you look forward to doing.
In fact, it’s absolutely the worst thing a business manager or leader must do.
Firings, at their best, are not pleasant. At their worst, they’re downright painful.
Tears, accusations and attacks can occur. For the messenger, a churning stomach, sleepless nights, headaches and even an overriding feeling of guilt often occurs.
Unlike with Trump’s “on-a-whim” style of firing, Regional’s wasn’t personal and it wasn’t something that was optional.
The hospital, by all indications, was highly overstaffed. That’s one of the symptoms of being a public entity.
When you have virtually no one as a stakeholder like other businesses do, often no one pays too much attention to the bottom line or the ability of the institution to sustain itself long-term.
Private or public ownership would have likely made smaller cuts years ago to keep the hospital’s staff in line with national trends, local competition and just common sense.
But Regional doesn’t really have a directly connected stakeholder or owner. Taxpayers own the building, but the facility is operated a bit independently.
Rumors have flown for years that the hospital served as a “job bank” of sorts for some county supervisors who saw to it that friends and family received jobs at the hospital.
If that was true, and personally I’ve never seen direct evidence that it was, that system began to end on Friday.
The old way of doing things will continue to go away as the new hospital CEO and the newly awakened Board of Trustees and county supervisors make serious decisions about the hospital’s future.
One bright spot, if there can be such in a day of bad news for so many employees, was the hospital’s decision to reverse the bad decision — by a previous management company — to cut staff salaries across the board by 5 percent. That was an ill-conceived Band-Aid when major surgery was needed.
If the surgery performed Friday is a success, the hospital’s direction could be turning.
Even after the cuts, Natchez Regional is still one of the biggest employers around and it’s a critical part of our area’s healthcare.
Let’s hope Friday’s dark cloud clears soon and good news begins flowing from the hospital. We’ve had enough of the Donald Trump moments lately.
Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.
Comments
Posted by oldsaw (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 10:47 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Cooper, too cold. You have crossed the line.
Posted by caringrn (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 11:41 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Mr Cooper I hope that you or one of your loved ones don't have to be hopitalized soon. If so I am sure you will realize very quickly just how overstaffed it was at NRMC. While I am sure the staff that's left will do their best Ican't imagine how that place will continue to function. Some of the critical care areas such as ICU, Telemetry and ER were already understaffed. Maybe in some of the office areas there was overstaffing but nursing has not been. Lately there have been times of being called off due to low census. Low census may be due to people choosing not to come to NRMC and to go elsewhere after news of finacial instablility surfaced. I do hope that NRMC can survive and wish remaining staff good luck.
Posted by nursegal (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 12:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)
One more business in Natchez failed and let ppl go who support the community. Maybe some of them can get Medicade...oh thats one of the problems isn't it? Glad the ND finds humor in it!
Posted by destiny (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 1:12 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I personally did not find Kevin's article humorous in anyway. Nor, I am sure he did not mean to be humorous in anyway. He knows and realizes the dreadful impact it is having on the community at large. He stated a fact that is truth to the core. Please read the atricle again,..slowly...
Posted by hopefloats (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 2:09 p.m. (Suggest removal)
destiny...you have over 1000 blogs i read 5 of them and got bored...You're fired!
Posted by NatchezEnema (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 3:27 p.m. (Suggest removal)
How in the HE_ _ can you put such a pitiful distasteful spin on people losing jobs. THIS ISN'T A FAKE GAMESHOW! If you had any class or sincere feelings for these people who lost their jobs your article should have been about what the boad members of the hospital had to say about this or the town supervisiors. Your disrespect is apalling. These people are already going through enough, then have to pick up a town paper and read this. HOW SNOBISH CAN YOU GET. I AM SO MAD *&(*&()^&^)&^^&$##. I CAN'T TYPE! I hope the first thing these money burdened families do is drop their subscription to the democrat. And the same for any of their families that own a business and advertise with your paper. REDEEM YOURSELF! APOLOGIZE! OR USE YOUR PAPER PULPIT TO CALL OUT THE ONES RESPONSIBLE, AND HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE AND RESPONSIBLE. THIS IS THE MOSE DISTASTEFUL THING I THINK I HAVE EVER READ IN THIS PAPER. You guys talk about what is responsible for Natchez being hooked on welfare. WHY NOT WHO SHOULD BE FIRED ON THE BOARD FOR NOT DOING THEIR JOB, AND WHY THESE PEOPLE LOST THEIR JOBS BECAUSE BOARD MEMBERS DIDN'T DO THEIRS. IF YOU WONT TAKE UP AND SPEAK FOR THESE PEOPLE IN THEIR TIME OF WEAKNESS I WILL. SHAME ON THE DEMOCRAT! WHAT A SAD DAY FOR JOURNALISM IN NATCHEZ!
Posted by hitormiss (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 4:05 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Just another example of how cruel the Democrat's editors can be. It is time for Cooper to stop.
Our prayers are with the families that have lost their incomes.
Posted by kcooper (Kevin Cooper) on May 18, 2008 at 4:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Folks, first, please re-read my original words and let me know where you think something I wrote was trying to poke fun or show disrespect for the employees who lost their jobs or the managers who had to terminate them. That was not my intention and I don't see that in my words. Please be specific so I can understand what you read into it.
Second, lots of people want to blame someone for "not doing their jobs" inferring that the board of trustees didn't do their jobs and thus they're to blame. Perhaps they didn't, but as I see it, the biggest thing they did wrong was allow the former management company, Quorum, to hang around too long.
If Regional is to survive, one of two things must happen:
1). The management needs to cut expenses to get them in line with revenues. This is the same as any business would do in facing a cash crunch. If our newspaper started struggling to pay its bills, it would be my job to figure out what (or who) to cut. In my mind, that's not really the hospital board's decision; it's the manager's.
2). The hospital needs to build revenue.
I think they're doing No. 1, which probably should have been done with the first hints of financial woes began years ago. Unfortunately now that the new management is "doing their job" it's got everyone freaked out. Running a business isn't always pretty or fun and I'm sure no one at the hospital wanted to have to terminate someone. That's always a last resort.
No. 2 will take more time as the community's faith in the hospital's quality (and cleanliness) will have to be rebuilt over time.
I, too, pray for the families affected and for the future of health care in our community.
Posted by hitormiss (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 5:41 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Mr. Cooper, the editorial was in poor taste. What part of that needs more clarification?
Posted by NatchezEnema (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 5:41 p.m. (Suggest removal)
You say "Perhaps they didn't, but as I see it, the biggest thing they did wrong was allow the former management company, Quorum, to hang around too long". Call an ace an ace and a spade a spade Kevin. Why, who let them hang around to long. Would management at the democrat let some paper delivery boy who wasn't delivering papers to paying customers hang around too long? NO, your job and everybody working there depends on the papers getting delivered. THAT"S the point. The hospital and towns best interest were not watched out for by the hospital board or our supevisors. They were our brothers keepers and they failed miserably. If all of these jobs are looked at as sop jobs I guess it doesn't matter. If the Democrat and our town leaders don't become more PRO ACTIVE, this will be the tip of the iceberg. Natchez can't afford to loose 1 job. And to skirt around or to campare any loss great as this to a staged reality show is distasteful at the least! Some of these people might have to move or leave town for new jobs. Might have a car repossessed. Or not be able to pay for colledge tuition for a highschool student that graduated this week. I know some of these people and they are crushed as are their family and friends. Maybe I took this article wrong, but I think you are better than this kind of journalism Kevin. Why don't you find out who was responsible and we will have a session of SURVIVOR so we can vote them out one at a time.
Posted by NatchezEnema (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 5:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
What ever happened to "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure"
Posted by EnKiKur (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 7:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I think it is the way you use metaphor Kevin:
If the surgery performed Friday is a success, the hospital’s direction could be turning.
It makes it sound like the downsized staff were a disease that needed to be cut out.
I think, too, anger at the board is justified because it looks like they haven't been paying attention for a very long time. It sounds like you are saying they are accountable in no way, and truth is they aren't accountable to anyone, except through their own sense of duty to the obligation they accepted. This is the problem with unelected boards, no accountability. What can the highly paid supervisors be doing that they can't pay direct attention to something as important as a public hospital? Isn't their job to tend to county business, jobs they sought out and willingly accepted?
In all, the Democrat has directed blame in its articles toward the public, citing unpaid bills and too much staff and including in your article the comment about the rumor of the hospital being a job bank for family and friends of supervisors. You may not believe that rumor but you gave it new life by mentioning it. I, for one, had never heard that rumor before.
However, I do think you meant no harm, you guys have a lot of stuff to write each day and it is not going to come out perfect each time.
The Democrat writes many articles stressing the needs and good of the community. Community ideals take precedence in the pages of the Democrat. Individual lives, when compared to the good of the community, how much worth do they have? Because that is the question that underlies the mindset that values the good of the whole over the good of the individuals.
Posted by fire39212 (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 7:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Kevin i think the artical is good..I can't see where it is tacky...It's the truth..Alot of people do not like the truth.....
Posted by ericstratton (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 8:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Reread Kevins headline, especially notice"with tact". That to me means hard ,unpopular decisions had to be made but done so with caring,empathy, and respect to many NRMC employees. Scott Phillips (CEO) made the decision to layoff, it was the dept heads (managers), those who live in Natchez, who had to use tact when laying off their fellow employees.
Posted by NatchezEnema (anonymous) on May 18, 2008 at 8:31 p.m. (Suggest removal)
These people and their jobs are our community. They have both been neglected and left to float in a boat without a captain. It is the job and duty of our "boards" and especially our elected to stay in touch with our job providers in this town. I think it would have been nice to know that our elected officials were in touch and on top of this hospital when it's boat first started listing. Sad to say it wasn't. The problem I have is, what good does it do to call for a fire truck when you house is just about burned down? I know people that have been in business for a long time and employ many people and never had a call from a supervisor or any elected official unless it was election time. Our elected officials have to be held accountable. I think the Democrat is the only power in this town that can stand up to and ask tough hard questions and help make this town better. There is too much loss and finger pointing at the lower levels. It all starts at the top. We always hear of the outcome of mismanagement, taxes going up, population shrinking, lay offs, cops and people leaving for better paying jobs. If this white elephant debacle at the hospital could go on for sooo long without anybody knowing until people started loosing jobs, is it going on somewhere else in town? Some city department? I've heard isle of capri might be bought out. Has anybody from the city checked their oil lately, or are they just counting how much tax money they lost when they were closed. All I want is the Democrat to once every other week or once a month to have a section called hot seat. AND PUT THESE ELECTED PEOPLE AROUND HERE IN IT. ASK TOUGH QUESTIONS LIKE WHO, HOW, AND WHY AND WHEN. When our young country was forming, one of the first things the Brittsh did when they went into Boston and other cities was SHUT DOWN THE PRESSES. They new the power of the press. I wish that power was used in this town to make things better for our people by getting to the truth and being pro active. Not printing articles that could look belittling to our people. I like the democrat and Kevin. There is so much more you guys could do on holding people in power around here accountable. Information is power!
Posted by dangyankee (anonymous) on May 19, 2008 at 1:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Mr. Cooper, being "laid off" is not the same thing as being "fired." Sure, the end result is the same--the employee no longer has a job--but the implications are not the same at all. If you're "fired," it is because you've done something wrong; if you're "laid off," it is because of forces beyond your own control. The 65 people laid off at Regional had done (as far as we know) nothing wrong--they were just unfortunate enough to be low on the seniority totem. So don't call them "fired."
This was nothing like a "Donald Trump" moment.
Aside from that analogy, this editorial was pretty good.
Posted by adamstanton (anonymous) on May 19, 2008 at 7:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Well the problem is you have a hospital in NRMC trying to compete with NCH, one is for profit, and one isn't one is trying to make money and one is trying to provide service or thats the mind set in which it was built and had operated for years. Now, you have less employment in the area thus less insurance and the hospital with the most outside backing and most effecient running business will survive. Then you have to look at the new surgery suites that were built along the river that takes revenue away from the hospitals both of them if they were doing those types surgeries. So it gets alot easier to see why the money problems, a hospital built during a time when hospitals provided services and the cost was past on to the insurance companies, and the hospital was reimbursed with profit, now they are having to compete with a hospital that was built to make money, with outside backing, a shrinking job market in the area, and Doctors building surgery suites away from the hospital, a true recipe for failure for a public owned facility.
Posted by EnKiKur (anonymous) on May 19, 2008 at 9:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Was part of the public owned aspect of the hosptial that aside from the building the public also paid for the equipment?
I wonder because in one of the articles someone said that for years the hospital had brought in millions of dollars of revenue to the county. And in another the Quorum CEO said Quorum always made the bond payment. If the hospital had brought in millions of dollars of revenue it seems like that should have been used to pay off any loans on the hospital and anything after that put into a fund to provide for future public needs.
Most small businesses would love to be given a building they don't have to pay for. I just don't see why this didn't work. Riverpark provides an excellent service, I just used them and was amazed at the level of service and courtesy. I can't imagine what level of service those guys could provide if someone just gave them a building to operate out of.
Posted by destiny (anonymous) on May 19, 2008 at 12:11 p.m. (Suggest removal)
<<<hopefloats>>>> I'm so very sorry if the truth bores you. The people who read the article as it was meant to be read, found it just fine. The ones who did not read it correctly have nothing better to do than sit at their pc and condemn someone who has printed an article for the public. And as for my 1k or more post, that's what this space is for. Now it's your turn to have a nice day.
NatchezEmema, I agree with you. The problem was overlooked for far too long, and I feel just as you do that our civic leaders should have their heels held to the fire for this problem. I have been a long standing advocate about the problem of electing kith and kin to the higher post in Natchez-Adams county. The private citizens elected these people, so WHO IS REALLY TO BLAME? Surely not the writer of an editoral of our newspaper. The voters in Natchez-Adams County need to revise their way of voting and put the best person in to do the job that needs to be done for the betterment of our community and not just a paycheck for their kith or kin.
Posted by EnKiKur (anonymous) on May 19, 2008 at 6:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
How can you determine who the best person to vote for is destiny?
Posted by snatchez (anonymous) on May 19, 2008 at 8 p.m. (Suggest removal)
get it straight, quorem never made any payment on any bond loans or otherwise.
Posted by texasranger (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 7:21 a.m. (Suggest removal)
What needs to be cut out are the ones making 6 figures that cut out the ones making 3 figures.
Posted by texasranger (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 7:22 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I never did like or actually couldn,t stand the Trump. He is arrogrant beyond beliefand he has just enough sense to know he,s stupid. What he says mostly makes no common sense.He puts himself above all in his domain. Howard Hughes said I would give every penny i ever made,if i could find just one person who liked me just for myself.
Posted by texasranger (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 7:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
We all comdemn and sit at our pc,s. That,s why they call it a comments section. In Russia or other coutries you would be in Siberia or at a forced labor camp if you were lucky. Let everybody row thier own boat on here,or just take out comments and quit trying to be so proper. Let your hair down once in a while and say something ubsurd. Give us a break. Don,t work for just the dollar and never ever do it like the supervisors or bosses tell you too,or the business will be a total chaos,especially if the young college graduates are telling you how.Time on the job and experience is the key
Posted by kpage (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 8:35 a.m. (Suggest removal)
texas...Howard Hughes said that? I like that. Something tells me Big Don Trump doesn't feel that way. He doesn't need friends...his arrogance feeds his needs.
Remember the Queen of Mean, Old Lady Helmsley? She left a huge chunk of her fortune to a dog! I think being too rich can make one insane. Poor Howard Hughes in his last days!
Posted by destiny (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 11:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
EnKiKur, Just by studying the candidates history will be of some help. Reviewing the past of most candidates will clue you in as to what you can expect them to do in the future for your community. I was fortunate enough to work years where I was just a 'little peon' and yet privy to a lot of verbal disclosures made by some candidates because I was on the outside looking in and as far as the candidate was concerned my vote would not be of much interest. My vote alone may not count much, but I have proven the fact that I have a a big mouth and a loud clear voice when it comes to the betterment of our community. I love our home (Natchez) and will talk until I'm blue in the face for who I think will make a good 'public servant' whether I like him/her personally or not. I may not even know a candidate but I will study their platform and listen to their speeches. Then I will study, study and study more until I feel right about that person whether I vote for him/her or not. When I go to the polls to vote, I leave 'me' at home and vote for 'we'.
To all other posters, I have enjoyed reading your comments on this editoral, some were eyeopeners. Thanks much.
Posted by adamstanton (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 1:12 p.m. (Suggest removal)
EnKiKur,,,Well if you just used Riverparks' service then you either have insurance money or both, since they don't take care of the indigent, and thats where in the problems truly come to a head. Where as with NRMC they are expected to provide the same courteous service 24 hours a day seven days a week whether you have the ability to pay or whethere you don't, so you can see how it might be a lil stressful for the managers of a facility when they see something they are getting reimbursed for going across the river.
Posted by NatchezEnema (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 1:27 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Most elections in this city or country come every 2 or mostly 4 years. Getting into office or on a board is the easy part. Governing from it is the hard part. It would be very hard if not impossible for any bloggers here in these forums to put elected officials in the hot seat and relay the answers to the masses. All we can do is vote every four years. Who holds them accountable or has the power to shine light on them after they get in office and relay that to the masses. Regardless of what every body in these posts believe things are not hunkey dory in this town. We hear the same thing all the time from these canidates every election year. "I will bring jobs, lower taxes, get recreation, improve the schools, increase tourism, BLA, BLA, BLA, BLA"! We are hearing the same thing now we heard 4 years ago. When they get into office, really, who has the power to check their oil? If a voter calls an official after being in office for 1 year and ask's "well it's been a year and tourism numbers are down and you said you would bring them up,sir, why are they down and what have you done in the last year to bring them up"? There is no guarantee he or she will get a straight answer, most likely some spin. The official can hang up and say some nut job just called here. Now, if the democrat called and asked them the same question and wanted he or she to go on the record for all the masses to read, that's holding them accountable. We heard a lot of talk about about a vent on the tamale house and a lot of talk about the hospital in the past few months, I think we will all agree on that. What did we not hear or read? NAMES of the people responsible and when, where , why and how they dropped the ball. The names are like ghosts, hard if not impossible to see. I dont think we should slam people in these blogs, but our elected officials work for us, our tax money. They are held to a higher sandard and agressive interviews with them wanting answeres for their actions and promises will keep them in line and on their toes. While the cat is away mice will play. The Democrat has the power to be a TIGER around our elected officials. Let me know when and I will buy the cat chow! Pro active journalism, not reactive would help greatly in this town.
Posted by EnKiKur (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 8:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)
As a matter of fact, Adam, I don't have insurance and I am not rich, but I work loads of overtime. I used money I earned. I know it is radical, but the service was affordable, completely painless. If I had a Lexus I probably would not have been able to afford it, and if I were indigent I would have gone elsewhere. Again, I have to give Riverpark kudos for my remarkable freemarket experience. Fee for service, a great way to go.
Posted by EnKiKur (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 9:21 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Oh yeah, I know an indigent couple who took their child to to the emergency room at Riverpark. The child was treated, the couple given a bill they brought to me, and I paid the bill. Riverpark is not a bunch of scurvy thieves. They probably just know a real emergency from a fake one. They could just as easily not have been paid by that couple. And the bill was bare bones too, no padding at all.
Posted by EnKiKur (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 10:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I can't wait for one or two more of those little strip mall clinics to open up around here that offer a small menu of medical services with the price listed next to the item. You go in, get fixed up, pay the bill and go on your way with no further hassle.
Posted by peachpit (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 11:12 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Hey Kevin. I thought your ed. was right on. My Mother has been in that dreadfull hospital in and out for the past two years. The care given DRASTICALLY changes from day to night shifts. As does weekends. The PPl laid-off I hope were evaluated before the let go.
The fact is, that why the hospital is in dire-straights is because of the quality of care given!! If you get poor quality service at a resturant would you return? There within I would imagine lies the roumor of a "job bank."
Ask anyone who has a loved-one on the line, and they'll tell you that if you really need serious health care to go away from here.
Posted by peachpit (anonymous) on May 20, 2008 at 11:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Hey adamstanton, Have you ever been to the ER at Regional? They charge by the hour you know. Try to get into X-Ray. Six hours I was there with my Mom and nobody else was in sight. Did nothing!! Was waiting for SIX HOURS with a broken hip!!!!! No other emergencies came through the door for SIX HOURS!! I know because I was in the hall the whole time. I complained to no avail. Quality service is non existant at RMC.
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