Children's CEO Seeks More Money and Fame; Citizens Seek Infection Control

"The best doctors, the best nurses, the best everybody, want to be in a hospital that's on the cutting edge," he says. And while it may take 20 years for a research project to bear fruit, "you get that best doctor — that's tomorrow." So says CEO Tom Hansen in the Seattle Times on February 6. What's missing is an answer to when the Hospital will start ensuring that those "best" doctors and nurses start following the Hospital's infection control procedures.

"Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center consistently ranks high among the country's children's hospitals. It deserves this community's gratitude and support." says the editorial in the Seattle Times on February 6. It's much easier to "rank high" when you are able to hide your infection rate.

"Rep. Tom Campbell's bill (HB 1015) will require reporting of hospital-acquired infections in Washington. Despite opposition from the powerful hospital lobby, Rep. Campbell was able to get the support he needed to pass the Washington House of Representatives. Now the Senate Health and Long-Term Care Committee will hold a public hearing next Monday, February 20, at 3:30 PM. It is crucial that this bill get the support of this committee and some members of the committee may be hostile to this important legislation. " says Consumers Union, the publishers of Consumer Reports.

Tom Hansen continues to seek money, power, and fame and continues to disregard internal quality control. How do I know this? Because when I asked what had been done since my daughter Hunter's previous surgery to avoid infection during her next surgery, the head of Infection Control said, and this is a direct quote: "Nothing, really." That, and the fact that I requested 15 minutes of Tom's time to discuss the matter and he refused

But they sure have been busy raising funds to "eliminate disease in children." Maybe they should start by "eliminating infections in Children's" because that, in this Hospital alone, is costing our society millions of dollars per year - which could go a long way toward funding Tom's research ambitions if it wasn't coming out of our pockets otherwise.

Fortunately, Consumers Union is going to be publicizing Hunter's story, nationwide. I knew this little girl would change the world, and I think we're all going to be surprised at how much change she causes, and how quickly. I suspect Tom will continue to ignore this and spend his time raising funds to build his new research center. Tom has never met Hunter, because he apparently doesn't bother to come down to visit patients. But he has no idea how little Hunter is about to rock his world.