November 28, 2012

Edher Osrio of Princeton, an emergency room worker at the University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro, has been accused of forcing a female patient to improperly touch him and, in a separate incident, of sexually assaulting another female patient. The alleged contact happened on November 23 with a 60-year-old female patient, while the alleged assault occurred with a 36-year-old female patient in June 2012.

The following statements from Princeton HealthCare System (PHCS) are in response to questions about the ongoing investigation involving PHCS employee, Edher Osorio, and about Mr. Osorio’s return to work after he was the subject of a criminal investigation that was conducted earlier this year. We are providing these statements in response to those inquiries. In June of 2012, a patient complained that a PHCS employee had inappropriate sexual contact with her. The Plainsboro police and the Middlesex County Sex Crimes Unit conducted a thorough investigation and did not find a reason to charge the employee with a crime. The employee was an employee in good standing at that time. As is our practice, we had conducted a thorough pre-employment reference check and criminal background check, and he had passed both. At the time of the investigation, the employee had no record of criminal conduct or of patient complaints and had not been charged with a crime. He was allowed to return to work when the investigation was completed. PHCS is fully cooperating with the police investigation, and are unable to comment on the case.

Mr. Osorio is being held at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center in North Brunswick in lieu of $200,000 bail.

Anyone with information that may be relevant is asked to call Investigator Terpanick of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office at (732) 745-3600, or Detective McElrath of the Plainsboro Police Department at (609) 799-2333.

July 18, 2012

The University Medical Center at Princeton scored 39th among the 62 New Jersey hospitals listed in Consumer Reports’ (CR) recent (August 2012) “Ratings of Hospital Safety” (consumerreports.org).

“Hospitals should be places you go to get better, but too often the opposite happens,” begins the CR report, a sobering fact that appears to have played out in the recent death of 12-year-old Rory Staunton from septic shock in a New York City hospital.

“We believe it is important to give consumers access to information they need to make informed choices about their healthcare, so we support efforts such as the recent Consumer Reports (CR) safety rankings,” said Princeton Healthcare System President and CEO Barry S. Rabner in an email.К“Unfortunately, the rankings relied on some older data and failed to reflect recent improvements.”

Mr. Rabner did not mention the hospital’s move on May 22 to a larger, improved facility, but noted that “our hospital has madeКsignificant improvements over the past few years related to several items factored into the rankings, including infection control, communication with patients regarding their medications, and communication prior to discharge.

“In fact, within the past 10 months, two independent organizations whose purpose is to evaluate the safety and quality of healthcare have given our hospital care their highest marks,” he added.

In a web-based list of “Quick Facts,” the hospital, now known as the University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro, notes that the new facility includes “231 single patient rooms with welcoming décor and amenities that reduce stress and anxiety, while minimizing hospital-acquired infections, improving patient safety, enhancing privacy, improving communications and confidentiality, and speeding recovery.”

The hospital safety rating was a first for CR, which reported “using the most current data available to us at the time of our analysis.” This included information from government and independent sources on 1,159 hospitals in 44 states. They also reportedly interviewed patients, physicians, hospital administrators, and safety experts; reviewed medical literature; and looked at hospital inspections and investigations.

A hospital’s “safety score,” according to Consumer Reports, results when six categories of hospital safety are combined into a score between 1 and 100.

Four measures of safety were actually cited in the list, which was arranged by state. Out of five scores, with five being the best and one the worst, Princeton scored two for infections; two for readmissions; one for communication; and four for scanning. The highest-scoring hospital in the state was Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Browns Mills, followed by Newton Medical Center in Newton. The lowest score went to Kimball Medical Center in Lakewood, followed by JFK Medical Center in Edison.


April 11, 2012

As the May 22 date draws nearer, Princeton Township Committee held a “work session” at its Monday evening meeting, detailing the “old” hospital’s move to the new University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro.

Susan Lorenz, Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer, and Vice President for Government and Community Affairs Pam Hersh described plans for moving patients at the Princeton hospital site to the new facility on opening day. The new campus will include a medical office building attached to the hospital, an education center, a health and fitness center, a skilled nursing facility, a pediatric services facility, and a 32-acre public park.

Estimating that there will be approximately 110 patients to be moved, Ms. Lorenz described how ambulances — including pediatric ambulances — will accomplish the transfer in about six hours, with a patient leaving once every four minutes.

There will be no gap in emergency room services; the current emergency room will close at 7 a.m. on May 22, just as the new one is opening, and both will be fully staffed. There will be a one-week curtailment of non-emergency services, said Ms. Lorenz, citing caesarean sections as an example.

The use of traffic light preemptor devices by ambulance drivers will ensure a quick ride to the new facility, said Ms. Hersh, thanking the town for endorsing their purchase by the hospital. Bus service will be available for non-emergency access to the campus, which Ms. Hersh described as “easy to negotiate.”

Ms. Hersh reported that Outpatient Clinic director Margaret Lancefield had been “eloquent” in expressing concern about how the move would affect the clinic’s patients, many of whom are used to walking to the hospital on Witherspoon Street. It was agreed, Ms. Hersh said, that the level of service for clinic patients should be the same as for other patients, and the hospital offered to provide on-demand transportation for patients who typically walked to the clinic. “But we found that clinic patients don’t like to do that,” said Ms. Hersh, and so they will be eligible for free rides on the bus which will -otherwise cost $1.50. On-demand capability will remain however, using shuttles and cabs. Ms. Hersh also pointed out that “75 to 80 percent” of the clinic’s patients come from east of Route 1. Over 19,000 patients a year reportedly visit the clinic.

The new hospital’s community health information center, which will be staffed by bilingual, non-medical personnel, will provide transportation-related information; information about area community health programs; and “basic health information.”

After the move, the current hospital site will be “in limbo,” said Ms. Hersh, and round-the-clock security personnel will ensure its safety. Landscaping and maintenance will continue, and at the Borough’s request, a final “clean-up” will be done by October. The wide use of signs at the old site was promised to avoid confusion among those patients who continue to go there.

“I for one will miss the easy access to the emergency room,” said Committeemen Bernie Miller, citing the fact that he raised six children in Princeton. “It’s going to leave a hole for some of us.”

“I think you’re going to be surprised because it’s so easy to go to the new hospital,” responded Ms. Hersh, noting that for many people, the new location will be closer. Although 99 percent of Princeton residents currently use the hospital, she noted, they account for only 30 percent of its patient base.

A “community open house” on May 12 will provide an opportunity to become familiar with the new campus.

“Consent agenda” items at the meeting included “separation agreements” for Police Chief Robert Buchanan and Township Administrator James J. Pascale, who both retired effective March 31.

Princeton University’s “voluntary payment” to the Township for 2012 will be $750,000, which is $250,000 more than last year. The additional money will be used, it was agreed, for consolidation costs.