POWAY: Radiologists protest cancellation of contract with PPH

Valley Radiology has provided imaging services to district's patients for 30-plus years

By ANDREA MOSS - Staff Writer | Monday, July 14, 2008 11:23 PM PDT ∞

Vascular surgeon Anatoly Bulkin tells Palomar Pomerado Health's board Monday that he would have to leave Valley Radiology Consultants if the medical group's contract with the hospital district is canceled. Bulkin spoke during the public comment part of a board meeting at Pomerado Hospital in Poway. (Photo by John Koster - For the North County Times)

Palomar Pomerado Health board Chairman Bruce Krider, President and CEO Michael Covert and board member Nancy Bassett listen to doctors from the Valley Radiology Consultants Monday. The physicians used the public comment part of a board meeting to tell their version of why the public hospital district is canceling their contract after 31 years. (Photo by John Koster - For the North County Times)

POWAY ---- Doctors with an Escondido radiology medical group on Monday urged Palomar Pomerado Health to reconsider its plans to cancel the district's contract with the group, saying the move would make it harder for community members to get important health care services.

Anatoly Bulkin, a vascular surgeon who was recruited by Valley Radiology Consultants in 2003, told the public hospital district's board of trustees he would have to leave the area if the group's contract were dropped at the end of the year. The district runs Palomar Medical Center in Escondido and Pomerado Hospital in Poway.

Four radiologists with the group said it has provided excellent ultrasound, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, neuroradiology and other imaging services to the district's patients for more than 30 years.

"Why fix something that everyone in the medical profession admits isn't broken?" said radiologist Allen Nalbandian.

Delivered during a board meeting at Pomerado Hospital, the appeal seemed to elicit some sympathy from Directors Linda Greer and Nancy Bassett. Both are nurses.

"I'd like to see open communication to see if we could come to a meeting of the minds," Bassett said.

Other directors said the district could not respond publicly to the group's request because the two sides were still negotiating. Board Chairman Bruce Krider suggested the district's joint conference committee would be a better venue for further discussions between hospital officials and Valley Radiology.

Board member Marcelo Rivera, who is also a physician, agreed.

"We cannot answer and negotiate contracts in public," he said.

District officials have characterized their decision to end the contract with Valley Radiology at the end of the year as one of several cost-cutting moves aimed at getting PPH's budget back on track.

Audited results for the fiscal year that ended June 30 have not been released yet, but preliminary figures made public last month showed the district expected to have an operating deficit of about $4.5 million for the year.

The loss is a major problem because the district is building a new hospital in Escondido as part of a $1 billion expansion plan. A financial plan designed to ensure PPH has enough money for the expansion requires the district to achieve annual operating surpluses for several consecutive years.

The day after the likely deficit was made public, the district laid off 86 administrative employees and surgeons.

Radiologists Timothy Feng, Paul Rickards and Gary Spoto joined Bulkin and Nalbandian in addressing the board. The men's medical group offers outpatient services at three locations: Gateway Radiology Center in Poway, Parkway Radiology Center in Escondido, and Poway-based Pomerado Imaging, which the radiology group and the hospital district operate together.

The radiologists told the board they believed heavy operating losses at a $14 million women's center that opened at Pomerado Hospital earlier this year and disputes regarding financial risks, business practices and the sharing of revenue at the joint venture were the real reasons the contract is being canceled.

"Our livelihood has been threatened repeatedly," Rickards said. "The message being sent is as long as funds are short for the new hospital, all our jobs are threatened. ... I can no longer as a young physician afford to continue practicing."

Another Valley Radiology physician sued PPH and its president and chief executive officer, Michael Covert, last month, accusing them of privacy violations and causing emotional distress because the district allegedly intercepted explicit e-mails the doctor sent to his girlfriend. The physician, Andrew Polansky, is seeking at least $2 million in damages because PPH suspended his right to practice at the district's hospitals.

The suit has raised questions about whether retaliation could be behind the decision to cancel the medical group's contract. Covert denied that it is; he also said patients would not be left hanging if Valley Radiology's services are terminated.

""Even if we had closed (the outside facilities), we would be moving those services back into Palomar and Pomerado," Covert said, referring to the hospitals. "So those services to the community would not be going away.

Contact staff writer Andrea Moss at (760) 739-6654 or amoss@nctimes.com.