Starting Feb. 17, Adventist HealthCare will manage Howard University Hospital for the next three years.
In wards seven and eight the hospital’s reputation is not stellar, but it is the closest one to residents who live in the area. Howard University Hospital’s current safety grade rating is a D under the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades, and over the past four years the hospital received two Fs.
The hospital’s newest CEO, Anita L.A. Jenkins, is looking to change that and said she wants patients to notice an improvement in quality of care as soon as they walk in.
“We will look at patient safety, patient quality, patient outcomes, patient experience, all of those things are part of meeting that goal,” Jenkins said.
Howard University President Dr. Wayne A.I. Frederick said strengthening what they do around the College of Medicine is critical. However, Frederick noted 80 percent of the hospital’s current patients are under medicaid and medicare, but reimbursements of medicare can be challenging.
Bernie Reid-Bennet, a resident who grew up in the area and works at the College of Dentistry at Howard said the hospital isn’t as busy as it used to be.
“It's supposed to be a learning, teaching institution; it just doesn't seem like that to me,” Reid-Bennet said.
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Jenkins, Frederick and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser are hopeful this merger with Adventist HealthCare will improve the hospital’s service.
“In the future we want to make sure this partnership is strong,” Jenkins said. “And we are thinking of acquiring Howard University Hospital without losing any of its history and value.”
