Cardinal News: Then & Now takes a look back at the stories we brought you over the last 12 months. Through the end of the year, we’re sharing updates on some of the people and issues that made news in 2023. This installment: health care.
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Work continues on improving health outcomes in Martinsville-Henry County
Then: Health outcomes among the residents of the Martinsville-Henry County area held the attention of local and state officials in 2023, thanks to a local collaborative’s ongoing efforts to find fairness in community health outcomes.
This loose collaborative consists of health professionals and concerned residents. Since 2021, this group has studied regional health needs and demographic health differences. This past year, the group both increased its efforts and gained a measure of publicity.
In April, the Virginia Department of Health announced that the Martinsville area was one of 15 locations nationwide recognized for efforts to both understand the area’s health needs and apply solutions in an equitable way.
The collaborative took part in a series of surveys spearheaded by the Health Department and the Harvest Foundation. The organizations presented their findings in a joint public meeting in which they informed the public that the region was lagging behind in a number of factors determining community health.
[Disclosure: The Harvest Foundation is one of our donors, but donors have no say in news decisions; see our policy.]
Now: Since then, the collaborative has used the studies as a means to galvanize the community and persuade others to take part in their efforts to improve the area’s health outlook. Nancy Bell, the Health Department’s population health manager, said the collaborative’s work has ramped up.
“The equity collaborative has completed the data-seeking portion of its community equity study and have been divided into subgroups to begin looking at solutions,” Bell said.
These subgroups cover the key areas the collaborative is currently focused on, including maternal health, chronic disease, the unhoused, substance abuse/mental health and transportation.
“The groups meet at least once per month to further study root causes, determine what resources are missing and explore evidence-based solutions,” Bell said.
Pamela Chitwood, health equity specialist for the state Health Department, said she is encouraged by the enthusiasm of participants, adding that the current effort might be able to move the needle regarding to community health outcomes.
“The equity collaborative has been invigorated by the participation of new partners including local government officials, people with lived experience, and business and nonprofit leaders,” Chitwood said. “This combined effort has assisted us as we break down the highlighted issues into smaller workgroups. There is more work to be done and we still need more participants to help with the creation of programs and policies that will make changes here in Martinsville and Henry area.”
Chitwood said anyone who is interested in the collaborative can attend a monthly meeting or email her at pamela.chitwood@vdh.virginia.gov to get more information.
— Dean-Paul Stephens
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No ruling on lawsuit seeking to oust Bristol abortion clinic
Then: Late in 2022, the owners of the building that houses Bristol Women’s Health sued the clinic, seeking to terminate its lease and claiming that they were misled about the fact that it would provide abortions.
In May, a hearing was held in the case. Judge Sage Johnson ruled that the suit can proceed, but dismissed the clinic’s owner and a doctor who was involved with starting the clinic as individual defendants.
The lawsuit was filed by Kilo Delta, a company owned by brothers Chase King and Chadwick King, which leased the building on Osborne Street in west Bristol to the abortion clinic. The clinic opened in the summer of 2022, and its one-year commercial lease with renewal options started June 1.
The suit claimed that the clinic’s owner concealed the fact that it would provide abortions, which has resulted in financial and social losses for the owners. The clinic’s owner, Diane Derzis of Alabama, has denied the accusation.
The judge did not rule on another motion by Alexis Tahinci, Derzis’ attorney, that the lawsuit be dismissed because the building’s owners waited six months to file it.
Now: There has been no ruling on the suit, and no further hearings or a trial date have been set. Nothing has been filed in the case since June 30, according to the court’s website.
Meanwhile, the clinic continues to operate and is now six months into its second year of leasing the building. Derzis said the clinic is doing well, and she recently hired a new administrator.
Jeff Campbell, who had been the attorney for Kilo Delta, resigned his House of Delegates seat in July and he was appointed as a judge to fill a general district vacancy. Terry Kilgore, the Republican delegate from Gate City, now serves as the attorney for Kilo Delta.
Both Kilgore and Tahinci said there is nothing new on the lawsuit.
— Susan Cameron
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Future of Patrick County hospital remains unclear
Then: In 2022, Chicago-based Foresight Health announced it would renovate and reopen Pioneer Community Hospital of Patrick County, which closed in 2017. The company originally said the hospital would reopen by the beginning of 2023.
By that July, it had pushed the reopening to January 2023 and then failed to meet that deadline. Company officials told local leaders that renovations had been more difficult than expected.
In March, company president and CEO Sameer Suhail said crews were removing asbestos and making “other necessary facility updates” at the former hospital.
In July, the Stuart Town Council tabled a rezoning request from Foresight, with officials citing communication concerns as one of the reasons behind the decision.
Now: Confidence in the project is waning among some officials who expressed ongoing concern about communication from developers.
“We have received no updates,” said county supervisor Denise Stirewalt, later adding, “That’s a little bit discouraging.”
Supervisor Dan Simmons agreed.
“I’ve always been skeptical,” he said last week. “In my personal opinion, the public does need more information. We need to get more information soon, as soon as possible, to the public to let everybody know what’s real and what is going to happen and not happen.”
Foresight representatives did not respond to requests for comment for this update.
— Dean-Paul Stephens