Community Hospital Monterey Peninsula fined by state

A 2013 incident where a female patient was given a medication to increase blood pressure without an order after surgery to remove plaque from an artery has landed CHOMP with a hefty fine. According to the California Department of Public Health report, the medication caused significant complications to the patient including profuse bleeding, a ‘blown patch’ on the repaired artery, a tracheotomy, CPR, a loss of consciousness, a return to surgery and a brain injury. The patient died 11 days after surgery

In the CDPH report, CHOMP failed to ensure the health and safety of the patient when it did not follow procedures for safe distribution and administration of medication. The penalty for that is $50,000. This is the hospital’s first ‘Immediate Jeopardy’ administrative penalty.

Administrative penalties are issued under authority granted by Health and Safety Code section 1280.1. Under this provision, an administrative penalty carries a fine of $50,000 for the first violation, $75,000 for the second, and $100,000 for the third or subsequent violation by the licensee.

When hospitals receive their survey findings, they are required to provide CDPH with a plan of correction to prevent future incidents. If a hearing is requested and the penalty upheld following an appeal, the penalties must be paid.

CHOMP responded to News Channel 5 with this statement: Patient safety is our highest priority at Community Hospital and we strive to achieve it every day, in every action and interaction. After this tragic incident occurred in 2013, we took immediate steps to understand what happened and how it happened. We put in place corrective policies and procedures to address issues that were identified and have followed them since to prevent this type of incident from happening again.
All hospitals in California are required to be in compliance with applicable state and federal laws and regulations to ensure quality of care.

A total $775,000 in fines was levied against 12 California hospitals in this latest round of ‘Immediate Jeopardy’ fines from the CDPH.