Editor, Commonwealth:
The actions taken Tuesday night with the firing of Jim Jackson as CEO of Greenwood Leflore Hospital and having no apparent plan of action made it clear to me that the majority of the board is acting on emotions and behaving in a vindictive manner.
It is easy to put the blame on one person when times are difficult, but I think it will soon be realized that Jim Jackson is not the problem.
Jim Jackson is and has always been one of the hardest-working and most dedicated persons I have ever known. I have worked with him closely the last five years and have seen nothing but a desire to do the best he can for the employees of the hospital and the people it serves, regardless of race, creed or color.
Take a look around. The entire Mississippi Delta’s population is declining. Washington County’s population over the last 30 years has declined more than 30 percent; Leflore County over 25 percent; Humphreys County 30 percent; Tallahatchie County 22 percent; Sunflower County 11 percent; Montgomery County 14 percent; Holmes County 12 percent and Grenada County 10 percent. The biggest reason for GLH’s financial trouble is due to lack of volume. GLH’s service area, mainly the counties just mentioned, over the last 35 years has lost almost 50,000 people. The worst part is that these declines are expected to continue.
The median household income in Leflore County is around $24,000. GLH has to see everybody who comes through its doors. Many cannot pay. GLH has to eat that debt. The decision not to accept Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act has had a devastating effect not just on GLH but many hospitals in Mississippi. Is this Jim Jackson’s entire fault?
There has to be a cultural commitment to change in the Mississippi Delta. We have to find a niche that will make GLH a beacon of light here.
I also believe that there has been too much outside interference with the operation of the hospital. There is not an understanding of the term “governance.” There is day-to-day management, and there is policymaking. We don’t have it right.
There seems to also be something akin to arm-twisting designed to make people agree with others’ way of thinking. That must stop. If the boards that appoint these people to the hospital commission don’t think the people whom they want to appoint are capable enough to make good decisions without instructing them on what to say and do, then they don’t need to appoint them.
Larry Griggs
Greenwood
Editor’s note: Larry Griggs is a member of the Greenwood Leflore Hospital Board. He voted against the firing of Jim Jackson and announced that he will no longer serve on the board when his term expires in May.
