SwiftVets.com

[SBD]

Lots of information about the Hospice of the Suncoast that will make you angry. This is a pretty extensive resource, so I thought a new thread was in order.

Hospice Patients Alliance
The Hospice Patients Alliance was formed in August of 1998 as a nonprofit charitable organization and is a 501(c)(3) corporation serving the general public throughout the United States. We were formed by experienced hospice staff and other health care professionals who saw that hospices were not always complying with the standards of care, and in fact, were in some cases, violating the rights of patients and families and exploiting them for financial gain, or not providing adequate care to control pain or other distressing symptoms during the end of life period.

Link to Suncoast Entry Page

I thought this was good info to start with as it relates to how the VA would handle Terri's case.

Death Hospice Bans Volunteer Who Respects Disability Rights
January 2, 2004



[Note from Ron P: Those of you who have read about Hospice of the Florida Suncoast (the death hospice where Terri was imprisoned for three YEARS though not terminal) will know about all the incredible violations of standards and regulations at the hospice; the findings of the federal government that the hospice improperly billed for SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS. You will know that the hospice ADMITS to having transferred millions of dollars from Medicaid and donations to their FOR-PROFIT subsidiary, Suncoast Solutions.

Now, they are exposed as banning anyone who values life and believes the NON-terminal should get rehab and should NOT be hastened to their death! Hospices are required to have volunteers, trained volunteers. This gentleman, John Schestag of Ozona, FL who wrote in to HPA is trained and experienced, yet he is being banned by Mary Labyak and George Felos's death hospice. I have spoken to him and confirmed with him the details of his letter and the bias of this Hospice of the Florida Suncoast against those who care for Terri, who believe she should have rehabilitation or who simply are pro-life! - Ron P]

Here's John's letter from Florida:

"Hello, Ron Panzer,

Subject: My Sad "Local" Hospice Banishment Story

"I really enjoyed our conversation and your kind words and support about
my recent painful and emotional battle with Hospice of the
Florida SunCoast [HFSC] after being banished from volunteering there.

"I was happy that you had a fair and open mind and also supported most
Hospice individuals and that not all hospice organizations are corrupt like HFSC.

"I will again contact and leave more messages with the regional Director,
Mary Labyak, by the middle of next week if she and the Bay Pines
Director, Dr. Hull and Assistant Director, Debra Grassman continue to
refuse to respond to my numerous calls for a meeting at their Hospice
Headquarters in Largo.

"I have requested their long "promised" written and signed formal
explanation of their corrupt political actions against me as a right to
life Hospice volunteer. I had already been schooled within their Hospice
volunteer system classes for the VA, in their computer [setup] and was issued a Hospice identification badge and a special vehicle parking sticker.

"Because of the national news coverage, I had discussed with several
staff people in re-hab and oncology infusion center and on the Hospice
wing that if Terri Schiavo was a disabled veteran and her service
related brain injury disability was due to combat and she had no written
medical instructions and could "not yet communicate" her own true wishes
until years of prescribed professional swallowing and speech therapy
were completed, would they refuse to treat her in re-hab?

"The staff said, "No, she deserves and needs re-hab" ....and thousands of
vets are living and are loved in America with very similar or worse
brain injuries and a feeding tube from battle trauma and/or cancer.

"I continued: .... and would the same Hospice officials also demand that the
doctors at the VA at Bay Pines pull her feeding tube and just murder her
by starvation based solely on an estranged and unfaithful husband's
alleged recent "surprise recollection" ......only and until a huge
financial settlement was awarded to her for "her" years of
rehabilitation care while he instead was spending it as though it was
his money and was living it up and having children with his newest lover
he calls his fiancee?

"The staff said, "No...... she really needs re-hab".

"When word of my personal spoken views got to the top management of
Hospice of the Florida Sun Coast through an assistant Hospice social
worker aide, I then became "very unwanted" though I was a previously "much needed"
Hospice volunteer. I was IMMEDIATELY banned by Hospice management as a "danger" because I expressed my personal right to life views in public.

"I was also banned, as a veteran and a cancer patient, from attending my
weekly cancer support group headed by the same group of people.... as I
also suffer from a nasty case of relapsed cancer and they "had" said I
was already signed up for their Hospice services "when the time
came"........

"They had given me several musical tapes and materials that taught me how
to let go of my life and die and put my last words on the path to death
poster in the hallway. Being very shocked.... I "quickly" reminded them that I was on a new and very hopeful clinical trial and asked them if they ever advised their
Hospice cancer patients, young or old, of any new cancer breakthrough vaccine clinical trials that may save their life.....

"They then said, "We don't do that"!

"After my personal right to life comments, they then claimed they
"thought" that I didn't "really" have relapsed cancer because I "looked"
like I didn't have cancer, even though I had provided medical proof
(CT's and my past chemo infusion documents and my relapsed tumor staging
results) to the Hospice officials and the infusion center.

"Nevertheless...... I'm still being banned from Hospice and my cancer
support group as a 62 year old vet.

"Ron..... I was always comfortable and trusted my dedicated love for the
alleged Hospice tenderness and for (what I thought to be their) sanctity for life professionalism. Now, however, my own personal and sad experience with this local
Hospice's politics and "organized hate" from their top officials is all
very, very scary and shocking!

Where do citizen's go for help now? I now worry about all of the
helpless local people without caring families currently locked in the
Hospice "system".

If there is a National Headquarters for Hospice, will you please help me
expose this outrageous treatment I've received?

Thanks for your courtesy.....

All the very best

John Schestag
Ozona, FL

[John, we have just exposed this outrageous treatment which you received, and we urge all readers of the HPA newsletter to share this story with others who are concerned and also write a letter to the editor at the local St Petersburg Times to report that the hospice will not allow volunteers who respect life to help with patients at the hospice. You can contact the St Petersburg Times by sending an email to: letters@SPTimes.com make sure to include: verifiable name, address, phone number.]

SBD

[BuffaloJack]

And here I naively thought that the prime duty a hospice was to easy the suffering and pain of terminally ill patients and make their final days as comfortable and easy to bear as possible. Boy was I wrong. This one appears no different than death row at the nearest penal institution.

[Tanya]

You have to scroll down to the bottom on this link for the info. posted here

http://www.eeng.net/eeng/ribbon/html/news___links.html


"Congressman Bilirakis congressman for many years. Now his son Gus Michael Bilirakis serves on the Suncoast Hospice Board of Directors.

There are actually three boards because there are profits and non-profits.

The salaries at the top are sky high."

Barbara Sheehan Todd also serves on the Hospice Board. She was a County Commissioner the same time (1980-9 Judge Greer was a Pinellas county commissioner from 1984-92.

Judge Greer was a zoning lawyer.
http://www.sptimes.com/News/042801/TampaBay/Judge_George_Greer.shtml

Atty George Felos sat on the Hospice Board Felos has been paid approximately $550,000.00 Judge Greer used to be on Hospice's Board too (ED: Chairman of the Board)

Martha Lenderman - outgoing chairman of hospice, chair for 2 years, is sister of Judge John Lenderman (Family Law Division with Judge Greer)

Richard M Jerger, Jr (was a president of Pinellas Independent Agents, Inc in 1990-1991) is a holder in the PHILADELPHIA CONSOLIDATED HOLDING CORP which bought out Jerger and Sons. insured mobile homes

Raymond Blacklidge is a registered lobbyist in the Florida Legislature who works for the Jerger Company. Blacklidge is a Business Partner to Richard Jerger, who is an Insurance Executive selling mobile home insurance in the state of Florida. Jerger somehow became the Business Partner to Michael Schiavo.

Jodi Centonze is Michael Schiavo's domestic partner and now mother of his 2 children.
http://pao.co.pinellas.fl.us/htbin/cgi-scr3?o=1&a=1&b=1&r=&s=1&u=0&p=29+28+16+61655+000+0390267%2C302337%2C661&name=View

Barry G. Wilkinson registered agent for Jerger Ins.

Judge Greer and Robert Wharrie (hospice) are on the same discussion PANEL!! Almost at the bottom of the page

http://www.clwbar.org/resipsa/december-january02/article462.html.

The Mcconihay Greer Connection Together on the board of "Suncoast Christian Camps Inc"... with GREER as registered agent..

The Damonte -Mcconihey connection

The Damonte - Mcconihay corp is called "Approved Management Corporation"...

Jonathan Damonte -lawyer for the Mobile home association, is connected to Greer through a business partner, Stephen McConihey

2nd Felon Gets 2nd Chance at Hospice
A payroll worker is the second employee the hospice hired in recent years despite a criminal record.
-After pleading guilty to felony grand theft in 2001 and being sentenced to five years of probation, (she used company credit card to use for work purchases to charge $7,791 for personal items before getting caught.) Karen Langan was looking for a new job.
-Another employee, Susan A. Wynn, pleaded guilty in Georgia to embezzlement in 1996 after admitting that she stole $370,000 from a public agency. Wynn, who served prison time and is on probation, works as an administrative assistant to the hospice's vice president of finance.

Link:St Petersburg Times Online
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/06/26/Northpinellas/2nd_felon_gets_2nd_ch.shtml

Based on his testimony promising rehabilitation services for Terri, in part, the malpractice jury awarded Mr. Schiavo $1,200,000.00, of which approximately $700,000.00 was placed in a trust fund for Terri's support and maintenance.

Terri has not been certified as "Terminally ill" as required by federal regulations for the use of federal funds for hospice care, yet has resided at Hospice Woodside since March or April, 2000.

I am way past the blur stage. Who knew we would uncover so many complexities and turf wars between Hospice and former employees? This is a major legal-medical situation with political overtones without taking into account religious implications."

[SBD]

I think he even took out a fraudulent insurance policy on Teri so he can collect after he kills her since he is now in the Insurance Business apparently.


Jerger and Centonze Insurance Agency





Link to Articles of Incorporation

http://66.135.39.97/jerger.pdf

SBD