Hillsborough Sheriff's Office opens medical clinic for in-ho
Results 1 to 2 of 2
 
  1. #1
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Posts
    1,048

    Hillsborough Sheriff's Office opens medical clinic for in-ho

    Hillsborough Sheriff's Office opens medical clinic for in-house exams

    From TampaBay.com

    TAMPA — Hillsborough deputies now have their own clinic.

    Last month, a physician hired by the Sheriff's Office began examining employees and prospective employees for initial workers' compensation visits and physicals.

    The move, expected to cost about $700,000 a year, should save the Sheriff's Office at least $200,000 annually, said HCSO risk management director Richard Swann.

    The agency, which employs about 3,800 people, plans to add general practice services in the coming years.

    Because of rising health care costs, the Sheriff's Office began researching the possibility of opening a clinic in 2009.

    HCSO already negotiates medical fees with vendors, but costs can increase and contracts can change, Swann said. A medical center is more of a fixed expense.

    "This takes one of the unknowns out of the equation," he said.

    Swann said staff salaries will make up the biggest expense. The department hired one doctor and five other medical professionals.

    Dr. Toni Belisle comes to the Sheriff's Office from Florida Hospital, once known as University Community Hospital, where she worked for 10 years. She has training in occupational health and has worked with law enforcement.

    She said Florida Hospital was supportive of the project and advised the Sheriff's Office about equipment and other needs.

    The clinic, near the Falkenburg Road Jail, opened last month in a building already owned by the county. Once a contractor's office, it was renovated to include four exam rooms, a small pharmacy and a space for drug-, hearing- and vision-testing equipment.

    The doctor's office's computer records are separate from those of the Sheriff's Office. The only information that will be shared is the data that would have been released anyway for workers' compensation claims and pre-employment physicals, Swann said.

    "No one in the agency has access to the medical records except for us," Belisle said.

  2. #2
    Guest

    Re: Hillsborough Sheriff's Office opens medical clinic for i

    http://www.firehouse.com/news/news/flor ... ep-working
    OR JUST GO TO FIREHOUSE.COM and type in BLUNDER

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •