Water Damage Restoration in Waterbury, CT

WATERBURY – An independent monitor to keep watch on patient care at Waterbury Hospital and two others owned by its corporate owner has yet to be hired, nearly a month after Gov. Ned Lamont said his administration told Prospect Medical Holdings to do so.

State Sen. Joan V. Hartley said she has learned that installation of an independent monitor was part of a negotiated agreement between Prospect Medical, which also owns Manchester Memorial and Rockville General in Vernon, and DPH.

Negotiations through legal counsel on the matter are ongoing, said Christopher Boyle, director of communications for the state Department of Public Health.

Lamont has said he remains concerned about patient care and safety at all of Prospect’s hospitals as a legal battle between Yale New Haven Health and Prospect drags on concerning the sale of Prospect’s hospitals.

With no deal in sight, two unions at Waterbury Hospital and state and local leaders worry patient care is at risk, alleging inadequate staffing and equipment and a failure by the hospital to follow requirements of a new staffing law.

The Attorney General’s office is investigating Prospect Medical Holdings, but the details are not available for public comment, said Elizabeth Benton, spokeswoman for the office.

Potential buyer Yale New Haven Health filed for a declaratory judgment in May that it is not obligated to close the sale because Prospect Medical Holdings allegedly violated the purchase agreement. Prospect brought a counterclaim against Yale for allegedly breaking the agreement by refusing to pay the negotiated $435 million sales price. The cases have been consolidated in Hartford Superior Court.

There are 47 open nursing positions at Waterbury Hospital, according to the hospital’s website. There are 18 at Midstate Hospital and 27 at Saint Mary’s Hospital, according to their websites.

Ed Gadomski, internal organizer for Connecticut Health Care Associates District 1199 Waterbury Hospital and Tech unions, said nearly every department is understaffed as he alleges state-mandated staffing levels are not being met.

A year and a half ago, Lamont signed a law requiring hospitals to submit nurse staffing plans that both nurses and hospital administrators have supported, with a priority of nurse-to-patient ratios with the goal of quality care.

The new law required an Oct. 1 deadline for hospitals to report to the state Department of Public Health whether they are complying with 80% of nursing staffing assignments in its nurse staffing plan. If a hospital fails to do so, the DPH commissioner must issue an order that requires the hospital to submit and implement a corrective action plan, and the hospital could be fined.

Lauresha Xhihani, communications director for Waterbury Health, said the hospital has been in compliance with at least 80% of the nursing staffing assignments outlined in the hospital’s staffing plan. Boyle said the hospital has submitted the foregoing written certification and the 80% compliance report.

Gadomski disagreed, citing a 50% vacancy rate in the operating room.

Gadomski said nurses are going over their allotted sick time because they are exhausted. He said he filed a complaint with the Department of Public Health over the issue in January and still has not heard back from the agency. Over the summer he filed a complaint concerning alleged violations of the hospital staffing law, and says he has yet to hear back on that complaint.

“I don’t feel like the law is being enforced,” he said. “I can say that I have evidence that the law is being enforced because of what I see and are being told by the nursing staff at Waterbury Hospital. Why doesn’t DPH speak with the front line workers, the nurses and the technicians as opposed to getting an answer from administration?”

He said nurses tell them they are overseeing seven to eight patients at a time which is a violation of the nurse to patient ratio which should be one nurse to five patients.

“If we continue to delay this is a chance of medical errors occurring on a more frequent basis,” he said.

Boyle said that the hospital has submitted the written certifications verifying that the facility is in compliance.

Asked if DPH has investigated that certification to ensure that the hospital is complying with the new law, Boyle said when “DPH surveyors are on site at any health care facility, they carefully review the staffing requirements.”

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Prospect Medical Holdings, a private-equity owned company caught in a legal battle with Yale New Haven Health over its effort to sell three of its hospitals in the state including Waterbury Hospital, is now selling more of its assets across four states.

Astrana Health announced Thursday that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Prospect’s California licensed health care service plan; medical groups in California, Texas, Arizona and Rhode Island; Prospect Medical Group’s management service organization; RightRx pharmacy; and Foothill Regional Medical Center in California, an acute care hospital with 177 licensed beds.

Astrana plans to acquire the Prospect businesses for $745 million.

A Prospect Medical Holdings spokesperson declined to comment on the sale when reached Thursday.

Jim Brown, CEO of Prospect, said in a statement that Prospect is “excited about the opportunity to partner with Astrana to build a larger, stronger and more coordinated care delivery network which we expect will benefit our communities by increasing access, quality, value and efficiency.”

Legal wrangling between Yale New Haven Health and Prospect Medical Holdings continues to plague a possible agreement for Yale to purchase Prospect’s three Connecticut hospitals, including Waterbury Hospital.

Potential buyer Yale New Haven Health filed for a declaratory judgment in May that it is not obligated to close the sale because Prospect Medical Holdings allegedly violated the purchase agreement.

The financially troubled Prospect brought a counterclaim against Yale for allegedly breaking the agreement by refusing to pay the negotiated $435 million sales price. Yale asked Prospect to lower the price to $150 million in a Jan. 31 proposal, and Prospect declined in a Feb. 15 response, according to court filings.

The cases have been consolidated in Hartford Superior Court.

In correspondence to Hartford Superior Court Judge Elizabeth J. Stewart on Oct. 9, Yale cited new concerns that Prospect breached the purchase agreement by failing to contribute to its employees’ pension plans at East Connecticut Health Network, and Manchester and Waterbury hospitals.

As a result, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. has filed a $4 million lien against Prospect, according to Yale’s court correspondence.

Dana Marnane, director of public relations and communications at Yale New Haven Health, has said that the liens add to the more than $100 million Prospect owes the state and local municipalities. This left Yale with no choice but to issue another notice of breach of the asset purchase agreement, Marnane said.

This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Arts & Entertainment

"PHANTOMS OF THE MASONIC HALL" Paranormal Investigation in Waterbury November 15 and 16

Nancy Sasso Janis, Patch Mayor

Press release

“PHANTOMS OF THE MASONIC HALL” Paranormal Investigation in Waterbury Friday and Saturday, November 15 and 16

Waterbury, CT: For many years, there have been reports of paranormal activity at the Masonic Lodge on Highland Avenue in Waterbury. Members of the lodge shared some of the experiences and encounters with a Connecticut investigation team, who will be conducting a proper exploration of the former church on Friday night November 15 and Saturday night, November 16th.The Shaman and The Showman LLC, Thomas Patrick Gormley of Berlin, and Charles F. Rosenay!!! of New Haven, will be leading the investigation along with hosts from the Masonic Hall, and guests who will be part of the supernatural adventure. The paranormal team also produces Salem’s Paranormal Convention in MA, and Connecticut’s annual convention, ParaConn, which is expected to take place in Waterbury in the Summer of 2025.Charles revealed that the ghost hunters had been trying to get permission for this investigation for a few years, after learning of the many reported hauntings in the location. Thomas, who has over forty years of paranormal experience, is excited to visit the Highland Avenue institution. Together, the team has investigated numerous homes, businesses, theaters, and other “spirited” locations. They are expecting great results at this one. Previously, “ghost” themes events like this find participants getting amazing photographs and readings, including a recent exploration in Bristol.The event may be filmed and documented for future use. Participants understand that they may appear in a finished film release. All ages welcome but under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. The fee to participate, including the meal, the introductory seminar, the equipment class, and the investigation itself, is $99 per person. Space is very limited.

Don't miss this rare and raw opportunity. Because of the sensitivity of this event, and since space is so limited, please lock in your reservation as soon as possible. Link to the Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1103394654539055

For information or to make a reservation, email CTParaConnn@gmail.com or phone (203) 795-4737.

Officials with the Waterbury Inland Wetlands Commission approved developer Bluewater Property Group's plan to build an Amazon fulfillment center on the Naugatuck line, after hearing opposition from a handful of residents with environmental concerns.

More than 50 people turned out for the hearing at Waterbury City Hall on Wednesday night, with the Naugatuck Inland Wetlands Commission having scheduled a similar hearing for Thursday.

In Waterbury, a handful of area residents took the opportunity to criticize the plan for the impact the 650,000-square-foot warehouse would have on the environment and wildlife like box turtles, during both construction and regular operation.

Located on a wooded hilltop in the Waterbury-Naugatuck Industrial Park just off Route 8, the Amazon facility would support between 500 and 1,000 jobs depending on seasonal needs, along with construction jobs as the fulfillment center gets built. Several members of Connecticut State Building Trades unions attended in a show of support for the project.

"The people who will be employed obviously will be in this community," said Joshua Garofano, a Bluewater vice president who spoke at the hearing. "They'll go to all the supermarkets and the gas stations and ... the mom-and-pop businesses."

Naugatuck Mayor Pete Hess has projected that taxes from the Amazon fulfillment center would add about $2.5 million in revenue for each city.

But area residents pressed Inland Wetlands Commission officials on Wednesday to consider the impact on nearby residential neighborhoods, and on some 15 acres of wetlands and water runoff from the 105-acre parcel.

"This is a major impact to the city of Waterbury," said Christopher Casey, a retired paramedic, funeral home director and commissioner of the Waterbury Fire Department who lives near the site. "It's virgin land. I played in there when I was a kid."

Inland wetlands commission hearings were tabled last month in both Waterbury and Naugatuck to allow city consultant Tighe & Bond to analyze a site plan filed by Bluewater Property Group, a 1,200-page document that had been prepared by Langan Engineering of New Haven. Waterbury city planner Bob Nerney said that Langan and Bluewater had incorporated several suggested changes by Tighe & Bond to meet city requirements for the project.

Samuel Leisring, chairman of the Waterbury Inland Wetlands Commission, told CT Insider that he was uncertain of any next steps for the city if his counterparts in Naugatuck turn down the application.

"I would assume it goes back to the drawing board," Leisring said.

Music, movies, and pop-culture collectibles retailer FYE is getting ready to reduce the number of stores it has in Connecticut, according to staff who spoke this week with Hearst Connecticut Media.

Mall-based stores in Waterbury, Danbury and Meriden will be closing after the start of the new year, employees in those stores told Hearst Connecticut Media. The employees, who spoke on the condition that their names not be used out of fear that the company would discipline them, said they haven't yet been told the exact closing date.

Officials at the Brass Mill Center mall in Waterbury, Danbury Fair Mall and Meriden Mall have not responded to requests for comment on when the FYE store closings will take place in those locations.

FYE currently has a total of five stores in Connecticut. But the Hearst Connecticut Media has not been able to confirm if FYE stores in the Crystal Mall in Waterford and the Trumbull Mall will remain open.

FYE has been owned by a Canadian record store chain, Sunrise Records in Hamilton, Ontario, since 2020. It's corporate headquarters is in Albany, New York, but company officials did not respond to multiple phone and email messages sent by Hearst in the last week.

David Cadden, a professor emeritus at Quinnipiac University's School of Business, said changing consumer attitudes and new methods of delivering music and movies have hurt FYE's core business.

"When they thrived, it was a different era, but new technology has done them in," Cadden said on Tuesday. "The market that they previously captured has aged and they haven't been able to replace it with younger generations. There is a market for the collectibles they sell, but it's a niche market and not strong enough to keep their stores open."