City officials say that more funds are needed to increase the pay of some of Valdosta’s employees, and that is one of the reasons that a tax increase is sorely needed. They cited the loss of public safety workers such as firefighters and police officers to other areas with higher pay. A study showed that the City’s fire, police, and public works department were under paid. There was plenty of feedback from city residents who called for cuts in some parts of city operations. City leaders will host another public forum on the tax millage rate at 5 p.m. Thursday, August 25th at which time the council is expected to vote on the issue.
There will be no Memorandum of Understanding between a company that would run and manage a proposed medical college of osteopathy in Lowndes County and the Hospital Authority. The Authority voted to deny the venture with Lowndes Affiliated Services. The partnership that would have been entered into would have negated South Georgia Medical Center from establishing programs with other medical schools and or institutions for a two year period. An option for the Hospital Authority to create a residency program is open; it comes from Mercer University Medical School.
In memory of loved ones, LAMP has kicked off the Light the LAMP campaign. The year long campaign is designed to allow the community to donate support for the local homeless shelter by donating in memory of a loved one. Donors will be showcased on the organizations website, and donations can be made at www.lampinc.org. LAMP provides a shelter for homeless families, single parents, single women, and men with the ultimate goal of returning them to self-sufficiency. For more information call 245-7157.
Amanda Hoskins reporting for WALB News filed this story: Mistakes made by surgeons operating at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital caused the hospital to report their actions to a federal agency. In response, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services demanded a corrective plan from the hospital. The three incidents reported involve the performance of surgical procedures without proper consent from the patients. During one operation, the surgeon was supposed to reconstruct or remove a patient’s right hip but instead operated on the left. This was not the first incident according to the letter for this doctor. The doctor had an additional wrong-site surgery incident in 2010. The hospital suspended one of the two responsible surgeons and put all members of the team on leave.
