Durham Regional Hospital Gets Clean Bill Of Health From State

DURHAM, N.C. -- Durham Regional Hospital was notified on Monday by the North Carolina Division of Facility Services (DFS) that the hospital has taken appropriate corrective action in response to concerns about patient care and is now in full compliance with the rules of participation in Medicare. Hospital Chief Executive Officer Richard J. Liekweg said he is pleased with the outcome. "Our No. 1 priority at Durham Regional Hospital has been, and continues to be, providing the best possible care to our patients," Liekweg said. "We took immediate steps to address the issues DFS raised, and we are very pleased that they have found us to be in full compliance. More importantly, though, we are proud of the steps we have taken to enhance the high level of care we provide our patients." In February, DFS made an unannounced visit to Durham Regional in response to complaints from four patients who received services at the hospital early last year. In a formal report received by the hospital April 10, DFS cited Durham Regional for deficiencies in the areas of nursing services and patients rights. On April 15, the hospital submitted to the state a written action plan that addressed how Durham Regional had addressed each of the issues DFS raised. That plan was accepted by the state, and earlier this month a six-member survey team from DFS returned to Durham Regional to validate that the hospital had corrected the issues. Durham Regional received verbal notification that it was in compliance immediately following that survey on May 2 and received official written notification from the state Monday. "We are very fortunate to have such a dedicated team of health care professionals. They work hard each and every day to make sure we are providing quality care, and they deserve to be commended for the work they have done," Liekweg said. "As an organization, we will continue to constantly monitor our performance to make sure we are taking steps to provide the highest level of patient care for the residents of this community."