The CEO and administrator of a North Florida hospital—where a Blountstown woman died months ago—is leaving her post. She’s the latest change, following the firings of three employees last week.
Interim CEO James Heizenrater is slated to take the reins from Calhoun Liberty Hospital CEO Ruth Attaway, who will now lead the hospital’s Board of Directors. Spokeswoman Sandi Poreda says they’ve also named Alliant Management Services to oversee the hospital’s day-to-day operations.
“We stand to gain a lot of wisdom and professional guidance from this hospital management company’s experience,” she said. “They have a lot of experience with hospital administration’s, particularly rural hospitals—particularly in the area of billing and finance. So, we’re excited that they’re on board to help us with that, but we’re still going to be able to rely on Ms. Ruth’s oversight and leadership, particularly her relationships within the community. You know, over the last several months, we’ve really seen the community rally around the hospital. They’ve been incredibly supportive and Ruth is excited that she will be in a position to remain engaged with the hospital and look for new ways to help move it forward.”
The hospital came under scrutiny in December, following the arrest and later death of Barbara Dawson. She’d been complaining about having trouble breathing. The 57-year-old died, after she was forcibly removed from the hospital. Last Friday, the hospital fired three employees who oversaw her care.
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