Chillicothe, Ohio-based Adena Regional Medical Center fired three workers who allegedly shared information that criticized the hospital and some of its staff, NBC affiliate WCMH reported May 25.
In March, allegations of sexual misconduct were made against two healthcare providers and in April, claims were made that a surgeon performed a cardiac procedure before receiving proper credentials. The people accused of wrongdoing still work at Adena, according to the report; however, the hospital has fired three employees who had connections to ex-employees or shared information critical of the hospital.
Rene Compher-Johnson worked at the hospital for 11 years part time. She shared posts on her Facebook page from an account called "Blimp Arms," which shared information critical of Adena Health System. Ms. Compher-Johnson said she was called into a meeting in early May regarding the posts she had shared and was later fired, according to the report.
Another employee, who wished to remain anonymous, said he was pulled aside by upper management and questioned in February. He was asked if he had connections to people who used to work at Adena. When he confirmed, he said management asked to see old text messages or Facebook messages. He did not have any messages to show, and a couple of weeks later, he said he was asked if he logged on to his Facebook on his Adena-issued phone so they could pull the messages. He declined, the report said.
He was fired a couple weeks later, though he said the reason was unclear.
"They said I violated one of the core values and I asked which one," he told WCMH. "They said, 'Well, legal advised us that's all we could say.'"
The third employee, James Manazer, MD, was terminated because he provided an interview to WCMH regarding a physician who allegedly performed surgery without proper credentials.
"Dr. James Manazer is no longer with the organization. Dr. Manazer admitted to providing an interview to WCMH that relayed false and defamatory information," a May 18 internal memo read.
Dr. Manazer was a vascular surgeon at Adena since 2006 and served as chief of surgery since 2023. He told WCMH that he had seen information showing the credentials of one physician who performed transcatheter aortic valve replacements was incomplete in March 2022 at the time of the procedures.
Adena's leadership has vehemently denied that claim and told WCMH the hospital could not share the dated credentialing documents, citing company policy. The physician in question is currently credentialed to perform the procedure, according to the hospital and Dr. Manazer.
"As a physician, if there's patients being harmed or if there's anything going on improper, I have a duty to report that information," he told WCMH. "My expectation is that the truth will eventually come out and that people will understand that I am telling the truth."
The hospital shared a statement with the news station:
"Adena Health thoughtfully and judiciously considers all factors when making decisions that impact employment. We have established policies and procedures that foster a trustful and safe environment and that prioritizes the needs of our caregivers, physicians, and patients. Adena terminated Dr. Manazer because he engaged in a slew of inappropriate activities that violated his contract and the system's code of conduct."