Mayor Steve Bach
A letter writing campaign encouraging Mayor Steve Bach – err, members of a Memorial Health System task force – to take a “Pledge of Integrity” was initiated by the public relations office at Memorial, according to documents obtained from a source.
“Many of you have expressed mistrust about the bidding process over Memorial’s future and the task force overseeing it,” Memorial spokesman Brian Newsome said in an email that was apparently sent to Memorial employees in the past week or so.
“In response, we have drafted a letter and “Pledge of Integrity” designed to address these concerns. If you would like your name on this letter as a show of support, send an email with your name to brian.newsome@memorialhealthsystem.com,” he wrote.
“Your friends and family can e-mail me as well. We will submit the letter to the task force prior to Friday’s meeting,” he added.
Newsome advised recipients of the email to not feel compelled to participate.
“It is our belief that this small act may help build trust and alleviate some of the cynicism and uncertainty many of you are feeling,” he wrote.
The letter drafted by Memorial states that the pledge is not intended to question anyone’s integrity.
“To the contrary,” the letter states, “we believe it will help address mistrust and cynicism and create broader community support of the eventual ballot proposal.”
Memorial’s campaign worked.
More than a 1,000 Memorial employees and supporters signed the letter.
Here’s the email that Newsome sent out:
This is an All Users Communication:
___________________________________________________
All,
Many of you have expressed mistrust about the bidding process over Memorial’s future and the task force overseeing it. Nearly 100 percent of those taking our informal web poll believe the task force should agree to follow Colorado Open Records and Open Meetings Laws.
In response, we have drafted a letter and “Pledge of Integrity” designed to address these concerns. If you would like your name on this letter as a show of support, send an email with your name to brian.newsome@memorialhealthsystem.com.
Your friends and family can e-mail me as well. We will submit the letter to the task force prior to Friday’s meeting.
Please do not feel compelled to participate. This is strictly voluntary, and we are only trying to be responsive to those of you who have expressed your desire to do something.
The letter and associated pledge (both attached) ask all task force members, elected and non-elected, to voluntarily agree to abide by Colorado Open Meetings and Open Records Acts, and to disclose in writing any personal or financial ties associated with affected health systems or the outcome of this process.
It is our belief that this small act may help build trust and alleviate some of the cynicism and uncertainty many of you are feeling.
-Brian Newsome, public relations.
THE LETTER
Sept. 7, 2011
To members of the Memorial Task Force:
We, as employees, physicians, volunteers and community supporters of Memorial Health System, thank you for your time and dedication as you help chart the future of this treasured asset. Whether you are a business leader or a bedside caregiver, you are trying to do something good for this community.
Therefore, we must be especially vigilant in protecting Memorial from the risk of conflicts of interest. Memorial, as such a valued community asset, is vulnerable to special interests if we do not safeguard the process. To that end, we respectfully request each task force member or advisor, appointed and non-appointed, agree to the attached “Pledge of Integrity” in a good faith effort to build trust and transparency.
The pledge is no way intended to question the integrity of anyone sitting on the task force. To the contrary, we believe it will help address mistrust and cynicism and create broader community support of the eventual ballot proposal.
In short, we ask you to:
1. Voluntarily agree to abide by the Colorado Sunshine Laws, which requires transparency among elected officials. This would include, among other things, making meetings of three or more task force members public, and any Memorial-related emails public records.
2. Sign a disclosure form that acknowledges there is no personal or business-related financial gain related to the outcome of Memorial’s future, and addresses any close personal ties you have with Memorial employees or employees of competing health systems.
Sincerely,
PLEDGE OF INTEGRITY
Pledge of Integrity
I, _____________________________, as someone chosen to advise or decide on matters related to the bidding process to manage Memorial Health System, willfully and voluntarily agree to the following terms in an effort build trust and transparency with the community.
–I will voluntarily agree to uphold the basic tenets of the Colorado Sunshine Laws, including but not limited to making meetings of three or more members of the task force open to the public, with at least 24 hours notice accompanied by a posted agenda. Making any of my emails and other documents related to the business of the task force subject to the public in a timely fashion.
–I acknowledge that neither I nor my family or those close to me will incur a financial gain, personally or professionally, as a result of the outcome of
this process or from a specific company that may submit a bid.
–I disclose the following close personal and/or professional relationships or other ties with Memorial Health System, HealthONE, or other health systems that may be a part of this bidding process:
___________________________________________________________________
Signed,
____________________ Date____________
Print____________________________________
Since one side in this debate has begun questioning motives, and also have become the sudden champions of total tranparency, I have my own “pledge of integrity” I would like to see signed by Memorial senior staff and employees.
Memorial Health System Employee Pledge of Integrity
I ______________ , recognizing that I am a public employee who works for the citizen-owners of Memorial Health System, and who also therefore has a direct stake in the outcome of this debate, willfully and voluntarily agree to the following statements in an effort to build trust and transparency with the community.
I hereby acknowledge that any decision about the future ownership of Memorial rests primarily with the citizens of Colorado Springs, who own this asset, not with the employees of Memorial, with senior Memorial staff, with Memorial board members or with non-employees who want to see it turned-over to insider control. I also understand that this is a political decision, resting with voters, on which senior hospital staff should remain strictly neutral and on which hospital time, resources or equipment should never be used.
I also acknowledge, as a Memorial employee or a contract physician, or a spouse or relation to the forementioned, that I’m an interested party to this debate who can’t possibly be objective about the outcome and whose motives should be viewed accordingly.
I also verify that I have never for one moment given thought to how this decision might impact me, by career path, my salary, my standing with superiors, etc., but that the only thought that ever entered by mind is of what’s good for Memorial Health System and the very lucky patients we serve.
As someone who believes strongly in total transparency, I voluntarily agree to uphold the basic tenets of the Colorado Sunshine Laws by immediately disclosing to the media, without the need for a CORA request, all internal communications I’ve had and seen pertaining to this issue, or communications I may have had with outside entities likely to be involved in a Memorial-related ballot question. I understand that lobbying on enterprise time, using enterprise resources, is inappropriate. I also will voluntarily make public any and all communications I’ve had with city council members, Memorial commission members, Memorial board members or campaign-related actors or entities on this issue.
Also, in the interest of maximum transparency, I agree to immediately disclose any information I may have, or evidence I’ve seen, that could raise doubts about the fitness of the current board and management team at Memorial to be trusted with running a stand-alone, self-supporting entity completely free from independent oversight or outside control. I also hereby attest that I’ve seen a detailed and credible plan of how Memorial will become the “Mayo Clinic of Southern Colorado” and that I have total confidence not just in the plan, but in the ability of current enterprise leadership to execute it flawlessly.
I acknowledge that neither I nor my family or those close to me could incur a financial or any other gain, personally or professionally, as a result of the outcome of this process.
Signed,
____________________ Date____________
Print____________________________________
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Daniel, this was no secret. I published this on Memorial’s blog, http://www.thefutureofhealthcare.com, put it on Facebook and told reporters who have been following this story.
Mayor Bach said at an Aug. 23 City Council meeting that he wanted an open and transparent process to further explore Memorial’s future. Once the process was underway, media and the public raised concerns about how much of it would be conducted in the open.
The concerns about how public the process would be was distracting from the process itself. We felt this letter and accompanying pledge would be a constructive and healthy beginning to building trust between the Memorial task force and the public as we all work together toward the same goal: doing what’s right for this community.
More than 1,200 physicians, nurses, faith leaders, community members and others asked to have their names included.
-Brian Newsome, Memorial public relations
Go away Sean
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mfJxC2h4rU&feature=channel_video_title