CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — The Chief Executive Officer of southern Ohio’s largest medical group is accused of using his position to influence surgeries and their waitlists.
Adena Medical Group’s CEO Jeff Graham had a family member who was having surgery on Friday, according to an online posting. Another person, who was present for surgery that day, said there were seven people on the waitlist for orthopedic surgery, and that the time assigned to each patient for surgery was “first come, first serve.”
“They say at Adena that it’s all about you, the patient,” wrote an upset family member on social media. “What they should be saying is, ‘at Adena, it’s all about who you know.’”
According to the posting, Graham’s family member was pushed to the top of the list and whisked away into surgery ahead of their assigned spot on the list, cutting everyone else in line.
The posting went on to say that the others on the list were pushed down and were assigned a contractual surgeon, while the family member received an Adena-employed surgeon.
The Guardian has not been able to independently confirm the allegations.
“Do you think any patient can just switch their doctor at the last minute …. or [did] the Adena administration [not] trust their own temporary doctors they hired?”
The Guardian reached out to Adena’s public relations department for comment on the allegation. A spokesman for the hospital group said the organization does not comment on “patient medical information for their privacy and protection.” When counter-asked with a second question about the allegations that the CEO used his position to influence surgeries — without revealing medical information about those involved — the spokesman did not answer.
The last year has been turmoil for the hospital group. They are currently embattled in a gnarly lawsuit involving eight physicians who quit their jobs, and recently, the organization furloughed more than 500 employees amid the pandemic while facing a $50 million deficit.
Graham has been CEO of the organization since July 2017.