Hospital Director in Kelheim Has Mysteriously Vanished
Kelheim, Germany - A sudden management change has occurred at St. Lukas Hospital, Caritas, as Sabine Hehn, the business manager who joined from the Bavarian consulting firm Oberender in July 2022, has reportedly been removed from her position. The hospital's management is currently undergoing restructuring, with no immediate successor identified.
In a statement to employees, the Caritas organization did not provide reasons for Hehn's departure. They confirmed that the prokuristin would continue managing the hospital's affairs until a permanent replacement is appointed.
Hehn's tenure at St. Lukas Hospital comes following criticism from the State Audit Office of Rhineland-Palatinate in 2019 regarding her work at a hospital GmbH of the University Medical Center in Ingelheim. The audit raised concerns about high financial risks, lack of concepts, extraordinary management fees, and freelance awarding of services without tendering.
Prior to her appointment in Kelheim, Hehn was the business manager at the same hospital in Ingelheim, where Oberender AG held a consulting and management mandate. This mandate was subject to criticism, including questions about Oberender's independence in offering both consulting and full management services for hospitals, and premature contract terminations with various clinics.
The partnership between Caritas and Oberender, under which Caritas took over the majority and essential decision-making powers of St. Lukas Hospital for a symbolic euro, has been the subject of scrutiny due to its questionable concept for saving the loss-making hospital. Although the partnership was announced in early 2019, several promises made in the presented future concept, such as the establishment of new service areas and increased patient numbers, have yet to materialize.
Despite repeated inquiries, neither Sabine Hehn nor the Caritas organization has provided clear answers regarding the status of the planned expansion in urology, geriatrics, and orthopedic operations, or the financial situation of the hospital. In response to questions, Hehn stated that the hospital had made progress after the pandemic, but did not provide specific figures or address the questions directly.
When facing further inquiries from the media, the supervisory board, consisting of members of the district council and representatives of the Caritas, hired a Frankfurt PR agency to respond. The agency's response was brief and lacked concrete information, describing comparisons to the Ingelheim hospital situation as misleading.
The future of the management at St. Lukas Hospital remains uncertain, with the Caritas organization declining to comment on whether Oberender AG will be given another opportunity to manage the hospital.
St. Lukas Hospital has experienced its share of financial difficulties in recent years. If the current management restructuring does not lead to improvements, it remains to be seen how the hospital's future will unfold. The public, as the primary financial supporters of the hospital, will anxiously await updates on the situation.
- Amidst the ongoing restructuring of St. Lukas Hospital's management, concerns about health-and-wellness services, particularly in urology, geriatrics, and orthopedic operations, have arisen due to the lack of clear answers regarding their expansion plans.
- The general news surrounding St. Lukas Hospital also includes questions about the role of finance in their operations, given the audit's criticism of high financial risks, lack of concepts, and freelance awarding of services without tendering in the past.
- Business analysts have been closely following the partnership between St. Lukas Hospital and the consulting firm Oberender AG, hoping to gain insights into how the medical-conditions sector can balance health services with financial management, especially in the context of business restructuring and general-news stories of questionable business practices.
