I get a kick out of all of the down on Mercy folks. If it were not for the lightning fast and very professional ER staff there in 1993 I would have been a dead man after a major heart attack. As long as I am taking in oxygen, I will owe them for that one.

I dont think a new hospitol would help Janesville at this time because the taxpayers would be the ones stuck with the bill.Specialy when we are in the middle of a recession

chelleandlou- nonprofit doesnt mean people dont get paid and maintance paid for and upgrades performed etc. so they can pay somebody more or less than they want to. that isnt part of a profit. hope that makes since. another way to put is it nonprofit organization doesnt mean people work for free

I have worked in the medical area in the past for about 7 years. I have no problem with my long standing physician at Mercy...however I was referred to one other doctor by him and the individual was probably the most arrogant disinterested individual I have ever run across. He point blank insulted me. Needless to say I will go to Madison should I ever need anything related this condition again. Another doctor in Urgent Care didn't even bother to check out my chart and prescribed a drug I could not take. Then when getting to the pharmacy I was told I should be allright with this drug if I ate food. I experienced all this in the past month and maybe it is high time we got a different medical facility in this town. In addition you can tell management does not treat receptionists and nurses very well - they are very stressed some days. This all starts at the top. The top needs MORE than a little work to get this facility in shape.

I like the idea of having a "Choice." Although, I primarily use Mercy services, I have had 'incompetent' care at Mercy and, even though I complained to patient services, my concerns were ignored. All facilities use their records, made up by verbal recordings by rushed doctors and typed up by someone, somewhere (who knows if the doctor was audible or accurate)and put in your chart.....and if it was one of those incompetent physicians, you only have the 'blind leading the blind' to your personal well-being. I also don't agree with Mercy (or ANY healthcare facility) making my 'file' electronic! Any good computer hacker can view my records....making all of those HIPA (privacy) forms nothing but garbage!

Mercy's award was for their record keeping and Billing, NOT patient care. One would be crazy to go to the Mercy ER. Go to Beloit, Edgerton or lay in a corner, the care is better.

Anywhere but Mercy.

mymaro, I am glad to hear that all worked out for you and you caught it in time.
I have similar stories with my family...only difference is Mercy had it wrong.

I also had dean care insurance and was switched off of it. THANK GOD!! if not for that i would probably be dead right now, literally. I went to my doctor at Dean riverview for chest pains in 2005. i was 28 years old. First they said i must have some sort of respiratory infection and gave me some medicine. that didnt work so i went back FIVE TIMES and they kept brushing me off. the last diagnosis was chest wall pain. Well i decided to go to Mercy, even before my insurance switched over, and GUESS WHAT? I had a 95% blocked artery to my heart and had to have angioplasty surgery and a stent put in. THANK GOD FOR the competent doctors and nurses at Mercy. Those incompetent fools at Dean almost cost me my life.

and for all you fools complaining about wait times at the ER, it is like that everywhere. Maybe if people with bloody noses and petty crap like that wouldnt flood the ER there would be more beds available. which would speed up service.

When the sisters turned the hospital over to the "community" the catholic affiliation ceased. Note that the crucifix is now a cross without Christ. But, it is not about religion but rather your values and how you approach business, people, etc.

The new hospital will be an SSM Hospital and the Clinic will be offered by Dean. They will each finance their own portion of the facilities like any other businesses that come together to jointly build a new building. This is not an uncommon business practice.

Communities of our size and smaller fair well with 2 hospitals. The economic impact of jobs at other local stores will also be positive as they too will expand to meet the needs of more residents and their need for goods and services.

Mercy always has been a catholic hospital...I grew up here in Janesville and can remember when the Nuns ran the hopst. It was St Mercy before wasnt it?? Cant quit remember...but I sure remember the Nuns.Maybe it will be good for Dean to get there own hospt. so Mercy can lean back towards the "Catholic" side. It wont make me change,Im not catholic but will continue to go to Mercy!

Mercy is supposed to be a Catholic Hospital, but has no outward expression of Catholicity in their hospitals. That is really sad.

A Dean Hospital in Janesville would also provide expanded health care coverage to residents of Walworth County where Dean has a few clinics, but fewer hospital choices. State and UW System employees would definately benefit from expanded choices. I hope it is a St. Mary's Hospital (Madison) affiliate.

Hey, jp53545: I'm thrilled it isn't in Beloit. That community's Memorial Hospital is top-grade as far as I am concerned. It doesn't matter how many hospitals Janesville has, I have no plans to switch from Beloit. P.S. I live in Janesville.

I have talked to several people and they have said they would much rather drive to madison than go to mercy even if it was an emergency situation. maybe with another hospital close by they would change their minds and not drive so far. emergency room at mercy sucks. daughter took grnadson ther and waited over 3 hours and did not see anyone so she walked out!

Janesville ought to look at this as an economic Godsend. GM may not be around forever, and with Wisconsin's horrible business climate–high taxes, bloated government and all the rest–a hospital with its demand for skilled labor and its relative employment stability is not something to be sneezed at. Would people rather it be located in Beloit?

Don't forget Mercy is a 'non profit'. Which of course is a joke.

several people i talked to have said they would rather drive all the way to madison even in an emergency rather than go to mercy. maybe if we had another hospital here they would not have to drive all that way.

Dan...it has ALWAYS been Dean vs. Mercy. I have been employed at Mercy a l-o-n-g,and it has always and will always continue to be Dean vs. Mercy. People are always so quick to complain about Mercy,or any other facility they are not happy with for one reason or another. Waiting times in the ER are about the same anywhere,unless you live in a very small town. Mercy has GREAT employess and some not so great,BUT so does Dean,so does EVERY hospital,clinic,restaurant or any place of business! WHY NOT WORK TOGETHER FOR THE GOOD OF THE COMMUNITY! Dean and Mercy have superb doctors,and the ones that are not are weeded out...eventually. I honestly do not feel Janesville needs another hospital,but go right ahead if that is what they want,or feel they need. Choice is good!

Of course you won't wait as long at the new Dean "hospital" (not sure that small of a facility qualifies as a hospital) because there won't be as many people going there. And with the people choosing Dean it will lighten the load at the Mercy ER as well. I can't wait to hear the people complaining about the new Dean facility once it gets built. Everything always looks better on paper.

Any Dean Health patient that has had to use Mercy is thrilled to have a Dean facilty closer than Madison. The care for Dean patients at Mercy is disgusting. You are left sitting, care in the hospital was sinful, I even asked if they were short of help. Dean patients from the surrounding area have needed this for a long time.

i think it would shorten the 3-5 hr wait time that you spend in ER..especially when its something major, we sat there for almost 5 hrs with my daughter's acute appendicitus and thats after they ran all the tests.

Competition means that the bar will be raised in customer service. The hospital that does the better job in patient care and in cost will prevail. I can't wait for an emergency room that actually responds to the needs of the people who come in. I am so glad that there will be an option other Mercy.

NO, Janesville only needs one good hospital...
Hey Mercy why not bow out.
As I said before, it is not the employees, there are many great employees, it is the policies that drive Mercy's reputation down.

GM employees had no say when Dean Care was abruptly dropped as a health insurance option 1/1/08. Over 7,000 patients had to change physicians. Ask how it is going for them. Mercy made no attempt to collaborate with Dean Riverview Clinic. Instead they opted to take a loss, soon to be absorbed by other Mercy patients, for the sole purpose of gaining a monopoly. By the way, non-union, supervisory employees still have Dean Care Insurance. Why to you suppose that is? Janesville is long overdue for a choice in health care.

I wouldn't say need myself, but I suspect that in the broader region the competition will be more difficult for the outlying hospitals such as Beloit, Edgerton, and Fort.
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People are also seeing this as Dean vs. Mercy, when really it's the first major national-level provider (SSM) staking a claim in the Janesville market. But SSM like Mercy is a very high quality provider.

Any other city in Wisconsin that is 70k population has at least 2 hospitals EX: Lacrosse, Appleton. More diversified healthcare in Janesville should be welcomed with open arms.

Why not?! Progress, jobs, positive benefits for the health of Janesville and environs. It also demonstrates that Janesville economically stable, still growing, and providing diverse new employment opportunities.

The city isn't big enough to warrant 2 hospitals.

"need" might be the wrong verb, but I believe an option in health care providers is warranted.