Sumter Regional demands $19,000 for botched surgery

The AmericUSumter Observer (ASO) newspaper has learned from the local NAACP that David Seagraves, chief executive officer (CEO) at Sumter Regional Hospital wants ex-patient Stephen Jackson to pay $19,000 for a botched surgery performed by Dr. Glenn Summers in 2003. Mr. Jackson reported the malpractice to the Composite State Board of Medical Examiners, the state's licensing board for doctors. (See Jackson's letter to the Medical Board page 13B).

As a victim of Dr. Glenn Summers' malpractice, "I had to go back to the operating room and have a piece of my appendix removed that Dr Summers should have removed in the initial operation," Jackson said. Dr Henry Teaford, the surgeon who performed the second surgery said, "I have never seen anything like this." "Mr. Seagraves knew that Dr. Summers performed an appendectomy on him in 2003, and the surgery had left him in pain for one year resulting in him visiting the hospital emergency room several times for relief. And because of these frequent emergency room visits to deal with the severe pain, I lost my job. Seagraves now wants me to pay Sumter Regional Hospital $19,000 for my emergency room visits as a result of his surgeon's mistakes is just not fair."

ASO has learned that Dr. Summers relocated from Americus to Panama City, Florida and now practices with Surgical Associates of N.W. Florida.
Complaints are still coming in to the local NAACP from patients who feel that they are not getting quality medical care at Sumter Regional Hospital. For instance, in December, a young man went to Sumter Regional Hospital with a headache and was allegedly sent home. But the headache continued and the man later went to Phoebe Putney Hospital in Albany, GA and was diagnosed with a life-threatening condition called sepsis (bacteria in the blood stream throughout the body).

"We want the citizens of Sumter County to know how our people are suffering at Sumter Regional from a lack of good medical care and from questionable payment collections. The hospital's six-figure salaried CEO David Seagraves is trying to suck the blood out of our poor and hard-working citizens," NAACP President Dr. John Marshall said, "We are told that the hospital has a very large number of our citizens in court for non payments. For someone making over $200,000 a year, I wonder about CEO Seagraves's decision to go after Mr. Jackson in what clearly should have been a no-brainer not to do so. Seagraves is being paid too much money to make such a stupid decision.

"And we citizens cannot expect much help or concern from our elected and appointed people who are on the County Commissioners. Sadly, Commissioners Al Hurley and Pearlette Brooks appear to be just proxies for the White commissioners, all of whom show a lack of concern about patients' suffering and complaints at Sumter Regional Hospital.

"Moreover, this community has inefficient hospital board members on the powerful Hospital Authority as Rev. Michael Coley, Fred McLaughlin, and Willie Paschal. If Coley, McLaughlin and Pascal were more effective and caring leaders, they would demand that CEO Seagraves be held accountable for the wretched health care at Sumter Regional. Instead, these three men's tenure and lack of leadership on the board have been a total disaster when it comes to saving the lives and in improving the health of mostly Black victims at Sumter Regional. Apparently, Coley, McLaughlin, and Pascal are just proxy board members for CEO Seagraves .

"The local NAACP has attempted twice to make Seagraves more accountable to the citizens in this county by submitting two slates of names to serve on the Hospital Authority. Both sets of names were a good, cross section of capable citizens. However, the County Commissioners did not bother to submit the second slate of names."

And Commissioner Pearlette Brooks allegedly refused to support the second slate because the local NAACP president's name was on the list. Brooks said that Dr. Marshall, the local NAACP president, had problems with the hospital.

Dr. Marshall said "I discussed the sad and disappointing statement by Rev. Brooks in the January issue of the Observer. Commissioner Brooks, a retired teacher and a minister at Friendship Baptist Church, has demonstrated a pattern of voting the wrong way, and, in this case, making the wrong decision."
 

Store owner charged with felony assault

At the urging of NAACP officials, the Americus Police Department upgraded a disorderly conduct charge against Ajaykumar Chhitu Patel and charged him with felony aggravated assault after he severely beat a 13 year old black child for allegedly stealing some candy.

Patel, age 32, is the manager at Discount Tobacco Store located on 704 North Lee St. According to sources, the young boy said he was punched, kicked and beaten with a two by four board which caused him injuries that required medical attention from the hospital. The young boy said as he was being beaten, Patel yelled at him, “ You will never see your parents again”!

The Americus Police Department reported that on Thursday January 25, 2007, Lieutenant Timothy Green responded to a disturbance at the store. His investigation into the matter resulted in the arrest of Mr. Patel on misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct. Upon hearing of the incident Dr. John Marshall, President of the local branch of the NAACP, met with the child and his parents to discuss what took place.

Dr. Marshall said, “ The victim and his parents came to my medical office complaining about the manner in which the Americus Police Department didn’t handle the man who assaulted their son. I read the emergency room report which indicated several areas of the child’s body that was injured including his head, nose, left ear, left buttocks, and his ankles.

Along with the child’s parents, I went to the Magistrate’s Office to inquire as to why the police department didn’t charge this store owner with child abuse. I reminded Judge Shirley Duke about a recent case where she signed a warrant for the arrest of a man who the police claimed committed felony child abuse because he spanked his niece. She said she was familiar with that case, but referred me to take this matter up with the Americus Police Department.

Upon speaking with Officer Timothy Green and providing him with medical reports, he proceeded to file the paper work with the magistrate office and upgraded the charges to felony aggravated assault” said Marshall.

“ Mr. Patel better be damn glad that the child he assaulted wasn’t mine because then he’d be the one pressing charges against me after his release from the hospital‘s intensive care unit” said James Bryant Jr., an executive board member of the NAACP. He must have forgotten that this is America, not India. I am really surprised Judge Shirley Duke allowed him bail. With Patel not being a US citizen and facing deportation, he is a flight risk and might jump town to New York or Texas somewhere which means will never find him” said Bryant.
 

Times Recorder Publisher Run Out of Town
 

William Bronson III, the embattled former publisher of the Americus Times Recorder newspaper, has abruptly resigned from his position to become the new publisher of the Daily Citizen newspaper in Dalton, Georgia. Bronson who resigned in mid January, wrote an editorial in the Times Recorder saying he made the move because there was "an offer he could not say no to".

However, Dr. John D. Marshall, publisher of the rival Americus Sumter Observer newspaper, seems to think there was more to Bronson's departure than just an offer he couldn't refuse. "Before leaving Sumter County, Bronson called me and made a peace offering said Marshall. He asked me if we could have dinner and that he wanted to extend the olive branch." Marshall continued, "I knew he was a lair so I didn't trust him, but I was willing to listen in order to see what could have driven him to make peace with me."

Bronson's departure has received a lot of positive reaction from many readers throughout the community especially NAACP executive board member James L. Bryant Jr., who has been the recipient of many of the Times Recorder's headlines and editorials over the last two years. "There was a stare down between the Observer and the Times Recorder and it appears that William Bronson blinked first said Bryant. I guess the pressure got too heavy for him so as soon as an opening came available, he flew out of Americus like a bat out of Hell. With all the heat he was under I can't blame him. He probably would have taken a job in Mayberry if it was available"

Bryant continued, "I don't consider becoming the publisher of a small Dalton Georgia newspaper a promotion he couldn't refuse. At best, Bronson made a lateral move and at worst he was reassigned due to his inability to deal with the fact that the Observer made his newspaper swallow the truth every month."

In other developments, the Observer has learned that Bronson called their office in response to several newspaper articles about him which were emailed to his staff at the Daily Citizen. When asked about the emailed articles, Dr. Marshall said, "We decided to send several of our newspaper articles about Bronson to the staff at the Daily Citizen sort of as a going away present. We just wanted them to have a heads up on what type of boss they would be working for".

James L Bryant, Jr. who received the phone call from Bronson about an hour after the emails were sent, described him as being, "very angry and frustrated" that the Observer sent emails to his employees portraying him as a defeated newspaper publisher who was run out of town by a monthly Black owned newspaper. "He complained to me about the emails, the newspapers that were sent to his bosses in Alabama, and he complained about a letter Dr. Marshall wrote criticizing Lorena Sabbs. Bronson told me to tell Dr. Marshall that he thought all those actions were very pathetic" said Bryant.

In response to Bronson's comments, Dr. Marshall had this to say, "I wrote a private letter to Lorena Barnum Sabbs complaining about her niece, Ms. Raven Payne, working for the Americus Times Recorder. I reminded Lorena of the fact that the Times Recorder is the number one enemy of Black people in Sumter County and I asked her why would she allow her young niece's career to get off to such a wretched start working with racists such as Beth Alston.

Marshall continued, " I know Ms. Payne had to be embarrassed when her own newspaper printed a riveting editorial by a loose cannon named Jacob Battle blasting Lorena Sabbs the day after she spoke at the MLK Jr. celebration. William Bronson was right there and allowed the editorial to be printed. It had to be a slap in both Lorena's and Raven's face. I just hope the other Blacks who think the Times Recorder is a friend of the Black community will learn what Ms Sabbs and her niece had to learn so painfully and that is when you lay down with dogs, fleas will get on you" Marshall concluded.

Observer Celebrates 10 years

Staff Reports

Americus' black newspaper, the Americus Sumter Observer, also the mouthpiece of the local NAACP, is marking its 10th anniversary this month.
The paper's publisher and editor, Dr. John Marshall, said he created the paper in Feb. 1997 to challenge the local racist daily newspaper and to inform Blacks and Whites.

“The paper has far exceeded my expectations in its 10 years," Marshall said.

The paper has grown tremendously since its beginning, adding editorial cartoons, more columnists and recognitions of birthdays, anniversaries and other milestones in people's and groups lives.

The paper has also exposed several racial issues in Americus, including problems with Sumter Regional Hospital, the Sumter County School Board and the Elections Board.

James L. Bryant, Jr., former candidate for mayor, has a monthly column titled "Cast the First Stone," which sheds light on the hypocritical action of public figures and groups.

"We needed an outlet that speaks the truth to power," Bryant said.

In a more recent development to catch up with technology in the 21st century, the paper launched its online publication last year. Marshall said with the paper being a monthly publication in print, he thought it was important to go online which would provide a venue which offer daily updates and breaking news.

"The Internet is an important tool in keeping readers updated on the news," Marshall said.

The paper started off with a staff of about half a dozen, including retired teacher Teresa Mansfield, who used to copy edit the publication and regularly show the newspaper to her classes.

"I knew it was going to last a long time, because it had so much potential," Mansfield said.

Mansfield has written stories for the paper, including what she tagged as her favorites -- a feature on the Rev. Pearly Brown. She also wrote a story on Americus-Sumter Observer’s paginator Christopher Davis. Both stories dealt with the subjects' trials in dealing with their physical disabilities.

"I liked his philosophy of 'It's not over until I win,'" said Mansfield of the Davis article.

Rhonda Brown-Torgersen used to regularly write columns for the paper before moving to New York. She took an interest in the paper from her teacher, Mansfield, who suggested she start writing for it. Even from up north, Brown-Torgersen still keeps up with the paper. She called black publications a vital tool for the black community. She did add that she would like to see less negative coverage and more news in Americus Sumter Observer aimed at the community.

"If you don't aim news at the community you won't grab the community's heart," Brown-Torgersen said.