Free Republic

The New Jersey surgery center that may have exposed more than 3,700 patients to HIV and hepatitis used rusty equipment and had soiled bed sheets, according to a report from the state's department of health. HealthPlus Surgery Center in Saddle Brook, New Jersey, was closed on Sept. 7 after the New Jersey Department of Health discovered multiple violations of sterilization and sanitation requirements, according to a citation summary sheet made public on Friday. The state allowed HealthPlus Surgery Center to reopen on Sept. 28... "We are aware of patients with pre-existing conditions such as HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C....

Three years ago, Dr. Keith Smith, co-founder and managing partner of the Surgery Center of Oklahoma, took an initiative that would only be considered radical in the health care industry: He posted online a list of prices for 112 common surgical procedures. The 51-year-old Smith, a self-described libertarian, and his business partner, Dr. Steve Lantier, founded the Surgery Center 15 years ago, after they became disillusioned with the way patients were treated at St. Anthony Hospital in Oklahoma City, where the two men worked as anesthesiologists. In 1997, Smith and Lantier bought the shell of a former surgical center with...

Related To Story Sally Jordan Hill walks to a court hearing in Charlotte, N.C. Nurse Arrested In 2001 Death Of Former High School RivalCold Case Unit: N.C. Nurse Administered Fatal Dose Of PainkillerCHARLOTTE, Colo. -- A registered nurse from North Carolina was ordered held without bond Monday and faces homicide charges in the death of a patient who turned out to be a classmate rival from 30 years ago.  Sally Jordan Hill of Matthews, N.C., was accused of killing Sandra Baker Joyner, who died after undergoing cosmetic surgery in 2001 in Charlotte.  Hill is a certified registered nurse anesthetist...