- 4 -
When the hospital opened, it provided every type of
psychiatric treatment. Although the hospital began as a short-
term treatment facility with an average length of stay of 1 to 2
weeks, by 1968, it had become a long-term treatment facility with
an average length of stay of 430 days. The hospital operated as
a "closed" medical hospital in that its medical staff did not
have independent outside medical practices.
By 1980, petitioner operated a 99-bed facility with a high
occupancy rate. The hospital was one of only five to seven long-
term facilities at that time. Referrals came from short-term
psychiatric hospitals nationwide. By 1981, its beds were full
and it was turning down patients for admission. On November 19,
1982, petitioner obtained a certificate of need from the State of
Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services allowing
it to increase its number of beds by 31.
Dr. Walter H. Wellborn, Jr. (Dr. Wellborn), became
petitioner's president and chief executive officer in 1980. He
began working for petitioner in 1953, prior to the hospital's
opening. Petitioner was governed by a board of 12 directors (the
board) consisting of medical doctors and business persons from
the local community and southeastern United States.
During the 1950's and 1960's, petitioner's patients
generally paid for their own treatment. During the 1970's and
1980's, petitioner had patients whose private health insurance
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011