wyocowboy

Thank you for your interest. PHS personnel have been of site on two occasions. The first one was sometime in the 4th week of May, when, upon 15 minutes notice, late in the day, a delegation of 3 went over their company benefits and left application packets for us to fill out. About two weeks later, a VP came in to interview each of us. I liked him and my interview went well, but I am still suspicious about the company. There were promisies of offers to be mailed to each of us, which are now overdue. It makes me wonder if they intend to put bad news in the offer letters, wait to deliver them until the last minute before the end of the CMS contract (June 30), and be prepared to bring in visitors to work temporarily if we all leave. Things do seem to be stable with nursing staff for the moment, but that could change quickly with the large percentage of contract nurses we have. However, the mental health staff is very unstable as far as continuing employemt with PHS. The mental health director, a psychologist, has already taken a postiion with CMS in another part of the county. A senior LCSW and one of the psych nurses are probably going to do likewise. Three mental health counselors and another LCSW are, I think, looking for other jobs. The atmosphere is volitile; there have been some ugly fights between workers of various types. To make things worse, there seems to be instability among DOC security officers. They are grossly understaffed, the inmates seem tense, and I worry about whether I am working in a safe place. If you look at the timing of this post, you will get an idea of what my sleep pattern is like.

It didn/t happen on the 18th, but it did happen yesterday. They are not here today, but we expect them to appear next week. None of us know what else to expect.

Hello--CMS has been the medical and mental health care provider in the Wyoming DOC for the last several years. I joined CMS in Wyoming in 2003. Recently, following a request for proposals by the Wyoming DOC, PHS proved to be the sucessful bidder, purportedly for millions of dollars less than CMS proposed. The time table is, as I am told, that PHS will finalize its contract with DOC on May 18, and that CMS's last day under contract will be June 30. As you might expect, there is a huge amount of apprehension among health care staff at WDOC. The rumor mill gives PHS mixed reviews. Internet research refelcts some bad press for both PHS and PMS. No one on staff knows quite what to expect. I have read the post and replies under PMS HAS TAKEN OVER OUR PRISON, and have found those notes to be quite helpful as to what to expect in benefits. What I would live to know is what happens next. We are told that once PHS finalizes its contract with WDOC, it will tour each facility interviewing existing CMS employees. What should we expect? Will they attempt to downsize staff? Will they pressure employees in closed door sessions to accept a reduction in wages or salaries? What will be their stategy in approaching employees, move by move? If there is anyone out there who has been through the process of a changeover to PHS, I would be grateful if you would share your experience.