Mass. DPH is investigating Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester — again
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) is once again investigating Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester , a department spokesperson confirmed to MassLive.
The investigation into the hospital began in June 2025 and is still ongoing. The DPH cannot provide additional information until the investigation is complete, according to the spokesperson.
A spokesperson for the hospital said that Saint Vincent Hospital is "focused on caring for Central Massachusetts. Being named a Best Regional Hospital by U.S. News & World Report is a proud reflection of our team's commitment to high-quality care."
This is the third time in 18 months that the hospital, which the Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare owns, has been investigated by the DPH.
Earlier investigations
The first investigation was launched on Jan. 31, 2024, after the Massachusetts Nurses Association ( MNA ) — the largest nurses union in Massachusetts — filed several complaints regarding poor management and technology at the hospital.
The investigation found that the hospital did not have enough equipment to properly monitor patients with heart problems at the beginning of the year.
On March 5, 2024, the DPH submitted a statement of deficiency to Saint Vincent Hospital, asking the facility to submit a plan of correction to change how it appropriates and manages the equipment.
The hospital sent an action plan to DPH, which was approved on March 15.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the federal agency responsible for providing health coverage to those through Medicare and Medicaid, approved the action plan on March 19. A week later, the DPH closed the investigation.
In January 2025, another investigation into Saint Vincent Hospital was launched, according to the DPH spokesperson.
A 160-page report with the investigation's findings was shared with MassLive by the MNA, who obtained it through a public records request.
The investigators conducted interviews and reviewed documents and records, ultimately determining that Saint Vincent Hospital "failed to ensure adequate nursing staff were available for the care of all patients in the hospital, affecting the care of five sampled patients," the report reads.
One patient, for example, had been admitted to the hospital and developed pressure sores, according to the report. The report found that the nursing staff had not completed an assessment of the patient's skin and wounds.
Another patient was not monitored by nursing staff when they were ordered to have continuous electronic monitoring of their heart rate, rhythm and other vital signs, according to the report. The patient was discovered to be cyanotic, which is a bluish or grayish discoloration of the skin due to low oxygen levels in the blood, the report reads.
On Feb. 4, 2025, the CMS alerted the hospital that staffing and care deficiencies had led to a designation of "immediate jeopardy."
Immediate jeopardy is a situation where a healthcare facility has placed the health and safety of patients at risk for serious injury or death.
The immediate jeopardy designation was removed on Feb. 12 after the state reviewed and approved a plan by the hospital with changes aimed at addressing the deficiencies, according to the report. The investigation has since been closed.
A retaliation lawsuit
Saint Vincent Hospital's third investigation from the DPH comes as the hospital and its parent company, Tenet Healthcare Corp., face a lawsuit from Carla LeBlanc, a former nurse at Saint Vincent who claims she is a victim of retaliation.
LeBlanc was terminated on May 1, three months after she appeared on a podcast called Outdoor Cats , hosted by journalist Bill Shaner of the news website, "Worcester Sucks and I Love It," and Chris Robarge.
During the podcast, which was published in February, LeBlanc asserted that management at Saint Vincent was to blame for inadequate staffing levels that have compromised the safety of patients.
"The main concern that DPH has seen is that staffing is an issue, being able to monitor...to really be watching the heart monitors for the patients and increased pressure ulcers," LeBlanc said. "Pressure ulcers are reportable events that get reported to the state. It shouldn't happen."
Three months later, LeBlanc was terminated from her job, with the letter referring to her comments made during the podcast.
"During an interview on a podcast, you made disloyal, reckless, and maliciously untrue statements attacking the Hospital and its services," the letter reads. "As a result, the Hospital has determined that there exists just cause to terminate your employment effective immediately."
LeBlanc filed a lawsuit against the hospital and its parent company on Aug. 1 in Worcester Superior Court, according to court documents which the nurses' union shared with MassLive.
As a nurse and a union leader, I have a professional and ethical responsibility to advocate for my patients and to do whatever is necessary to protect them from harm," LeBlanc said in a statement provided to MassLive by the MNA. "While frustrated and angered by Tenet's corporate decision to terminate my employment, I intend to fight this decision in my continued effort to stand up for what is right and just, not only for me, but more importantly, for all nurses who choose to stand up and speak out against unsafe working conditions that threaten the safety of the patients we have given a solemn oath to serve."
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