Hospital CEO transition begins

By Charles Mattox

With a new Fleming County Hospital CEO being chosen and coming on board soon, interim CEO Joyce Hein says her stay in FlemingCounty has been pleasantly challenging and she feels confident the hospital will continue to meet the needs of the community for many years to come.

FCH Board of Trustees selected David Faulkner, ofMontana, to serve as the new CEO.

“He will be on site full time beginning around Sept. 19,” Hein said of the new CEO. Hein and Faulkner will work to make the transition seamless throughout the first two weeks of Sept.

Hein said she was pleased with the selection process for choosing the new CEO and hospital department leaders as well as board members were part of that process.

“I think the board made a good choice.” Hein said. “The board is committed and they took the new CEO search very seriously. They put in a lot of time and energy and they listened to the needs of the staff and the community while making the selection.”

Although the hospital, like most across the nation, has experienced a loss of revenue over the past two years, Hein said with the implementation of the hospital’s business plan and other factors the hospital will become financially strong in the future.

“This hospital will absolutely weather the storm,” she said. “We’ll get beyond where we are today (financially).The hospital has a good business plan in place and the hospital is committed to serving the community.

Although the stress brought about by a declining economy has caused concerns regarding the hospital, even those who are most vocal about those concerns said they appreciated Hein for her commitment and her straight forward attitude.

“I’ve really enjoyed working with her and I think she has been a very good interim CEO for our hospital,” Fleming County Judge-Executive Larry Foxworthy said.

Others echoed those sentiments.

“Mrs. Hein has done an outstanding job,” Hospital Board of Trustees, Louie Flanery, said. “She’s done some great things while she’s been here and we’re going to miss her when she leaves.”



Incident leaves one Lewis man clinging for life, nephew jailed

By Charles Mattox

One Lewis County man clings to life while his nephew faces serious criminal charges in the wake of a violent incident at 4269 West KY 10 in Lewis County early Monday morning.

Kentucky State Police Troopers Eugene Robinson and Chad Bowling arrested Damion Charlton Monday afternoon and charged him with attempted murder following an alleged violent confrontation between Charlton and his uncle, Ferdinando Carbone. Charlton and Carbone both reside at 4269 West KY 10, as does Charlton’s girlfriend Heather Dipaolo.

According to police, Charlton and Carbone were in a physical altercation, late Sunday night, early Monday morning.

Carbone was transported by Air-Evac helicopter to the University of Cincinnati, where he remains listed in critical condition in the hospital’s intensive care unit.

Charlton and Dipaolo left the scene on foot, first travelling to Valero Gas Station on KY 57 near the Fleming County line. The couple was later spotted walking along the railroad tracks in Mason County, where they were apprehended.

Charlton remains lodged in the Lewis County detention Center under $50,000 cash bond.

Charlton is originally from Pennsylvania.