Tatum disputes Dr. Joe’s firing at DM Hospital

By JIMMY GALVAN
Managing Editor

Dr. Joe Dickerson

Contrary to broadcast reports, Dickerson Memorial Hospital Administrator John Tatum said Friday, April 18 that medical icon Dr. Joe Dickerson has not been terminated from his position with the hospital.

“Dr. Joe has not been terminated by this hospital nor by the clinic,” Tatum said. “He has a request to complete his medical charts and his response to that has been no.”

Tatum said the hospital had asked Dickerson to complete medical records on patients he was seeing in the hospital and clinic. Without these records, the hospital is unable to bill third party insurance carriers.

“Dr. Joe did not feel that he was going to comply with this request,” Tatum said. “He took that upon himself to determine that he was terminated by us and that is not the case.

“I tried to impress that on him (Friday, April 18) but he was in a state of mind that he was not about to listen to me,” Tatum said.

Tatum said that on April 15, the two of them sat down to discuss Dickerson’s future with the hospital.

“We have a great relationship and we talked about his future with the hospital,” Tatum said.

According to Tatum, Dickerson stays at the hospital and has resided there for the past seven
years.

“We talked about his future and if he should really continue to live in the
hospital and continue at the clinic,” Tatum said. “No decision was made at this meeting but the conclusion was made that we needed to be heading in the direction (of Dickerson retiring).

“I respect Dr. Joe tremendously but he is at a point of frustration because he
really doesn’t know where to go,” Tatum said. “He doesn’t know if he should leave the hospital or continue practicing.”

Tatum said the whole issue needs to be taken into perspective.

“Let’s face it, we are dealing with a person who is 93-94 but he is a person that has had an illustrious career in medicine as well,” Tatum said.

Tatum did confirm that Dickerson has no malpractice insurance at this time.

“The state insurance group that insures the majority of the state of Texas will not insure him,” Tatum said. “If they would, the rate would be astronomical. Our arrangement with him is that he is functioning without malpractice insurance so he is administering through Dr. Rick Boyles.”

Boyles joined the Jasper Clinic in September of 2007. Tatum described the uproar over Dickerson’s possible departure from the hospital as “just another day at the office.”

“We will get beyond it and if Dr. Joe is with us, fine and if he is not, then we will move forward as well,” Tatum said.