Denver Health and Hospital Authority Reviews

Cons

I have worked at public hospitals and I love what DHMC stands for , level one care or all

Cons

Occasional office politics that can make work difficult.

Cons

There is no path for career advancement. Any type of career move is based on who likes you, not skills or commitment. Epic Management will prevent advancement based on personal feelings, and this includes the highest leadership positions. I can’t recommend this department.

Cons

Politics! Office politics are terrible here and HR doesn't seem to do much. You'll never be promoted unless you're "in" with management.
Salaries are low (compared to national averages) even with many years of experience.

Cons

limited opportunity for career advancement within public health department

Cons

Parking for employees costs, and is limited

Cons

This ended up being one of the most toxic work experiences of my entire career, and it didn't have to be. I happened to be hired in right before a major re-org, and it went all down hill from there.

Attrition was a major in issue in just about every department. For the past couple of years, there was a massive exodus of knowledge and talent. It seems that a big reason for this is lack of advancement opportunities, and overwhelming top performers with lots of additional work with little or no reward. It think there was something like 30-40% attrition in the health plan over the past couple of years at all levels and across the org.

Career opportunities were severely lacking during my tenure with the health plan. Management had no problem piling on more work and giving you more responsibilities. But when it came time for seeking advancement, there were always excuses for why it wasn't the right time for you. It seemed to be easy to get in, but it was impossible to move up. Management seems to be more focused on hiring from the outside than promoting from the inside. As a result, I've seen a lot of people leave, and some will even come back years later when they are hired into better positions than they left.

Silos/backstabbing and poor operational planning was some of the worst I've ever experienced with an organization. I think it's a result of teams being overwhelmed and understaffed due to lack of resources. So when they don't get work done, there is a bunch of finger pointing and blaming of other groups for not contributing, Sometimes the criticisms were valid, but much of the time it was excuse making for poor planning and even worse execution.

I made some really good connections with the company, but I also observed and experienced some of the worst backstabbing in all of my years of experience. People incessantly talk about others behind their backs, usually nitpicking and criticizing their work ethic or attitudes regardless of whether there is any truth or data to back it up. I know this probably happens a lot more than I'm typically aware, but it really contributed to a negative culture. You really didn't know who you could trust, and you never knew if someone was talking about you behind your back for no apparent rhyme or reason.

The upside is that a lot of the "old timers" have left or are being pushed out. Due to all the turnover, lots of new blood have entered the ranks, and I actually think this is the best possible outcome for the organization. Much of the negativity and animosity and backstabbing have left or will leave with the continued attrition of those who've been there too long. As long as senior management handles the onboarding of new staff well enough, they can help create and cultivate a more positive culture within the organization.

Bottom line for me is that it was really bad timing to join the organization when I did, and I eventually dealt with as much of the chaos as I could before jumping ship. I was hired on by managers with bad reputations, and those reputations seemed to rub off and stick with their legacy staff members. In the end, I realized I never had a chance with this org, and was set up for failure (unintentionally) from the very beginning.

I really hope the best for DHMP. Despite my bad experience, I learned a lot and met and worked with some really good people. Management seems to have brought in some really good people in the last six months. I hope that they treat them well enough to retain them so that the culture continues to improve and the knowledge and experience stays with the company so that groups aren't in a perpetual state of rebuilding.

Cons

It is unbelievable how many people abuse the system here. Bureaucracy at its finest. I had a boss who worked 2 hours a day for an entire year, before he was fired for an unrelated issue. No real advancement unless your director likes you, and you can move up within the department only.

Cons

Not a lot of opportunity for growth and when availability it will be determined by seniority. No flexibility with schedules which creates issues. Raises are not generous even after an outstanding yearly evaluation.

Cons

Patient population can be hard