Hernando: Medical office lays off workers

Medical office lays off workers

Northcliffe Medical Associates is selling off most of two divisions and slimming its operations.

By WILL VAN SANT

SPRING HILL -- More than half the employees of Northcliffe Medical Associates were told Friday it was their last day on the job.

Former chief administrative officer Brian Brijbag said he was one of 17 or 18 of the company's 32 workers who now must find work because of Northcliffe Medical's decision to sell the bulk of its orthopedics and magnetic resonance imaging divisions to a group of Tampa-based investors.

Brijbag, who said he did not know the names of the Tampa buyers, said he was among a small number of those laid off who had been forewarned. To most of the now-jobless employees, the firing came as a surprise, he said.

Each was presented with a severance check of equal value; Brijbag would not disclose the value of the checks.

The company had expanded in recent years, opening an office in Inverness and a second office in Spring Hill, Brijbag said. The Inverness office and second Spring Hill office are to be closed, he said, with the facility at 8468 Northcliffe Boulevard continuing to offer chiropractic and some physical therapy services.

According to Brijbag, most employees reacted "fairly well" to the news that they were jobless.

The decision to sell assets and lay off employees was a difficult one brought on by a harsh economic climate, he said.

"There were a lot of good people here and it's unfortunately the way things have to be," he said. "Nobody is to blame."

-- Will Van Sant covers Hernando County government and can be reached at 754-6127. Send e-mail to vansant@sptimes.com .