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                                                                   EXHIBIT 10.82

                                                       [ ]   Employee's Copy
                                                       [ ]   Company's Copy


                            AMENDMENT NUMBER ONE TO
                       PARACELSUS HEALTHCARE CORPORATION
                              EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT


TO:      James G. VanDevender

         This Amendment Number One to Paracelsus Healthcare Corporation
Employment Agreement (this "Amendment") amends that certain Paracelsus
Healthcare Corporation Employment Agreement between Paracelsus Healthcare
Corporation, Inc., a California corporation (the "Company") and James G.
VanDevender as the Company's interim chief executive officer ("CEO" or
"Executive") dated June 25, 1999 (the "Agreement"), and amends such Agreement
as set forth below. Except as amended hereby, all terms and provisions of the
Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.

         1.       Employment and Duties. That section of the Agreement headed
"Employment and Duties" is hereby amended by adding a new third paragraph
thereto which shall read in its entirety as follows:

                  The Company agrees that if the Company hires or promotes a
                  new CEO during the Term, the Company will retain the
                  Executive's services in the capacity of an executive officer
                  of the Company with the primary duty of advising such new
                  CEO. The Executive shall retain all rights to compensation,
                  benefits and other rights, as set forth in this Agreement, in
                  his new capacity.

         2.       Term of Employment. The first sentence of that section of the
Agreement headed "Term of Employment" is hereby amended by replacing such
sentence in its entirety with the following sentence:

                  Your employment under this Agreement begins as of July 1,
                  1999 (the "Effective Date") and, unless sooner terminated or
                  extended, ends on February 29, 2000 (the "End of Term Date").

         3.       Special Lodging and Travel Reimbursement. The final paragraph
of that section of the agreement headed "benefits" is hereby amended by adding
to the end of such paragraph the following sentence:






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                  Subject to the preceding conditions, effective January 1,
                  2000, the Company will reimburse reasonable and necessary
                  lodging expenses in the Houston area until February 29, 2000,
                  and reasonable and necessary travel expenses for weekly trips
                  between Houston and your Alabama residence.

         4.       Severance. The first sentence of the section of the Agreement
headed "Severance" is hereby amended by replacing such sentence in its entirety
with the following sentence:

                  In addition to the foregoing payments, if before the end of
                  the Term, the Company terminates your employment without
                  Cause, the Company will pay you severance equal to the Salary
                  due between the date of termination and the End of Term Date,
                  in a single lump sum, on your actual date of termination.

         5.       Superseding Effect. The second paragraph of the section of
the Agreement headed "Superseding Effect" is hereby amended by adding thereto
the following items at the end of such paragraph:

                  ;(7) the Order and Final Judgment entered July 23, 1999, in
                  In re: Paracelsus Securities Corp.; (8) the Final Judgment
                  and Bar Order entered on July 23, 1999, in the Caven and
                  Orovitz litigation; and (9) the Agreement between the
                  Company, VanDevender and others signed on or about July 22,
                  1999.


         This Amendment is executed by the Company and the Executive to be
effective the 8th day of December, 1999. Except as amended hereby, all terms
and provisions of the Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.


                                PARACELSUS HEALTHCARE CORPORATION


                                By:
                                     ------------------------------------------

                                Name:  Nolan Lehmann

                                Title:   Director

I accept and agree to the terms
of employment as set forth in
the Agreement as amended by this
Amendment:





------------------------------------
James G. VanDevender