Allison to represent Florence area on hospital board
Staff reporter
Two significant changes occurred at the annual meeting May 20 of Marion County Hospital District #1.
The first change was board member Bruce Skiles did not seek re-election which resulted in a new board member being elected. Linda Allison of rural Florence, was elected to represent the district as a director.
Others re-elected to the board were Judy Reno and Ken Vinduska, both of Marion County Lake.
Mike Connell of Marion was another candidate.
Of the more than 3,000 registered voters within the hospital district, there were 38 residents who attended the annual meeting and casted votes for the four candidates. Thirty-three votes were for Reno, 31 for Vinduska, 29 for Allison, and 18 for Connell.
This is the first time in recent memory that someone outside the Marion area has been elected to the board. Allison will take office at the June board meeting.
Another change will occur June 6 when chief financial officer Hilary Dolbee leaves her post for another job at Pratt.
Dolbee has been with the hospital since October 2005, and has accepted the position of vice president of financial services at Pratt Regional Medical Center. A replacement will be recruited and hired.
Another resignation was announced. Chris Gillespie, administrator of St. Luke Physician Clinic, resigned because her husband had accepted a position in another part of the state. Her resignation was effective this past Friday.
In other business:
— Dolbee reported that the hospital had received $300,000 from Medicare as anticipated for fiscal year 2007. The facility also received an estimated settlement of $250,000 for the first part of 2008. Dolbee said those funds would not be included in the financial statement until the actual amount is determined. The settlement was recorded as a liability since the actual amount will not be known until the fiscal year 2008 cost report is settled in April 2009.
— Inpatient revenue is down from the previous month by nearly 69 percent and below the budgeted amount for the month by nearly 50 percent. This means revenues are below the same time last year by $139,902 or nearly 22 percent.
The good news was outpatient revenues are ahead of the budget for the month by $277 but still haven't caught up with the prior month's revenue.
For the year, outpatient revenues still are ahead by $569,747 or 19 percent.
Clinic revenue is down from the previous month by $6,091 or 26 percent. Revenues are below the budget for the year by $274,836 or 67 percent.
Home health revenue is down from the previous month by $1,899 and behind the monthly budget by $1,657. Revenues are ahead of the same time last year by $15,133 or 9 percent but behind the yearly budget by $2,972.
Overall net income from operations is in the red by nearly $70,000 for the month.
One silver lining was the living center revenue which is ahead of the year-to-date budget because the long-term care unit has been at capacity.
Contract labor also has increased from last year by $32,044 or 10 percent because physical therapy revenues have increased.
The net income for the month is below budgeted estimates by nearly $24,000 and were behind last month by $21,600.
Net income for the year also is below the budget by $188,531, and below last year's by $66,908.
Inpatient days, swing bed days, home health visits, laboratory outpatient procedures, radiology scans, physical therapy visits, and the physician clinic saw decreases this past month compared with the previous month. However the living center remained full.
— The board approved credentials for 10 radiologists with NightHawk Radiologists, Linda Skiles, M.D., family practice, and David McKenzie, M.D., pathology.
— Chief nursing officer reported changes in nursing staff as did living center director Debbie Craig.
— QHR representative Harry Jarvis distributed information to the board regarding public relations tips for chief executive officer Jeremy Armstrong.
— The board entered into a 30-minute executive session to discuss acquisition of property. There were no decisions when the meeting reconvened.
The board entered a 30-minute executive session to discuss personnel. When the meeting reconvened, there were no decisions.
The next hospital board meeting is at 7 p.m. June 24 in the clinic basement.
