by Richard Uhlhorn
At its December 19th board meeting and after a post telephone conversation with CEO Aaron Edwards, All Things Lake Chelan learned about some of the issues and progress being made by the hospital.
Chelan Health has gone through a rough financial period over the past three to four years, but is currently on the rebound to financial health. Following is a report on the latest board meeting.
Board addition:
The first order of business was to swear in Len England as the newest member of the commission.
Bond Rating
The board was told that the hospital’s bond rating has been moved from negative to stable based on its current financial picture. CEO Edwards stated that the hospital has $9.9 million dollars in cash on hand which is way up from the $3.3 million last year. “We are doing a little better,” said Edwards.
The hospital grossed $5.3 million in November with a projected total of $52 million gross for the 2023 year.
November financials came in with a $107,000 loss which according to CFO Brant Truman is a massive improvement. “We continue to move forward.” Contracturals are up. According to Edwards, the hospital has contracts with insurance companies with whom the hospital negotiates prices for the year. A $600,000 Medicare adjustment will show up in the contracturals. “It is essentially a weird business,” said Edwards.
OB Services:
One of the big issues is the sustainability of its OB situation. With only eight to nine births a month it is difficult to keep OB’s on staff fulltime. “Nursing to date’s projected loss is $700,000,” stated Edwards. “It’s hard to keep up. We had 97 births last year.” He would like to grow that service line.
Director of Nursing, Rhianna Montgomery said, “If I lose one more nurse, we will be in a staffing crisis. OB nurses just want to be OB nurses.” She also stated that the nurses the hospital does have are very dedicated to the hospital’s mission.
The hospital has a nurse in training at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane, but Montgomery said, “I need somebody now.” Truman remarked that a number of OB services across the nation have had to shut down.
The board unanimously agreed to entering a contract for an OB nurse at $243,000 per year.
Edwards stated that if it weren’t for the EMS Levy, EMS would also be a losing function. “We have gone to the legislature and argued that low volume hospitals should receive a special designation for EMT’s to medically assist in the hospital,” said Edwards. Both the House and Senate have bills addressing this issue (HB1907-2023-24 and SB5940).
Facilities:
The hospital is moving forward with its Highland Campus behind the new hospital. When built, it will house EMS and administration. “Our relationship with John Ajax (Community Development Director) has been very positive. There have been no surprises and no expectations we can’t meet. The permit is the next step,” reported Edwards.
The Hospital Board meets on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 1:30 p.m. in the new hospital’s Bragg conference room.
All Things Lake Chelan 