Hospital readies to go it alone

Tuesday’s hospital board meeting began on a happy note. Dr. Earl and Linda Walter gave a gift to the new Allen County Regional Hospital. In recognition, the Walters will have patient room 115-116 designated in their names. The extra big room sits right across from the nursing station.
With their breakaway from Hospital Corporation of America effective Monday, trustees signed with the Kansas Hospital Association workers’ compensation employment program. When under HCA’s umbrella, hospital employees received workers’comp in-house.
At one time, such services were provided by the state, said Ron Baker, hospital chief executive officer.
“But the nature of our jobs — the lifting and transfer of patients — makes us expensive to insure,” Baker said. “Hospital and nursing home employees typically suffer a lot of work-related injuries.”
All of the hospital’s 150-160 employees will be covered.
A neurosurgeon, Dr. Harold Hess, has begun seeing patients in the medical arts building, and an oncologist, Dr. Cinderella Chavez, will begin office hours in July, Baker said.
Recruiting specialists is “an ongoing process. We will always be recruiting physicians,” he said. “It’s always a challenge for a small community to have its medical staff in good shape.”
The lure of a more lucrative practice in a metropolitan area is stiff competition for rural hospitals, he said.

THE ELECTRICAL feed to the medical arts building has been separated from the main hospital in preparation for the October move to the new hospital. Next up is to separate the hot water system between the two buildings, Baker said. The medical arts building will remain open for visiting specialists.
Negotiations are all but complete with Via Christi of Wichita to have Dr. Wes Stone and his staff at Preferred Medical Associates to join the hospital’s staff. Stone’s partner, Dr. Earl Walter, has announced his retirement.
The hospital will lease their current building on South Washington Avenue.
Also, the occupational and physical therapy departments at the hospital will add three positions under the new leadership of RehabVisions out of Omaha. A receptionist, an occupational therapy assistant and a program director will join the current departments.

TIM MOORE of Murray Company said construction of the new hospital remains on schedule. Laying of flooring in patient rooms and the emergency department has begun. Painting of those areas should begin in July.
In surgery, the flooring is 75 percent complete. Doors for the rooms in the west wing should arrive today. Touchup of painting projects will begin in July.
In the north wing, the first phases of priming have begun for the physical therapy and lab areas as well as the main lobby. Flooring will come next for those areas.
For the exterior, irrigation work will begin Monday. After that is complete, trees will be planted. Signage will follow in August.
Trustees agreed to pay $12,069.12 to Health Facilities Group for architect fees.