July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
JCH to ask for $1 million (4/28/05)
Fund-drive will precede building campaign
By By Rachelle Haughn-
Jay County Hospital officials are hoping to begin a $2.5 million renovation project at the hospital this year with a little help from the community.
At Wednesday’s hospital board meeting, JCH chief executive officer Joe Johnston said a feasibility study done by Woodburn, Kyle and Company of Madison determined $1 million could be raised through donations from the community, hospital employees and board and auxiliary members.
Johnston told the board some of the changes hospital officials would like to see include creating a new main entrance at the east end of the hospital, which would have an overhang large enough for vehicles to drive through. An entrance to the emergency room that is separate from the entrance to the patient registration and waiting area for lab tests and radiology, new waiting areas, a new and more private registration area, expansion of the radiology department and relocation of the laboratory also are planned.
“We just really need to address those needs,” Johnston said this morning.
The hospital currently has more than $13 million in reserve funds. Johnston said $1.5 million of these funds would be used to pay for the renovations.
The hospital needs to raise the money so the project won’t have to be solely funded through the reserve funds, he said. The reserve funds serve as a back-up for the hospital in case it would stop receiving payments from Medicaid or Medicare. Some of the funds will be used to pay for the new psychiatric care unit for elderly patients, and the funds also would pay for any unexpected equipment purchases for the hospital.
The Jay County Hospital Foundation Board paid for the feasibility study, which cost about $15,000 Johnston said. The donations from community and those affiliated with the hospital would probably be paid over a period of three to five years rather than in large sums, he said. Johnston hopes construction can begin later this year.
Johnston said hospital officials have not yet discussed if or how the renovations will proceed if the hospital is unable to raise the $1 million.
The hospital board will vote on how to proceed with the fundraising campaign at its next meeting, which is Wednesday, May 25.[[In-content Ad]]Jay County Hospital physicians and surgeons could soon own a piece of the pie.
The hospital board heard a request Wednesday night to sell 40 percent of the Ambulatory Surgery Center to the hospital’s physicians and surgeons. JCH would retain 60 percent ownership of the business.
JCH chief executive officer Joe Johnston said selling a portion of the surgery center to the physicians would ultimately improve service at the facility and create better access for patients.
If the agreement is formed, some of the doctors would serve on an operating committee. The physicians would oversee the daily operations at the center and make decisions on how the facility is run. If the doctors are financially invested in the clinic, they will pay more attention to the care there and want to offer even better services than they currently provide, Johnston said.
The fact that doctors would own a piece of the clinic also could draw new physicians and surgeons to the business, Johnston said. More doctors means better access to care, he said.
The surgery center has been open about five years and is located in a building just southwest of the hospital. It offers outpatient surgeries.
The board will vote on whether to sell 40 percent of the center to physicians at the next meeting, which is Wednesday, May 25.
In other business, board members learned the specialty referral clinic is moving to a larger location and adding more specialists.
Johnston said the clinic will move into a renovated space at the Vormohr Medical Center, 1758 West 100 South, on Monday, May 9. The clinic has to move from its current location at the rear of the hospital to make way for the new 10-bed psychiatric care unit for elderly patients.
Hospital officials looked for a new home for the clinic inside the hospital but couldn’t find a space large enough, Johnston said. An area on the ground floor at VMC was enlarged to twice its original size and paid for through the limited liability company formed when JCH purchased the medical center.
Besides moving to a larger location, the clinic also will have more physicians.
Medical Consultants Professional Corporation Muncie has agreed to provide cardiology, rheumatology, endocrinology and pulmonology physicians for the specialty referral clinic. Johnston said the Muncie company is providing the physicians at no cost to the hospital.
In a related matter, the board approved the purchase of a new electrocardiograph machine for the clinic at a price of $5,906.68. The clinic currently uses one in the emergency room and will not be able to take it to the new location, Johnston said.
Also Wednesday, the board:
•Placed a $679,300 cap on the construction of the psychiatric care unit for elderly patients. Plans call for this unit, which will be located at the back of the hospital, to be renovated and for 1,600 square feet to be added. Hospital officials hope to have all of the remodeling completed by September.
The board also approved a contract with Weigand Construction of Fort Wayne to spend no more than $620,000 on the construction of the psychiatric ward. Johnston said Weigand will manage the project and oversee construction work done by several contractors.
The $59,300 difference between what the hospital is willing to pay Weigand and what the hospital wants to pay for the entire project, allows the hospital some flexibility in case some unexpected costs arise during construction, Johnston said.
The board also voted to spend no more than $30,000 on furnishings for the ward.
•Approved the purchase of a defibrillator from Phillips at a cost of $6,831. JCH chief nurse executive Judy Lemire said one of the hospital’s defibrillators no longer works, and another can’t be repaired.
•Voted to hire Blue and Company LLC to assist in the preparation of the 2004 Medicaid/Medicare disproportionate share hospital reimbursement for no more than $20,000.
This report shows how many Medicaid and Medicare patients the hospital had in the 2004 fiscal year, and of those, how many did not pay the hospital. JCH is then reimbursed for some of the money it did not receive from the patients.
•Heard a record 47 booths will be at the JCH spring health fair this year. The event will be held Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon at Jay County High School. Osteoporosis and blood screenings will be available. There also will be several activities for children.
•Heard JCH chief financial officer Don Michael report the hospital had a net income of $265,951 in March, which is up 56.1 percent from the budgeted figure of $170,361.
Admissions in March totaled 102. This figure is down 5 percent from the budgeted number of 107.
•Heard auxiliary president Marilyn Post report 66 hospital auxiliary volunteers worked 1,349 hours in March.
At Wednesday’s hospital board meeting, JCH chief executive officer Joe Johnston said a feasibility study done by Woodburn, Kyle and Company of Madison determined $1 million could be raised through donations from the community, hospital employees and board and auxiliary members.
Johnston told the board some of the changes hospital officials would like to see include creating a new main entrance at the east end of the hospital, which would have an overhang large enough for vehicles to drive through. An entrance to the emergency room that is separate from the entrance to the patient registration and waiting area for lab tests and radiology, new waiting areas, a new and more private registration area, expansion of the radiology department and relocation of the laboratory also are planned.
“We just really need to address those needs,” Johnston said this morning.
The hospital currently has more than $13 million in reserve funds. Johnston said $1.5 million of these funds would be used to pay for the renovations.
The hospital needs to raise the money so the project won’t have to be solely funded through the reserve funds, he said. The reserve funds serve as a back-up for the hospital in case it would stop receiving payments from Medicaid or Medicare. Some of the funds will be used to pay for the new psychiatric care unit for elderly patients, and the funds also would pay for any unexpected equipment purchases for the hospital.
The Jay County Hospital Foundation Board paid for the feasibility study, which cost about $15,000 Johnston said. The donations from community and those affiliated with the hospital would probably be paid over a period of three to five years rather than in large sums, he said. Johnston hopes construction can begin later this year.
Johnston said hospital officials have not yet discussed if or how the renovations will proceed if the hospital is unable to raise the $1 million.
The hospital board will vote on how to proceed with the fundraising campaign at its next meeting, which is Wednesday, May 25.[[In-content Ad]]Jay County Hospital physicians and surgeons could soon own a piece of the pie.
The hospital board heard a request Wednesday night to sell 40 percent of the Ambulatory Surgery Center to the hospital’s physicians and surgeons. JCH would retain 60 percent ownership of the business.
JCH chief executive officer Joe Johnston said selling a portion of the surgery center to the physicians would ultimately improve service at the facility and create better access for patients.
If the agreement is formed, some of the doctors would serve on an operating committee. The physicians would oversee the daily operations at the center and make decisions on how the facility is run. If the doctors are financially invested in the clinic, they will pay more attention to the care there and want to offer even better services than they currently provide, Johnston said.
The fact that doctors would own a piece of the clinic also could draw new physicians and surgeons to the business, Johnston said. More doctors means better access to care, he said.
The surgery center has been open about five years and is located in a building just southwest of the hospital. It offers outpatient surgeries.
The board will vote on whether to sell 40 percent of the center to physicians at the next meeting, which is Wednesday, May 25.
In other business, board members learned the specialty referral clinic is moving to a larger location and adding more specialists.
Johnston said the clinic will move into a renovated space at the Vormohr Medical Center, 1758 West 100 South, on Monday, May 9. The clinic has to move from its current location at the rear of the hospital to make way for the new 10-bed psychiatric care unit for elderly patients.
Hospital officials looked for a new home for the clinic inside the hospital but couldn’t find a space large enough, Johnston said. An area on the ground floor at VMC was enlarged to twice its original size and paid for through the limited liability company formed when JCH purchased the medical center.
Besides moving to a larger location, the clinic also will have more physicians.
Medical Consultants Professional Corporation Muncie has agreed to provide cardiology, rheumatology, endocrinology and pulmonology physicians for the specialty referral clinic. Johnston said the Muncie company is providing the physicians at no cost to the hospital.
In a related matter, the board approved the purchase of a new electrocardiograph machine for the clinic at a price of $5,906.68. The clinic currently uses one in the emergency room and will not be able to take it to the new location, Johnston said.
Also Wednesday, the board:
•Placed a $679,300 cap on the construction of the psychiatric care unit for elderly patients. Plans call for this unit, which will be located at the back of the hospital, to be renovated and for 1,600 square feet to be added. Hospital officials hope to have all of the remodeling completed by September.
The board also approved a contract with Weigand Construction of Fort Wayne to spend no more than $620,000 on the construction of the psychiatric ward. Johnston said Weigand will manage the project and oversee construction work done by several contractors.
The $59,300 difference between what the hospital is willing to pay Weigand and what the hospital wants to pay for the entire project, allows the hospital some flexibility in case some unexpected costs arise during construction, Johnston said.
The board also voted to spend no more than $30,000 on furnishings for the ward.
•Approved the purchase of a defibrillator from Phillips at a cost of $6,831. JCH chief nurse executive Judy Lemire said one of the hospital’s defibrillators no longer works, and another can’t be repaired.
•Voted to hire Blue and Company LLC to assist in the preparation of the 2004 Medicaid/Medicare disproportionate share hospital reimbursement for no more than $20,000.
This report shows how many Medicaid and Medicare patients the hospital had in the 2004 fiscal year, and of those, how many did not pay the hospital. JCH is then reimbursed for some of the money it did not receive from the patients.
•Heard a record 47 booths will be at the JCH spring health fair this year. The event will be held Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon at Jay County High School. Osteoporosis and blood screenings will be available. There also will be several activities for children.
•Heard JCH chief financial officer Don Michael report the hospital had a net income of $265,951 in March, which is up 56.1 percent from the budgeted figure of $170,361.
Admissions in March totaled 102. This figure is down 5 percent from the budgeted number of 107.
•Heard auxiliary president Marilyn Post report 66 hospital auxiliary volunteers worked 1,349 hours in March.
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