Lake Chelan Community Hospital & Clinics board answers questions at public forum

CHELAN - Community questions were answered during the public forum held by the Lake Chelan Community Hospital and Clinics Board of Commissioners last Wednesday, May 8.

“The agenda of the forum this evening is to provide information to the community about the changes that have occurred in the hospital over the last year and updates on the progress of the new facility,” said Phyllis Gleasman, Chair of the LCCH Board, as she opened the evening’s event.

Last year during a two day retreat, commissioners identified six areas to focus on to move the hospital to the next level; People, Service, Quality and Safety, Growth and Innovation, Finance and Community. Each committee is direct result of the six pillars that were established. The commissioners’ expertise and input keeps LCCH on track explained Gleasman.

Commissioner Jordana LaPorte of the Community Committee briefly reported on the committee. “We’ve had a lot of meetings in the last eight months over many different topics,” she said. The committee LaPorte is part of identifies, explores and evaluates opportunities to expand overall communication, wellness and outreach offerings to the community. One of the goals idetified in the committe was to hold at least two public forum events per year, which LaPorte is excited about. “It’s frustrating to have only two people show up at our board meetings,” she said.

Mary Murphy, who serves in the Quality Committee, stated that “quality is the most important thing in terms of hospital.” To her quality translates to trust, “we want you to come back.” She mentioned that changes at the hospital and at the clinic have taken place to make sure quality standards are met. “We depend on you to give us feedback about the care you’ve received ... please help us to get better at what we do,” Murphy emphasized to the attendees. A few community members, who were present, spoke about their “unsatisfactory visit” to the hospital and asked how to provide their feedback. “Any door is the right door,” answered Murphy. She suggested to contact CEO Steve Patonai or any board member to address their concerns.

Commissioner Fred Miller then moved on to talk about the Finance Committee. “The primary activity that we do is review the monthly and yearly financial statements. Looking at the ratios, the good and the bad. What could be changed and find out who should do it,” commented Miller. At the moment, the committee is looking at a Revenue Cycle Management. The committee also reviews the annual budget, financial policies and annual audit. He clarifies that the committee is advisory to the board and they do not make a final decision. “Going forward with the new hospital construction, the Finance Committee will be highly involved every step along the way,” Miller mentioned.

Murphy spoke again this time on the Affiliations/Partnerships Committee. “Affiliations and partnerships are absolutely key to thriving in the future for all healthcare systems,” she said. This committee allows LCCH to formally and informally build relationships in order to find ways to increase the variety of services. “We want to look for the opportunities for us ... our role is to explore and study,” said Murphy. Currently LCCH has affiliations with Swidish, University of Washington, Columbia Valley Community Health and Confluence Health.

Wrapping up the committee updates was Commissioner Mary Signorelli. Signorelli is one of the seven members who sit in the Facilities Committee. “We function for the purpose of working with the replacement hospital architects, consultants, contractors and staff,” said Signorelli. She mentioned that the committee has been working since before the bond was passed. In meeting held on May 6 with the architects and contractors, the board went over a timeline and the new space for the hospital. “Almost everything we have is a draft ... we don’t have anything set,” she clarified.

“Our goal as the commission and facilities committee has been to stay within the budget that was approved by our community when they passed the bond. We’ve had to make some changes to the original plan that we had and that’s where we are at right now,” Signorelli explained to the attendees. In order to stay within the budget the plan had to be scaled down. However, it was kept in mind what is needed. Scaling down to 54,000 sq. ft. still gives LCCHC the necessary room to be functional and efficient.

Future plans for EMS were addressed by CEO Patonai. “We haven’t determined how we are going to get EMS on campus, but they need to be on campus. They need space for their trucks, two sleep rooms, a lounge and an eating area,” said Patonai. Funds for the EMS garage will be built into the budget in the near future.

In order  to keep the community informed on future progress of the hospital, other forums will be held. Signorelli also mentioned that a newsletter will go out and updates will be posted on the hospital’s website. “We are working hard to keep communications going out to you,” said Signorelli.

According to Signorelli, further delays are not anticipated. Yet between now and ground breaking a lot of things need to get approved. “That’s going to take about a year to get all of those. We are trying to keep things moving,” she said. It is predicted that ground breaking of the new facility will happen in May of 2020.