LCCHC hospital board approves updated organizational structure

CHELAN – In the last three months, Lake Chelan Community Hospital and Clinics Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Steve Patonai along with Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) Kris Haasl have been working on updating the hospital’s organizational structure in order for it to align with the hospital’s priorities.

Patonai presented to Hospital Commissioners a draft with the updated structure on June 12, during a special meeting. “We want to make sure we have the right resources in the area, tying along with our pillars element and our vision,” said Patonai. He went ahead and reported on the few major structural changes to the board. The changes include Haasl’s taking over the responsibilities of the Chief Operating Officer. “She will be responsible for the day to day operations of LCCHC,” Patonai to the Board. This change will help integrate the hospital’s and the clinic’s operations into one. “We have to show the same standard care in both facilities,” Patonai added.

A second major change includes the promotion of Courtney Wallace to Chief Quality Officer. “With this structure, we want to elevate the importance of quality and patient satisfaction,” Patonai stated. According to Patonai, this position has the same importance as finance.

The Business Office Manager position will be upgraded to a Revenue Cycle Director (RCD) position. “It’s not a new thing. Most hospitals have that,” said Patonai. The upgrade comes from a recommendation of revenue cycle assessment. Patonai mentioned that hiring for that position is currently taking place. The RCD will run all the pieces of the revenue cycle.

Ken Peters will be highly involved with the construction moving forward with the new hospital. Peters will be involved with medical structure equipment and with the transition of patients to the new facility. He will be reporting to Chief Financial Officer Mark Ellis.

The Food Service Department will also see changes; the department will now be reporting to Haasl. The preparing and delivery of the food are two easy parts to be evaluated by the patient in terms of care and satisfaction. According to Patonai, LCCH will be transiting in a hotel room service model. “We want to have the patients order food whenever they need to,” he said.

After hearing from Patonai, the Board voted to approve the upgraded structure. With the Board’s approval, it will take up to 30 days to transiting into the new operational structure. This LCCHC structure will result in cost savings.  Due to the upgrades, many of the current LCCHC employees’ job descriptions will be changing to reflect the changes in structure.

Prevention Fair June 20
Join Lake Chelan Community Hospital & Clinics  Thursday, June 20 for a Family Prevention Fair at the Chelan Fire Station, corner of Wapato Avenue and Sanders,  from 4 – 7 p.m., the same time as the Chelan Evening Farmers Market. Do your shopping and follow the poop emoji trail to the fire station for this fun event for all ages.