Hartselle Medical Center

 

HARTSELLE, AL. September 14, 2010. Expanding services and safeguarding local hospital care are the goals of a move to combine some hospital support functions announced today at Hartselle Medical Center (HMC). The move comes two weeks after the hospital said it was moving to a “system approach” to management, working with its sister facility in Morgan County, Parkway Medical Center (PMC), located 12 miles away.

“For months we‟ve looked at the best, most logical ways to work more collaboratively,” said Tim McGill, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Parkway and Hartselle Medical Centers. “After evaluating all of the services we provide at both hospitals, we concluded that there were some support functions that could be coordinated more efficiently. These changes will not impact any of the healthcare services we provide to the community. However, this does mean that some jobs will unfortunately be affected in support departments, including administration, the business office, transcription, dietary and materials management.”

“This is a tough but necessary decision that will position both hospitals to ride out a tough economy, while preparing for the era of health care reform that will force all hospitals to work more efficiently to succeed,” he said.

“We continue to look at ways to grow services and add new ones. That will ultimately mean new jobs created and expanded healthcare for Morgan County. Already this month, we began a new Hospitalist Program at Hartselle. And we‟ve recruited another new physician – Dr. Bhavna Gowda, a family practitioner – who has just opened her practice here.”

Many hospitals across the nation and, in particular, the state of Alabama, are struggling financially because of a „perfect storm‟ of factors, McGill said. They include:

 Terribly low reimbursement (Alabama hospitals receive the lowest average payment for services in the U.S.).

 Increasing charity care and bad debt, in part, due to the economy. (Nearly 70% of Alabama hospitals are experiencing these trends, according to a survey conducted this spring by the Alabama Hospital Association.)

 Declining patient volumes, in part due to the economy as people postpone elective procedures or diagnostic testing.

“Because we know how important it is to the Hartselle community that hospital services are preserved here in Hartselle, we‟e explored many options over the past few months to help protect the future of the hospital, while seeking input and guidance from our Board of Trustees. This led us to the conclusion that a more closely aligned relationship between our sister facilities was the best option. This new approach will make both hospitals stronger and ultimately put us in a position to grow.”

Overall, of the 550 employees at Parkway and Hartselle Medical Centers, 23 positions were impacted. Employees impacted were notified on Tuesday morning, but a majority of them will not transition for 30-45 days.

“Decisions that involve the loss of even one job are never easy to make,” McGill said. “But we want our employees and the community to know that we are doing everything we can to assist the affected employees through this.”

Among the steps he said the hospital took were these:

– Each was offered severance or other compensation to help them through their transition.

– They‟l have the opportunity to transfer internally to a sister hospital if there are job openings that they qualify for. In fact, a few are already pursuing that process.

– The hospital is providing career counseling assistance to help, if needed, with resume writing, defining strategies for finding new employment and also interview guidance.

– Employees can also access a variety of assistance services through the hospital‟ Employee Assistance Program, which provides confidential counseling for employees and their families to assist them in dealing with personal, financial, legal and work issues.

McGill noted, “After today, barring any extraordinary events, we don‟ foresee any additional job reductions. In fact, as we more closely share the essential resources required to operate a hospital, we‟l be in a better position to improve care, grow and add key services, and recruit needed physicians to Morgan County.”

 

About Hartselle Medical Center

 

A 150-bed acute-care hospital fully accredited by The Joint Commission, Hartselle Medical Center has served Morgan County residents since 1948. The hospital offers 24-hour emergency services, with Intensive and Medical/Surgical Care Units, outpatient and inpatient physical therapy, diagnostic imaging, and inpatient and outpatient surgical services. For more information about Hartselle Medical Center, visit the website at www.HartselleMedicalCenter.com

 

About Parkway Medical Center

 

Serving the Morgan County area for more than 80 years, Parkway Medical Center is a 120-bed acute-care hospital, fully accredited by The Joint Commission. The hospital provides 24-hour Emergency Care, Intensive Care, Medical/Surgical Care and Surgical Services ranging from minimally invasive to Urologic, Orthopedic, Gynecological and Bariatric. Other services include Mammography, Diagnostic Imaging, Bone Densitometry, an Obstetrics Unit with birthing rooms, Pediatrics, Respiratory and comprehensive Lab Services. Parkway has been recognized as a Top 100 Hospital™by the 2009-2010 Hospital Value Index™ Ranked #28 in the nation, this means in a study of 4,500 hospitals nationwide, Parkway is among the top 1% of hospitals in providing extraordinary healthcare at great value. For more information, visit the website at www.ParkwayMedicalCenter.com

Both hospitals are a part of the Capella Healthcare family of hospitals. For more information, visit www.CapellaHealth.com