312 Custer
Ness City, KS 67560
785-798-2291
Board regular & Annual meeting minutes
2019
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday
March 25, 2019
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Jan Rider, board member Travis Sutton; staff members Curt Thomas, Debbie Frank, Tammy Pfannenstiel, Cindy Maier, Sara Corsair and Shelly McDonald.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.
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Minutes: Sabra moved to accept the February minutes. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the February financial report as prepared by Deb. Jan moved to accept them. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Staff Report: Sara reported that we will receive the DOT transportation van grant for Cedar Village. It is for 80% of the $70,000 price. Also included is 70% of operating costs, up to $10,000 per year, for potentially up to 3 years. She also said that our staff selected the four core areas of the PEAK program. They are food, relationships, sleep and daily routines. She reported that because of State regulations, we could not allow hair cutting for anyone other than our Cedar Village residents. Cindy reported that we were able to staff nearly all our ISB nursing shifts with our own nurses. Sabra left the meeting.
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Old Business: Curt reported that the lot just east of the clinic had been surveyed and soil samples taken in preparation of the clinic expansion. He reported that the board of Golden Belt Telephone (GBT) had voted to loan us $300,000 for 10 years at 0% interest for the clinic expansion. He said we are moving through the process with Lane-Scott Electric,
Western Electric, Sunflower Electric, USDA and the local banks. Securing the loans is taking precedence at this time.
We discussed how to “get the word out” that we are expanding the clinic, which is big enough for only our two current providers, in preparation for our new physician, Dr. Easey, coming to town summer of 2020 and that all three of our providers, including Dr. Imseis, are supportive of his coming.
New Business: The board decided to move the regular/annual board meeting in May from Monday the 27th which is Memorial Day, to Tuesday the 28th. Jan moved to reappoint the following to our Courtesy Medical Staff, Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0: Gary Wilson, D.O., John Riekhof, M.D., William Marsh, M.D., Patrik Leonard, M.D., Daniel Hulse, M.D., Ray House, M.D., Robert Haller, M.D., Neal Hall, M.D., William Garlow, M.D., Pamela Davis, M.D. and Rashmi Thapa, M.D. Reappointment denied Alan McLain, D.O. at this time secondary to 1) Board of Healing Arts journal entry and 2) No current evidence of malpractice insurance. Resignation from Michael Lloyd, D.O. was accepted. Curt said the school is getting a new football scoreboard and asked if we wanted to be one of the sponsors at a cost of $5,000. After discussion, Jan moved that we not sponsor it. Travis seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Other: Curt reported that we will get our outpatient Cardiac Clinic back by the end of the year—hopefully by October. HaysMed has a new cardiologist now and will get another in June.
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Executive Session: Nancy moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 7:45 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Jan seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt, Deb and Tammy. Out of session at 7:55p.m. Nancy moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Travis seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:00 p.m. Next regular meeting will be Monday, April 22, 2019 at 6:00 p.m. in the Classroom at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday
February 25, 2019
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Jan Rider, board member Travis Sutton; staff members Curt Thomas, Ashley Stenzel and Ashley Lamb.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.
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Executive Session: Sabra moved to go into executive session for 15 minutes at 6:30 p.m. to discuss Risk Management/Quality Assessment. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Ashley and Ashley. Out of session at 6:45 p.m. Jan moved to approve and sign the risk management plan. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Old Business: Ashley and Ashley left the meeting and staff members Debbie Frank, Tammy Phannenstiel and Sara Corsair joined the meeting. Curt also introduced Craig Singer, general contracting with DCS Services and Mark McCluggage with GLMV Architecture both out of Wichita. Craig and Mark presented the Project Management clinic expansion final plan estimated at $1,378,682 and renovation of 5 hospital patient rooms, Physical Therapy and changing part of the employee dining room into a Cedar Village resident private area all at an estimated cost of $265,011. These are just estimated costs and bids will be taken once all the final drawings are completed. After discussion, Craig and Mark left the meeting at 7:25 p.m. Then after further discussion, Sabra moved to sign the agreement including a 10% retainage. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt reported that he has had conversations about financing the project with local banks, Lane-Scott Electric, Western Electric, GBT and USDA. He reported that we will receive a $45,000 grant from Sunflower Foundation: Health Care for Kansas out of Topeka.
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Minutes: Sabra moved to accept the January minutes. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Reports: Curt presented the January financial report as prepared by Deb. Jan moved to accept them. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Staff Report: Tammy reported that we would have two nursing students from Ft. Hays State University School of Nursing for a day of Rural Clinic Rotation. This would get us a little exposure for recruitment. Sara reported that we will hear on the van grant in March; and that we are selecting our 4 core areas of the PEAK program. We could receive approximately $2,700 this next year by successfully completing the program and up to $16-17,000/year by completing the entire program over the next few years.
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New Business: Jan moved to appoint/reappoint the following to our medical staff: Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Appoint to Allied Health Staff Jose Renteria, APRN; Reappoint to Allied Health Staff Gary Hembd, CRNA and Bradley Wertz, CRNA. Reappoint to Courtesy Staff, Lyle Noordhoek, M.D., Jeffery P. Lee, M.D., Shannon P. Calhoun, D.O., Jason E Grennan, M.D., Jonathan A. Jaksha, M.D., Christopher T Koch, M.D., Matthew R. Mendlick, M.D., Mohammed F. Quraishi, M.D., Richard A. Stemm, M.D., Allison L. Summers, M.D., Jaret M. Copeman, D.O., Katie A. DeJong, D.O., Casey R. Green, M.D., Nathaniel T. Johnson, M.D., Tyler J. Koedam, M.D., Donald J. Kosiak, Jr., M.D., Matthew R. Nipe, M.D., Timothy A. Nydam, M.D., Andrea Jo Pham, D.O., Kelly Ann Rhone, M.D., Alan J. Sazama, M.D., Benjamin J. Shives, M.D., Brian S. Skow, M.D., Vernon D. Smith, M.D., Nichole L. Stethem, M.D., Garrett R. Taylor, M.D., John M. Travnicek, M.D., Lucas Scott Van Oeveren, M.D., Collin W. Vaughn, M.D. and Heeyoung P. Wang, M.D. Curt brought to our attention that the normal board meeting date for May was Memorial Day.
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Other: Curt reported that from the utility expense of last meeting’s financials, we had two months of electric bills and for the year we had twelve months expensed.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:00 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Deb and Tammy. Out of session at 8:10 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:10 p.m. Next regular meeting will be Monday, March 25, 2019 at 6:00 p.m. in the Classroom at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Jan Rider Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday
January 28, 2019
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Acting Secretary Jan Rider, board member Travis Sutton; staff members Curt Thomas, Deb Frank, Tammy Pfannenstiel and Shelly McDonald.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.
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Minutes: Sabra moved to accept the December minutes as mailed. Jan seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Board Director Appointment: Chairman Whitley presented Travis Sutton for appointment to complete the unexpired board term this year. The board gave unanimous consent and welcomed Travis to the Board of Directors.
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Financial Reports: Curt presented the November and December financial reports as prepared by Deb. Jan moved to accept them as mailed out. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Staff Report: Curt reported for Cindy Maier that we had 94 emergency room patients in December, which is a 50% increase over our average month; we have been extremely busy everywhere. Also, that we had no med errors in Cedar Village for the month primarily because of our new electronic medical record system. Tammy reported that Megan Horchem was moving from her position with the University of Kansas/KCIC and that Carolyn Gabel would be assuming the KCIC position 3 days per week and that she and Kira Pfannenstiel would be filling in those days as Sally Kreger’s nurse.
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Old Business: Curt reported that we have a good chance of receiving $45,000 from Sunflower Foundation out of Topeka for work that the grant writer had done for us on the clinic expansion project. He reported that he had talked with Western Electric Coop, who had financed two of our projects over the past 12 years. He was told that some money might be available through Western Electric or USDA funds, and that they would talk with Sunflower Electric on a project of that size. He also talked with Great Plains Development out of Dodge City who said they had some possibilities—one was USDA and another is Economic Development Association (EDA). She will check on the EDA one and get back with us. Curt also talked with local banks in the county about the possibility of financing it through a consortium of local banks similar to what we did with the HVAC project in 2015. After discussing all this and the final floorplan, Sabra moved to proceed with the expansion as planned. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt said that Dr. Easey hoped he could come out for the groundbreaking.
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After Curt presented the budget and the discussion that ensued, Jan moved to raise the LTC rates $5/day. Motion died for lack of a second. After further discussion, Nancy moved to raise the LTC rates $10/day, the acute and skilled swing bed rates $50/day, and the ER rates per Deb’s worksheet. Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/1.
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New Business: Jan moved to appoint/reappoint the following to our medical staff: Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Appoint to Courtesy Staff Kathryn Cambron, M.D and Alexander Serra, M.D. Reappoint to Active Staff Mikhail Imseis, M.D. Reappoint to Allied Health Staff Sally Kreger, APRN, William McDonald, APRN, Timothy Vanderweide, CRNA, Michael Goode, CRNA. Reappoint to Courtesy Staff Harley Calvin, D.O., Kurt Rider, M.D., Roger Dietz, M.D., Cody Evans, M.D., David Hadford, M.D., Tamara Hiavaty, M.D., Nathan Murdoch, M.D., Daniel Novinski, M.D., Aye Win, M.D. and Paul Teget, M.D.
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Curt reported that Boyd Beutler had resigned from the NCH Healthcare Foundation Board and that the foundation board had requested we appoint Kevin Beutler in his place since this is a hospital appointee position. He stated that Boyd had led the foundation for 30 years and that the foundation had been organized initially with one of it’s main objectives being to build the medical clinic. The board is very grateful to Boyd for his 30 years of service to healthcare in Ness County and to NCH. Nancy moved to accept the foundation board’s request for the appointment of Kevin Beutler to the NCH Healthcare Foundation Board of Directors. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Other: Curt reported that we will probably contract for speech therapy and occupational therapy on an as-needed basis as long as we do not lose money providing the service. The company is called Aegis and has an office out of Phillipsburg. Their references from other Kansas hospitals are all very good.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:45 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Deb and Tammy. Out of session at 8:55 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 9:00 p.m. Next regular meeting will be Monday, February 25, 2019 at 6:00 p.m. in the Classroom at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Acting Secretary Jan Rider Date
2018
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday
August 13, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Wade Gantz, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Deb Frank, Tammy Pfannenstiel, Cindy Maier, Sara Corsair and Darlene Bennett.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the July minutes as mailed. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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District Budget Public Hearing: Jan moved to finalize the district budget for 2019 as adopted last month, which has the same mill levy amount as this current year at 31.05 mills. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Report: Given the early board meeting this month we do not have a financial report. Financials will be mailed as soon as they are available.
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Staff Report: Cindy reported that we have been very busy. With the eleven ISB beds that are full, out of the now licensed 25 beds, we only had a couple of empty beds. This is very unusual for this time of year. Sara reported that the new electronic medical record (EMR) is very user friendly and we expect to receive more reimbursement because of better record keeping.
Old Business: Curt reported that the next step in the grant process for the clinic expansion is to apply to Sunflower Healthcare Foundation for the pre-planning architect cost. Then we will float a Request for Proposal (RFP) to other architects who might be interested in the project. Jan moved to proceed with the grant request from Sunflower. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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New Business: Curt presented Dr. Daniel Hulse, M.D. and Dr. Marcus Kirkpatrick, M.D., both radiologists for appointment to our medical staff. Sabra moved to approve them for our Courtesy Staff. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 5 minutes at 7:35 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 7:40 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Sabra moved to adjourn to executive session at 7:40 p.m. for 25 minutes at to discuss Risk Management/Quality Assessment. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Darlene and Curt. Out of session at 8:05 p.m. We discussed our blood banking process/procedure and board consensus is that we want to do as much blood banking as is reasonable. Wade moved to adjourn to executive session for 45 minutes at 8:30 p.m. to discuss personnel staff issues. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members. Out of session at 9:15p.m.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 9:20 p.m. Next regular meeting will be Monday, September 24, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. in the Classroom at Ness County Hospital.
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Respectfully submitted,
Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday July 23, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Wade Gantz, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Deb Frank, Tammy Pfannenstiel, Ashley Stenzel, Ashley Lamb, Jerry Marshall, Laura Morgan, Sally Kreger, and Lori Mellies.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.
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Minutes: Wade moved to accept the June minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for June as mailed. Wade moved to accept the report. Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Old Business: Curt gave an update on the Cedar Village/ISB project. He stated that he hopes to get the night staffing back down to what it was, which is three nurse aides at Cedar Village and two RN’s on acute. His goal is to go with that staffing but with one difference, being one of the aides would be primarily staffed on acute and one RN would be primarily at Cedar Village. They would then re-arrange as the need dictates. Curt presented a proposal to the board to correct the hot water problem in the two north bathhouses. He presented the problems with the tankless heaters and commercial hot water tanks. The solution is to install a domestic hot water mixing valve and related isolation valves, pumps, piping and insulation. After discussion, Sabra moved to accept the bid of $31,563 from Knipp Services. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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New Business: Curt presented Dr. Alan Sazama, M.D., an emergency physician on the staff of Avera for our medical staff. Sabra moved to approve him for our Courtesy Staff. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Curt then presented a proposal to change from Lincoln Insurance, who writes our group life and disability policies and is raising rates 7%, to Guardian who is also an A++ company and we will save $2,400 per year and have some additional minor coverage advantages. Nancy moved to make the change. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Executive Session: Nancy moved to adjourn to executive session for 5 minutes at 6:50 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members (Jan arrived), Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 6:55 p.m. Nancy moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Other: Lori Hensley gave an update on funding the clinic expansion project. She recommended we go for the maximum “pre-planning” project because it should be covered by a grant from someone like Sunflower Health Care Foundation. Then we can fine-tune it before the final project is approved. She was reasonably optimistic about two or three other funding sources for the building project. Curt presented a proposal to increase the acute room rate by 8% and the skilled swing-bed rate by 13%. This would keep us in a competitive position with hospitals in our nearby region and provide us with $30,000 revenue. Jan moved to make the change. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt reported that the annual KHA Conference is September 6-7 and that the board would start receiving an in-service article called “Trustee Insights” from the American Hospital Association. Different district budget options were considered and after discussion, Curt read District Budget Resolution #2018DB. Jan moved to adopt this resolution, which keeps the mill levy the same as this current year, at 31.05 mills, and that the public hearing will be the same day as our regular August board meeting on August 13, 2018 at 7 p.m. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Wade moved to adjourn to executive session for 35 minutes at 9:55 p.m. to discuss personnel staff issues. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0. Only the board members were present. Out of session at 10:30 p.m. No action was taken.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 10:30 p.m. Next regular meeting and public budget hearing will be Monday, August 13, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. in the classroom at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday June 25, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Wade Gantz, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Deb Frank, Cindy Maier, Sara Corsair, Tammy Pfannenstiel, Scott Davis and Ashley Stenzel.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:20 p.m.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the May minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the statistical report for May. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Staff Report: Cindy reported that colonoscopy clinic held is adequate. She also spoke favorably about the Avera telemedicine ER service that she believes has saved some people. The 3-year grant that KU has to pay for it will end this year. The cost to continue the program will probably be around $55,000 per year. We will address it in our budget process toward the end of the year. She also mentioned that we might want to consider installing a helipad for approximately $66,000. Sara reported that we will “go live” with the new electronic health record at Cedar Village August 2. It should provide better documentation, which in turn will increase our reimbursement from Medicaid. She reported that our staffing numbers are improving therefore the number of temporary agency staff is less. She also stated that the hot water issue in the Cedar Village north bathhouse and the acute bathhouse is not any better. The board is adamant that this issue be fixed/resolved. Curt said he would bring an update to the next board meeting. Tammy reported that we “go live” with the Azalea electronic medical record early August.
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Old Business: Tammy and Curt gave an update on the clinic expansion project. We are evaluating whether we can eliminate some of the areas. Cindy, Sara and Curt gave an update on the Cedar Village/ISB project. We are still fine-tuning our processes. Curt reported that we could accept Medicaid admissions to Cedar Village. Curt reported that the phone system would be paid out of the fundraising account.
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New Business: Curt presented the initial preliminary draft of our district budget for 2019. The board will decide what to propose at our next meeting. Scott and Curt presented a three-option proposal from Nex-Tech, our IT vendor—either continue renting two virtual servers for $3,000/month; purchase those servers for $78,000; or go with a full contract servicing agreement (TaaS) of $10,550/month, for an additional $1,178/month. Scott and Debbie ran some numbers and the hospital was already spending close to that amount per month in IT related costs. Scott fully recommended we go with the full contract service agreement for that additional amount. After discussion, Jan moved to go with the TaaS agreement. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0. Curt reported that we are in the initial stages of evaluating our health insurance provider. A decision must be made by October 1. We are currently with the State of Kansas employees plan.
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Other: Curt reported that KU is applying for a grant for emergency psychological assistance. He signed an initial, non-commitment, interest letter. He stated that we did not want to do anything that would be counterproductive with High Plains Mental Health Center, which already assists us. The board discussed a worksheet that Curt had prepared on the number of clinic visits and charges for the past six years.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 7:55 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 8:00 p.m. Nancy moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:25 p.m. Next regular meeting will be Monday, July 23, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. in the classroom at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday May 21, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Wade Gantz, Board Member Jan Rider, V.P. Sabra Clarke, Curt Thomas, Deb Frank, Cindy Maier, Sara Corsair, Tammy Pfannenstiel and Darlene Bennett.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. after a tour of the medical clinic and eating a light dinner.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the April minutes as mailed. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Old Business: Tammy and Curt gave an update on the clinic expansion project. Jan asked whether there needed to be an exit in the northeast corner of the expansion. They will check with the architect. The board told Curt to ask the grant writer to come to the July board meeting. Cindy, Sara and Curt gave an update on the Cedar Village/ISB project. We are making headway working out the new implementation changes. The board asked if we had received approval to admit Medicaid residents to long term care. Curt will report at the next meeting. They presented a proposal to expand or change our LTC electronic health record. The implementation cost will be no more than $5,000 and the additional cost per month will be $600. Besides having better information, which we will be able to capture electronically, the additional revenue we will be able to receive from Medicaid from our higher case mix index will pay that cost within the first year. Jan moved to upgrade the system. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 15 minutes at 7:35 p.m. to discuss Risk Management/Quality Assessment. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Those present were the board, Darlene and Curt. Out of executive session at 7:50 p.m. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 7:52 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 8:02 p.m. Jan moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for April that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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New Business: Curt presented a new phone system proposal from Golden Belt for $36,701.94 to replace our obsolete system. We had one other bid that was higher than this one. He stated that he thought the NCH staff might pay for it out of the fundraising money that they work hard to earn. Sabra moved to purchase the system. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt presented credentialing for Dr. Jill Stewart, M.D. He stated that he hoped she would cover us at least one Friday clinic day and the weekend call a month and perhaps another clinic day a month. Jan moved to approve Dr. Stewart to our courtesy staff. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Each board member signed a new confidentiality statement.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:30 p.m. Next regular meeting will be Monday, June 25, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. in the classroom at Ness County Hospital.
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Respectfully submitted,
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Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District #2
Board of Directors
Annual Meeting
Monday, May 21, 2018
Those in attendance were Chairman Brent Whitley, VP Sabra Clark, Secretary Wade Gantz, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, and member Jan Rider. Also present were Curt Thomas, Deb Frank, Tammy Pfannenstiel, Sara Corsair and Cindy Maier.
Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 8:35 p.m.
Jan moved to accept the minutes as written, Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Curt summarized the Annual Review and Utilization Review for the Hospital. Department head written reports were sent out to the board the previous week. In 2017 we averaged 2.5 acute/swing bed/observation patients per day as opposed to 2.1 in 2016; and 35.7 residents in Cedar Village as opposed to 35.4 in 2016. We had a 6% decrease in outpatient visits—from 9,822 in 2016 to 9,229 last year. That is an average of 25 hospital patients (not counting medical clinic) per day, every day of the year. We had 4,159 clinic visits which is 15% less than 4,907 the previous year, and averaged 16 patients per day in a five day week. Our ambulance service has been very busy this past two years averaging 27 runs per month this year and 22 the year before.
Total revenue was $12.2 million last year and $11.9 the year before. 81% of acute hospital revenue came from outpatients, down from 83%. Deductions from revenue, what insurance companies would not pay and bad debts, was $2.44 million in 2017 compared to $2.77 million the year before. Expenses were $9.67 million which is a 1.5% increase. Net revenue was positive $213,600 in 2017 and minus $457,900 the year before.
NCH is into the third year of a $12.5 million, 3 year federal government grant to KU Medical Center for a Heart/Stroke Collaborative (KHSC). We, along with 10 other critical access hospitals (CAH’s) around Hays, are working with KUMC and HaysMed to improve outcomes and lower total cost of care for heart disease and stroke for our citizens. In order to capture savings generated from these efforts and share the savings with the hospitals in the KHSC, KU also established the Kansas Clinical Improvement Collaborative (KCIC) which is a Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Accountable Care Organization (ACO) of which we are a part. Early results of the collaborative are encouraging. These hospitals are timelier with our care and patient results are improved.
Sara Corsair, RN became Director of Nursing for Cedar Village and Danielle Gantz, RN replaced her as Director of Home Health. Cindy Maier, RN is our new Chief Nursing Officer. Darlene Bennett, MLT became our Quality Assessment/Risk Management Director. We are pleased to have all these leaders in their new positions. We also want to welcome all the newcomers who have joined our staff. We are very fortunate and grateful for all our staff members.
Curt reviewed the 2017 goals with the Board. He also presented the 2018 goals. The board approved the plan as presented.
Election of Officers: Upon motion of Jan Rider, seconded by Nancy Witthuhn, a unanimous ballot was cast and approved by the Board that we keep the officers the same—Brent Whitley, Chairman; Sabra Clarke, Vice Chairman; Wade Gantz, Secretary; and Nancy Witthuhn, Treasurer.
There being no further business to bring before the Board, the Annual Meeting adjourned at
9:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Wade Gantz, Secretary Ness County Hospital District #2 Board of Directors
______________________________ __________
Chairman, Brent Whitley Date
______________________________ __________
Secretary, Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday April 23, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Wade Gantz, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Deb Frank and Jason Barb, CPA with BKD CPAs and Advisors.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m.
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New Business: Jason Barb presented the 2017 audit. Jan moved to accept the audit. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Minutes: Jan moved to accept the March minutes as mailed. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for March that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 5 minutes at 7:50 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 7:55 p.m. Jan moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Staff Report: Curt reported that we are evaluating new phone systems. Our current system is obsolete and some parts, including the motherboard, are no longer available; this could leave us without phone communications. He will bring a proposal for board consideration at the next meeting. He also reported that we had two servers go out and the cost to replace them along with programming would run approximately $80,000. He stated that NexTec has proposed providing all IT equipment and programs for $10,550 per month. He is very cautious of such a proposal. He will bring additional information to the board to consider.
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Old Business: Curt gave an update on re-licensure of LTC beds. Things are going reasonably smooth. Curt presented an update on the clinic expansion project. The architect will make another presentation of drawings next week. The board expressed a desire not to raise taxes. Curt said perhaps the board could tour the clinic next month, talk with clinic staff and see if the architect could meet with us.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:35 p.m. Next regular meeting will be Monday, May 21, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. in the employee dining room at Ness County Hospital. That will also be our annual hospital district meeting.
Respectfully submitted,
Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday March 26, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Secretary Wade Gantz, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Deb Frank, Tammy Pfannenstiel, Cindy Maier and Sara Corsair.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:25 p.m.
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Staff Report: Cindy reported that the heart monitoring system is being installed. Once it is completed, HaysMed will have the ability to monitor our patients in real time. Sarah said we are evaluating our electronic record system for Cedar Village. She updated us on the survey we had at Cedar Village. Tammy updated us on implementing the new electronic record system in the clinic. We have had significant issues with it.
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Old Business: Cindy and Curt gave an update on re-licensure of LTC beds and that we will implement April 1. Tammy and Curt presented an update on the clinic expansion project.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 5 minutes at 7:15 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 7:20 p.m. Nancy moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the February minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for January that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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New Business: Curt presented Dena Schwartzkopf, APRN, for approval to our medical staff. Jan moved to approve her to our allied staff. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:35 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, April 23, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday February 26, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, and Tammy Pfannenstiel.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. after eating a meal at 6:00 p.m.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the January minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for February that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Staff Report: Curt reported that we were in the middle of a survey at Cedar Village and that there are some things we will need to change, particularly in the area of paperwork.
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Old Business: Curt gave an update on re-licensure of LTC beds and that we are progressing toward the April 1 change. Tammy and Curt presented an update on the clinic expansion project including the first floorplan sketch. We will meet with the architect and construction management group next week.
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New Business: Curt presented three physicians for approval to our medical staff. After discussion, Jan moved that we approve Greg Peters, M.D., radiologist; Casey R. Green, M.D., Emergency Medicine; and Tyler J. Koedam, M.D., Emergency Medicine to the courtesy medical staff. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. After discussion, the board instructed Curt to contact our insurance carrier and any other necessary entities to update our plan of securing our patients, residents, visitors and staff.
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Other: Curt reported that Kathy Clouston said we are in the process of getting the power lift on our first out ambulance.
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 5 minutes at 8:30 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Tammy. Out of session at 8:35 p.m. Nancy moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Jan seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:40 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 26, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Acting Secretary Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday January 22, 2018
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Secretary Wade Gantz, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Debbie Frank, and Tammy Pfannenstiel.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. after eating a light meal at 6:00 p.m.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the December minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for December that Debbie had prepared. We finished the year with a profit of $118,980 including property tax revenue. Expenses were $9.68 million, which is 1% over 2016. Sabra moved to accept the report as mailed. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Staff Report: Curt reported that Dr. Jill Stewart from Gove County will take some ER call and work a day or two a month in our medical clinic. Curt reported that we have already had two nurse aides step up and take an additional 8 shifts per week because of our wage increase for nurse aides. This savings over temporary agency is more than half of the additional cost for the wage adjustment we made.
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Old Business: Curt reported that the bed change request for re-licensure must be in 45 days prior to April 1. After discussing the remaining item of the budget, which was Cedar Village room rates, Jan moved that we raise rates by $5/day April 1. This 3% increase should keep our charge above the state “carve out” rate which a consultant recommended and will generate $33,750/year additional revenue. Curt reported that we selected the GE heart monitor system, which is $63,126 over the Mindray system for $79,257. Besides our nurses monitoring the patient, HaysMed cardiac trained nurses/techs will also monitor them remotely. This gives us another level of quality and we can charge for this expertise.
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New Business: After discussion, Jan moved that we approve Joseph Vavricek, M.D., radiologist, to the courtesy medical staff. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Other: We briefly discussed expansion of the medical clinic and architect/construction management and random drug testing.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 7:30 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 7:40 p.m. Nancy moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 7:50 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 26, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
​
Secretary Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
2017
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Thursday December 28, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Secretary Wade Gantz, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Debbie Frank, and Tammy Pfannenstiel.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. after eating a light meal at 6:00 p.m.
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Minutes: Sabra moved to accept the November minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for November that Debbie had prepared. Sabra moved to accept the report as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Staff Report: Curt reported that we did need to replace the blood bank refrigerator and that the new one would arrive tomorrow. It will cost just under $4,000. Curt stated that we may utilize a physician for ER call coverage once a month including a Friday clinic.
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Old Business: Curt reported that he will submit the request for license change of LTC beds to ISB in a couple of weeks. After significant discussion, Jan moved to make a wage adjustment for CNA’s and CMA’s of $1/hour average and a wage increase for all staff of up to 2.5% in 2018. The motion died for lack of a second. After further discussion, Nancy moved to accept the budget as presented including a wage adjustment for CNA’s and CMA’s, of $1/hour average so we can remain competitive, and a wage increase for all staff of up to 3% in 2018. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. We will take a further look at room rates next month and any changes in charges will not take place until March or April.
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New Business: Curt stated that our heart monitor system is not functioning properly, that it is obsolete and will need to be replaced. We have received a couple of bids from $60,000 to $80,000. Nothing to report on the Risk Management Plan approval at this time. Jan moved to approve the Non-Discrimination Policy. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt reported that the Critical Issues Summit is in Wichita March 1-2.
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Other: Curt reported that the Valentine Fundraising Ball is Saturday, February 3. The board decided to have its regular January board meeting on Monday, the 22nd at 6 p.m. Curt gave a report of the Northwest Kansas Health Alliance CAH Network meeting he attended at Hays. HaysMed will probably change their Group Purchasing Organization and save 14% on supplies, etc. If so, we will also make a change and hopefully save 14% too. Between HaysMed and the dozen CAH’s in Med Op we spent $52 million through those contracts.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:10 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 8:20 p.m. Jan moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:30 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, January 22, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
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Respectfully submitted,
​
Secretary Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, November 27, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley, Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Debbie Frank, Art Crider, Scott Davis, Jerry Clarke, State Representative Leonard Mastroni and Audrey Dunkel, KHA Senior Director Financial Advocacy.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m.
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Representative Mastroni: The board recognized Rep. Mastroni for his strong support of Kansas hospitals and our health community in the 2017 legislative session. Kansas Hospital Association Senior Director of Financial Advocacy, Audrey Dunkel, spoke of how he voted in support of our community hospitals on every high-priority health care issue this year. Rep. Mastroni also said a few words.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 20 minutes at 7:50 p.m. to discuss Risk ​Management/QAPI. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Art. Out of session at 8:10 p.m. Nancy moved to accept the report. Jan seconded, motion carried 4/0. Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:10 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 8:20 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Jan seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Minutes: Jan moved to accept the October minutes as mailed. Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial report for October that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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Staff Report: Curt reported that the blood bank refrigerator, which is 14 years old may need replaced if the current part that we ordered does not fix the problem. Replacement would cost $6,000, which the board gave permission to purchase if necessary. Curt stated that our medical clinic will hold a RHC Review annually and needs a board member to participate. Sabra volunteered to sit on it.
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Old Business: Curt recommended that we re-license the 13 north LTC beds to intermediate swing bed (ISB) effective April 1, 2018. The only difference in care that these residents will experience is that their medications will be passed by a nurse rather than a Certified Med Aide. NCH will experience a net positive financial gain from Medicare and other insurance carriers of approximately $200,000 per year. He stated that we need to add wireless internet to that area to support the acute hospital electronic health record. The cost to install it in the entire Cedar Village building is $15,286. After discussion, Jan moved to purchase this and replace the wireless access point in the Classroom for a $1,000 for a total of $16,286. Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/0. Jan moved to change our licensed beds from 43 LTC to 30 and general beds from 20 to 25 effective April 1, 2018. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
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New Business: The board discussed a webinar called “Building Board Engagement.” We will invite department heads individually to our meetings throughout the year to inform us of their responsibilities, challenges and the vision they have of their future needs. Curt presented a proposal to replace 20 beds in the near future. After discussion, Jan moved to replace 10 now at a cost of approximately $11,000. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Curt did not have budget information to discuss at this time. He will send preliminary figures within a few days.
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Other: Curt said the Christmas Dinner at Cedar Village will be Monday December 11 at 6 p.m. We are all invited and please let him know if we will be able to attend. The staff Christmas Dinner will be Thursday December 21st at noon. The hospital will provide roast beef and staff will bring potluck. The board is invited and we are asked to let Curt know if we will be able to join in. The board decided to have its regular December board meeting on Thursday, the 28th at 6 p.m. We will have a light dinner.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 9:50 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 28, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
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Respectfully submitted,
​
Acting Secretary Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Acting Secretary Jan Rider Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, October 23, 2017
Present: Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke, Secretary Wade Gantz, Board Member Jan Rider, Curt Thomas, Debbie Frank and Shelly McDonald.
Call to Order: Vice Chairman Clarke called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
New Business: Shelly and Curt presented information on the changes in our health insurance premiums for 2018. After significant discussion, Jan moved to adopt the proposed amounts to be paid by the employees and the hospital. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0. Curt reported that the clinic will change the electronic financial package to Prognosis/Azalea which is the same vendor the hospital uses. This will make interfaces and integration much smoother. It will cost approximately $250 (or less) more per month than our current vendor.
Minutes: Jan moved to accept the September minutes as read. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial reports for September that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the financial reports as mailed. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0.
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:10 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 8:20 p.m. Jan moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0.
Staff Report: Curt presented our new Emergency Preparation and Safety policies for board approval. Jan moved to accept the policies. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0.
Old Business: Curt reported that we are moving along with the analysis of re-licensing LTC beds to ISB. Our staff visited the Dighton hospital and it still looks promising that we will want to make the change. He stated that we will also need to add wireless internet to that area and it only makes sense to extend it throughout the entire Cedar Village building. That would cost approximately $15,000. He also reported that if the board does make the change, it will probably be very early into 2018 before we initiate it.
Credentialling: Curt presented the following list of providers for board approval to our medical staff: Avera eEmergency Emergency Medicine courtesy medical staff—Andrea Jo Pham, D.O., Timothy Nydam, M.D., and Janet Copeland, D.O.; and Timothy T. Vanderweide, CRNA to the Allied Staff. Jan moved for approval. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0.
Other: Curt brought up the date of the December meeting, which would normally be the 25th. The board took it under consideration and will decide next month.
Adjournment: Vice Chairman Clarke adjourned the meeting at 8:40 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 27, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, September 25, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Secretary Wade Gantz; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn; Board Member Jan Rider; Curt Thomas, Debbie Frank, Susan McDonald and Art Crider
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the August minutes as mailed. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Financial Report: Curt presented the financial reports for July and August that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the financial reports as mailed. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Staff Report: Curt reported that we had hired Angie McKay, MLT recently out of school and that Art Crider is working approximately half-time in Lab and the rest in QA/RM/IC. Kathy Clouston is assisting Art in RM. We are therefore saving approximately a half-time FTE in lab and $30,000, which includes benefits. Curt reported that Marlena was moving to acute nursing and introduced Susan McDonald as our new Cedar Village DON. Susan spoke of her extensive experience in LTC and the significant efforts we will continue to expend on quality issues and resident centered care.
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Old Business: Curt reported that we had hired Lori Hensley as a contracted staffer to write grants for the clinic expansion.
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New Business: Curt reported that the “net” financial benefit of converting some of the LTC beds to hospital ISB beds is approximately $200,000 per year. This is the current net figure after subtracting certain items we could no longer charge for and adding items such as “wi-fi” for approximately $15,000 to Cedar Village and other adjustments. Our next step is to go visit the Dighton hospital and possibly LaCrosse. Curt presented a “NuStep Recumbent Cross Trainer” for Cedar Village rehabilitation for $7,684. We received approximately $3,000 from the Vernon and Delma Stenzel family and LeRoy Stecklein family specifically for Cedar Village rehab. The balance of the funds was also donated to Cedar Village. Jan moved to purchase the equipment. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Other: Curt presented four physician files for appointments to the courtesy medical staff: Michael F. Lloyd, D.O., Cardiologist; Neal A. Hall, M.D., Radiologist; Tamara S. Hlavaty, M.D., Radiologist; and Gary L. Wilson, D.O., Radiologist. Sabra moved to appoint the above to our Courtesy Medical Staff. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt reported that 50% of all hospital deaths in America are from sepsis. That is the reason the Heart/Stroke Collaborative added sepsis as one of our elements.
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Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:25 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 8:35 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Art and Susan came back and discussed new changes to our QA plan, “Quality Assessment & Performance Improvement Plan (QAPI)” which are effective November 28 and that the hospital needs the continued commitment from the board to support it. After discussion, Jan moved the following: “We adopt the vision statement as presented, to go along with our current mission statement, and will support and provide the necessary resources for our QAPI program.” Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Nancy moved to adjourn to executive session for 20 minutes at 9:10 p.m. to discuss Risk Management/QAPI.) Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt and Art. Out of session at 9:30 p.m. Nancy moved to accept the report. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 9:45 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, October 23, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, August 14, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Secretary Wade Gantz; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn; Board Member Jan Rider; Curt Thomas, Debbie Frank, Tammy Pfannenstiel, Shelly McDonald, Boyd Beutler, Cindy Vogel and Lori Hensley.
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Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
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Minutes: Jan moved to accept the July minutes as mailed. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
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District Budget Hearing: After a short discussion, Sabra moved to accept the district budget that was printed in the newspaper, which keeps the mill levy the same at 31.054 mills. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
New Business: Chairman Whitley turned the meeting over to Lori Hensley who was invited here to present a program on grant writing for the medical clinic expansion. It was very informative. Lori and Shelly left the meeting.
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Staff Report: Curt reported that we were interviewing Lab personnel candidates and that we should be able to see a reasonable reduction in that cost.
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Other: Curt reported that the State found no basis for the complaint against Cedar Village last month. Curt reported that Kathy Clouston will teach an EMT class for high school students this year. Curt reported that our July bi-annual increase in health insurance last month was an average of $50 per month per subscriber. Curt addressed the concern with the hot temperature in the bathhouse at Cedar Village. It was suggested to us that we consider installing an exhaust fan. One concern with that is drafts that would be created when the door is open would be very bothersome to some bathers.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 9:05 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, September 25, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
_________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, July 31, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Secretary Wade Gantz; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn; Board Member Jan Rider; Curt Thomas and Debbie Frank.
Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
Minutes: Sabra moved to accept the June minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Financial Report: Curt presented the June financials that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Staff Report: Curt reported that two staff Lab Techs are leaving so we discussed different options to meet the hospital needs.
Old Business: After discussion of the hospital district budget for 2018, Jan moved to adopt Option 1. Sabra seconded; motion carried 5/0. This option keeps the mill levy the same, at 31.054 and generates $1,392,679. This is nearly $62,000 less than the current year level, which is approximately the same as the reduction in debt amortization for 2018. Curt said that there is nothing to report on the feasibility study to re-license some of our LTC beds to acute/swing beds.
New Business: The board set the date and time for the district budget public hearing for August 14 at 7:30 p.m. That will also serve as our regular meeting for August.
Other: Curt reported that the KHA Annual Conference is in Wichita September 7-8. We discussed the possible need for an exhaust fan in Cedar Village bathing room. We also discussed that keys to the apartments are available to our staff if necessary.
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:35 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 8:45 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for one hour to discuss non-elected personnel at 8:45 p.m. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members. Out of session at 9:45 p.m.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 10:05 p.m. Next regular meeting, and hospital district budget hearing, is scheduled for Monday, August 14, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
__________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, June 26, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Secretary Wade Gantz; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn ; Board Member Jan Rider; Curt Thomas; Debbie Frank; Tammy Pfannenstiel; Cindy Maier; Jennifer Anderson; Kylee Krause and Erin Tillitson.
Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
Staff Report: Cindy, Jennifer, Kylee and Erin gave a presentation on the LEAN project that nursing and Debbie undertook to streamline ER paperwork and to gather patient information needed for office and medical records.
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Minutes: Sabra moved to accept the May minutes as handed out. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Financial Report: Curt presented the May financials that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Old Business: After discussion about the childcare program, the board decided not to pursue opening one at the hospital. Reports from the staff indicate that all childcare needs are currently being met by outside providers. It also did not rule out the possibility of opening one in the future, if the need is there. Curt reported that the Healthcare Foundation would contribute $250 per month toward our agreement with Dr. Eric Easey. Curt reported that our current credentialing process with High Plains Mental Health is adequate. No change is necessary at this time. Curt reported that we had met with a second architect and talked with another regarding the clinic expansion. He said the process will be to select one to work up an idea of what the project would entail, give it to architects to make a proposal and then award it to one of them. They would then draw up blueprints and we would put it out for bid. Last month Curt presented a proposal to interface the clinic financial package (PDS Cortex) with Prognosis electronic health record package for $9,000, which the board approved. Since then, Prognosis came back with a lower offer on their “cloud” package (including an ambulatory electronic health record package for the medical clinic) from $3,300 per month to $1,200. This would also save us $36,000 this year by not having to replacing three servers at $12,000 each and $13,500 on existing interfaces. There will also be a reduction on future interfaces to $1,500 each. After discussion, the board rescinded that action. See New Business.
New Business: Curt also gave a proposal to replace the existing obsolete SonicWall, which is our gateway to the internet. It is our security system that monitors the entire system for viruses and direct attacks. The cost of leasing this is $1,500 per month. After discussion, Jan moved to accept these two proposals. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt presented preliminary information for our District Budget for 2018, which we will address at our next meeting on July 31. Curt and Debbie presented information that Durrel Kelley, CPA with Great Plains Health Alliance is helping us with a feasibility study of re-licensing some of our LTC beds to acute/swing beds, which has the potential of significantly increasing our Medicare reimbursement.
Other: Curt reported that Kathy Clouston met with school officials about the possibility of collaborating on a course that would train young adults in becoming a first responder/EMT. Upon recommendation of a skilled swing-bed patient, Curt asked if the board would be opposed to approaching the high school kid’s art class about painting a mural on the wall outside of the north patient wing. It is a rather secluded area. Debbie said there used to be one there. The board had no objection. Curt reported that HaysMed would start charging for half of the bill they help with on policies, education and a consultant’s fees. The total will be approximately $3,800 per year. Curt reported that we have a State surveyor at Cedar Village doing a survey.
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 5 minutes at 8:55 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Debbie and Tammy. Out of session at 9:00 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 9:05 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 31, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Wade Gantz, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
__________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Wade Gantz Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, May 22, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Secretary Jan Rider; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn (arrived at 8); Board Member Wade Gantz; Curt Thomas, CEO; Debbie Frank, Kathy Clouston and Art Crider.
Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
Minutes: Wade moved to accept the April minutes as mailed. Jan seconded, motion carried 3/0.
Staff Report: The LEAN project presentation is postponed for a month.
Financial Report: Curt presented the April financials that Debbie had prepared. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0.
Old Business: Curt reported that the Medicare reimbursement impact of leasing the space for childcare would be less than if we ran the program. Curt reported that Dr. Eric Easey and we signed the agreement for him to practice medicine once he completes his 3-year residency program in the summer of 2020. We are very excited to have the Easey family coming to Ness City. We are continuing to work with High Plains Mental Health on the credentialing process.
New Business: Curt reported that we had met with an architect regarding the clinic expansion and would meet with another one within two weeks. Curt presented a proposal to interface the clinic financial package (PDS) with its electronic health record package for $9,000. Jan moved to approve it. Wade seconded, motion carried 3/0.
Other: Curt reported that the second questionnaire on the EmployeeTalk program would be completed on May 31 and he will provide the board with the results of it at our next meeting. Curt reported that board members filing for election must be done by noon, June 1 along with a $20 filing fee. Curt presented a proposal to replace our old portable X-ray machine for $8,000 for a refurbished GE. New ones cost approximately $40,000. Jan moved to purchase the machine. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:20 p.m. to discuss Risk Management/Quality Improvement (RM/QI.) Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Art. Out of session at 8:30 p.m. Jan moved to accept the report. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0. Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:35 p.m. to discuss bad debts. Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Deb. Out of session at 8:45 p.m. Nancy moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Jan seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 8:50 p.m. Next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 26, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
__________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Jan Rider Date
Ness County Hospital District #2
Board of Directors
Annual Meeting
Monday, May 22, 2017
Those in attendance were Chairman Brent Whitley, Secretary Jan Rider, Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn, and member Wade Gantz. Also present was Curt Thomas, CEO.
Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 8:50 p.m.
Nancy moved to accept the minutes as written, Wade seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Curt summarized the Annual Review and Utilization Review for the Hospital. Department head written reports were sent out to the board the previous week. In 2016 we averaged 2.1 acute/swing bed/observation patients per day as opposed to 2.5 in 2015; and 35.4 residents in Cedar Village as opposed to 40.8 in 2015. We had a 7% increase in outpatient visits—from 9,189 in 2015 to 9,822 last year. That is an average of 27 hospital patients (not counting medical clinic) per day, every day of the year. We had 4,907 clinic visits which is 5% more than 4,677 the previous year, and averaged 19 patients per day in a five day week. Our ambulance service has been very busy this past two years averaging 22 runs per month this year and 23 the year before.
Total revenue was $12.0 million for both years. 83% of acute hospital revenue came from outpatients, up from 81%. Deductions from revenue, what insurance companies would not pay and bad debts, was $2.96 million in 2016 compared to $2.52 million the year before. Expenses were $9.5 million which is a 7.9% increase. Net revenue was minus $505,000 in 2016 and plus $608,000 the year before.
NCH is into the second year of a $12.5 million, 3 year federal government grant to KU Medical Center for a Heart/Stroke Collaborative (KHSC). We, along with 10 other critical access hospitals (CAH’s) around Hays, are working with KUMC and HaysMed to improve outcomes and lower total cost of care for heart disease and stroke for our citizens. In order to capture savings generated from these efforts and share the savings with the hospitals in the KHSC, KU also established the Kansas Clinical Improvement Collaborative (KCIC) which is a Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Accountable Care Organization (ACO). Early results of the collaborative are encouraging. We are timelier with our care and patient results are improved.
Tammy Pfannenstiel, RN came back to Ness City and is our Medical Clinic Director. Sally Kreger, APRN joined our medical staff full-time. Art Crider, MLT became our Quality Assessment/Risk Management Director. We are pleased to have them and all the newcomers who have joined our staff. We are very fortunate and grateful for all our 125 staff members.
Curt reviewed the 2016 goals with the Board. He also presented the 2017 goals. Discussion followed.
Election of Officers: Upon motion of Jan Rider, seconded by Nancy Witthuhn, a unanimous ballot was cast and approved by the Board that we keep the officers the same with the exception of Wade as the new Secretary—Brent Whitley, Chairman; Sabra Clarke, Vice Chairman; Wade Gantz, Secretary; and Nancy Witthuhn, Treasurer.
There being no further business to bring before the Board, the Annual Meeting adjourned at
9:20 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Jan Rider, Secretary, Ness County Hospital District #2 Board of Directors
______________________________ __________
Chairman, Brent Whitley Date
______________________________ __________
Secretary, Jan Rider Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, April 24, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Secretary Jan Rider; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn; Board Member Wade Gantz; Curt Thomas, CEO; Debbie Frank and Jason Barb, CPA.
Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
Minutes: Sabra moved to accept the March minutes as mailed. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
New Business: Chairman Whitley turned the meeting over to Jason Barb,CPA with BKD CPAs and Advisors. Jason presented the 2016 hospital audit. He said that they only had to make one audit adjustment to our books. He said it is not unusual to have 10 to 15 adjustments. The Board commended Debbie and her staff on their good work this year.
Financial Report: Curt presented the February and March financials that Debbie had prepared. The narrative will be sent out once it is completed. Jan moved to accept the reports. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Old Business: Curt reported that we could lease space for childcare. We are evaluating the Medicare reimbursement impact of such a move and will report to the board. Curt reported that Dr. Eric Easey has chosen Ness City as his community in which to practice medicine once he completes his 3-year residency program in the summer of 2020. Jan moved to extend to him a monthly stipend offer of $2,250. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt reported that Kathy Clouston would change from part-time to full-time. There is no further word on the High Plains Mental Health credentialing process.
Other: Curt reported on the EmployeeTalk program that we are close to a finished product on the 360 questionnaire and will provide the board with the results on the CEO once the department heads complete it. At that time, he will also present a list of survey questions for board members’ consideration. Curt reported that board members filing for election must be done by noon, June 1 along with a $20 filing fee. Curt reported that if White Cliffs Pipeline does receive a tax exemption that NCH would lose approximately $229,000 per year in taxes. Curt reported that the a/c in the IT server room is not working and a part is ordered. We rented a portable a/c until it arrives. Curt reported that Nex-Tech is preparing a computer replacement proposal for us to consider. Curt reported that we are evaluating a “cloud” proposal for our electronic health record from Prognosis.
Curt presented files for two radiologist appointments to the medical staff: David J. Ingle, D.O. and William R. Marsh, M.D. Jan moved to appoint the above to our Courtesy Medical Staff. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
​
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 9:55 p.m. to discuss bad debt accounts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 10:05 p.m. Jan moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 10:10 p.m. Next meeting is our Annual Meeting and is scheduled for Monday, May 22, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
​
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
__________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Jan Rider Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, March 27, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Secretary Jan Rider; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn; Board Member Wade Gantz; Curt Thomas, CEO; Debbie Frank, CFO and Shelly McDonald, HR Director. Also attending was Quannah Gross.
Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m.
Minutes: Jan moved to accept the February minutes as mailed. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Other: A resident’s family member said she visits Cedar Village a lot, is pleased with the care, and that some residents do not do as well with agency nurses who do not work here regularly. She asked if we try to get the same ones consistently. Curt answered that we do try to get them as consistently as possible but that it does not work out many times. Curt reported that the next step in the EmployeeTalk program is what they call a 360, which is a self-evaluation along with a peer and supervisor evaluation. We will start with the CEO and three or four of the largest departments’ managers and continue through all department managers over the next year. Curt will provide the Board with a list of questions to consider for the CEO’s 360. Curt reported that Commissioner Sandy Rupp had provided him with information that White Cliffs Pipeline may now be seeking a tax exemption and possibly a refund for 2016 taxes paid. If granted, the county of Ness will lose approximately $407,000 a year. Renee Kerr will provide us an estimate of the potential loss for NCH.
Financial Report: Curt presented the January financial reports that Debbie had prepared. Sabra moved to accept the reports. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Old Business: The board asked Curt if we could lease space for someone to provide childcare. He will find out whether that is a possibility. Curt reported that the medical student we are recruiting got a residency placement in Seneca, SC, which is a rural area in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. He will have an answer to us in April about his plans after the three-year residency. Curt said there was no report on the ambulance service or the High Plains Mental Health credentialing process.
New Business: Curt presented files for four radiologist appointments to the medical staff: Daniel E. Novinske, D.O.; David J. Hadford, M.D.; Cody L. Evans, M.D. and Nathan W. Murdoch, M.D. Jan moved to appoint the above to our Courtesy Medical Staff. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. The board then discussed our bariatric policy for Cedar Village.
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 8:50 p.m. to discuss bad debt accounts. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 9:00 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 9:10 p.m. Next meeting is scheduled for Monday, April 24, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
__________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Jan Rider Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, February 27, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Secretary Jan Rider; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn; Curt Thomas, CEO; Debbie Frank, CFO and Art Crider, QI/RM Director. Hospital staff: Marlena Koerner, Shelly McDonald, Sara Corsair, Ashley Stenzel, Ashley Lamb, Cheri Fagen, Matt Poorman, Amanda Walter, Jamie Graf, Deanna Sherrill, Donna Hadley, Leah Hunter and Kelle Schniepp. Also attending was Larry Holmes.
Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m.
Staff Report: Cedar Village LTC staff talked with the board about frustration with being expected to do more work with less staff and receiving only a 1% raise; that the workload now is substantially more with the care required for many residents; that some staff in other departments may have time afforded them that would allow for cross training thereby relieving some of the pressure on the LTC staff. Larry Holmes said he spends a lot of time here and his observations are mostly good; that our facility is very clean, our staff works their tails off, and he would like to see us increase our wages rather than pay for expensive temporary agency staffing, and that we should put up some “Quiet” signs. After much discussion, many of the staff left the meeting. Marlena then reported that we had recently completed a weeklong survey of Cedar Village and that it went very well.
Old Business: We discussed the childcare program and whether the staff benefit/retention/recruitment would be worth the projected financial loss of the program of from $19,300 to $37,600. The board instructed Curt to research it further. Curt reported that we would know whether the medical student we are recruiting would come to Ness City around the end of March. After a short discussion, Jan moved to amend the Hospital By-laws, Article VI. Board Membership, to remove the word ‘annual’ in the sentence, “These members shall be elected by the voters of Hospital District #2 at an annual election held on odd numbered years in April (and change April to November) in accordance with State Law.” The motion included extending the term of current board members not to exceed one year from the date such board members’ term would otherwise expire in order to allow for this change in election procedure. Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/0. Curt reported that he and Kathy Clouston discussed EMT pay and that they would report to the board in a future meeting.
New Business: Curt presented a list of re-appointments to the medical staff: Courtesy Staff-Pamela Braxton-Davis, M.D., Arnold Cabrera, M.D., William Garlow, M.D., Ray House, M.D., Jeffrey Lee, M.D., Patrik Leonard, M.D., James Peterson, M.D., John Riekfhof, M.D., Jeff Sparacino, D.O., Lyle Noordhoek, M.D. and Rashmi Thapa, M.D.; Allied Staff-Gary Hembd, CRNA. He also presented Paul C. Teget, D.O. for first time appointment to Courtesy Staff. Jan moved to re-appoint/appoint the above to our Medical Staff. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Curt reported that High Plains Mental Health is changing their credentialing process. Curt reviewed a summary comparison form of EmployeeTalk which is a management/staff program designed to improve relationships, morale, staff input into management decisions and ultimately efficiencies and productivity.
Executive Session: Sabra moved to adjourn to executive session for 5 minutes at 10:10 p.m. to discuss bad debt accounts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Debbie. Out of session at 10:15 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Jan seconded, motion carried 4/0. Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 15 minutes at 10:15 p.m. to discuss Risk Management/Quality Improvement (RM/QI). Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/0. Present were board members, Curt and Art. Out of session at 10:30 p.m. Sabra moved to accept the RM/QI report as presented. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Minutes: Nancy moved to accept the January minutes as mailed. Sabra seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Financial Report: Curt presented the Year-end December financial reports that Debbie had prepared and requested Chairman Whitley to sign the LTC cost report. Jan moved to accept the reports. Nancy seconded, motion carried 4/0.
Other: Curt reported that our sterilizer ceased to function after many decades and was replaced for $3,000. Curt informed the board that according to a Kansas Hospital Association financial impact analysis, if our critical access hospital designation were rescinded we would lose $976,000 per year in Medicare reimbursement.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 11:05 p.m. Next meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 27, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
__________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Jan Rider Date
Ness County Hospital District No. 2
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, January 23, 2017
Present: Chairman Brent Whitley; Secretary Jan Rider; Vice Chairman Sabra Clarke; Treasurer Nancy Witthuhn; Board Member Wade Gantz; Curt Thomas, CEO; Debbie Frank, CFO; Tammy Pfannenstiel, Clinic Manager; Scott Davis, IT Director and Shelly McDonald, HR Director.
​
Call to Order: Chairman Whitley called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
​
Minutes: Jan moved to accept the December minutes as mailed. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Financial Report: Curt presented the November financial reports that Debbie had prepared. It has been a financially challenging year. Jan moved to accept the reports. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Staff Report: Curt reported that after evaluation of our call pay and the surrounding area, he increased the hourly rate from $1.25 to $1.50. That will cost an additional $4,400 per year. The board asked about Ambulance pay and Curt will get back to us next month. Curt reported that he was going to sign a monthly $1548 preventative maintenance agreement with Knipp on the new HVAC system. Parts have an 8-10 year warranty and this would cover labor.
Old Business: Nothing to report on child-care or physician recruitment. After significant discussion over the budget, which the board had received last week, Jan moved to increase Cedar Village room rates by $5 per day and other room rates by $50 per day. Sabra seconded, motion carried 5/0. After discussion, Jan moved to give wage increases for 2017 of up to 1% based on merit and to accept the budget as presented with the above actions. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Curt reported that the Leisure Center no longer needed access to our van. Curt reported that all participants of the study group on waste disposal agreed that as much of the waste as practicable should be removed and disposed of at the site. Curt reported that our handling of out-of-town staff housing needs was adequate.
New Business: Jan moved to re-appoint Cindy Vogel and Curt Thomas as hospital appointees to the Healthcare Foundation Board. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0. [Curt reported that our three board members, Brent, Jan and Nancy were the only people who had expressed interest in filing for their board positions this coming term. Board consensus was to change the election date from April to November and that each of the current board members’ term would be extended until January following their election. Curt has talked with our county attorney and Mr. Salzman will advise the board how to proceed.] Curt and Tammy reported that we are looking at the possibility of changing the medical clinic electronic health record and finance package to the same company that the hospital uses and the hospital computer system to “the cloud”. No action was requested. Curt presented a list of re-appointments to the medical staff: Active Staff-Mikhail Imseis, M.D. Courtesy Staff-Harley Calvin, D.O., Allen McLain, D.O., Rodney Johnson, M.D., Kurt Rider, M.D., Aye Win, M.D., Roger Dietz, M.D., Benjamin Shives, M.D., and Matthew Mendlick, M.D.; Allied Staff-William McDonald, APRN, Sarah Kreger, APRN, Brad Wertz, CRNA, Kyle Nevills, DRNA, and Michael Goode, CRNA. Nancy moved to re-appoint the above to our Medical Staff. Wade seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Other: Curt reported that the departmental policies and procedures and board by-laws were available for signatures. Sabra moved that the board approve and sign them. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Executive Session: Jan moved to adjourn to executive session for 10 minutes at 9:40 p.m. to discuss bad debt accounts. Nancy seconded, motion carried 5/0. Present were board members, Curt, Tammy and Debbie. Out of session at 9:50 p.m. Sabra moved to turn bad debts over for collection. Jan seconded, motion carried 5/0.
Adjournment: Chairman Whitley adjourned the meeting at 10:10 p.m. Next meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 27, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Ness County Hospital.
Respectfully submitted,
Secretary Jan Rider, NCH District No. 2 Board of Directors
__________________________________________ ________________________________________
Chairman Brent Whitley Date Secretary Jan Rider Date
