NWRHN presents to Hospital Board Commissioners

 

Last updated 8/31/2017 at Noon



Jac Davies from Northwest Rural Health Network (NWRHN) completed a presentation during the regular meeting of the Adams County Hospital District No. 2 Board of Commissioners on Aug. 24.

East Adams Rural Healthcare is a member of NWRHN, and Davies presented on the services available to assist the District.

NWRHN was previously the Critical Access Hospital Network, but rebranded last year in an effort to be more inclusive to the larger hospital districts who are a member of the organization.

The nonprofit, multi-county network’s mission is to share resources and support rural health systems, Davies said.

Davies said the role of NWRHN is to implement services and activities that are considered high value. The network is one of connectivity and allows the districts involved to share services.

A couple of services that are utilized by the districts is shared grant writing and video based conferencing, Davies explained. They are also dedicated to supporting county health coalitions, like the REACH group, which recently began in Adams County.

Davies said NWRHN is currently focused on providing training for care coordinators. They also recently completed two Requests for Proposals for quality care and behavioral care analysis.

The network is also using Quality Health Indicators as a benchmark program for smaller hospitals, Davies explained. The group is now focusing on data collection based around the average length of stay, days of cash on hand and salaries.

NWRHN provides assistance to members of the networks through a variety of programs, Davies said. The network connects members together, provides educational programs, shares contracts and grant writing, and also facilitates meetings for the betterment of the districts.

Davies’ purpose of presenting at the regular meeting was to inform the Commissioners about the services provided by the network, since the District is a member of NWRHN.

CEO/CFO Gary Bostrom said he plans to continue inviting representatives from other organizations the District is partnered with during the upcoming meetings.

During the Medical Staff update, Marty Sackmann explained the cooperation of transports between AMR and the Ritzville EMS has been working well. It has created an effective interplay between the two agencies, and Sackmann explained AMR is being used primarily for transporting patients to larger hospitals.

Bostrom updated the Board that he signed an agreement with Qualis Health, and their services are being paid by grant money.

He also informed the Board there were nine sewer pipes discovered that were not sealed during construction. The issues were discovered while the plumber was connecting the sprinkler piping.

Bostrom said the pipes have been sealed and Leone and Keeble were notified. He explained there is still a warranty on the project, and the District is holding onto the last $240,000 of the project money until the warranty period is over.

In financials, Bostrom said the State Auditor’s Office will be at the District in the fall or winter to complete the bi-annual audit. He said the primary focus of the audit will be on compliancy issues, as well as the financial aspects of the District.

Bostrom provided an analysis of the current month’s financials, reporting the revenue for the month is under budget by $27,563.

The deductions from revenue are over budget by $209,969, and Bostrom explained the month was extraordinary in the amount of deductions from revenue.

The Board also unanimously voted in favor of joining the WHRAP Pilot Program. Bostrom explained they are only the third of 13 districts to agree to the program. The primary focus of the program is care coordination and behavorial health.

Bostrom explained Washington Rural Health Access Preservation (WHRAP) is already working on both services, and the behavioral health portion will be paid through a grant, while care coordination is made possible through state funding and grants focused on helping keep Critical Access Hospitals.

Bostrom said approving the WHRAP Pilot Program allows EARH to continue moving forward with the goal of providing treatment for all of a person.

The next Hospital Commissioners meeting is scheduled for Sept. 28 at 5:30 p.m. in the conference room.

 

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