Prowers Medical Center Signs Physicians

Credentials for eight medical practitioners were approved by the Prowers Medical Center board of directors during their monthly meeting, Wednesday, March 23. The board, with one dissenting vote, approved a new, one year contract for Chief of Staff, Dr. Barry Portner which rescinds his current contract. The new contract will expire March 31, 2012.

Physician recruitment continues at PMC, CEO James Fairchild informed the board Sharon Hendricks; family nurse practitioner, will join the staff June 22, with the majority of her work centered in the Convenient Care Clinic. Dr. Jennifer Chiu also accepted an offer and will join the hospital after she obtains a Colorado Medical License. Another internal medicine physician also accepted an offer of employment and is expected to begin their practice this September. Fairchild said the hospital has seen a 20% growth rate in primary care and the outpatient clinic the past several months has been at capacity. He added those increased numbers aids in physician recruitment.

Mitch Edgeworth, a representative of Quorum Health Resources for PMC, stated QHR will evaluate the hospital’s current salary and wage structure for review in May, to ensure Prowers Medical Center is offering competitive salaries for the staff. Candy Ruedeman, PMC board member made note that QHR’s contract with the hospital will also come under review in a year’s time.

Chief Financial Officer Randy Nightengale stated PMC had a February net loss of $28,520 against a budgeted net income of $48,375. Cash at month end was $4,130,531 which is a $88,465 increase over last month. That represents 73 days of cash on hand, where the hospital would like to operate at 90 days.

Prowers Medical Center is entering its health/wellness fair season in April, at McClave School April 11, Wiley on April 15 and Southeast Colorado Light and Power on April 28. The annual health fair at PMC will be held the second week of May. PMC was recognized for its recycling efforts with a certificate of recognition showing that for the first half of the year, 30,958 pounds, or 15.48 tons of medical records were recycled at an estimated cost savings of $79,810. The monthly meeting ended with the board moving into executive session to review quality of care issues. The next regularly scheduled meeting will be April 27 at 7pm.