PMC Displays New Equipment

C-Arm Unit Recently Purchased by PMC

Prowers Medical Center board members viewed the hospital’s latest equipment purchase during their monthly meeting, Wednesday, January 22.  A replacement C-Arm scanning device will be used in both the radiology department and operating room.  The new model, valued at $145,110, is replacing a 17 year old unit.  The C-Arm provides a high image, real-time x-ray display.  The unit connects to a separate video screen so a medical procedure can be viewed by both the doctor and other medical providers.  The design of the unit allows a seated patient to be scanned, eliminating the need to have them moved to a flat table for an examination.  Images may also be directly downloaded and recorded to a CD during a procedure. 

Computer Module for C-Arm Unit

John Carter from Merritt Hawkins & Associates, a physician recruiting and consulting firm, provided an overview of the growing need for doctors in nurses in the country spanning the next several decades.  Prowers Medical Center has employed various recruiting firms to provide its medical staff.  Carter said the nation current needs an additional 20,000 doctors based on demand and that demand will continue to accelerate to 91,000 by 2020 and 131,000 by 2025.  “We expect 250,000 doctors to be retiring in the next ten years and right now, we’re losing more physicians than we’re gaining,” he explained.  Carter said nationally, 42% of our current physicians are 55 or older and 28% are over the age of 60.  He added that of the estimated 700,000 practicing physicians in the country, 32% are in primary care and the balance specializes in specific medical fields.  Carter said that Colorado is no different in that most doctors go into specialized fields where there is greater earning potential.    Another growing national trend, he said,  will be the placement of mid-level medical providers at multiple service sites such as a Walgreens or King Sooper stores.  Two fields of growth include psychiatry and geriatrics, he added, as the baby boomer generation begins to move into their upper 60s and 70s age levels.  Carter said there is a comparable nursing shortage that has also been recognized across the country. 

The hospital’s monthly financial review for December 2013 showed a net loss of $159,809 with a net operating loss of $164,866.  Prowers Medical Center had an increased demand for charity care in the month, bringing the total care provided to the community for 2013 at over $2 million.

By Russ Baldwin