Inpatient and outpatient volumes have been on a slight downturn in recent months for Newman Regional Health; however, CEO Cathy Pimple anticipates that this trend could change very soon.
During an interview with KVOE News on Thursday, following the regular board of trustees meeting at Newman on Wednesday afternoon, Pimple stated that the hospital had a net gain of $80,000 for June, according to the regular financial update. While it was a positive margin for the hospital, Pimple says it was still below projections for the month, which she attributed in part to the aforementioned lower overall volumes.
When asked what she believes is the main cause of this trend, Pimple pointed to the closure of Tyson and other businesses from last year as a primary factor.
Despite the lower volumes, Pimple was very optimistic during her interview with KVOE News, noting she expects numbers to pick up in the next regular reports as there has been a high amount of traffic in more than one department at the hospital throughout July.
Pimple also says the hospital has been adding a great number of new staff in recent months, something she believes is contributing to the potential volume turnaround.
In addition to the monthly financial and CEO reports delivered Wednesday, the board spent a great deal of time in executive session discussing peer reviews, strategic planning and risk management matters. Pimple was unable to offer any specifics on those discussions.
The board’s monthly meeting comes at a time when the hospital is adding a great deal of new equipment and resources to its repertoire, including a new CT scanner, which is set to arrive soon. The hospital is also preparing for the installation of a new fetal monitoring system, a new centralized cardiac monitoring system and assorted equipment for the cardiovascular lab.
The Newman Board of Trustees are next scheduled to convene in August for their monthly meeting.
