Hospital, nursing home get boosts in security

Nevada Regional Medical Center directors approved spending $100,000 to make the hospital and Moore-Few Care Center more secure and learned a new long-term care administrator had been named to succeed the retiring Denise Sloniker.

In their regular monthly meeting April 24, they authorized the $70,000 installation of 22 security cameras to cover the hospital's entrances, waiting rooms, cafeteria and information technology server room.

They approved a $30,000 expenditure to secure Moore-Few's entryways and crossing point into the hospital along with $29,545 for tuckpointing, or repairing bricks, in the nursing home building.

The panel OK'd spending $60,000 for doors and alarms in the hospital's Behavioral Health Unit; $458,709 for a five-year comprehensive pharmacy services amendment for a pharmacy director and other management services; $30,000 for a maintenance truck; and $130,000 to replace a device called a "C-Arm" for diagnostic imaging, which performs about 170 procedures annually.

It authorized expenditures of $107,000 to renew the hospital's contract with Community Blood Center and $132,321 for a three-year phone system service agreement that will avoid replacing the switchboard for two years. Board members Wayne Prewitt and Bill Denman were absent.

In other business, Chief Executive Officer Judith Feuquay reported hiring former Nodaway Nursing Home Administrator Mike Parsons of Maryville to replace Denise Sloniker, who is retiring after 16 1/2 years as NRMC's long-term care administrative officer and Moore-Few Care Center administrator.

"Denise will continue working through the transition, which we so appreciate," Feuquay said. "We will celebrate with her and thank her for her exceptional service."

Maryville is 200 miles north of Nevada.

Feuquay said the recent Eighth Annual Community Health Fair featured over 60 booths and was attended by 275 people at Osage Prairie YMCA.

Chief Financial Officer Tommy McGee said the hospital's net operating income for March totaled $58,487 and brought year-to-date operating income to $1,693,360.

Referring to federal funding provided to support the conversion to electronic health records, McGee said, "Even excluding meaningful use money, we are significantly ahead of budget and the prior year-to-date.

"In-patient statistics improved by seven percent, compared to February's, and out-patient visits increased by 38.4 percent over the prior year," he said.