Edition 6
Facility Update
We have had a rough month! Frozen pipes in the Nursing Home, heating issues in the Acute Care, flooding in the Billing Office and Kitchen, and construction on all three floors of the St. Martin’s Building. The maintenance team has been working super hard to keep everything functional, and I feel like we’ve turned a corner with many of our issues.
The work in the basement is mostly wrapped up, but there are still isolated construction activities. The Kitchen ceiling will need to be repaired, and hopefully, we can get that scheduled soon. Work on the first floor is also isolated to just a few rooms and is being done to route plumbing to the second floor. The second floor is a wrapping-up demo and will transition to the rebuild.
After we wrap up the second floor, the work on the main level will start. We are also looking at upcoming projects on the Verbeck roof and the Nursing Home flooring.
Regional Healthcare Planning
As I mentioned in my January Board Meeting Recap email, a few citizens have organized themselves into an informal coalition called the Okanogan Planning Group. They hope to bring healthcare entities together to discuss the future of healthcare in our county. This was prompted by Three Rivers Hospital's failed attempt to get a bond to build a new hospital. Mid Valley also has significant infrastructure needs that must be planned and funded. As I’ve already complained about, we have a ton of projects and even more needs in the future (kitchen remodel and Extended Care HVAC).
With all of the money needed to keep these old buildings running, the Okanogan Planning Group wants to advocate for a regional approach to future-proof our investments. This can be a challenging topic because each District should do what is best for their patients, employees, and citizens. These big ideas require thinking about our work differently, and the uncertainty and change are scary.
Yesterday, a few members of the Okanogan Planning Group came to meet with our Long Range Focus Committee. They were here to ask questions and learn more about our perspective. I do not know how far these conversations will go, but given each hospital's big challenges, I am happy to explore possible improvements to our delivery model.
Hospital Foundation
At Okanogan County Public Hospital District #4 dba North Valley Hospital and Long Term Care Division of Okanogan County Public Hospital District #4 we do a lot of things really well. Giving ourselves short and concise names is not one of those things. The North Valley Community Health Association is also a mouthful, so I typically just call it our Foundation.
The Foundation is a separate entity formed as a 501c3 with the mission to enhance healthcare in north Okanogan County. The Foundation raises money through direct giving, employee contributions, grants, and gifts. The Foundation has provided a lot of support for the hospital and nursing home through the years, and has positively contributed in many ways to the care we deliver. This year they are funding the project to convert ED Room 1 from storage to patient care to help reduce the congestion in the ED.
If you are interested in learning more consider attending a meeting. We meet the first Monday of every month at 7pm in the Board Room and our next meeting is March 4th.
Additionally HR can help you set up payroll deductions if you would like to support their work in our community.