Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Washakie Medical Center (WMC) CEO Lisa Van Brunt announced at the Nov. 26 hospital board meeting that on Rural Hospital Day Nov. 21, the Chartis Center for Rural Health bestowed two awards on WMC.
The hospital received the Outcomes and Quality awards — two of the three categories the Chartis Center tracks, with the third being Patient Perspectives. Chartis tracks data in these categories among all rural and critical access hospitals in the country, and WMC had the honor of being recognized as being in the top 25th percentile in the ‘Outcomes’ and ‘Quality’ categories.
Earlier this year the Chartis Center named WMC one of the top 100 rural hospitals in the country.
Van Brunt showed a presentation of the hospital’s spending on new equipment in 2024 during the WMC Board of Directors meeting, demonstrating the facility’s commitment to providing excellent care in a small community. A new MRI machine that is now in use was purchased in July for $2.4 million, and since then another $1.3 million has been spent to replace aging hospital equipment.
BUILDING REPORT
Plant Operations Manager Steve Wiecki provided updates on WMC maintenance concerns.
Wiecki said the most pressing issue currently is the delivery bay’s garage door breaking down. The opening system needs replaced, parts need rewelded and points of contact need reinforced; otherwise the whole door and frame need replaced which will be much more costly. He has received a quote from Colorado Doorways for $10,800.
The board approved the project, as well as one from Kings Carpet to replace flooring in the ultrasound unit’s restroom for $2,008.
Wiecki has received estimates from McKinnon Flooring and Kings Carpet to replace flooring in the hospital’s outpatient clinic. The existing flooring will be replaced in part by a ‘hard surface’ material for patient care areas, and carpeted material in hallways and elsewhere to reduce noise. McKinnon Flooring gave an estimate of $50,000 and Kings Carpet gave one for $55,976. Wiecki said the estimate was for the same square footage of flooring, but he has not confirmed whether the companies would be using the same material for the project.
He also presented estimates to replace a cabinet in the break room of the specialty clinic; Marc Bennett submitted an estimate for $3,033 and Kings Carpet had an estimate for $2,854. Wiecki gave the opinion that he has contracted Kings Carpet before for similar projects and is familiar with what the hospital would get, but hasn’t seen Bennett’s work.
These two projects were not voted on, and will be discussed further in a following meeting.
TREASURER’S REPORT
Board Treasurer Ryan Baumeister informed board members about three CD accounts scheduled to mature soon. One at Security State Bank matures Dec. 5, one at Pinnacle Bank matures Dec. 18 and one at Sunlight Federal Credit Union matures Jan. 8. Baumeister said the three accounts have about $300,000 in total.
The board agreed they would withdraw the three matured accounts and combine them into one larger CD account at a local approved depository. After listing off the interest rates available, the board narrowed the decision down to Security State Bank offering a 4% interest rate that compounds monthly, or Big Horn Federal offering a 3.65% interest rate that compounds quarterly.
Baumeister, who in addition to WMC Board Treasurer is Vice President of Security State Bank’s Worland branch, recommended the board go with Big Horn Federal. He reasoned that the board already had several accounts at Security State Bank, and it would be beneficial to allocate their funds into different depositories.
Board member Charlie Cauffman argued that Security State Bank’s offer was too good for him to ignore and he would like them to take the $300,000 CD, but he would be open to the opinions of other board members.
A motion was put forward to place the CD account at Big Horn Federal at a 3.65% quarterly interest rate, and was approved unanimously.
FINANCIAL REPORT
Debra Briggs provided a report of the hospital’s October finances.
Gross revenue was $4.7 million, up $897,000 from the prior month.
Net revenue was $3.1 million, up $735,000 from the prior month.
After expenses, net income for the hospital was a loss of $44,000.
All losses are covered by Banner Health.
A motion was approved to cancel the December board meeting, putting the next meeting on Jan. 28.