Three hospital management companies touted their strengths last week in proposals to the Allen County Regional Hospital board of trustees.
Trustees are studying options to lead ACRH into the future. On Wednesday evening, they heard presentations from their current management provider, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), and two other companies with experience overseeing rural Kansas hospitals. Trustees will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday to discuss the presentations and perhaps even indicate their preference.
Each company brings a very different approach to health care, though each pointed to advantages such as local control, cost savings and training opportunities.
Great Plains and Quorum could boast of their experience with rural hospitals, while HCA claimed its size as the nations largest healthcare company offered unmatched advantages in areas such as physician recruitment and outpatient services.
A summary of each presentation follows:
Great Plains Health Alliance
Wichita-based Great Plains, a not-for-profit organization, offers a management model that emphasizes local control.
The company was formed by the Lutheran Church in Phillipsburg in 1950.
Its strengths lie in financial services and information technology, Dave Dellasega, president and CEO, and Durrel Kelley, chief operations officer, said.
Were kind of the local guys, Kelley said, noting most of the companys hospital partnerships are in Kansas, including Fredonia Regional Hospital and Cheyenne County Hospital in St. Francis, with one facility in Nebraska. Were not from out of state. We dont imagine going out of a contiguous state area. We like to be able to get in our cars and drive.
The primary focus of Great Plains would be financial management and IT support, leaving administrative decisions to the local board.
We like supporting the hospital. We like supporting the hospital board. We like one-on-one relationships. Were not really interested in taking over and running the hospital, Dellasega said.
Instead, Great Plains offers a system of Regional Vice Presidents who provide advice and direction.
Great Plains also would provide training and advice in areas such as corporate compliance, and has its own health insurance program for employees, in which nearly a dozen of its hospitals participate. Regular webinars and seminars provide opportunities for hospital administrators to share information and experience.
