Photo: Board Chairman Charles Kelly (left) and Interim CEO Brian Cunningham (right) congratulate Marsha Lopez (center) on her 35 years of service to GRMC.
Photo Courtesy of Joseph F. Kellerman
Article by Charlie McKee
At the Gila Regional Medical Center's Board of Trustees meeting on Friday, Dec. 20, Board Chairman Charles Kelly and Interim Chief Executive Officer Brian Cunningham presented Marsha Lopez with a Certificate of Appreciation for her 35 years of service with the Medical Center. Marsha quipped that she would "rather have a free parking space," but stated that she is proud of her longterm commitment to GRMC. She noted that she began her career with GRMC in the Nursery department "straight out of high school," moving on to administrative functions and subsequently training and qualifying as a scrub technician, which is her current position.
During the business portion of the meeting, Cunningham reported positive financial results in the following areas:
- The new Cardiology Services group is showing more than $68,000 gross profit to date.
- GRMC's overall Financial Report is showing a positive bottom line of $23,000 for November, 2013, the fourth successive month in positive financial territory.
- Turnaround time for payments due has been steadily dropping over the past several months as a result of focused efforts by staff, bringing revenues in more quickly. Average collection time has dropped from 150 days to a fairly stable 98 days.
Cunningham also reported that the next major undertaking to bolster the bottom line would be the "Denial Project," which will be a massive project extending throughout the organization including "into the physicians' offices."
The Board then re-elected its officers to serve another year's term in 2014. They are:
- Charles Kelly, Chairman
- Dr. Darrick Nelson, Vice Chairman
- Pam Archibald, Secretary-Treasurer
The Board approved two Committee Agreement contracts: the Professional Practice Evaluation Committee Agreement and the EMS Medical Director Agreement. Approval/ disapproval of the Committee Agreements for the committee that will be reviewing and revising GRMC's Bylaws were tabled until next month's Board meeting to allow further fact finding.
Robert Morales, Chair of the Human Resources Committee, then reported to the Board that the Committee has developed new goals under its new leadership, focusing on developing succession plans within the organization, as well as on its recruiting and retention strategies.
Lastly, in the holiday spirit, it was announced that the GRMC Foundation would be presenting fudge to all GRMC employees on Christmas Day. Several members of the group volunteered to help distribute the fudge, while voicing ulterior motives for sharing in the goodies.
The Board then adjourned for its confidential Executive Session.