f
TWO The Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon, Thursday, August 3, 1978
The Heppner
GAZETTE-TIMES
Sifting through
tne i
i
!
4
I
'.I
i
i
J
. i
I
't
S
s
Tuesday levy election
requires yes vote
Morrow County residents should flock to the
polls next Tuesday in support of two special levy
requests that have a dramatic impact on their
lifestyles.
Both the Morrow County general fund and
Pioneer Memorial Hospital budget levy requests
are needed to insure services and health care that
we expect and enjoy.
The Hospital administration and board of
directors have come under fire recently for a
number of reasons considered important by the
public and although not all the problems have been
answered or solved, much progress can be noted.
Voters used the ballot box as their mouthpiece on
June 27 when the hospital budget was defeated and
the county budget ended in a tie vote. Since that
time the County Court, Hospital Board and Hospital
Administrator Bob Byrnes have been trying to get
to the root of the problem, and voters should voice
their approval of the positive steps taken.
In addition, more than $43,000 was cut from the
hospital budget. The County budget is being
re-submitted to voters at the same levy figure.
Officials from both are concerned that if the
levy requests do not receive voter approval this
time, substantial cuts will have to be made in
services provided by the county and health care
provided by the hospital.
In regards to the county budget voters must look
at the sharp decline in federal revenue enjoyed by
the county over the past decade. Because that
money was used to prevent going outside the six per
cent limitation, the amount received each year has
been on the decline. Now the only way to balance the
budget and still maintain essential services such as
police protection, roads, and the Courthouse staff is
to ask voter approval of tax money outside the six
per cent annual increase allowed automatically by
Oregon law.
At the hospital the situation is much the same.
Escalating costs in materials, supplies and
personnel coupled with the fact that cash reserves
were depleted last year instead of asking the voters
for additional tax money, have left the hospital in
dire need of finances..
More than $50,000 is needed to replace
equipment and make capital improvements that
anyone would expect a hospital to have. Many of
these improvements and pieces of equipment are
further mandated by state and federal agencies to
retain a "hospital" status.
Then there is $20,000 in the hospital budget for
recruiting doctors to Heppner and Boardman.
Without doctors in the communities there would be
few patients using Pioneer Memorial Hospital,
cutting back much needed patient revenues.
Further, everyone realizes the need for doctors
in Heppner and Boardman and it appears the most
economical way to obtain them is through a
recruiter. It is the most economical way because it
is quicker, which means less revenue losses for the
hospital and secondly, because through a recruiter
many of the problems experienced here in recent
months with medical staffing may be avoided.
Both the general fund budget and the Pioneer
Memorial Hospital budget deserve the support of
voters next Tuesday, August 8. ' "yes" vote will
insure sustained county government, health care
and local control over both.
Community
BILLBOARD
Call
676-9228
Thursday, August 3
Soroptomists, noon, West of
Willow
Pioneer Memorial Hospital
public meeting (executive
session), 7:30p.m. Courthouse
Monday, August 7
Chamber of Commerce,
noon, West of Willow
Sponsored By
RAY
BOYCE
INSURANCE
EE
228 N Mam Si. Heppner 676-9625
Heppner City Council, 8
p.m., City Hall
Tuesday, August 8
Special Levy Elections, 8
a.m.-8 p.m., Elections for
Morrow County budget and
Pioneer Memorial Hospital
budget
1
fit . , ' W . -'
i
t
.1
UaLa Li U Lau a
Byrnes should not
be made scapegoat
Editor:
I attended the open Hospital Board meeting. I heard
some people who had decided Bob Byrnes must go. I heard
some say that voting down the budget was how to get what
they wanted. I saw that some people had their minds made
up and weren't interested in changing no matter what
occurred.
I think that attitude is unnecessarily destructive and that
using the budget as a vehicle of power is wrong. The reason
for passing the budget is to keep our hospital open and
functioning. Why put the livelihood of the employees and the
lives of the patients in jeopardy because some want to get the
administrator? There are other ways they can do that if
that's their intent.
I think the "get rid of him" attitude is discouraging.
Three different times I heard Mr. Byrnes say that he realized
part of his behavior toward employees and patient families
was wrong and that he was going to do his best to correct the
error. People aren't allowed a chance to right their wrongs?
And what of the responsibility of the Board? They're Mr.
Byrnes' boss. They state that the administrator's activities
reflect their wishes. Some accused the Board of unresponsive
behavior much more directly than Mr. Byrnes was
accused. But no one demanded their resignations. Their
promise to try and do better was accepted even if
suspiciously so. But not so Mr. Byrnes' promise. Someone
has decided that he's the villain, so he must go.
It's easiest, when anger rises, to single out one person as
the cause of everything. But it's almost always wrong and the
problems remain. It's harder to be part of a healing process,
to take a man at his word, to give a second change. But it's
much more productive for the hospital, for the community,
for each individual involved.
John S. Maas
Heppner
Hospital meeting raises
several questions
Editor:
Since the open meeting with the Hospital Board some
questions have come to mind and we wondered if there are
any answers.
No. 1 Why did one member of the Board state, "There's
THEGAZETTE - TIMES
The Official Newspaper of the City of Heppner
and the County of Morrow
Published every Thursday and entered as second-class matter at the Post Office at Heppner, Oregon, under the Act
of March 3, 1879. Second-class postage paid at Heppner, Oregon.
G.M. Reed, Publisher Dolores Reed, Co-publisher Terry M. Hager, Managing Editor
Rick Steelhammer, News Editor Eileen Saling, Officer Manager
Gayle Rush, Composing Chloe Pearson, Composing Justine Weatherford . Local Columnist
Ron Jordan, Printer
no plans for a new hospital." Different architectural firms
have submitted plans for a new hospital or remodeling the
old one. Wasn't this brought before the Board or did the
Administrator do this on his own? The plans were shown to us
at the hospital. They did or do exist! Even land on where to
build has been checked into, this was told by a reliable
person. These plans might be in the distant future but they do
exist.
No. 2 Why didn't Mr. Martin, chairman of the Board,
make more comments or answer questions?Isn't he
informed enough to answer questions put before the Board?
He couldn't have answered more than three questions. The
other members did all the commenting.
No. . 3 Mr. Brynes stated and is quoted in the
Gazette "plans to retain Emergency Room facilities, keep
the current level of 20 acute care beds intact". Where are
these 20 acute care beds? After our years of working on the
hill, we can't count that many. Downstairs there are 19 beds
plus eight beds upstairs for nursing home care, there's a
"holding room" with one bed for mental health, a cardiac
room with one bed, and that leaves two labor room beds, two
maternity room beds, one big bed and four cribs in pediatrics
and that leaves four rooms with two beds each open for
general care patients! With that count, too many people
better not get sick at the same time ! And we do have patients
from the other areas.
We do not want to lose the hospital, like it's losing all the
"old time help."
Ruby Munkers
Anna Schwarzin
Hospital woes recounted
Editor:
I was at the hospital meeting Monday July 24 and am still
concerned.
First of all Mrs. Melby did not quote me right in the East
. Oregonian paper. I was directing my question to Karmon
Bjella about why he wasn't out on the floor more. Which he
did answer.
Having had an uncle and a mother still up there I was
concerned way before any of this all got out.
Being up there every day for the last five months I
personally could feel the tension and knew things were not
good up there.
This is when I first went to a board meeting and was not
satisfied with the answers I received. After going to that
board meeting I received quite a reaction from all the help.
That's when I decided to put in my two cents worth.
My mother has been up at the hospital for almost five
months and Mr. Byrnes has yet to help our family in any way,
let alone say hello to us.
I feel that being administrator this would be first on his
list. Getting to know the doctors and staff, patients and their
families.
The hospital has been in trouble for quite a few years but
at least the tension was not there and the help could talk to
Ilene Wyman any time they needed. She cared! And in a
small town like this, we need a head administrator who cares
and can relate to the help.
I also blame the board for not getting down to the real
problem. Mr. Byrnes should have left the meeting when he
was asked and more of the help would have voiced their
opinions, and maybe something would be more settled.
People think it will be bad with only one doctor in town.
How is it going to be with no help up there?
I also want to personally thank everyone from the
doctors to the RNs, aides, cleaning ladies, lab techs for being
so good to our family.
The doctors have been so good that we could talk to them
any time of day or night
I'm up there every day and they put in hours that you
would not believe. And if one doctor was gone the other one
would always fill in.
Pioneer Memorial Hospital was in the news 25 years ago in
a matter involving money, much as it is today.
during the first week of August in 1953, County Judge
Garnet Barratt went to Portland to present the county's
request for $44,000 from the Oregon Board of Health to be
used in building a new wing on the then-overcrowded
hospital.
County voters had earlier approved a 5 mill levy to be
used for matching funds for the addition to the hospital.
During the same week in 1953, a tooth from a prehistoric
variety of elephant was unearthed at the Bill Morgan place
near Monument. The tooth measured 4 inches high and six
inches across. It was then estimated to be 400,000 years old.
Brand new 1953 Willys sedans were selling for 1,499.50 at
Farley Motors in Heppner.
The wheat harvest was averaging 15 bushels per acre in
Morrow County 50 years ago.
Prices for hard red winter wheat were at the 1.08 per
bushel mark in Heppner.
Barley fared even worse during the 1928 harvest. -Although
a significant number of acres was planted in
barley, not a stand in the county was worth harvesting.
According to the Gazette-Times account of the harvest, the
barley stand "in many places is good, and the heads
appeared healthy. But it was found when starting to cut that
there were but a very few kernels in each head."
During the same week in 1928, more than 20,000 acres in
the Heppner District of the Umatilla National Forest went up
in flames, after a severe thunderstorm swept through the
area.
Receiving the brunt of the blaze were the Bull Prairie,
Wilson Creek, Morphine Canyon and Camas Prairie areas.
Firefighters were shipped in from Portland, Pendleton, and
LaGrande to battle the blaze. Wheat trucks were side tracked
to haul in the firefighters and their equipment.
Sixty years ago in Morrow County, John J. Kelly of
Heppner was closing the deal to purchase the 3,500 acre
George Perry sheep ranch on Rock Creek, including a band
of 2,000 sheep.
The Joe Batty family of Eightmile was placed under
quarantine, when it was discovered that all family members
were suffering from smallpox.
The City of Heppner bought a four-cylinder chemical and
water pumper truck for the fire department for $4,575.
Ten years ago this week, U.S. Rep. Al Ullman sent a
telegram to the Morrow County Court stating that "in my
judgement, the Willow Creek dam ranks number one in
priority for funding in the next fiscal year. You may be sure
of my strongest efforts to get Congressional approval."
Ten year later, the project remains a dream.
Picture Credit
Irene Ahnorn cuddles pet pygmy goat, whil reading
"Billy Goat Gruff" to children during a special story hour
held outside the Heppner Public Library earlier this week.
I hope there is a meeting like was promised between the
board, help, and everyone concerned, without Mr. Byrnes.
Then maybe everything will get out in the open and we will
have our hospital back, maybe our doctors and hospital help,
and will all have learned by this.
Trish Toll
Seniors seek discount
Editor:
We, the undersigned Morrow County Senior Citizens
Advisory Council, are a group of older citizens of this county
who meet regularly to gel our (input) needs and thoughts to
the legislative bodies of our state and also to the national
level.
Now, we are coming to you on the county and city level
with a concern of ours that is discouts for Senior Citizens.
Many who are trying very hard to make-do on a very low
fixed-income could use this help. We have a long list of stores
and other services afrom Pendleton and Hermiston
(Umatilla county) that are doing this. The question is Are
there any stores or services that are willing to do the same in
Morrow county? There are many ways that this is
accomplished; food outlets a discount during the slack
hours of the day food stores also practice this. Another
way once a year your anniversary or once a month or once
a week-or something special. You have your right to choose.
Since the State has issued Senior Citizen identification cards
it is easy to know who is a senior.
I have lived in this county many years and for quite a few
of those years I have been aware of two groups that have
practiced the policy of discounts to older citizens; the
Athletic program of the School system and the Morrow
County Fair Board. If you think this practice might be too
earth-shaking you might contact these groups for their
reactions.
Too, we are mailing this same letter to the Chamber of
Commerce-Merchants Committee of both Heppner and
Boardman, hoping to get a reply from them. Also an open
letter to the Gazette-Times for those professional and
services that might not belong to an organization such as a
chamber of Commerce. Thank you Murray's Drug Stores for
answering our question before we asked.
We will be happy to hear from you, send replies any kind
regarding this matter to Morrow County Senior Citizens
Advisory Council.
Theta Lowe, acting secretary
Rt. 2 Box 2459
Heppner 97836
(
, . 4& k t jS--- 1 ,