The Heppner
Gazette-Times
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Donald Jon Adams, Heppner'* New Year's Baby
arrived at Pioneer Memorial Hospital January 6 at
■ 2*on 'I m weigh.ng 10 pounds 6 ounces His parents
Terra I-ee and Timothy t,ec Adams w ill receive gifts
donated from the following local merchants Morrow
Pioneer
County Grain Growers, lu-xington Dumber
Memorial Hospital. Murray's Drug. Peterson's Jewel
erx. Case Pumiture, Centrsl Market, Heppner Auto
Parts. Pettyjohn's Karm and Builders Supply , The Shoe
Baa H A W Drive In. Court Stri-et Market gad H.c.
Boyce Insurance
Frozen ground slows work at well
Problems with frozen grounds
have prompted the Heppner city
council to grant Buckner Pump Co
until March 31 to finish work on the
city's new water well
The well has been drilled to 1,100
feet and is producing 150 gallons of
water per minute, however, because
of the difficulty in working with
frozen ground, roadwork and pipe
laying have not been done, the
company told the city council Mon
day
There have been problems with
the M J N «HI which, including
administrative expenses, w ill end up
costing $130.200, but the project has
come in under the original estimate,
and the quality of water is good
In the beginning the city had
hoped to pump about 25o gallons per
minute and only have to d rill to 500
feet however no usable water was
found at that depth, so the city
exercised an option and the drilling
went to 1.100 feel
The well, when connected to the
city reservoir later, w ill be used as a
backup system to the other city
wells, and was paid for by a bond
issue through the Parmer's Home
Administration
Delays in finishing of the well have
caused about $1.250 in excess engin
eenng and legal fees
The city
council agreed Monday to wait until
the project is completed before
deciding how much to penalize the
drilling company for the excess
costs
The council also decided to pay
$880 lor an extra sixty feet of road
that was not included in the original
bid specifications, and which the
contractor did not know he would
have to build
Irrigation workshop scheduled
Hv STEPHEN! VMPBEt.L
ONI Exl \g rn l
Morrow < ounty
The Morrow County Office of the
Oregon State University Extension
Service, w ill sponsor a workshop on
the basics of irrigation system de
sign and operation Wall Trimmer.
0 S l Extension Irrigation Special
ist. w ill present a program for
smaller irrigators on bottom lands
and bench lands using flood, hand
line, wheel-line, solid set. or travel
mg gun irrigation syitems
The
program w ill tie at the Morrow
County fairgrounds. January 15 at
1 30 p rn All irrigators, equipment
suppliers, and people with an inter
est in system design or the improve
ment of existing systems are invited
to attend
The program will be helpful to all
irrigators and w ill enable producers
to design or upgrade their irrigation
systems to most efficiently water a
desired crop or area
Topics of
discussion w ill include basic hy
draulics, (channel hydraulics, and
pipe size requirements i, system
rapacity, pressure requirements,
uniformity of water cover isprink
lers and flood), and crop water
requirements It w ill answer ques
turns concerning ditch size and
design, field preparation, plant wa
ter requirements, pipe and pump
specifications and others
The program w ill last three hours
and ample time will be scheduled for
questions and specific producer
problems
Bob Costa and Steve
< ampbell, Morrow County Exten
sion Agents, can be contacted at
676-9642 for further information a
bout the program
There w ill be a »5 registration fee
to cover the cost of materials which
will be handed out
Coffee and
4
doughnuts w ill be served, compii
menta of Morrow County Grain
(»rowers
In other business at the Monday
meeting, the council granted ap
proval to the Soroptimists w ho asked
if they could, as a club project,
replace playground equipment at
the city park
Prêt-
1>> the ( !it> nf llt'ppnrr
Although there has tieen no official
statement the Pioneer Memorial
Hospital in Heppner is not in good
financial position" say both Pred
Martin, chairman of the Hospital
Board, and John (Hchner. hospital
atlministrator
The crux of the matter is that the
facility is underutilized explains
Martin the administration has been
cutting expenses to amounts under
those budgeted, or we would be in
tvid shape Certain expenses must
lx- met however once services are
cut lu basic and to minimum staff
requirements there's no more we
can cut without jeopardizing ser
vices
While we are down 25
percent of the budgeted revenue, we
have managed to keep expenses
down but not to that same extent "
says (k-hsner
" It is my opinion that any ftnan
c u l problems are due to a lack of
utilization. Ochsner continued
The hospital is licensed for 20
hospital beds and 2« nursing home
beds Because of space limitations,
we could not staff more than 16 lx
hospital hods now
Kecords show
that not more than 13 beds have been
filled on any given day The budget,
however, had been based for the last
two years on an average usage of
five patients per day The average
daily census at Pioneer was 2 6 per
day through November 30
Although the hospital inpatient
usage has the biggest single impact,
when usage is down, a similar
decrease is reflected in the decrees
ed use of the ancillary or suppurt
services such as the lab and radinl
ogy. Ochsner says
The nursing home averaged 26 6
beds occupied per day during the
last fiscal year, a 95 percent usage
lY lr, and so far this year the rate has
gone frum 81 percent use down to 75
percent in November Part of the
reason which the nursing home
usage is down may be due to
agencies diverting people away
from traditional nursing home situ
ations The expense of going to a
hospital or nursing home and the
increased emphasis on home health
care keep people away from the
hospital and nursing home, says
Martin It seems to lie a trend and
we re not the only hospital with
problem right now
Council reverses earlier decision
Parking limit lifted
The city of Heppner has decided to
drop its three month long campaign
against parking violations down
town, the city council announced
Monday night
Since October the city police have
tieen issuing two dollar parking tic
kets for cars parked in the downtown
area for more than two hours,
between H a m and 6 p in
In October the council decided to
have the police enforce an existing
law against parking longer than two
hours in one place, and since then
police have been marking tires with
chalk and issuing tickets
Historical Society
Judge William W Wells. Pendleton, administers the oath of Circuit Court
Judge to Bob Abrams Heppner in the courtroom of the Morrow County
Courthouse. Friday. Jan 4 Following the swearing in ceremony. Mylo
Pope, a mem tier of the Board of (Governors of the Oregon State Bar Assoc
welcomed Abrams to the judiciary branch of the government and Judge
William Wells congratulated him as the newest in a "long line of Morrow-
County Judges "
Abrams told the courtroom full of fam ily and well wishers that he had
wanted to be formally inducted in this courtroom where he tried so many
cases and that it is a "pleasure and a challenge to be the new judge partially
because of the fine job which Judge Wells has done."
He also said the the "firs t two days I've spent working as a judge indicated
that I had more to learn and judges learn on the Job ”
situation" says Ochsner
It is
important to remember that the
Board and I are veiv concerned
about meeting the needs of the
community and that we want the
hospital to be a viable entity W< see
the situation as requiring additional
physician services available to the
community
We do not want to k « m -
the hospital close, if utilization can
meet equipment maintaincnee. pay
roU. and other expenses
Also keeping a quality facility
going means good qualilv enter
gency services says Ochsner
We
have gixxl emergency serv ices lx-
cause we have a good facility
We
can’t just keep the intermediate
care nursing home because a Uegis
lered Nurse is on duly 24 hours a day
at the hospital too We can t just
maintain emergency services lx-
cause without the individual skills
provided by the full service facility,
emergency care would merely 1 m - a
transport system
Martin explains that it is Un­
feeling ol some of the board mem
tier* that three family physicians
are needed to maintain the hospital
properly
Others argue that the
population isn't sufficient to support
a third physician in the community
The problem is increased by the fact
that people are mobile and w ill go
where they feel that they can get the
lies! medical care Martin savs
Bringing another physician into
tile area would provide for a choice
and for wider coverage for p»-ople in
the area says (k hsner It might tx-
possible to do day surgery at the
hospital again, offers Martin and to
have a physician supervised FMT
group, all of which would build up
hospital usage
Chamber introducesS
1984’s 1st citizens
at Tues, banquet
1
H arold
Cooley
Hv J t NTIN4 I H VTIIEKKO KD
Harold Peek who is affectionately
called "S horty", has never been
short in the time and effort he has
The Morrow County Historical good naturedly given in helpful vol
Society has contacted the three unleer community service
county junior high schools to invite
The variety of his helpful services
students to join in an essay competi
during his 72 years has included
lion Topics suggested to the stu
always being a friendly gixx! neigh
dent* included the first fair and bor, an active member of the Hepp
rodeo, the coal fired plant and other ner Christian Church, of the Rhea
general topics concerning the coun
Creek (»range of the Elks laxlge No
ly's development
358 and of the Morrow County
The winning essay w ill be read at Historical Society
the County 's Centennial Celebration
Harold has for many years tieen
February 16 reports chairman Ilel
an exhibitor and fxmster of the
pha Jones
Morrow County Fair which he has
served as a member of the Fair
Committee and on the Fair Board
and where he has done much to build
up the fairgrounds and to increase
the rating nf the fair
Harold Kenneth Peck was horn in
By NKOI.A M U 'K E Y
Heppner in ( X tolx-r 1112 and IlM
Find assistance applications are a
spent much of his life on homestead
available at the Heppner Neighbor
land on Upper Khea Creek where his
hood Center The next appointments parents and grandparents lived lie
can be made for Friday. Jan II and fore him lie and his wife Edna
Friday . Jan IH Appointments are
(Tump Peck celebrated their gold
necessary in order to receive fuel
en anniversary in Heppner last year
assistance
Their three daughters are Patricia
The Neighborh’ od Center w ill be
Mrs John Hardy i of Temp«- AZ .
closed January 15 in observance of
who has three children and one
Martin Luthe- Kings birthday
grandchild Shirley Mrs Roger
Therefore the monthly Women In
Palmer. Heppner i with six children
fant children clinic w ill be held
and four grandchildren and M arjori
January 22
(Mrs John Church - of Troy Mon
Adult and Family Services Coun
sc lor Janet Phillips w ill lie at the tana Harold and Edna are proudly
the grandparents of nine and now
(enter Wednesday, Jan 16 from 9
great grandparents of five
a m to 12 noon
The life stones of Harold and
The Center is in need of buttons
Edna and their families are well told
and yarn for their various craft
in Hie big, new Morrow County
project*
All donations w ill he
History published in 1983 - pages 288
appreciated
Fuel Assistance
applications
available
Judge Abrams
swears oath of office
Some firm s however, are making
money at operating hospitals but the
Hospital Board, directed by the
County Court to run the hospital
hasn't found the secret yet
says
Martin The Board has been looking
at different possibilities for keeping
the hospital open and operating
One of those possibilities is a
management firm , such as Brim
and Assoc of Portland, which may
mean some loss of local control ov er
the hospital Ochsner explains that
management firm s differ and that
most do allow the county to retain
some amount of local control
In
some cases a Hospital Board con
tinues to set policy and rate changes
some firm s may require that they
have a representative on the Board,
others may determine the day to day
management of the hospital hv their
own corporate policy and leave
other decisions to the Board
Although the Hospital Board is
researching the situation it is impor
tant to remember that they only
make recommendations to the Coun
ty Court It is the Court which has
the final decision whether to main
tain management or to hire a firm
for the job
We have reserves enough to tie
able to go through to the end of this
fiscal year said Martin, but next
year’s budget may cause a "tax
jolt if usage is not increased
The most onv io u s solution to the
lack of use is to bring in another
physician into the community
At
the last Hospital Hoard meeting a
Physician Kecruitment Firm was
hired to help find another doctor
willing to set up a practice in the
Heppner area
"We hope to solve the problems
for quite awhile and develop some
thing which w ill tie a self drawing
Apparently 14 parking tickets
were issued on the day of the farm
city banquet to participants in the
annual cattlemen's event
The cattlemen complained to the
city, as a group, and were able to
have their tickets changed to warn
mgs. saying they were unaware that
the two hour lim it was being enfor
ced
Subsequently a committee was
appointed from the city council,
which recommended the police stop
enforcing the law
announces contest
i
l.ow
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Lack of inpatient and nursing home use of
hospital has caused financial problems
New Year’s Baby arrives
at Pioneer January 6
■ »
2-»
Wont her
High
lues . Jan 1
26
■B)
Wed . Jan 2
Thurs . Jan 3 21
Fri . Jan 4
24
Sat , Jan 5
32
Sun Jan 6
23
Mon . Jan 7
28
liv Jt M IN I W I M i l l I t i t i l t i l
At Irrigon Vera Cixib-v is Mrs
She Do»-s Everything a real com
munity leader the woman who helps
in every emergency who worked as
the cook at A C Houghton s< tuxil for
17 years, but who continues to I h -
very active since retiring
Vera s husband l.loyd died about
25 years ago, and she became the
single parent to their sons Bill and
Burrel
She helprd with s< tuxil
activities, served as President and
Treasurer of the P I A led 4 H
groups and served on the 4 II council
She has long Ixx-n a county Exten
sion leader a main pillar in her
church, Columbia View Fellowship,
guiding lh«- construction of their new
building She is a memtier of the
Irrigon Crime Watch Group
Vera spearhcadi-d the committee
that has suet essfully worked toward
the building of a Senior Citizen
Building at Irrigon and has even
IxM-n seen out shoveling dirt to get
the building started She is present
ly Chairman of the Morrow ( ounty
Senior Citizens Advisory Council
and on the budget committee and the
Ixiard of Oregon State District 12.
Area Agency on Aging
Her sons B ill and Burrel and their
wive* Janet and Karen are active in
Irrigon s .«< tiv dies Four gr.indi hil
dr«m. David, Bob. Michelle, and
Vickie help k«-«-p Vera young and
still active in school activities