Commander puts the focus on jobs after deployment
Editor s Note: The follow
ing story was written and
submitted by Staff Sgt. Pat
Caldwell, 3rd Battalion,
116"' Cavalry, 3rd Sustain
ment Brigade Public Af
fairs, 103rd Sustainment
Command (Expedition
ary). Lt. Col. Phil Apple-
ton is the son o f Heppner
resident Wendy (Appleton)
Andrews.
Bessie W etzell Newspaper Library
University ofC^ ° n
Eugene, OR 9740.
HEPPNER
imes
VOL. 130
NO. 10
8 Pages
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Health district sees big gain in January
The Morrow Coun
ty Health District got es
pecially good news with
the receipt of the district’s
financial data for Janu-
ary-a $216,680 profit for
the month. Every revenue
source was up, am ount
ing to $726,583 in gross
patient revenue, compared
to $533,100 in gross pa
tient revenue for December.
This gives the district a
$98,985 year-to-date profit,
only slightly off a $99,876
budget goal, and a $ 14,140
average monthly year-to-
date gain.
The d istrict has
$99,657 on the books for
hospital inpatient revenue
for January, compared to
$64,240 in D ecem ber;
$151,187 in inpatient an
cillary revenue, compared
to $50,010 for the previous
month; $316,052 in out
patient ancillary revenue,
com pared to $283,029,
$105,850 in clinic revenue,
compared to $98,446 and
$53,835 for Home Health/
H ospice revenue, com
pared to $37,373 the month
previous. Total operating
revenue for January, includ
ing bad debts and contrac
tual and other adjustments,
$94,733 in tax revenue and
$3,766 in other revenue,
was $769,954, compared to
$655,774 in December.
In other business:
-C E O M ic h a e l
Blauer told the board that
the new CT scanner at Pio
neer Memorial Hospital is
up and running well with
“really good” images.
-Blauer said that
the district is “on the verge”
of signing a contract for an
electronic medical records
system. Electronic medical
records are a federal man
date. Molly Rhea, director
of PMH nursing services,
said she thought that elec-
Pot of Gold at the end
of the Heppner rainbow
Joint Base Balad,
Iraq - When the soldiers
o f eastern O regon’s 3rd
Battalion, 116,h Cavalry,
3rd Sustainment Brigade,
103rd Sustainment Com
mand (Expeditionary), re
turn home after their tour
of duty at Joint Base Balad,
Iraq, they will collide with
an array o f programs to
help reintegrate them into
a civilian way of life.
But there is one
challenge that may be more
difficult for them to over
come: finding jobs.
While plenty of at
tention is focused on help
ing soldiers deal with Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder
and other factors associated
with overseas duty; lack of
employment is one of those
problems often recognized,
but has more difficulty be
ing solved.
In December, Or
egon’s jobless rate hov
ered at 10.4 percent while
the unem ploym ent rate
in several eastern Oregon Lt. Col. Phil Appleton (left), commander of eastern Oregon’s
counties ran the gamut be Army Guard unit, the 3rd Battalion, 116,k Cavalry Regiment,
tween 16 percent for Grant talks to a group of soldiers recently at Joint Base Balad, Iraq.
Appleton is busy framing an ambitious plan to help his sol
County, and 10 percent in diers find employment once they return home from a one-year
Union County.
deployment to Iraq. -Photo by SSG Pat Caldwell
The commander of
the 3rd Battalion, Lt. Col. going to school? If so, are doesn’t stop there. “I’m also
Phil Appleton, admitted they aware of their GI bill talking about job interviews
the unemployment outlook benefits? Are they under with soldiers while they
may appear daunting, espe employed? Is the job they are here, over the phone,”
cially for men and women are working in lacking in he said. “Going on unem
absent from the workforce longevity?” Appleton said. ployment is not something
for more than a year. That
He added that de we are going to discuss.
is why Appleton and the spite the unemployment Unemployment is only an
3rd Battalion’s senior en rate, there are jobs for his emergency fall back if we
listed advisor, Command guardsmen because of what are unsuccessful in finding
Sgt. Maj. Bill Wyllie, are he calls intangibles. “And employment for the Sol
already molding a plan to here is why: Our soldiers dier,” he said.
help soldiers find jobs when are dependable, they know
Appleton said the
they return home.
how to show up on time ambitious job outline he
Appleton said of and follow instructions and Wyllie are preparing
ten the picture of a soldier is and they know how to lead actually com es back to
one-dimensional. He said, and follow. These are the taking care o f soldiers.
though, that each guards intangibles. You don’t have “The sergeant major and
man functions and succeeds to hope with our soldiers,” I care about our soldiers.
based on three critical pil he said.
I’m willing to accept losing
lars. “There are three legs
Appleton said Wyl soldiers so they can gain
that support a guardsman. lie will spearhead an effort employment. If they get a
The guard, his employer during the next few months job in another state, that
and his family,” Appleton to talk with guardsmen who is just something I have to
will most likely be unem accept,” he said.
said.
Yet he said he isn’t
A key piece of Ap ployed when they return
pleton and Wyllie’s plan home later this year. They too concerned with watch
revolves around prepar will be asked to put together ing his soldiers leave the
ing now, for work in the a resume. When a soldier 3rd Battalion even if they
autumn even as 3rd Bat finishes with the resume, a secure employment in a
talion guardsmen conduct group of officers and senior nearby state. “They will
convoy escort missions in noncommissioned officers want to stay in this unit be
central Iraq. “We have to in the 3rd Battalion will go cause they understand this
sit down and question sol through each document to unit takes care of its own,”
he said.
diers about their long-term polish it.
A p p leto n ’s plan
employment plan. Are they
tronic records will help
patients’ outcomes.
-B lauer told the
board that the Community
Health Improvement Proj
ect meeting, held earlier
in the day at the Port of
Morrow in Boardman, was
positive.
-B lauer reported
than improvements have
been made at Pioneer Me
morial Clinic in Heppner
concerning sound absorp
tion and im provem ents
have also been made to the
lobby at the Irrigon Medical
Clinic.
-B lauer reported
that the new physician’s as
sistant at the Irrigon Clinic
is doing well. Board Chair
Larry Mills commented that
the district had earlier made
a commitment to make im
provements to that clinic.
-R h ea to ld the
board that six patients will
be in long-term care at
PMH after another move-in
next Monday. “We’re work NOAA issues monthly climate summary for Heppner
ing hard to keep people
According to pre- were two days when the reported on the 18th. The
here,” said Rhea, who was
liminary
data received by high temperature stayed greatest depth of snow on
commended by Blauer and
NOAA’s
National
Weather below 32 degrees.
the ground was one inch on
the board.
Precipitation
to
the 18th.
Service
in
Pendleton,
tem
-T he b o ard r e
The outlook for
taled
1.16
inches
during
peratures
in
Heppner
aver
ceived the following report:
February,
which
was
0.07
March
from
NOAA's Cli
aged
colder
than
normal
Irrigon Medical Clinic had
mate
P
rediction
C enter
inches
below
normal.
Mea
during
the
month
of
Febru
154 patients for January
surable
precipitation
-at
calls
for
below
normal
tem
ary.
with 21 new patients, 22
peratures
and
above
normal
least
.01
inch-
was
received
The
average
tem
seen by a nurse and nine
no-shows; Pioneer Memo perature was 36.1 degrees on 11 days with the heavi precipitation. Normal highs
rial Clinic had 502 patients which was 2.2 degrees be est, 0.40 inches reported for Heppner rise from 52.1
seen in January with 31 low normal. High tempera on the 16th. Precipitation degrees at the start of March
new patients, 39 seen by a tures averaged 45.2 degrees, this year has reached 1.99 to 55.8 degrees at the end
nurse and eight no-shows; which was 1.9 degrees be inches, which is 0.70 inches o f March. Normal lows
Heppner Ambulance had low normal. The highest below normal. Since Octo rise from 32.4 degrees to
20 total page-outs with 16 was 65 degrees on the 13th. ber, the water year precipi 34.4 degrees. The 30 year
transports for $16,775 in Low temperatures averaged tation at Heppner has been normal precipitation is 1.60
revenue; Boardman Ambu 26.9 degrees, which was 2.5 7.91 inches, which is 1.43 inches.
The Nat i onal
lance had 17 page-outs with degrees below normal. The inches above normal.
lowest
was
four
degrees,
on
Weather
Service is an office
Snowfall
totaled
eight transports for $9,659
the
26th.
of
the
National
Oceanic and
four
inches
with
at
least
in revenue; Irrigon Am
There
were
18
days
one
inch
of
snow
reported
Atmospheric
Administra
bulance had 16 page-outs, •
11 transports for $10,862; with the low temperature on four days. The heaviest tion, an agency of the U.S.
there were no flights; Pio below 32 degrees. There snowfall was 1.0 inches Commerce Department.
neer Memorial Hospital had
eight admissions, one swing
bed admission, 10 admitted
for observation, 426 total
Daylight Savings Time will begin Sunday. D on’t forget to turn your
outpatients, 65 total emer
clocks forward one hour.
gency room encounters,
1701 lab tests, 118 x-ray
procedures, 14 CT scans,
33 EKG tests, one treadmill
procedure, five colonos
copy procedures, one colon/
endoscopy procedure, 100
H $ ave 5 % oi v P owder H uer P asees , G aies aso
respiratory therapy proce
L
ivestock H amdijng E qupmemt
dures; Home Health had
134 patient visits. Hospice
3% dee T ee P oses Save March 14th - March 19th
had two admits and 190
total patient days, compared
• Davis Ranch Hand 2 point barbed wire $64.95
S I I V I
K S M I I I IS
to 123 the previous month
• Range Master 2 point barbed wire $ 19.99
20% o ff
and Pharmacy had 1467
drug doses for $144,585 in
M orrow County' Grain Growers Green h eed & S eed
drug revenue, compared to
2 42 W . L in d e n W ay, H e p p n e r • 6 7 6 -9 4 2 2 • 9 8 9 -8 2 2 1 (MCGG main office)
829 drug doses and $42,980
the previous month.
AL L N E W S A N D A D V E R T I S E M E N T DE ADLINE:
Daylight Savings Time begins Sunday
If there is a better photo to illustrate St. Patrick's l)av in Hep
pner, we haven't seen it yet. This photo was submitted to the
Heppner Gazette-Times with the following note attached:
Dear Sir, I was recently in Heppner after having been away for
27 years. I was in town to visit family at the Wilkinson Ranch.
I wanted to submit this photograph to your paper in hopes that
it will make it in time for the St. Patrick's Day celebration. I
am recently retired from the US Army where I served for the
past 23 years as a Combat Photographer / Photo Journalist.
The enclosed shot was taken in the morning, on March 4 on
the way into town from Willow Creek. If you have a Face
book account for Heppner I would he honored to have these
submitted to that media venue.
Very Respectfully, Shawn Richard Paine (US Army Retired)
G r a n d s o n of Di c k a n d V i r g i n i a W i l k i n s o n
Crofton Maryland
, Fencing Salet
▲ MONTANA
M O N D A Y S A T 5 :0 0 P .M .
♦