Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, October 1,2014
- FIVE
A View from the Hill
By Doris Brosnan
The last days of sum
mer were viewed as a great
opportunity for increased
socializing on the Hill. The
temperate, sunny, windless
days were perfect for visit
ing on the “front porch.”
Though that opportunity
continues into new ly-ar
rived fall, sunshine does
appear sporadically and
the changing o f seasons is
greeted with mixed emo
tions.
Through those sunny
days of September, Terrace
Residents found more than
a few topics to discuss on
the front porch, beginning
w ith the end o f World War
II, which occurred on Sept.
2, 1946, remembered by all
of the residents, who related
that memory to the younger
staff members.
NFL season started on
Sept. 4, and since then,
on M ondays, T hursdays
and Sundays, the stadium
sounds and the sounds o f
clashing gridiron players
can be heard in the hallways
o f the Terrace.
Reading is another fa
vorite activity at the Ter
race, so “Read a Book Day”
on the 6“1 and the follow
ing week were just more
opp o rtu n ities to discuss
favorite authors, titles and
genres, as well as to share
books with neighbors. Ed
Struthers continues his ef
forts to bring to the Ter
race each week books that
residents request from the
public library and books in
the genres most popular on
the Hill. Soon, on Wednes
days after the reading o f
the Gazette-Times, the resi
dents will be group-reading
A Certain Time... a Special
Place , a 1977 historical
work by resident Lucile
Urey Peck.
On “Patriot Day,” resi
dents discussed the 9/11
tragedy o f 2001 and the
project to erect memorials
in all the states with pieces
from the Tw in T ow ers.
This was soon followed, on
the 17th, with the “ Pledge
America” activity, the at
tempt to have the Pledge
of Allegiance recited across
America at the same time.
Residents and staff coordi
nated their pledge at 11 a.m.
September has not been
without its share o f food-
celebration days and a few
frivolous designations. One
such was the “Talk Like
a Pirate Day” on the 19lh.
and some residents were
hesitant about dining in
that evening. On the menu
was “roasted ‘gator, cheesy-
onion cannon balls, and
treasu re-ch est v e g g ie s.”
T hose resid en ts needed
assurance that the “ ’gator”
on the menu was actually
better know n for its mooing
than for its viciousness.
This month, the Com
munity on the Hill has put
together baskets for lone
and Heppner booster clubs’
din n er-an d -au ctio n e v e
nings. They like to con
tribute to the fundraising
efforts o f these organiza
tions because of the support
received from the schools
of both communities. This
year’s baskets feature “Ter
race favorite-foods” mixes
and prepared foods.
On Sept. 25, eight resi
dents enjoyed a field trip to
Boardman. Hie SAGE Cen
ter and the Port o f Morrow
developments were new to
many. A new development
coming to the Terrace has
residents, staff, and visi
tors eagerly anticipating the
changes it will bring. The
foundation forms for the
new solarium are in place,
so the foundation should
soon be poured. Various
approvals from the state
for this addition have been
slowly gained, so the build
er and the Terrace adminis
tration are pleased to have
the “green light.” Already,
m any uses fo r the new
structure are apparent, and
more benefits will surely
become obvious. At a cost
o f over $50,000, the new
facility is a large expense,
but some donations have
lessened the burden, and
donations are still gratefully
accepted and appreciated.
M aybe the solarium
will be completed in O c
to b e r, m aybe not u n til
N ovem ber, but M anager
George Nairns is counting
on its completion being one
reason to be thankful on
Thanksgiving Day.
W hile w a tc h in g the
progress of the project, the
residents will be distracted
by a few more special days
in October, beginning on
HEALTH DISTRICT
-Continuedfrom PAGE ONE
ity care,” commented board
chair John Murray.
Rhea told the board that
the new system is needed
to replace the current ag
ing one that is beginning to
have operational problems.
“ W e’ve been nursing
the (old) equipment along.
We’ve been getting along,
but w e’re past due to get
a new system,” said Rhea.
“1 think w e're dangerously
close to needing it.”
She added that she be
lieved that the old system
may be around 15-20 years
old and commented that the
district’s purchasing agent
was having trouble getting
parts for it.
Chief Financial Officer
Nicole Mahoney said that
the district has enough cash
on hand to purchase the
system outright.
The b o a rd a lso a p
proved a $14,087 expendi
ture, also with cash on hand,
to com plete the Pioneer
Memorial Clinic roof redo,
which was started last year.
The board learned that
the Pioneer Memorial Hos
pital Foundation has donat
ed $20,000 toward purchase
o f a video colonoscope. The
cost of the colonoscope was
not as great as anticipated,
so the remainder o f those
funds will go toward the
cardiac monitor, said Ma
honey.
Other proposed capital
purchases for the 2014-
15 fiscal year include: six
am bulance gurneys e sti
m ated at $72,000, tenta
tively funded with grants
and cash; C entriq clinic
electronic medical records
final project payment and
radiology interface-$51,000
to be funded with federal
Electronic Health Records
reimbursement funds and
cash; Pioneer M em orial
H ospital nurse call sys-
tem-$30,000, cash on hand;
a new w ashing m achine
for P M H -$12,000, cash
on hand; external facility
signs and traffic direction
al signs-$25,000, cash on
hand; landscaping around
PMH monument sign and
plant bed areas-$ 2 0 ,0 0 ,
cash on hand; Pioneer Me
morial Clinic roof, siding,
window s, paint-$58,000,
less the $14,087 for the
roof, to be funded with a
loan and cash.
G rigg told the board
that the district has hired
Star Roth to fill a newly
created position, director
o f clinic and hom e care
operations. He said that
Roth will have “administra
tive responsibility” for the
district’s two medical clin
ics and Home Health and
Hospice operations.
He said that Roth most
recently managed the Cen
tral Utah Clinic Women’s
Center and was previously
manager o f the Tigard (Or
egon) Orthopedic and Frac
ture Clinic and Silverton
(Oregon) Family Clinic.
“We at e thrilled to have
her join our team ,” said
Grigg.
Roth is scheduled to
begin in early November.
G rig g also rep o rted
that Morrow County Pub
lic H ealth was su c ce ss
ful in obtaining a $60,000
governm ent grant, which
will allow com pletion o f
planning for the proposed
lone School Based Health
Center. He said the goal is
to open the clinic at the lone
school by mid-May 2015.
He said planning for
the clinic is a collabora
tive effo rt am ong M or
row County Public Health,
M orrow C ou n ty H ealth
District, lone Community
School, Advantage Dental
and Community Counsel
ing.
He stressed that receipt
o f the grant does not mean
that a final decision has
been made to go forward
with developm ent o f the
clinic, but said that the next
step is to be an in-depth
business plan “to identify
revenue sources and associ
ated expenses o f setting up
the clinic and operating it
long term.”
He said that one o f the
biggest questions still to be
answered is where to locate
the clinic and how to fund
the clinic site and building.
G rig g sa id th a t the
“planning team has been
encouraged by the warm
reception the concept has
received from the commu
nity of lone and is optimis
tic that the business plan
will be favorable.”
In other business, the
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f
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board:
-learned from G rigg
that the district is measuring
its “True North” progress
by tracking patient survey
responses. He said that the
goal is to have 84 percent of
all patients surveyed state
that they would definitely
recom m end the hospital,
emergency department or
provider’s office to their
family and friends by the
end third quarter o f this
year.
The percentage o f peo
ple surveyed who would
recom m end M CHD ser
vices was 83.5 percent for
the first quarter o f this year,
78.9 percent the second and
91.9 the third.
-learned that the fall
board retreat is planned for
Wednesday-Thursday, Oct.
8-9, with meetings planned
on Oct. 8 at the St. Patrick's
Senior Center in Heppner
from 3-7 p.m. and on Oct.
9 at the SAGE Center in
Boardman from 8-noon.
-learned that 100 per
cent o f the district’s em
ployees have signed and
are “com m itted to living
the Morrow County Health
District Promise o f Excel
len c e ,” w hich basically
asks em ployees to abide
by certain w ork and a t
titude behaviors that result
in improving the district's
operations and patient in
teractions.
-learned from G rigg
that the hospital held its
required annual C ritical
Access Hospital meeting.
A c ritical access h o sp i
tal designation requires a
hospital to satisfy certain
strict criteria, one o f those
criteria being the distance
from another hospital, but
allows for more beneficial
governm ental reim burse
ments.
-heard the annual audit
report from Erik Volk from
WIPFLI, a Spokane-based
accounting firm with nu
merous offices elsewhere.
Volk said that the district
received an “ unqualified
audit,” which means that
the audit was clean.
According to audit in
formation, the district had
a net gain o f $319,127 in
2014, down from $905.928
in 2013; net patient ac
counts receivable increased
from $984,375 in 2013 to
$1,123,481 in 2014; net
non-patient revenues, in
cluding property taxes, de
creased by $ 146,288 (seven
percent); total overall oper
ating expenses increased 8.5
percent. $687,936; overall
business declined slightly
with gross patient revenue
decreasing by $234,958
(three percent), with net
patient revenue increasing
by 3.5 percent.
Grigg remarked that the
district’s tax subsidy is criti
cal for continued operation
o f the facilities.
Volk commended Ma
honey for her work in pre
paring for the audit. “Nicole
did a great jo b ,” he said,
ad d in g that the M CH D
audit is “one we actually
look forw ard to d o in g .”
Mahoney credited her staff
for all the work they did.
-received the follow
ing profit and loss state
m e n t th ro u g h A u g u s t
2014: 672,754 in gross
p a tie n t re v e n u e , dow n
from $747,037 the previ
ous month; $7,232 in bad
debts, down from $12,543
th e p r e v i o u s m o n th ;
$131,785 in con tractu al
and other adjustments, up
from $114,497 the previ
ous month; for $ 139,018 in
total revenue deductions, up
from $127,041; $117,893
in tax revenue, the same as
previous; $24,021 in other
operating revenue, up from
$ 17,533, for $675,650 in to
tal operating revenue, down
from $755,422 the previous
month; $684,673 in total
operating expenses, down
from $765,860 the previous
month; $26,331 in a non
operating gain, including
a $20,000 donation from
the Hospital Foundation,
for a $17,308 gain for the
month, up from $4,455 the
previous month.
-received the following
report: Pioneer Memorial
Clinic had 386 patient visits
for the month o f August
with five new patients, 32
seen by a nurse and 11
no-show s; lrrigon M edi
cal Clinic had 216 patients
for the month with 35 new
patients, 52 seen by a nurse
and 13 no-shows; Heppner
Ambulance had 23 page
outs w ith 21 tra n sp o rts
for $26,021 in revenue;
Boardman Ambulance had
24 page-outs with 21 trans
ports for $31,854 in rev
enue; lrrigon Am bulance
had 26 page-outs with 18
transports for $24,716 in
revenue; there were five
flights; Pioneer Memorial
Hospital had four swing bed
admissions, 12 admitted for
observation, two admitted
for hospital respite, 314
total outpatients, 55 emer
gency room encounters,
1,440 lab tests, 106 x-ray
procedures, 35 CT scans, 25
EK.G tests, six colonoscopy
procedures, two endoscopy
procedures. 13 respiratory
therapy procedures; Home
Health had 119 patient vis
its; Pharm acy had 1,031
drug doses for $77,952 in
drug revenue.
\
the 2nd, which is the 64,h
birthday o f the "Peanuts”
comic and a good time to
discuss comic books. And
speaking o f “comics,” one
seems no longer able to find
comic books on the store
shelves but can find a vari
ety o f “ illustrated novels.”
Two m ete o ro lo g ic a l
phenomena will also turn
the heads o f the residents
in October. On the 8lh, a
lunar eclipse w ill occur. On
the 23rd, a solar eclipse will
draw their attention. One
must wonder how common
or uncom m on is having
both eclipses occur within
the same month.
October 12-18 is desig
nated “Firefighters Week.”
and the Community on the
Hill wants to honor their
firefighting friends with a
special gathering. Every
year, the Terrace staff re
ceives educational instruc
tions from the fire depart
ment, and twice every year,
the state requires the fire
department to perform un
announced fire drills at the
facility.... And although this
might be a noisy interrup
tion to a resident's day or
night, every one on the Hill
knows the importance of
this preparation and train
ing and appreciates all of
the volunteers.
October will draw to a
conclusion after the annual
Halloween party with the
H eppner Day C are p re
schoolers, which will be
held on the 21s1 this year,
and the trick -o r-treatin g
by little ghosts and goblins
on H allow een e v e n in g .
As alw ays, the residents
will be encouraged to wear
their special pumpkin-face
T-shirts, and, as alw ays,
they will be helping the
preschoolers create jack-o-
lanterns with the pumpkins
that the residents will give
them. This year, however,
those pumpkins w ill be pur
chased ones, since the deer
obliterated the Terrace gar
den, including everything
but three watermelons!
So goes the varied life
on the Hill so far this fall,
but one must stay tuned,
for surprises seem to pop
up each month at the Ter
race, just one more reason
the residents view each day
here as a gift.
CBEC conducts
safety program for
local youth
Co-op announces poster contest
Top: Students at Heppner Elementary take in a CBEC-spon-
sored electrical-safety program conducted by John Spain from
Columbia REA and local employee Josh Coiner. Above: lone
third- and fourth-graders stay safely back from the 10,000-volt
demonstration table manned by Spain and Coiner. Contrib
uted photos
One hundred and twen
ty-six third- and fourth-
grade students from the
area recently took part in a
program titled “ Stay Safe
Around Electricity,” spon
sored by Columbia Basin
Electric Cooperative.
Elementary school stu
dents from lone, Heppner,
C ondon and Fossil were
instructed by CBEC per
sonnel and CBEC’s Safety
Trainer, John Spain from
Colum bia Rural Electric
Association, on the basics
o f electricity, as well as
the dangers of coming into
to contact with energized
power lines, both above and
below the ground.
W ith th e u se o f a
1 0,000-volt d e m o n s tra
tion table, children were
shown various scenarios
w here people, vehicles,
farm equipment, construc
tion equipment, kites and
trees come in contact with
energized lines.
Columbia Basin Elec
tric Cooperative offers the
safety p rogram to each
school in the service ter
rito ry every o th er year.
The program is targeted
for third- and fourth-grade
students.
In conjunction with the
program. Columbia Basin
also announced their annual
E lectrical Safety Poster
Contest, which is targeted at
the same audience. Winners
o f the poster contest will
be announced at the Coop
erative's annual meeting on
Nov. 6 in Condon.
Eastern Oregon poetry
writers invited to become
pari o f permanent digital
presence
Eastern O regon resi
dents are invited to become
part o f the permanent, state-
w ide digital poetry readings
archive o f Oregon Poetic
Voices (OPV), a nonprof
it organization hosted at
Lewis & Clark College in
Portland. OPV is interested
in preserving poems by Or
egonians from high school
age and up.
OPV will record local
poetry at the Word Round-
Up, a free literary festival
at Pendleton on Fri., Oct. 3.
from 2-5 p.m. and on Sat..
Oct. 4, from 9 a.m. until
noon. Anyone interested is
asked to bring up to four
poems to read and. if pos
sible. a photo. Photos can
also be taken at the event.
A complete event
schedule is at www.easter-
noregonwordroundup.org.
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