Noon Rotarians Hear the Latest Hospital News

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Published on October 22 2014 12:40 pm
Last Updated on October 22 2014 12:40 pm
Written by Greg Sapp

The President and CEO of HSHS St. Anthony's Memorial Hospital is also a Noon Rotary club member, so Theresa Rutherford felt at home as she updated Rotarians on the latest at the hospital at the October 22 club meeting.

One change has been the name of the institution; it's now officially HSHS St. Anthony's Memorial Hospital. The HSHS stands for Hospital Sisters Health Systems, the parent company of the hospital and several others throughout Illinois and Wisconsin. The change is designed to reflect the network of resources behind the local hospital.

Rutherford also said the hospital is ready in the event of an Ebola case; she said the institution drilled the morning of the Rotary meeting. She said the goals are to identify the illness and the person who has it, isolate the individual to minimize the risk to others, and protect the health care providers who will treat the patient. Rutherford said there is a group of workers who have volunteered to handle an Ebola patient, should one arrive.

Rutherford also shared that a recent survey indicated that the scores are going up for HSHS St. Anthony's in two key areas; level of care provided and the likelihood a patient would recommend the hospital to others. She said the hospital employs almost 850 people and said the budget allows for adding up to 40 staff members.

The changing climate of health care is also a consideration; Rutherford said hospital income is 65% derived from outpatient care, so that affects the dynamics of revenue. She also discussed the hospital's expanding Home Care presence, now in 20 counties in downstate Illinois, and shared that plans are in place for construction of an Ambulatory Care Center as a one-stop shop for hospital services. The facility will be built next to the Surgery Center.

Charlie Brumleve served as the Rotary weekly program chairman. HSHS St. Anthony's Community Relations and Marketing Manager Terriann Tharp also attended the meeting.

(PICTURED LEFT TO RIGHT: THERESA RUTHERFORD, CHARLIE BRUMLEVE, TERRIANN THARP)