Hospital officials issue a positive report to Board
CEDAR FALLS — Despite budget cuts, officials at the UI Hospitals and Clinics brought a bright message to the state Board of Regents’ meeting Thursday: The hospital is making money this quarter.
The improvement comes after the hospital was forced to cut roughly $23 million from its budget over the past seven months. The hospital has also dealt with record numbers of H1N1 patients in its emergency room.
Last week, the emergency room at UIHC broke two one-day records for number of visitors.
Jean Robillard, the UI vice president for Medical Affairs, said the positive changes were due to the combined efforts of the entire hospital, although officials didn’t say how in the black they were.
“This was achieved because of the work of everyone, not just the work of leadership, but the work of every single employee,” Robillard said.
Several regents applauded the officials’ efforts, praising them for their leadership in especially difficult times.
In spite of the positive report, the difficult times aren’t necessarily over. Robillard said the hospital would continue with the layoff plans developed in June that will eliminate 200 jobs.
Aside from budget issues, officials also addressed public-health matters. In their presentation, they said they will make efforts to improve geriatric care at UIHC. Officials cited the aging of the baby boomers as both a reason to improve care and an upcoming challenge.
Sue Curry, the dean of the College of Public Health, said failure to improve care now could lead to greater problems in the future.
“I think with this dramatic growth and without accelerated prevention and wellness, we can anticipate an increase in age related diseases, illness, and disabilities,” she said.
While all states face the increase, officials said, Iowa is already experiencing the boom. The UIHC is well below the national average in certified geriatricians, officials said.
Among the goals listed, officials said they would work on disease prevention, treatment management, end-of-life care, and increasing reliable health information in general.
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