RGH: Some staff back to full-time

After having to make cutbacks to staff hours last month, Roosevelt General Hospital has announced that some of its front-line staff is returning to regular full-time hours.

Chief Executive Officer Kaye Green on Tuesday presented an update on where the hospital stands to the Roosevelt County Commission. Green said in May the hospital had to make the cutbacks to staff hours due to "financial strains." The cutbacks affected every employee, even those with leadership positions. Instead of working 40 hours a week, staff was limited to 32 hours a week.

In her update, Green said the cutbacks were necessary because of higher expenses that were a result of the pandemic.

"About 70% of our expenses are directly related to our people," Green said Tuesday.

She said the hospital has seen increases in minimum wage, which has affected labor costs. However she said supply costs are finally starting to level off.

"Healthcare is a business, but it is also very different from other businesses."

As an example, Green said McDonald's can offset higher costs by raising prices, however, a hospital cannot do that.

"Approximately 60% of our payers are Medicare and Medicaid. And it doesn't matter what we charge, because they pay based on a set fee schedule," Green said.

Green said the hospital gets Medicaid supplemental payments, and those typically range anywhere from $2 million to $3 million a year. "This year to date, we have only received about $886,000," Green said. "It was a bit of a perfect storm when you count on these things and then they don't come."

Green said they have been closely analyzing their internal operations to see what expenses they can do without or what they can do to find less expensive options for others in the future.

Green said the frontline staff, which is anyone below a director or a leadership level, was back up to a full 40 hours as of this week.

"We have made some progress that has allowed us to do that," Green said.

Green said the leadership, directors, and even the executive leadership team will stay on reduced hours for another couple of weeks, possibly a month.

Green said rural hospitals across the state and nation are facing the same challenges, and that this is not only affecting RGH.

Green was joined with RGH Board President Paul Benoit at Tuesday's meeting. "These are tough times," Benoit said. He said the quality of the staff has shined through, "even with fear and trepidation."

Benoit assured these challenges were only temporary. Green debunked any rumors about RGH closing. "Our hospital is not in jeopardy," she said.