Skiff Vote

We asked the six candidates for the hospital board six questions. Their answers appear below:

1.) Tell us a little bit about yourself.

2.) Why do you want to be a member of the hospital board?

3.) What sorts of changes, if any, are needed at Skiff Medical Center?

4.) Would you be in favor of an outside entity controlling the day-to-day operation of Skiff if necessary?

5.) What would you do to help improve morale of employees at the hospital?

6.) What would you do to restore public confidence in hospital administration?

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Bill Ward

1. My name is Bill Ward; however, the ballot will read M.E. “Bill” Ward as Bill is a nickname. I am a lifelong resident of Newton and have been married for 52 years to my wife Barbara, and I am a veteran of the U.S. Air Force.

My career of 46 years was at Maytag, retiring in 1996 as Director, Employee Benefits, responsible for the administration of the company’s Benefit Plans including medical plans.

I served on the Newton School Board from 1971 to 1977, as president in 1976, and on the Jasper County Board of Supervisors from 2003 to 2007. In addition, I was a Benefits Consultant for Medicap Pharmacies home office in Des Moines for six years. Other civic activities include president of the Maytag Management Club and the Administrative Management Society and Chairman of the Iowa Area Council of Management Clubs, to name a few. Currently, I am a board member of Habitat for Humanity and serve on the Advisory Council for Aging Resources, Elderly Nutrition, Jasper County Transportation and RSVP.

2. In order for a community such as Newton to grow and prosper, excellent medical and educational facilities are critical. Both my work and civic involvement have prepared me well to be a Hospital Board member. If I didn’t think I could make a significant contribution, I wouldn’t be a candidate.

3. Although there are probably several others, I see three major areas that need improvements and they include low morale, lack of communication and organization. Improvement in these areas will also increase the trust factor.

4. I would not favor an outside entity to manage the day-to-day operations of Skiff. Hiring the right CEO and electing a working Board that all members will attend meetings in person, and not by telephone, are essential in order to be successful. Using good old-fashioned common sense will solve many of the problems.

5. First, let me say that the worst place in the world to have low morale is in a hospital. I would suggest that the Board meet with all employees to get all the issues on the table. The Board then needs to review and respond to the issues.

6. I can guarantee the citizens of Newton that I, if elected, will attend all meetings in person, except for emergencies, and will devote the time necessary to improve Skiff’s image. That includes improved morale, improved communications, both from the top down and the bottom up. The organizational structure needs to be appropriate for a 50-bed hospital. It appears to be top heavy. My Human Resources background is a perfect fit to be a member of the hospital Board of Trustees.

Since Skiff is a municipally owned, not-for-profit hospital, I would propose that a member of the Hospital Board make a monthly or quarterly report to the City Council with the information to be shared with the public. It is very important to have an open line of communication between the board, hospital employees and the public.

I attended the Hospital Board of Trustees’ meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 28, and was informed that I could not ask a question. You may rest assured that if I am elected, the agenda will include time for public input.

I will appreciate your vote for progress on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009.

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Lois Vogel

1.)

I am Lois Vogel, married to Frank Vogel and we have lived in Newton nearly 40 years and raised our two sons here.  Frank and I have been retired nearly 6 years and are enjoying some volunteer work, travel, family, including our six  grandchildren and friends. I am a Registered Nurse, with a Bachelors degree in

Health Arts and a Masters degree in Healthcare Administration.  I worked at Skiff Medical Center from 1969 to 2004, the last 30 years as the Director of Nursing/Vice President of Patient Care Services.

I am a member of Sacred Heart Church and Cooridinator of Grief Ministry,Usher/Greeter. I have served as Chairman of Jasper County, American Heart Assoc., Advisory Board member of Marshaltown Area Community College Nursing Program and Iowa Organization of Nurse Leaders, and remain a current member of IONL. I am currently a trained Shiip Volunteer (Senior Health Insurance Information Program, for Jasper County. 

2.) Why do you want to be a member of the hospital board? 

I believe my 40 years of healthcare experience as an RN and more specifically the 30 years as Director of Nursing at Skiff Medical Center, will help the board at this time. In this role I attended all board meetings, was responsible for a large portion of the budget, understand all financial and reimbursement challenges at Skiff, along with the core of the business, patient care. I have the trust and confidence of the employees and medical staff. I have the time to give to this position and strongly believe in the hospital and want to see Skiff Medical Center continue as a successful Newton asset.

3.) What sorts of changes, if any, are needed at Skiff Medical Center?

I believe we need to hire a competent, experienced CEO who has the leadership skills to build the trust and respect of the employees, medical staff and community.
 
I believe the immediate financial issues are being addressed with the reduction in work force that is being completed, and with what already has happened in the past year. I think on-going financial challenges will need to be investigated regarding medicare reimbursement, and continued growth in revenue producing departments with appropriate recruitment of specialists and physicians.

4.) Would you be in favor of an outside entity controlling the day-to-day operation of Skiff if necessary? 

No, I do not believe that should be condidered. Skiff has all the potential to remain an independant financially stable city hospital.  

5.) What would you do to help improve morale of employees at the hospital?

I believe morale will improve with strong new leadership  and keeping communication open with the dept directors and employees. The reduction in work force has taken a long time with little communication, which has created fear and low morale. I would encourage open communication with the staff and physcians along with education in roles among board,  physcians, staff and community.

6.) What would you do to restore public confidence in hospital administration? 

I beleve hiring a strong experienced CEO is vital, one who can communicate and rebuild the trust of the employees and community. As a board member I would help provide the support to the new leadership team and help improve the morale and trust with employees and physcians and stay focused on what the hospital is all about, maintaining state of the art comprehensive services and quality patient Care.

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Gary Richardson

1.) 

I was raised in Monroe, and returned to Jasper County when I moved to Newton 20 years ago.  I’ve practiced surgery at Skiff since that time.
 
2.) Why do you want to be a member of the hospital board?

Over the past few years, I’ve become very concerned about the leadership at Skiff,

and the impact it was having on the morale and working conditions. I also felt that many of the practices were not conducive to the long-term financial solvency of the hospital. Physician input to the hospital board and administration was generally ignored, and I feel that I could add this medical perspective to many of the issues. I am at Skiff every day, and have the opportunity to see and talk with employees, who frequently express their concerns and frustrations.  Most hospital boards include a physician as a matter of course.

3.) What sorts of changes, if any, are needed at Skiff Medical Center?

Skiff needs restructuring of the administative team, and needs to adopt an atmosphere of openness and trust in order to maintain the high level of patient care that we now have.  Contracts and agreements (insurance, vendors, administrative, etc.) should receive thorough and objective annual reviews. Communication within the hospital and community should be comprehensive and direct, with administrators and board members being held accountable for fulfilling their responsibilities.

4.) Would you be in favor of an outside entity controlling the day-to-day operation of Skiff if necessary?

I believe that this is the scenario that we are trying to avoid. With the right leadership, I believe that Skiff can survive as an independent hospital. Too many outside entities have already been involved, serving only to compound the problems.

5.) What would you do to help improve morale of employees at the hospital?

Board members should make themselves available to employees, to listen to their concerns and to act on this, when appropriate.  Possibly some of the past decisions concerning personnel could be reversed, demonstrating a willingness to, once again, work as a cohesive team.

6.) What would you do to restore public confidence in hospital administration?

In the board’s oversight,  it should direct the administration to eliminate any unnecessary secrecy. Communication with the Newton community and its elected officials should become a priority. I firmly believe that the patient care at Skiff is still second-to-none, and that this will continue to be the main focus. This level of competency should be stressed to the public, and serve as the vehicle for confidence and pride. 

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Larry DeCook

1.) I am Larry DeCook retired optometrist, born in Pella and raised in Sigourney. I attended the University of Iowa, graduated from Pacific University in Forest Grove Oregon with a Bachelor of Science degree and a doctor of Optometry degree in 1965. I moved to Newton immediately after graduation and practiced here until my retirement a year ago. I have been married to my wife Shari for almost 49 years. We have two children, David and Kent and seven grandchildren.

I have served in the following organizations, among others:

• Newton City Council

• Newton Park Board

• Newton Convention and Visitor’s Bureau

• Iowa Optometric Association Board and served as president in 1976-77

• Iowa Board of Optometry for six years

• American Optometric AssociationBoard and served as president in 1994-95

• Served five years on the world council of optometry board.

2. Because I believe Skiff Medical Center is an integeral and very important part of our community. It keeps health care dollars in Newton, it allows patients to have procedures here rather than Des Moines and it is an important employer in our community. I believe my experience in health care as a provider of care and managing a large health care practice, as a past leader of a health care profession, my legislative involvement in health care, along with my experience of serving on the city council and many other boards and my love of this community where I spent most of my lief have prepared me to be an effective member of the Skiff Board. I have the experience of how to listen, discuss, evaluate and co-operate to make the best decision possible while trying to address everyone’s concerns.

3. I think the hiring of a qualified CEO and executives that can regain the trust and loyalty of the care givers and staff will go a long way to solving many of the present concerns. The board of trustees, the administration, the physicians and other care givers of the hospital simply need to work together to return Skiff to being the best hospital of its size in Iowa.

4. No, I am not in favor of outside control of Skiff. Nothing in the controversy about Skiff had anything to do with patient care. It has a wonderful history of the best care close to home and I don’t want to lose that by having outsiders control Skiff.

5. Open lines of communication and trust between the board, administration, physicians, other care givers and employees of Skiff will improve the morale. The employees and caregivers are the reason for Skiff’s legacy of caring and excellent patient care. Listening to them can make them part of the solution.

6. Regular communication through the media, The hiring of a well qualified and experienced CEO and top administrators that can communicate and gain the trust of the employees of Skiff. Skiff’s best times coincide with times that we had excellent CEOs and leadership.

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Linda Ross

My name is Linda Ross. I have lived in Newton for 29 years. I am married to Michael Guinn, retired CFO of Skiff. I was married to Ron Ross for 30 years. He was hospital accountant in Pella, CEO of hospitals in Sibley, Bloomfield and Newton until his  death in 1996. I have worked at several jobs, including a receptionist in doctors’ offices. I currently figure time sheets for payroll at Newton Village. I am severing my second year as president of my PEO Chapter and have served three years as treasurer of that organization. I’ve been in hospital auxillary for 25 years, was a buyer for and have volunteered in the hospital gift shop for 18 of those years. I am a member of the First United Methodist Church. My son, daughter and daughter-in-law area all in the health care field.

Ron was very proud of this hospital. Because of my long association with hospitals, I ahve a special interest in what is going on and felt a need to help out in some way. I feel that I have a common sense approach that is needed right now.

The Board definitely needs to hire an experienced CEO who is ready to make some tough decisions. If they can get the right person in that position, then that person will be making the needed changes in personnel, profitability, information flow and other changes as necessary.

I do not think there will be a need for an outside entity to control day-to-day operation of Skiff.

To improve morale of employees, there should definitely be more open communication between employees, department heads and the CEO. If this does not happen, I would be there to find out why.

Restoring public confidence in hospital administration will take care of itself if administration is competent and doing its job. It is not the board’s job to run the hospital. The board is there to advise and support administration. Of course, this means keeping a close eye on performance reports, financial reports, etc. Perhaps I am over-simplifying, but the truth is everything will go a whole lot smoother when a competent CEO is in place.

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Lonnie White

1. My name is Lonnie White and I have lived in Newton for 41 years. I have been married to my wife Peggy for 42 years. We have two children and both live here in Newton and have all their lives.

My background is from labor and I have been retired for five years. I retired from Maytag with 35 years seniority. I was elected to a full time area representative
position, which I held for six years. I was then elected to the full time President’s job at local 997 here in Newton. I was president for 5 years. While president, I served on the Iowa Farm Unity Coalition. I also helped form the UAW Appliance Council. I was appointed to the International as a Servicing Representative. I held that position for 12 years. While serving as a representative, I negotiated many contracts for both large and small companies and have arbitrated many grievances. I also served as Sub-Regional Director in the Des Moines office.

2. I want to be a member for several reasons. First I want to help make it more transparent and have better communications to help build the morale back to where it was before. i want to keep the hospital local and not a subsidiary of some other larger hospital. I want to keep the high paying jobs here without affecting the care. I also want the employees to be able to talk to me or to any member of the board along with their supervisor without fear, intimidation and retaliation. They should be able to talk me any time and about any subject, my number is in the phone book I want the meetings to be open and to be public so long as it is legal and I want to help the hospital to build up the trust for all employees, citizens the City Council. I also want to help the hospital become profitable.

3. There has to be better communication and more transparency between the hospital, citizens, city council and employees. The expenditures should be looked at as the contracts and agreements. The consultants and their fees should reviewed and take any action that may be necessary. Common sense can go a long way.

4. NO!!!

5. I believe I have spoken about this question previously but would make sure they can speak out without fear and intimidation, make sure they can contact me or any member of the board about any problem and to listen to what they have to say and have their input. After all, they are the ones who are on the floor and doing their jobs every day. If the board can do anything to hel this problem, it should be their obligation to do so.

6. Again, you have to have better communications and more transparency, be as open to the public as the law allows. Should there be a question as to the legality of the information being made public, then the hospitals council or the state attorney generals office should be contacted. Listen to public input. The common sense approach works also.

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