The Greenwood County Hospital (GWCH) Board of Trustees met on Feb. 26. CEO Sandra Dickerson announced that the hospital’s new mammography machine has arrived and been installed onsite. The equipment has been certified, as required, by the physicist. Dickerson said that cabinets and blinds are yet to be installed, but the mammography unit should be ready to begin accepting patients soon.
Dickerson also shared that GWCH has not yet received approval from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the provider tax assessment program, a state-level process that taxes healthcare providers to generate revenue, which is then used to draw down federal Medicaid matching funds. Dickerson said that all questions have been answered and GWCH is now waiting on CMS to issue final approval. If the approval is given in a timely manner, GWCH will owe 1/2 of its tax on May 30. For GWCH, that amount is $300,000. The return back to the hospital will likely be $1 million for the half year. “Our annual payment would be about $600,000 with a return of around $2 million annually,” stated Dickerson. However, if the approval does not arrive before the tax comes due, the intent is to rescind the request for approval, stay at the current level, and owe no tax. “At this level, we benefit from larger hospitals’ participation by receiving approximately $400,000 per year.”
During her CEO report, Dickerson also said the hospital’s cost report is in the final stages of being compiled. It is due to go out no later than Monday. At this time, she said, it is unknown whether the cost report is going to result in a payment to Medicare or a receivable from Medicare. In previous years, the report has resulted in a payback to them of two to three thousand.
The board reviewed and approved GWCH’s Critical Access Hospital review as required.
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The committee reviews quality metrics, services provided and services offered to the public and reviews policies that may have changed throughout the year, then gives recommendations that may be included in the hospital’s strategic plan. “The review was really good,” said Dickerson. “The hospital is doing good work providing necessary, needed service.”
In her Director of Nursing report, Sonjia Lemons presented the January utilization report, which analyzes nursing resources, patient care services, and facility assets. Lemons noted that the hospital had not had the usual uptick in respiratory patients for this time of year and said there were no safety events for January.
Under workforce and staffing, Lemons said that agency-filled daytime shifts for January were 3.7% inpatient and 0% on the ER side. Agency-filled evening shifts reached 66% inpatient and 16% in ER. “Two people are coming and orienting in March, so hopefully that number will come down,” she said.
Lemons said GWCH will be participating in the Kansas Hospital Association Cohort for Patient Satisfaction which is a collaborative, peer-to-peer learning group designed to help Kansas hospitals— particularly small, rural, or critical access hospitals— improve their patient experience metrics. “I’m excited to be on the team to increase patient satisfaction,” said Lemons.
Lemons also said GWCH is on track to renew the Level 4 Trauma Certification in March. A Level 4 trauma center provides initial care, stabilization, and advanced trauma life support (ATLS) before transferring patients to a higher-level trauma center.
CFO Butch Forrest presented financial reports for the months of Oct. and Nov. 2025. Forrest presented a balance sheet for each of the two months, highlighting assets, liabilities, and fund balances. According to the report, October total patient care revenue was $2,036,597, total operating revenue was $1,377,597, and net income (loss) was $534,979. November total patient care revenue was $1,901,220, total operating revenue was $1,561,349, and net income (loss) was $99,888.
Dickerson clarified a comparison in patient care revenue of Nov. of 2024 ($2,947,976) and Nov. 2025 ($1,901,220), noting the difference is due to some significant claims through the wound care clinic in 2024, which did not occur in 2025.
Medical staff met on Tuesday, Feb. 17. Pharmacist Isaac Boone presented a formulary change (an update to the list of prescription drugs covered by a health plan), and the staff heard regular reports.
There were no new provider appointments and three reappointments: Adam Zarchan, MD, Teleradiology Consulting; Jessica Grigoreva, APRN, Allied Health Consulting; and Timothy Hanson, CRNA, Allied Health Consulting. All reappointments were approved by the board.
Four executive sessions were held; two (one 15-minute and one five-minute session) were held for quality, one 15-minute session for legal opinion, and one 15-minute session for employee performance for non-elected personnel. No action was taken as a result of any of the executive sessions.
The consent agenda, which included the minutes of the Jan. 22 regular meeting, the January treasurer’s report, and January disbursements, which were payroll/benefits in the amount of $786,409.45 and accounts payable in the amount of $1,179,193.49, were approved as presented.
The next Greenwood County Board of Trustees meeting is scheduled for March 26.
