The Box Butte General Hospital (BBGH) Board of Trustees meeting was called to order at noon Monday, October 28th, in the Alliance Room of BBGH. This month’s agenda included discussion on the opportunity to text and email patient surveys, the interim change to payment plans for patients, the accreditation of the laboratory, and the addition of Dr. Christina Holbrooks to the medical staff.
The board also had the annual selection of officers for the coming fiscal year; Tom Furman was reappointed Chairman, John Annen was reappointed Secretary, and Randy Langemeier was reappointed Treasurer.
The BBGH board members heard from CEO Lori Mazanec on the work being done to get patient surveys sent through text messages and emails instead of paper. In addition to work with Press Ganey and through a new rounding application, the patient feedback and concerns will be shared with providers and addressed in a more timely manner. Organizational Development Specialist Dan Newhoff is working on the process and reporting structure.
Chief Financial Officer Michael O’Dell went on to explain the new interim structure for patient payment plans. Patients will now have 24 months to pay bills instead of 12 months. This change is due to the delay in statements with the Meditech conversion. This lessens the financial burden on the patient, and progress is still being made on outstanding balances. The minimum payment amount is $50 per month. O’Dell also reported on the monthly financials, which were approved.
Chief Medical Officer Dr. Brian Shelmadine gave a recruitment report for providers, stating Dr. Vanessa Pinto, who specializes in Obstetrics (and is fluent in Spanish), is looking to rejoin BBGH in January and will also help out in the Emergency Room. Dr. Pinto provided care at BBGH through the summer for Lifestyle Medicine support. Dr. Shelmadine also welcomed Dr. Christina Holbrooks. Dr. Holbrooks specializes in Family Medicine and Obstetrics. BBGH is excited to welcome these two female providers with OB experience to the team.
Employees recognized during the meeting included Employee of the Month: Clinic Coordinator Lisa Burri, Nebraska Hospital Association (NHA) Leadership graduates Veronica Golden and Madison Snyder, NHA Caring Kind Award recipient Stacey Petrachek, Quality Residency Program graduate Erica Lauder, and new employees Dr. Christina Holbrooks, Teacher Assistants Makena Turman and Elizabeth Hulsey, Maintenance Tech Martin McLaughlin, Billing Specialist Abigail Vermillion, and Cook Mary Edwards. New employees who also started in October include: Certified
Registered Nurse Anesthetist Debra Gang, Central Sterile Tech Whitnie Torres, Nurse Assistant Brianna Robinson, Staff Nurse April Childers, Registration Clerk Vivian Brown, Clinic Financial Rep Tara Watt, Assistant Cook Nathaniel Songhurst, Environmental Services Tech Sandy Mundt, and Medical Technologists Tedda Biscocho and Sarah Cornilla.
The meeting adjourned at 12:49 p.m. with the board entering executive session.