Three Rivers Health finalizes new budget, announces hiring of nursing director

The budget that was approved last week by the Three Rivers Health board of directors paints a much more optimistic outlook than the one they adopted just a year ago, on the heels of the closure of the Bonnie Bluejacket Memorial Nursing Home.
At the time, the district was relying heavily on contract labor, spending more than it was taking in and on track to lose $1.5 million on operations.  Six times during that 2023 fiscal year, the board dipped into what it calls its board service account (tax revenue), nearly draining it to make up for operational losses.
Fast forward a year, to last Wednesday night.  The May financial report showed a steep decline in contract labor costs, from $1.8 million to $990,000 for the first 11 months this fiscal year.  The new budget projects $721,000.
Further, CEO Joel Jackson and Finance Department Manager Michael Garza also touched on several other significant improvements: 1) accounts payable has dropped from $3.5 million to $2.3 million during that same time frame; 2) the board hasn’t tapped its service account, which has grown to more than $729,000; 3) the number of days of cash on hand has grown to 76.5 days (it was in single digits last June), and 4) patient volume has increased significantly.
The new budget projects total operational revenues of $11.1 million, an increase of $695,000, and total operating expenses at $10.9 million, which would result in an operating surplus of more than $155,000.
Jackson said the new budget reflects an increased investment in staff training and better communication with the community regarding the services offered by the district.

New nursing director
There’s been a changing of the guard in the director of nursing position, as David Black was recently hired to take over for Diane Heine, who was serving in an interim capacity.  Last Wednesday was her last meeting.
Black did not enter the picture as a newcomer.  A native of Montana, he’s in his 23rd year working in health care, with stops in Missouri, New Mexico, Idaho and North Dakota.  Since November 2022, he’s been a contract nurse as Three Rivers.  He described it as a good fit.
“It’s been such a different environment, such a different opportunity than I was accustomed to,” he said.  In his previous stops, he didn’t always feel like the facility’s ambitions matched with his own, which has always been to make people feel not only cared for, but also cared about.
“While the care that’s provided is important, accuracy and excellence is important, what really lasts in the mind of a patient is how they felt when that was being done,” he said. “We have an opportunity here, to give people a place where their medical needs can be met and where they can feel cared about.”