Health and Hospitals Systems Board Meeting September 28, 2012

The meeting was called to order by Chairman David Carvalho at 7:35 am. 

In her finance committee report, chairperson Heather O’Donnell noted a concern that grants do not always cover the cost of the service provided, e.g. WIC, the women’s, infants’ and children’s nutrition program.  Carvalho defended the program as central to the CCHHS mission.  Another cited concern was that Carelink does not always screen outpatients to determine their Medicaid eligibility.  Chief Financial System Officer John Cookinham said staff was inadequate to screen everyone on a daily basis, but that the process will change with the 1115 Medicaid waiver, when outside vendors will do the screening.   

Human resources committee representative Maureen O’Donnell said efforts are in place to streamline the Shakman hiring restrictions, anticipating many new hires in connection with the 1115 Medicaid waiver.

CEO Dr. Ram Raju commended the Stroger Hospital trauma center, saying, “The reputation of this hospital was founded on the trauma unit.”  He showed a video of trauma surgeons in action following a shooting.  Additionally he praised the new CORE center, and commended housekeeping staff at all facilities.   Dr. Raju promised a budget before Thanksgiving.

Contracts totaling about $7m were approved to provide temporary admin and clerical staffing; provide temporary staff to determine patient Medicaid eligibility and enroll up to 115,000 new patients; and provide environmental cleaning services.

Dr. Krishna Das presented portions of the second quarter STAR Report, whose goal is to measure CCHHS performance over time in operational efficiency, patient satisfaction, quality/health outcomes, and financial stability.

Sample data for 2011:

Stroger Hospital:  Emergency department volume 138,950 total patients

                            Wait to be seen: 172 minutes average; Left without being seen: 12%

                             % of patients with length of stay greater than 7 days: 19%; goal 15%

                             Would definitely recommend this hospital:  64%

                             Would probably recommend this hospital: 29%

Provident Hospital: Emergency department volume 36,394 total patients

                                 Wait to be seen: 121 minutes average; Left without being seen: 9.1%

                                 Would definitely recommend this hospital: 60%

Dr. Das pointed out that 75% of Illinois hospitals have a higher patient satisfaction rating.  Carvalho said, “Public hospitals tend to be low in these numbers.”  CCHHS readmission numbers are above the national average.  Dr. Das concluded that in general, where Stroger Hospital falls short is in areas requiring multidisciplinary services and teamwork.  “Half of adverse effects are due to communication.”

Dr. Das presented data from Cermak Clinic showing that health nurses required between 45 and 62 hours to complete a face to face assessment; the goal is 24 hours. About 45% of diabetic patients incarcerated for over 120 days demonstrated control over their diabetes. Core Center data show that 91% of HIV patients are on the most recent viral medications.  Of 40,000 outpatients with diabetes, 92.2% were tested, and 22% are in reasonable control of their disease.

The meeting adjourned to closed session at 9:45

--Linda Christianson, LWVCC Observer