Progress Le ader Special Focus
Jefferson Healthcare: Access to care expanding with more providers Salaries contribute an estimated $134,000 daily to local economy
Q. Jefferson Healthcare was one of the only health care organizations to respond to threats by the American Civil Liberties Union as they relate to providing women’s health care. Jefferson Healthcare established an advisory committee, and as a result of that work, the Women’s Clinic was born. How well is that women’s clinic being used today? Was that a successful project?
Allison Arthur aarthur@ptleader.com Jefferson Healthcare is the largest employer in Jefferson County, with more than 500 employees spread out between the hospital in Port Townsend and its clinics in Port Townsend, Port Ludlow and Quilcene. In the past year, the health care system has created 94 new jobs, has worked on access and quality, and has expanded its services. The Leader reached out to Jefferson Healthcare CEO Mike Glenn with a series of questions about the changes he has seen in this past year as well as changes expected to occur in the future. His answers follow.
A. Our Women’s Clinic was the result of Jane Albee and several primary care providers who identified a need in our community. After a multiyear search we hired Ann Hoffman, D.O. Independent of those efforts, the ACLU challenged rural hospitals across the state to improve access to family planning and reproductive services. Jefferson Healthcare not only responded with improved access to reproductive services, but also developed a primary-careclinic-based surgical and medical abortion program. Jefferson Healthcare is the only rural hospital providing these services in Washington state. The Jefferson Healthcare Women’s Clinic and Primary Care Clinic have given women in the community access to care unparalleled in other rural areas of the state. Our ultimate goal is to support a healthier community for Jefferson County. By providing the services here on the peninsula, we can minimize travel, time away from loved ones and decrease stress, all factors which contribute to the whole health of a patient.
Q. What, in your mind, has been the biggest change at Jefferson Healthcare in the past year that will benefit the community as a whole, long-term? A. Over the last few years, Jefferson Healthcare has quietly become a fully accredited, awardwinning rural health system. In the last year alone, we created 94 new jobs to serve our ever growing community. We are proud of the personalized care and medical excellence we deliver, which is the drive in everything we do. We are invested in the continued long-term health of the community. Q. You’ve added a number of physicians in the past year and opened clinics in both Port Ludlow and Port Townsend. Can you share how many physicians you’ve brought into the system and if any have specialties that the hospital didn’t have in the past? A. Since 2015, we have added 29 providers to the Jefferson Healthcare team. In 2017, we introduced seven primary care providers to staff our primary care clinics, and eight specialty care providers to staff our Dermatology, Orthopedics, General Surgery, Cardiology, Women’s Health and Wound Care clinics. The dedication to increased access became a major priority for 2017, which resulted in the identified need to recruit additional primary care providers, the creation of care teams and the development of an Express Clinic. Through the implementation of provider care teams, Jefferson Healthcare has enhanced support and access to care by partnering advanced practice providers with MDs. At the beginning of February, Jefferson Healthcare recruited three new providers and opened the Express Clinic to provide same-day access to non-emergent care. The addition of the Express Clinic will also improve access times in our primary care clinics and our emergency room. The Women’s Health Clinic opened in the spring of 2017 and provides the full range of women’s health, wellness and preventative care services. The summer of 2017 brought high-quality dermatological services to the community with the arrival of Dr. Claire Haycox and Leah Laymen, ARNP. Dr. Haycox and Leah have made it their mission to educate the community on the importance of skin health. The new building in 2016 allowed for Cardiology to expand
Jefferson Healthcare CEO Mike Glenn updated Jefferson Healthcare commissioners last year on progress on a number of projects, including a proposal to purchase Discovery Behavioral Healthcare, the largest provider of mental health care in Jefferson County. That effort did not work out, but the two organizations have since agreed to co-recruit a CEO to operate Discovery Behavioral Healthcare and to provide behavioral health program development to Jefferson Healthcare. Photos by Allison Arthur
“We know we will have to learn to do more with less and adapt to new payment models as they develop – we are confident we can make the transition.” Mike Glenn CEO Jefferson Healthcare
For those familiar with Jefferson Healthcare, the new Express Clinic is where the old Emergency Department entrance was before the hospital added a new Emergency Services and Specialty Building. The entrance is market by a green door and is north of where the existing emergency entrance is now. The Express Clinic, opened earlier this month, is for people who need non-emergent care.
Jefferson Healthcare’s financial impact on community Year Employees 2013 516 2014 542 2015 556 2016 608 2017 682
Value of salaries and wages $35.5 million $37 million $39 million $42 million $45 million
Source: Jefferson Healthcare
services, with the addition of cardiologist Matthew Voorsanger, M.D. Together, Dr. David Tinker and Dr. Voorsanger work closely with Cardiac Services and Diagnostic Imaging to use advanced diagnostics and treatment of heart disease by using the latest noninvasive cardiology imaging – techniques that are safe and painless and get you back home the same day without a trip off the peninsula. Q. Although Jefferson Healthcare wasn’t able to acquire Discovery Behavioral Healthcare in 2017, you have talked about a better affiliation with
that private, nonprofit mental health provider in Port Townsend. Can you share how that affiliation has changed and if there are any plans for changes this year? A. Jefferson Healthcare and Discovery Behavioral Healthcare have agreed to pursue a shared leadership model to expand services and further clinical and operational integration. The two organizations have agreed to co-recruit a CEO to operate Discovery Behavioral Healthcare and to provide behavioral health program development to Jefferson Healthcare.
Jefferson Healthcare’s total amount of support to Discovery Behavioral Healthcare and providers now exceeds $280,000 annually. Our affiliation with Discovery Behavioral Healthcare continues to integrate behavioral health in the community, which is important because the behavioral health landscape is set to change dramatically in 2020. Q. At one time there was talk about providing mental health in a building with transitional housing. What happened to that proposal? A. There is certainly a need in our community for transitional housing and additional services for homeless, mentally ill residents. Jefferson Healthcare has presented a vision of such a facility and is willing to organize a community fundraising and grant-writing effort in order to capitalize such a project. Currently, we are partnering with OlyCAP and Discovery Behavioral Healthcare to subsidize the loss of funding from federal and state agencies. This one-year pilot will utilize already existing low-income housing in the community and coordinate social, behavioral and medical services for participants.
Q. Jefferson Healthcare is the largest single public employer in Jefferson County. How many employees do you have, full-time and part-time, and how much of an increase is that from a decade ago? A. Jefferson Healthcare hospital is the largest employer in Jefferson County. In December 2013, we employed 516 full- and part-time employees with $35.5 million in salaries and wages; in 2014, we had 542 employees and $37 million in salaries and wages; in 2015, it was 556 employees and $39 million in salaries and wages; 2016, we employed 608 and $42 million in salaries and wages; and at the end of 2017, we had approximately 682 full- and part-time employees, and spent almost $45,000,000 in annual salaries and wages. The salaries from Jefferson Healthcare contribute an estimated $134,000 daily into our local economy. Q. How is the system doing financially? Since most of your patients are either on Medicare or Medicaid, do you have any concerns about the future, financially, for health care service in Jefferson County? A. Jefferson Healthcare is doing well, and we continue to outperform our peer organizations. However, given our small amount of tax support, financial viability continues to be a concern for hospital leadership. While it is true we are a public organization, the reality is we operate in a very competitive, rough-and-tumble business environment heavily influenced by policy and decisions made in Olympia and Washington, D.C. During the last three years, Jefferson Healthcare has experienced significant growth, and has invested heavily in adding new services, facilities and equipment to meet the community need. With the growth, we have See healthcare, page 5▼