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New Hospital coming to Choctaw County!

Photo Courtesy of Rush Health Systems, Inc.

 The ground breaking ceremony will be held February 24th at 3 pm at the Vanity Fair Building - please make plans to attend!

Article courtesy of The Choctaw Sun Advocate - BUTLER - The board of directors of Rush Health Systems, Inc., of Meridian, Miss., on Jan. 25, 2011 met and gave final approval to begin construction of the long-awaited hospital for Choctaw County.

"We are excited that we are about to begin work on this project and we look forward to providing quality healthcare to the folks of Choctaw County and surrounding communities," COO Chuck Reece told the Sun-Advocate. "It's been a long time coming but we hope that people understand the mountain of regulations and other issues that had to be worked out in order for us to get to this point."

Construction is expected to begin within a matter of weeks.

To be named after its predecessor that closed in the mid 1990's, the new Choctaw General Hospital will be located at the former Vanity Fair site in Butler and will incorporate the existing building into the overall design of the facility.

A local board of directors has been named to oversee operations at the new facility and will be announced in this newspaper within the next few weeks, Reece said, along with the name of the administrator.

The new hospital will incorporate the approximately 36,000 feet of space in the existing former VF building, along with an additional 35,000 square feet of adjoining new construction to be located on the north side of the present structure, for a total of 71,000 square feet.

Reece said that, because of state regulations, the existing building cannot be used for patient care but will be completely renovated to house the hospital's kitchen, dining room, maintenance department and to serve other non-patient care

needs.

The general contractor for the project will be Brasfield and Gorrie, of Birmingham. The estimated cost to build and equip the new hospital will be in the neighborhood of $18 to $20 million.

The hospital will have a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week emergency room - staffed by "in house" physicians - and  laboratory, X-ray, MRI and CT scan capabilities that incorporate new digital technologies, which will allow doctors to electronically transmit a patient's X-rays and other images to advanced healthcare patient's X-rays and other images to advanced healthcare facilities anywhere in the world in a matter of minutes.

Plans also include a lighted helipad where helicopter "ambulances" can land at any hour of the day or night, with a paved walkway to and from the hospital for transferring patients on stretchers, Reece said.

"All things considered, this hospital will bring to Choctaw County a level of healthcare never before offered there," Reece said.

In addition to the obvious health care benefits to the community - which has been without a hospital or 24-hour emergency room for more than 15 years - the new facility would offer jobs for more than 100 to 120 nurses, lab techs, support personnel, clerical staff, cafeteria workers, and others, with an annual economic impact on the community of between $10 and $12 million, Reece said.

Plans are for the hospital to be able to function as a "swing bed" facility for patients who are discharged from larger hospitals but still need a few days of recuperative time in a smaller facility closer to home.

The rotating emergency room physicians will be provided by Rush, and local doctors will be invited to become a part of the facility's medical staff as well, Reece said.

Although major surgery won't be performed there, minor procedures will be available at the "surgical suite" located in the new facility.

The hospital will also work with local providers to offer a wide range of full in-patient and some out-patient rehabilitation services, such as physical and occupational health, speech therapy, and programs for persons with dementia and early stages of Alzheimer's disease.

A large room will be constructed in the existing VF building for use in public education classes, Reece said.

"You know, a major basic requirement of the new healthcare reform act is that healthcare providers educate the public on chronic illnesses," Reece said. "This could include classes on how to manage diabetes and other illnesses."

Another plus will be that the hospital may offer specialty clinics on a rotating basis, bringing in specialists from Meridian and other areas to see patients at the Butler hospital.

"We want to be good neighbors and citizens, and we will work closely with your existing ambulance service and other healthcare providers who are already in that area," Reece said.

"We won't be in competition with local private restaurants, but it will be here if people want to take advantage of it," he said. "Sunday dinner is the biggest day of the week for our cafeteria in Meridian. People come by after church to see friends or relatives who are in the hospital and they stay and eat, enjoying the meal and the fellowship. Its a great social time and it helps people feel connected to the hospital in a more personal way."

The 100-seat cafeteria will also include a private dining room where local clubs, churches or even businesses can come to "meet and eat", he said.

Rush had previously considered the site of the former Choctaw Co. High School, on East Pushmataha Street (Ala. 10) in Butler, and even purchased a 12-acre parcel of land south of Butler on Ala. 17 near the Land Road as an alternate site when it appeared that federal regulations might not allow the hospital to be built in the county seat.

The federal CAH program was designed to improve rural health care access and reduce hospital closures, a spokesman for the Alabama Hospital Association told the Sun. Critical Access Hospitals provide essential health-care services to a community and are reimbursed by Medicare on a "reasonable cost basis" for services provided to Medicare patients.

Rush currently operates two clinics in Choctaw County, one in Gilbertown, staffed by Dr. Lee Armistead, and one in Butler, staffed by Dr. Bernita Mims, both of which will continue to operate independently and see patients on a daily basis.

"The bottom line is, we wouldn't be coming to Choctaw County and making such a substantial financial investment if we didn't believe it was good for the community and good for us," Reece said. "And I'd just like to say to those who may have thought it would never happen, that day is here and we are as excited about this as we hope the people in Choctaw County are."

Rush Health Systems is headquartered in Meridian, Mississippi with healthcare facilities in East Mississippi and West Alabama. The organization includes Rush Foundation Hospital, Specialty Hospital of Meridian, Medical Foundation, Inc., Rush Medical Group, Laird Hospital (Union); H.C. Watkins Hospital (Quitman), Scott Regional Hospital (Morton) and John C. Stennis Memorial Hospital (DeKalb).

Woody Hydrick, an Associate Principal at Cushman and Wakefield, told attendees at the Economic Development Association of Alabama (EDAA) 2011 Winter Conference on February 7th, 2011 in Montgomery, Alabama that Alabama is already well-known to international companies and the state has an opportunity to boost its share of inward foreign direct investment.

According to Hydrick, European Union countries have companies that will look to the eastern U.S. in the next several years. Alabama should be preparing to land these projects. A great deal of the technology used by alternative energy companies was developed in Europe. According to Hydrick, those companies view the U.S. as a key growth market. Research and development firms were listed as other companies that may look to the U.S. for expansion opportunities in the future.

Hydrick said that international companies often make investment decisions based on risk avoidance, market access, and cost mitigation or some combination of all three.

Infrastructure, worker training programs, energy costs, incentives and current data on available sites/properties are ways that Alabama has recruited major companies such as Mercedes in the past.

Global foreign direct investment (FDI) is expected to hit $2 trillion by 2012. Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC countries) remain key attractants of FDI. However, the U.S. still leads the world in foreign direct investment. Hydrick said the U.S. inflows were $130 billion in USD in 2008-2009. China's inflows were $95 billion in 2008-2009.

Hydrick, worked with ThyssenKrupp in choosing a site in Calvert, AL.  Cushman and Wakefield has 13,000 worldwide employees, located in 231 offices throughout 58 countries.

The Economic Development Partnership of Alabama (EDPA) reported Monday, February 7^th that there are now 25 sites designated in its AdvantageSite Program. The EDPA hopes that this number will increase to 40 sites by the end of 2011.

The AdvantageSite program requires that community economic development organizations provide documentation specific to a proposed industrial site, including a set of standard data related to ownership/ control, environmental and geotechnical conditions, and infrastructure status. Sites must also meet size, zoning and accessibility requirements.

Greg Knighton, Economic Development Partnership of Alabama (EDPA) Vice President and Director of Business Information said, "This designation is an important tool for economic development. These sites are being actively marketed on the web-based Alabama Buildings and Sites database, which averages over 600 daily searches. The AdvantageSite designation demonstrates the significant due diligence and planning that has occurred at a site."

Tammy Radmard, Senior Economic Development Analyst at the EDPA previously said, "In addition to marketing designated sites on the Alabama buildings and sites database, the AdvantageSite program is being actively marketed to site selection consultants.  We want them to know that Alabama's economic development community is working to designate an inventory of industrial sites with sufficient site documentation for accurate, timely project evaluation".

The AdvantageSite program is jointly sponsored by the Alabama Development Office, Alabama Gas Corporation, Alabama Power Company, EDPA, the North Alabama Industrial Development Association and PowerSouth Energy Cooperative. Representatives from each of the entities actively participate in application reviews and on-site visits to prospective AdvantageSite designees. 

The voluntary industrial site preparedness program was created in order to make the state more competitive for companies considering a location in Alabama.

A 32.4-acre site in Monroeville Industrial Park received the AdvantageSite designation in June 2010. Other communities in the Coastal Gateway Region are working towards this goal.

For more information on the AdvantageSite program, please click here.

Sam Adcock, VP of Governmental Affairs with EADS North America, told attendees at the EDAA Winter Conference on Tuesday, February 8th that he expects his company to win the U.S. government's $40 billion tanker aircraft contract. Final bids were due by EADS and Boeing to the Department of Defense on Friday, February 11^th by 8 a.m. The decision could come very quickly.

"We feel very comfortable with where we are competitively at this time," said Adcock, "We are not over-confident, but we are optimistic."

Adcock said it will be a great when EADS wins for the second time. EADS was awarded the contract in 2008 but protests by Chicago-based Boeing led to the deal collapsing.

Adcock commented on the hard work economic developers and officials from Alabama had put into the project and urged them to be ready to respond to a challenge from Boeing if EADS wins again.   

According to the EADS official, EADS is the only company with a version of the tanker that is already in production, has logged flight hours and demonstrated tests of its refueling technology.

Adcock reported that EADS will create 10,000 jobs and be in production beginning 10 years after winning the contract. He said that 48,000 jobs will be created nationwide as a result of the tanker award. However, he said that number will grow as EADS moves the Airbus A330 commercial freighters production to Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile.  

The highest designation as a Tier 1 hospital by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama has been awarded to Evergreen Medical Center. The Tiered Network of hospitals recognizes hospitals that are committed to improving patient outcomes through quality-driven and cost-effective healthcare. Tier 1 hospitals are recognized as having attained the highest level of compliance across three areas of awareness including fiscal responsibility, quality, and patient safety.

Fiscal awareness measures the financial performance of the hospital. Through financial arrangements made with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Evergreen Medical Center is working to ensure that their patients receive the most cost-effective care for their health care dollar. Blue Cross subscribers that utilize a Tier One hospital pay the lowest co-pays and deductibles than at hospitals designated as Tier Two and Tier Three.

Quality awareness reflects the hospital's commitment to specific programs designed to improve the quality of care rendered. Evergreen Medical Center has demonstrated a commitment to quality by implementing quality improvement programs, actively participating in an effort to reduce hospital-acquired infections, by sharing best practices in treating diseases, implementing process changes to aid in the prevention of hospital acquired conditions, participating in activities to learn from others, sharing healthcare providers best practices and benchmarks, and engaging in efforts to increase healthcare transparency.

Another level of compliance required for the Blue Cross Tier 1 designation is patient safety awareness. Evergreen Medical Center scored high rankings in this category as well by taking steps toward improving patient safety by implementing National Quality Forum safe practice standards and Rapid Response Teams, taking steps to follow scientifically proven measures to standardize practices through participation in the CUSP (Comprehensive Unit-Based Safety Program), a unit based process improvement program that focuses on changing healthcare processes on each hospital unit.

Evergreen Medical Center also participates in the CLABSI (Central Line Associated Bloodstream Infection) project that addresses standardization of catheter insertion practices and care of central lines which is the number one healthcare associated infection in cost and mortality in the nation. Evergreen Medical Center also scores above average on HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers) scores which are standardized questions that are asked to the patients that utilize Evergreen Medical Center that pertain to the care delivered by the hospital and compares Evergreen's scores to hospitals throughout the nation.

Evergreen Medical Center continues to perform above average on national core quality measures. Core measures mean that a hospital has adopted scientifically determined standards for diagnosing and treating such diseases as pneumonia, heart failure and heart attacks. Evergreen Medical Center has also made a commitment to improving patient care through participation in the Institute for Healthcare Improvement 5 Million Lives Campaign that has a national goal of saving 5 million lives through quality improvement efforts.

Dr. William Farmer, commented on the Tier 1 designation by stating "Evergreen Medical Center has maintained its high standard of care by the coordinated efforts of the doctors, nurses, ancillary care departments. Our quality assurance department monitors patient care and services to continually improve patient service".

For more information on Tier 1 hospitals, visit www.bcbsal.org. To learn more about Evergreen Medical Center, call 578-2480 or visit www.evergreenmedical.org. 

Evergreen Medical Center (EMC) has announced plans to expand its use of computerized data to generate an Electronic Health Record (EHR) for their patients.  An EHR is a comprehensive record of a patient's medical history within the hospital. The HITECH Act, part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, requires health care providers utilize an EHR system to achieve "meaningful use" criteria targeted at reducing health care costs and improving the quality of care through access to a patient's medical records across health care facilities.  "We believe that we need an integrated electronic record in order to promote patient safety, improve efficiency and keep up with the rapidly changing technological world we live in," said Tommy Shehan, who has spearheaded EMC's health technology push.

This month EMC is officially registering their intent to meet "meaningful use" requirements in an effort to qualify for technical and financial assistance in expanding use of EHR's by health care providers.  Shehan commented, "EMC began implementing digital technology for patient care several years ago and has invested over one million dollars in technology."  The potential return on investment for the hospital is approximately three million dollars worth of incentive payments over the next four years, with the first payment coming as early as this year.

Evergreen Medical Center's first phase targeted at achieving a complete EHR began in 2003 with the installation of software to electronically capture lab results, document patient care and verify medications.  At this time, a digital x-ray system was also installed.  In 2006, EMC expanded their electronic data capabilities to their operating and emergency departments.  Integration of the existing digital x-ray system with new radiology software in 2008 moved the hospital further toward their goal of a complete EHR.  In 2009, physicians were provided the ability to review real-time results of tests through a virtual patient chart and place orders electronically in the system through computerized physician order entry software. This enhancement along with installation of software to measure quality improvements resulted in a higher level of patient care provided by Evergreen Medical Center. Last year, EMC continued to move toward a complete EHR with the addition of a respiratory module. As a result of their commitment to achieve a comprehensive EHR, they were chosen out of 650 clients nationwide to be a Beta test site by CPSI, their information technology partner, for enhancements targeted at achieving "meaningful use" criteria. 

 "We absolutely believe we will be able to meet these "meaningful use" requirements this year," Shehan said. The first payment that EMC could see this year as part of the ARRA would be approximately one million, with payments coming in smaller increments over the remainder of the four-year period. Those funds would be used to offset some of the cost of technology upgrades the hospital has already made, as well as funding some other capital needs.

Electronic health records will provide a number of advantages to EMC's patients, including access for doctors to their patients' complete health picture, better care coordination and fewer repetitive tests as providers share information, and ultimately savings in time and money.  Evergreen Medical Center is enthusiastically embracing the benefits of electronic health records and understands that meaningful use of health information technology is in the best interest of you, the patient, and the entire country.

CPSI, EMC's information technology partner, has been serving the healthcare information system needs of the medical community for over 25 years.  Founded in 1979 and headquartered in Mobile, Alabama, the company provides a complete information and patient care system from business office to bedside.  Quality service, customer commitment, and system performance all set CPSI apart from the pack. 

Annette Watters, Director of the Alabama State Data Center, presented characteristics of a prosperous rural county at the EDAA Winter Conference on Tuesday, February 8th, citing a Federal Reserve study that looked at the issue nationally.

Characteristics included:

- A high school graduation rate equal or greater than the national average.

- A stable population between the age of 24 and 35. (Communities should work to retain this age group. Also, communities should maintain a stable population between the age of 45 and 64.)

- An underlying, shared, homogenous culture (shared values and culture).

- Per-capita income at or above the national average.

-     Presently, Jefferson, Shelby, Montgomery and Madison counties have attained this in Alabama (according to a 2008 study, which are the most recent numbers).

- Economic diversity.

- A strong network of social groups and systems (churches, bowling alleys, restaurants, etc).

Fortunately, citizens of rural counties have the ability to change all of the factors found in the study. According to Watters, improving upon these factors will lead to a more stable population.

The Coastal Gateway Regional Economic Development Alliace Facebook Page is up and running as another opportunity to help you keep in touch with us. Here you can view photos, happenings of our department throughout the year and regional events as they relate to economic development.

There almost fifty-five members on our page so far.  We encourage you to join in and help spread the news about the Facebook Page.  If you would like us to post specific information or include pictures from your region please contact info@cgeda.net.

To visit or join the page click here.

CGEDA is now on Twitter! We encourage you to follow us on Twitter to keep up to date on news in the region! To follow us on Twitter click here.