In June of 2005, a study conducted by George Washington University concluded that continued viability for Broadlawns Medical Center was of major concern. This public report, which clearly served as a wakeup call for our community, provided insights that have guided Broadlawns' leaders toward financial stability. They took on these challenges with a renewed commitment to patients, staff, volunteers and the community, including Polk County taxpayers, to ensure the long-term survival of our community safety-net hospital.
The following year, Broadlawns' new chief executive, Jody Jenner, introduced his four pillars of progress to the Broadlawns Medical Center Finance Committee: clinical quality, financial results, patient satisfaction and employee partnership. Mr. Jenner's approach has established accountability and transparency to the public with regular reports such as Broadlawns' Vital Signs, which provides quarterly results on these four measures.
Utilization of services at Broadlawns Medical Center continued to grow in 2010, despite the documented limited physical space for most departments. At the same time as demand for services increased, the hospital held costs steady and made no additions to staffing. Mr. Jenner's approach has been to encourage process simplification through the Lean Thinking approach to activities and processes in both clinical and non-clinical operations.
The following shows some of the utilization statistics for 2010.
- Inpatient mental health total patient days increased 22 percent.
- Outpatient revenue grew 13 percent.
- Clinic volumes show 15 percent growth in the past two years despite limited capacity, specifically primary care volume increased 23 percent and podiatry volume increased 13 percent.
- Emergency Department visits increased 10 percent despite severely limited space.
- Revenue grew 17 percent in 2010 in ancillary services of physical therapy,
occupational therapy, imaging, lab and respiratory services.
Despite the increased demand and the limited capacities at the medical center in 2010, the following reports on each of the four pillars shows the continued progress being made at Broadlawns Medical Center.
CLINICAL QUALITY
Again, in the 2009-2010 fiscal year, Broadlawns Medical Center achieved strong results on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) core quality indicators. The hospital exceeded national averages on 80 percent of measures, scoring 100 percent consistently on several critical inpatient care measures for congestive heart failure and pneumonia care. Additionally, the Joint Commission re-accredited Broadlawns Medical Center in 2010 for three years.
FINANCIAL RESULTS
For the fourth consecutive year, Mr. Jenner and his leadership team have met and exceeded their financial targets. The medical center's performance in 2010 was very strong, despite the economic recession. A few of the financial indicators are:
- Operating margin of 5.06%
- Days of cash at 82
- EBITDA of 11%
The focus on operational efficiencies has driven the cost per adjusted patient day down 16 percent over the past five years, and total expenditures for 2010 decreased 1 percent compared to 2009, while gross revenue grew 11 percent. These decreases in expenses occurred while maintaining high scores in clinical quality and patient satisfaction measures.
The following chart shows the positive results achieved in Broadlawns internal operations over the past four years compared to the six years previous.
INTERNAL OPERATING RESULTS – BROADLAWNS MEDICAL
PATIENT SATISFACTION
Three years ago, Broadlawns ranked in the third percentile for inpatient satisfaction.
This year, inpatient satisfaction studies reflect Broadlawns ranking better than 72 percent of hospitals nationally. When compared to other public hospitals, Broadlawns ranks in the top 11 percent, scoring higher than 89 percent of public hospitals nationally.
EMPLOYEE PARTNERSHIP
A key measure of employee satisfaction in an organization is its turnover rate. This year Broadlawns experienced less than 13 percent turnover, continuing the downward turnover trend over the past four years, and coming in well below the national average benchmark of approximately 16 percent.
Staff productivity remains strong, and the organization is developing an environment of pay for performance, where performance success is measured against the four pillars of progress.
SITE AND FACILITY IMPROVEMENTS
The Broadlawns Medical Center $30 million Site and Facilities Project continues to proceed on time and within budget, without incurring any additional tax liabilities for our residents.
The new infrastructure and the new emergency and radiology departments of Phase IA were completed earlier this year. Phase 1B with new lobbies, patient access and front façade are on track for completion in February 2011. Construction of the new medical office building is in progress for a June 2011 completion, and work on the new surgical department will begin in July 2011. Other areas that are currently under evaluation for renovation and expansion include the medical/surgical/pediatrics section, the mental health unit and the Family Health Center/Dental Clinic.
The Taxpayers Association has applauded the progress and outcomes that have rewarded Broadlawns' sustained improvement initiatives. Even in a difficult economic environment where state and federal budget and reimbursement shortfalls are the norm, Mr. Jenner and his leadership team and staff have delivered another sound year. Despite the challenges, our community hospital continues to meet and exceed our expectations.
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