The American Business Journal: Opelousas General Health System

Opelousas General Health System
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admin on 20 August, 2010 11:44:00
 
This year, Opelousas General Health System is celebrating its 50th year.
It’s a significant milestone for a facility with great history and
advancement in the use of medical technology, considering the many hurdles it
had to overcome in regards to troubled funding.
A healthy dose of history
Gerry Fornoff, the president of Opelousas General Health System (OGHS), agrees
there have been big changes over the years. But it first started, he says, when
the local parish and concerned citizens of LaFayette, LA, felt there was a need
for a new health care center, therefore they joined forces with the local nuns
to establish the facility in 1957. Sister Madeline Sophie, who was named the
first hospital administrator, was one of several nuns hired on from the local
convent as well as those who came over from France, tells Fornoff.  As years
passed, they saw the need to expand as a service district parish hospital, as
opposed to the state-run facilities, he explains. Back then, funding was
approved more easily, it seemed.
But that didn’t last for long. In fact, the hospital needed another
expansion which proved to be a challenge when the laws had changed and the tax
had to be approved by the whole parish, as opposed to just select districts. The
proposal was flat out denied. At that point, the hospital administrators went
back the drawing board to find another way. While sifting through state books,
they discovered there was such a thing as a trust authority. “Because
it’s a parish facility, we still have to comply with the state regulation
relative to any state entities, but being a trust authority, and not just a
parish hospital, we get no tax monies from the parish,” explains Fornoff.
“Whereas a typical parish hospital has taxing that may come back to it. So
all the monies we raised outside income from the patients, comes from bonds,
capital investments,” says Fornoff.
Doctors fight for hospital’s life
The hospital administrators had a “friendly law suit” filed on their
behalf by some physicians, and it was taken up to the state supreme court. In
the end, hospital trust authority was allowed. “Basically it’s a
hybrid, because it’s also a service district hospital. Those appointees
from the service district on the board appoint four other members to the trust
authority to govern,” explains Fornoff. That allowance gave hospital
administrators alternative means to give the expansion a green light. “So
all the construction capital projects that would have taken outside capital have
been done through various bonds, he explains.  There have been big changes.
"It’s hard,” he admits.  “We’re the only ones in the
state like that,” he says.  Just like how the human body adapts after
weight training by building stronger muscles, the hospital’s leaders have
adapted to big changes to the organization over the years.
I’ve seen more changes in those years than I’ve experienced in OGHS,
although, be it the state, or be it the federal government,  there’s
change every year, usually to the negative of the hospital and the
physician,” says Fornoff of the Opelousas General Health System.
“We’ve been computer literate over here for years”
With over 1,000 employees, OGHS has embraced a web-based, wireless technology
with open arms as a means to educate its staff and treat its patients. “We
don’t have to take people away from the worksite, they can do [continued
education and training] online with the introduction of this technology,”
Fornoff says referring to the $7 million dollar expenditure of a completely new
wireless computer system known as a Electronic Medical Record (EMR).  Going
paperless has been good for the environment as well as increasing the efficiency
of personnel. “Nurses can access all these training mechanisms while on a
break or even at home, just like that,” says Fornoff. “We’ve
been very computer literate over here for years,” he says. It’s not
just our young physicians who are tech savvy, he says, but even our ones that
maybe been around five or 10 years are walking around with their handhelds and
demanding the latest technologies.  Wireless technology has opened the window of
opportunity for many specialists who need to work with a patient and have full
access to their files, charts and x-rays, to work from the back deck at home.
Turbulent times doesn’t limit opportunities to grow
In the midst of a health care reform, an economic crisis and lower-income
population at its hospital doors, these inevitable road blocks did little to
distract the OGHS managing team from making effective strategic decisions in
such turbulent times. Rather, its leaders’ progressive attitude has
motivated them to take action. And there’s nothing like a little friendly
competition down the street to kick things into high gear. “This is a
community and the surrounding area is enough to support one and a half
hospitals,” explains Fornoff. For the past 15 years, although OGHS has
been a market leader and recognized for its treatment center for women and
cancer patients, the problem was that some doctors were working at both health
care companies. Fornoff approached the proprietary owners of the other hospital
and last May OGHS acquired the competition, Lifepoint, which OGHS now operates
as its second campus.
Renowned treatment center for women, cancer patients
Two other improvement projects are currently underway. One is a real estate and
operations joint venture, just seven miles from the hospital. “We also
have free standing imaging, diagnostic sleep centre that is also a joint
venture,” says Fornoff adding the next addition to the center will be a
medical office building at its sunset campus. However, the recent acquisition
has required a major shift in services and re-evaluation of how to best use both
facilities. “Both campuses have a 24/7 physician staffed ER’s,
we’re just trying to push that traffic over there so that the trauma comes
over to the main campus,” explains Fornoff.  Future projects for the south
campus include the addition of a palliative care unit and an adult psychiatric
facility.
Even still, the economy has taken its toll on the hospital. “The timing
couldn’t be worse, in some aspects,” admits Fornoff. Louisiana
itself is a poor state and just the general economy relative to reimbursements
in Medicare and Medicaid, he says, the state is just implementing about a 7
percent cut in its payments. Because a significant portion of the
community’s population is reliant on Medicaid for health care services,
the management team now faces budget cuts in respects to its government funding.
This harsh reality –after spending millions on an acquisition and new
expansion—has left the management team left with no choice but to
re-evaluate its services.
Louisiana congressional leader, physician, vocal on health care reform issues
As if that’s not enough for management to chew on, the high possibility of
at least one of the proposed health care bills to pass this fall- which would
alter the country’s health care system-poses an additional concern.
“We think about it constantly,” says Fornoff adding he has been in
contact with his Congressional leader, also a trained physician. “We feel
we have someone, in fact several physicians in Louisiana who are in
congress…but one in particular who’s most vocal who I have a good
relationship with. That is probably why I have more trust, but if you read the
articles, physicians have had very little input in some of this
restructuring,” says Fornoff. For us to take additional cuts because there
are going to be more people insured, I think that is a bunch of crap,
personally, says Fornoff adding there will be cost somewhere down the line. 
“ I think we are all of the same belief the less government involvement
there is ...we see how poorly the Medicare system is managed…and
Medicaid,” he says adding more policy research is needed to make
significant changes to the system. But in an ideal situation, he’d like to
see a malpractice reform be a part of the health care debate and strongly
advocates the need for portability in insurance.   With 20 years of experience
in health care, he is prepared for yet another change-whatever it may be.
“Our job is continue to try and provide a good product to the public, same
time try to make it as economically supportive as possible,” he says.
Quality, first class care to everybody
Remarkably, the hospital has managed to made arrangements to avoid any cuts to
human resources. In fact, they are welcoming new members to the team. “We
just brought on a probably a hundred and something new employees when we did the
acquisition, and we have been able to maintain them,” says Fornoff.
“Fortunately, one of the things we got a jump on is that our salaries are
very competitive, so we’ve been able to hire instead of using agency
people for these positions,” he says.  Even through all the challenges, a
physician at the hospital successfully did the first artificial disc in the
state. For a hospital outside of a metropolitan area, that is quite the
accomplishment that has the medical staff proud. Although the demographics in
this part of Louisiana is not the norm , OGHS still manages to provide quality
medical attention–sometimes charity care—to anyone who comes to
through its doors. “We are a community hospital and it is our standard and
vision to give first class care to everybody,” he says.