MonticelloLive

The Drew County Qurom Court held it’s regular monthly meeting tonight, instead of it’s regular scheduled time, due to the Martin Luther King holiday.

The Drew Memorial Hospital report was presented by Drew Memorial administrator Richard Goddard, and the hospital’s new Chief Financial Officer, Shannon Clark. 

The home health dept., aside from recently being relocated to it’s new building, lost 3 office staff in a short time.  Although their individual exits were unrelated, the joint effect did cause concern for smooth office efficiency.

Recent changes in Medicare billing procedures has caused some interruption, as some claims that were already in progress had to be modified. 

In other hospital business,  CT and MRI scans have increased, inpatient surgeries have declined, outpatient surgeries have increased.  Obstetrics have had a slight downward trend, and “scopes” had remained steady.  This report included statistics through the end of 2007.

Goddard told the group that there is a local need for “Intensive Outpatient Psychiatric Care” for older residents who suffer from depression and dementia.  Such cases could include nursing home residents who receive very little family support, or widows or widowers who are having difficulty adjusting to the loss of a spouse.  He said that there are currently out of town facilities transporting local townspeople to facilities, that could be treated locally by Drew Memorial.