The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Early fall start date
By Kristy Acuff
The Gunnison Valley Health hospital will soon be expanding its staff to include an anesthesiologist this fall. Currently, there is no anesthesiologist on staff at the hospital and anesthesia procedures are completed by two registered nurse anesthetists. GVH’s CEO Rob Santilli made the announcement to the Gunnison County Board of Commissioners as part of the quarterly update for the hospital.
“We have had patients inquire about whether we have an anesthesiologist on staff and sometimes when we tell them we have nurse anesthetists, we hear that they will choose to go elsewhere for surgery,” said Santilli. “This new hire is good news for us and for the community and we hope people will choose to stay in the valley for their medical needs.”
“I fully support this hire,” said GVH board of trustees member Bob Schutt. “It’s going to help market the hospital and retain valley residents to stay here for surgeries, especially any of those who might be considered risky anesthesia patients.”
According to Santilli, the new hire spent a lot of time in the Gunnison Valley as a child and has been hoping to move his family back here for some time. He currently lives with his family in California but will make the move in late September to begin work at the hospital.
In other hospital news, the GVH’s Mountain Clinic received the 2018 Excellence in Patient Care Award from the Studer Group, a firm that identifies the best healthcare organizations in the United States, Canada and Australia.
“To be considered for this award, an organization must demonstrate outstanding performance and rank in the 90th percentile or higher as measured by patient satisfaction surveys,” said Santilli. “For a small team at the north end of our valley to be recognized as a leading provider of patient care in the country is exceptional.”
Mountain Clinic director Jeff Isaac commended his team for their efforts, saying, “Our staff are highly skilled and compassionate people who really enjoy what they do and the patients they care for. We are supported by an excellent EMS system and ski patrol and backed by one of the best hospitals in the nation.”