GVH looking to get back to black

Considering long-term, outside management

Gunnison Valley Health is leaving no stone unturned as it looks for ways to balance the budget and bring stability back to the valley’s healthcare system. After implementing a series of cost-cutting measures to combat losses of nearly $700,000 at the hospital—including 12 layoffs, cutbacks to employee benefits, and the temporary closure of Crested Butte Physical Therapy—the board of trustees is considering an agreement with an outside management firm to help them get back on track.

According to Michelle Campbell, chief marketing and business development officer, GVH is considering the move as one possible way to bring in “resources that add depth and expertise in areas where we want to improve performance.
“Independent, rural systems like ours don’t have the benefit of being part of a [larger healthcare] system,” Campbell continued. “Management firms specialize in supporting smaller and midsize heath systems.”
Establishing a multi-year relationship with a management firm could be a way to get support and leverage the consultant’s depth of experience. For example, Campbell said, if GVH were to have a problem in the Emergency Department one year and in assisted living a couple of years later, GVH could consult with the same management firm on both. There would be no need to send out requests for proposals or bring a new consultant up to speed on the organization’s history.
“There is some logic to working with one firm that knows you and is interested in developing a multiple-year relationship,” Campbell said.
The board of trustees is requesting proposals for two types of long-term management contracts, what Campbell called a “classic management contract,” where the CEO and CFO remain employees of the management firm, and an affiliate or advisory agreement where the CEO would be an employee of the health system. Either way, the management firm would assist GVH in meeting its goals and responding to changing needs.
Quorum Health Resources, which has already contracted with GVH to provide the services of interim CEO Scott Landrum, and Community Hospital Consulting have both been invited to submit proposals. GVH is researching additional consultants, and the board of trustees will evaluate them through proposals, presentations and case studies before making any final decisions.
Campbell said if the board elects a multi-year management contract, it will likely influence the final hiring decision for a new CEO, but the search for a replacement is not being put on hold. GVH is looking for candidates through three avenues: an independent firm that specializes in executive searches; GVH’s internal human resources department; and Quorum. The dual process makes sense, Campbell says, due to the current fiscal situation.
“We want to expedite the process because of the budget, but we also want to balance being quick with being thorough,” Campbell said. “The board is serious about due diligence on this.”
The board of trustees is planning to meet with the Board of County Commissioners on July 10 at a public work session.