Franklin hospital cuts staff, operational expenses
Franklin Community Health Network approved a plan that would cut both the staff and the operational footprint of the organization to better match patient demand and reduce costs.
It will eliminate the equivalent of 40 full-time jobs by laying off 22 employees, freezing existing job openings and reducing hours for some employees. Before the announcement, the network employed 557 people.
Timothy Churchill, the interim CEO of FCHN, cited the financial shortfalls of the network, including difficulty getting full reimbursement for Medicare and Medicaid services. He also cited the state’s decision not to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.
“Our goal in this process has been to keep patients first while putting FCHN on a sustainable path for the future,” Churchill said in a release about the cuts. “FCHN has a bright future, but to realize that future we’ve got to put these structural financial challenges behind us and build on our solid foundation.”
Since July 1, 2011, FCHN has lost more than $15 million. If it had not been for some one-time federal money, the losses would have topped $20 million during that time, Churchill said in the release.
The initiative also reduces fixed overhead at Franklin Memorial Hospital, better aligning facilities to patient demand. This includes reducing the number of active operating rooms from three to two and reducing the number of beds in the intensive care unit from five to two. Both of these changes serve to better align hospital capacity with the current demand for these services, according to the release.
Additional accommodations include:
- The FCHN radiology office in Rangeley will be consolidated with the radiology service on the FCHN campus in Farmington.
- Some physician practices located on the Farmington campus will be consolidated into more efficient locations.
- The FCHN board has also approved a wage and salary freeze for FCHN employees for this year. The board hopes to resume wage and salary adjustments in fiscal 2017, if financial targets are met.
- The board also authorized temporary reductions in paid time off and retirement benefits across the board. These measures saved the equivalent of 25 full-time jobs within the organization.
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