Hamilton Herald Masthead

Editorial


Front Page - Friday, December 25, 2020

Newsmakers: Healthcare Heroes Care Fund raising money to support CHI Memorial workers




CHI Memorial Foundation is asking the Chattanooga community to support the hospital’s staff by giving to the Healthcare Heroes Care Fund.

The fund will provide financial support for medical staff struggling to provide for their families and equipment to ensure staff safety. It also will subsidize a “recharge room” for health care workers.

Contributions to the Healthcare Heroes Care Fund can be made at memorial.org/friends. Call 423 495-4438 for information.

Source: CHI Memorial Foundation

U.S. News & World Report names Siskin Hospital a ‘Best Nursing Home’

U.S. News & World Report has placed Siskin Hospital in the top 15% of short-term rehabilitation facilities in the nation. U.S. News Best Nursing Homes ratings include profiles for both long-term care and short-term rehabilitation. This designation is for Siskin’s subacute rehabilitation program.

Siskin earned Best Nursing Homes status by achieving the High Performing rating for short-term rehabilitation.

U.S. News Best Nursing Homes ratings and profiles offer comprehensive information about care, safety, health inspections, staffing and more for nearly all of the nation’s 15,000-plus nursing homes.

The Best Nursing Homes ratings are based on U.S. News’ analysis of publicly available data. This year, nursing home profiles included a patient safety summary that reflects COVID-19 data alongside other measurements of safety and related advice on choosing a home or facility during the pandemic.

Source: Siskin Hospital

Siskin Hospital gets accreditation for post-professional residency program

The American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education has granted the neurologic physical therapy residency program at Siskin Hospital five-year accreditation status following a recent survey.

Siskin’s physical rehabilitation neurologic residency program provides education and clinical experience to physical therapists in the field of neurology.

The physical therapy resident participates in four clinical rotations, treating traumatic brain injury, stroke and spinal cord injury as well as other neurological conditions and vestibular pathologies. The program will graduate its first resident in January, at which point a second resident will begin the residency program.

Graduates of Siskin’s physical rehabilitation neurologic residency program complete their residency in preparation to acquire their board certification as a neurologic clinical specialist. The examination for this credential is offered through the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties in the spring following completion of the residency program.

Source: Siskin Hospital

Erlanger Board implements raises for employees

Erlanger Health System’s board of trustees in December approved raises for eligible employees, implemented the management incentive plan payout for the previous fiscal year at a reduced amount, approved enhancements to existing 403(b) and 457(b) retirement plans and approved the payout of Dr. William Jackson’s performance bonus from his original employment agreement.

The board voted unanimously to issue a raise for all eligible Erlanger employees. Executive leadership and clinicians with contracts containing productivity incentives were not eligible. Recently, leadership recommended and implemented a salary adjustment for bedside RNs and MAs that went into effect Dec. 13 to eligible employees.

Each year, the board gives the leadership team specific goals. These goals are tied to an incentive plan, and the goals are measured at the end of each fiscal year. This month, the board voted to pay 50% instead of 100% of the earned incentive plan payout for fiscal year 2019-2020.

Recognizing that leadership worked diligently throughout the fiscal year and pandemic, the board felt it was appropriate to reduce the payout due to the uncertainties faced in the upcoming months, the board says in a news release.

The board approved enhancements to Erlanger’s existing 403(b) and 457(b) retirement plans as provided by the SECURE Act.

The modification allows associates to take an in-service distribution for qualified births and adoptions.

Erlanger associates who are new parents can withdraw up to $5,000 from their 403(b) or 457(b) retirement plans after the birth or adoption of a child without penalty.

When Jackson took the helm of the health system in 2019, the board tasked him with three non-financial goals that would trigger his incentive pay if he met them by their due dates.

The first goal required completion of a reorganization of the management structure of Erlanger by Dec. 31, 2019. Second, Jackson was to present to the board an acceptable plan to address relations between community and employed physicians by March 31, 2020. He was also to present to the board an acceptable plan to reorganize the Erlanger Medical Group governance structure, also by March 31, 2020.

According to trustee John Germ, Jackson completed each of these goals before the required dates.

Source: Erlanger