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Regional medical center reports February loss, explains short power outage
Summary
Gila Regional Medical Center CEO reported a February operating loss, year‑to‑date surplus, and said a recent short outage occurred when the emergency generator connection failed; the connector has been repaired and downtime procedures preserved patient care.
Mr. Whitaker, chief executive officer of the regional medical center, presented the hospital’s monthly statistics and addressed a recent power outage that affected the facility.
"There was a power outage in Silver City, and Hilar Regional was affected...that connect between the emergency generator and the panel. That didn't switch," Mr. Whitaker said, adding that the connector has been repaired by the equipment vendor and the hospital used downtime procedures to maintain patient care during the outage.
The nut graf: the hospital reported operating revenue of $8.4 million and operating expenses of $9.5 million for February, producing a monthly operating loss of $112,000; year‑to‑date figures still showed a net surplus of about $3 million. Whitaker described several capital projects (radiology equipment replacement, emergency room physician group changeover) and said outpatient visits are up roughly 4,000 year‑to‑date compared with last year.
Whitaker summarized corrective steps after the outage: the generator‑to‑panel connection failed in a single instance despite routine monthly testing; Caterpillar technicians were called, the connection was fixed, and the hospital conducts debriefs to identify improvements. He emphasized staff training and existing downtime protocols for patient documentation and care when electronic medical records are unavailable.
Commissioners pressed for clearer public contact information for the hospital board of trustees and for follow‑up briefings when incidents affect patient care. Whitaker said the board chair has asked staff to update website contact information and affirmed the hospital will provide follow‑up reports if requested by the commission.
The meeting did not include any formal county action on the hospital report; commissioners thanked the CEO and moved on to other agenda items.
