Clinic advisors seek influx of revenue

Managers of the Wahkiakum County Family Practice Clinic are working hard to boost revenues, Business Manager Crystal Stanley reported Tuesday to the county board of commissioners.

Effective March 1, clinicians will extend hours to be open through lunch hour and till 6 p.m. Besides allowing them to see more patients and thus generate more revenue, the move will also lower the time patients spend in the waiting room.

Clinic managers have started re-negotiating contracts with health insurance companies, she said, and this will improve revenues.

However, the clinic's financial picture remains a cause of concern.

Commissioners had budgeted $50,000 to help the clinic cover costs for the beginning of 2009, and that money was spent very quickly.

If the clinic isn't going to be able to become self sustaining, managers need to recognize this so the county can seek other funding, such as asking voters to approve a tax to boost revenues.

The county has put about $1 million into the clinic since it bought it, but it no longer has funds to spare, Brady said.

"We're not going to go any further into debt on this; it's not feasible," he said.

If revenues are going to be insufficient, the county needs to get the proposition on the ballot, Cothren said.

"They way things are going, I don't know if we can wait," he said. "There's cut off dates for getting things on the ballots."

Commissioner Lisa Marsyla, who has been working with the clinic advisory board, said the group is doing a lot of good things, "but there's a long way to go."

The commissioners said they appreciate the work that the advisory board has done, and Stanley commented that clinic staff has made tremendous efforts to improve its operations.

"We've come a long ways," Cothren said. "We'll just have to figure out a way to keep going."