Hamilton mayor holds informal discussion with hopsital officials; study underway

HAMILTON — Hamilton Mayor Bob Page told the city council, the public in attendance and the news media on Aug. 18 he’d had an informal sit-down meeting with hospital officials about the North Mississippi Medical Center-Hamilton situation.
The mayor noted a local physician had helped to arrange the meeting to help set the record straight, as rumors were circulating about the status of the hospital.
Representing the hospital were North Mississippi Health Services Chief Operating Officer David Wilson and North Mississippi Medical Center-Hamilton Administrator Robin Mixon.
Besides the open meeting on the 18th, the mayor also had a private interview with the Journal-Record the next day. What follows is a combination of comments made during both, as some

comments were repeated each time, while others were not said during the open meeting.
“We talked about some things at the hospital, the services and what the future of the hospital will be,” he said. “They talked pretty openly about the ongoing work that’s being done there.
“I thought it was a positive meeting, and I said I had no axe to grind with them, but I wanted some commitment from them to give us the services we need. I told them I appreciated the services they give us, and we have come to depend upon them. I said, going forward, I hope we can depend on the good services we’ve always had.
“Nothing was decided by this meeting. It was very cordial and productive, all good vibes and they didn’t seem to mind I would be talking about the meeting with the public.”
The mayor noted officials said the hospital is doing a study before any decisions will be made for the future.
“This was all just discussion,” he said. “They are having a study done now before they make any kind of public announcement. We were just trying to have a question and answer session about ‘what if this happens’ and ‘what kind of services can we expect going forward.’
“They said the study they’re having done is not complete, and they wouldn’t be making any real commitments or promises, or rule out anything, until they get the results of the study.”
The mayor said he’d be made aware of the results “within the next few months” and officials had agreed to “come back to us and give us a run down on it.” He said the public will be made aware of the findings after they’re shared with the hospital board and city officials.
Besides the study, the mayor said North Mississippi Health Services is also taking into consideration other factors.
“They are weighing all the things that are contributing to their business at the hospital, such as the flow of people that leave the Hamilton hospital and come to their hospital in Tupelo. That is being taken into consideration and added to the equation,” he said.
“They also weigh the nursing home in that equation, and it’s doing very well. It stays full all the time, and sometimes there’s a waiting list.
“And we talked about the stream of business we give to their specialists in Tupelo from our community.”
Regarding services that may have been phased out or are about to be phased out, the mayor said the discussion included the topic of swing beds.
“They assured me they would try to have a swing bed program for recovering folks who would need it,” he said. “Swing beds are very important to a patient’s health and to help get them back home. They mentioned they might actually do this in the nursing home part of the building, in those beds that are available there. That was kind of the strategy they were using.
“I mentioned our cataract surgery, which had been moved to Winfield. They said the surgeon may visit the Hamilton hospital once a month.
“There was no discussion about discontinuing the physical therapy department.”
The mayor said he stressed keeping all the local services as much as possible, so people don’t have to drive to see a doctor or specialist.
“I mentioned a lot of people don’t need to have to travel long distances to get to good medical services because of their age or handicaps or whatever it might be,” he said.
He noted local physicians were also wanting to keep their practices in Hamilton, and work and live here and raise their families here.
“We want that to be

possible, too,” he said. “If too many things happen and we become just a clinic-type center, some of the doctors may want to find greener pastures or areas with a larger clientele. We don’t want to take a chance on losing the doctors we have or recruiting other doctors.”
The mayor stressed there are a lot of decisions to be made, but the topics he shared were all just for discussion and “nothing has been set in stone yet.”
“We talked about, in the future, a two-day stay at the hospital could be the maximum,” he said. “If a person needs the hospital for longer than two days, they would most likely be transferred to a larger hospital.
“But we’ve already been operating for quite some time as mostly an emergency room facility with short hospital stays. We haven’t been putting many people in the hospital there for long stays for a long time. It’s been two or three years since we’ve had a lot of people being admitted to the hospital.”
The mayor also noted, “We don’t have a surgeon now, but we’re hoping some day we will. I told them I’d had surgery in the operating room more than once at our local hospital, and I was proud to be able to get those services at home.”
Regarding recent upgrades, he noted the emergency department area is very nice and brand new.
“They’re putting a roof on most of the building, and they’ve improved the imaging department,” he said.
The mayor noted the fact North Mississippi Heath Services is now managing the Winfield hospital, as well as having services in Hamilton, was mentioned.
Previously reported when North Mississippi Health Services took over operations in Winfield, officials noted, at that time, some services would be provided at each hospital, while others might be moved to a different hospital to make better use of staff and facilities.

Hospital losing
$2 million per year
The mayor said the COO explained, from their standpoint, they are wanting to stop losing so much money on their operations cost each year.
“Mr. Wilson did say they’re losing probably $2 million every year on the operations of the hospital,” Page said.
“If the community wants a full service hospital, we may need to come up with some kind of tax earmarked to the hospital, so they can give us more and better services, and do a better job for us moving forward.
“There is nothing official on that. But I do want people to know they put that on the table at our meeting. The truth of the meeting was the tax thing was an afterthought, as to what might make it easier for them to give us more services, not a recommendation from their COO. It was the last thing we talked about.
“There was some discussion on whether or not we could provide additional funding through a taxation of the county or the city or a combination or both.
“We discussed all the people who might want to step up and make our hospital more viable by giving some of their tax base to the hospital, whether it is through new taxation or old taxes divided. I don’t know which it’ll be if those are the choices.
“Small hospitals are facing a lot of trials. There are definitely cities who even own their hospitals that struggle to keep them afloat and make them operate as they should, because it costs so much money to operate a medical facility, with specialist-type doctors on staff.
“But it might make it easier for them to give us more services if we put a little skin in the game, so to speak--if we put some money in to help them cover some of the losses they are encountering by being here.”
During the council meeting, councilor Wade Williams noted, “Obviously, no matter whoever is sitting here in a couple of months, the hospital is vital to our community. Without it, it would be really tough. I think anybody would commit that we need our hospital and whatever we need to do, I’m sure we’ll be able to do that. Even the small things that are necessary, so our patients won’t have to go anywhere else. I’m sure the city can do whatever it can do when the time comes.”
Asked later to share more on the possibilities of any future financial aid for the hospital from the standpoint of his experience of being a mayor, as well as a banker, Page mentioned a few options.
He also noted the City of Hamilton would definitely not be able to bear the expense on its own.
“I’m not sure we couldn’t help at all, but we can’t give $2 million dollars, which is about what they are losing according to their figures,” he said. “We can’t come to the table with $2 million a year.
“We have obligations to help pay for the jail, to fund the foundation for the school and we have roads to pave and water and sewer repairs to do. We’re spending all we’re taking in right now just for maintenance purposes and obligations we’ve already made.
“But possibly, the people who are served by this hospital--if they wanted to, they could assess themselves a little tax, and it would count up in a hurry. A few mills on the real estate, a half a cent on sales tax, or something like that, would amount up to a lot of money in a short time.
“Also, the COO did not say we would have to come forward with the whole $2 million, either. He just mentioned some injection of money to help bear the losses the hospital is suffering. He didn’t say we’d have to have $2 million to make it work at all.
“I’m just sharing, as requested, some of the ways you raise money. I think it would take a new taxation to make it happen. I don’t think we could make it work with the money the city or the county is taking in right now. That’s just my educated opinion as the mayor and as a banker.”
The mayor concluded the city council review of his meeting with hospital officials by mentioning he would like the city council members to all be present for the report presentation.

NMHS responds
Asked to comment on this story, NMHS officials provided the following clarifications, noting they appreciated the opportunity to respond:
• "Our commitment to the Hamilton community is evident by the recent investments made to the facilities and the services we provide," said Robin Mixon, North Mississippi Medical Center-Hamilton Administrator. "Those investments include the Emergency Department renovation, expanded medical imaging with a new CT, a new roof and the recruitment of a new family medicine provider, Lauren Kois, MD." Dr. Kois started seeing patients this week at the Hamilton Primary Care Center.
• General surgeon Dr. Charles Pigott continues to perform procedures at North Mississippi Medical Center-Hamilton.
• North Mississippi Medical Center-Hamilton invested in new ophthalmology laser equipment, and ophthalmologist Dr. Ashley Pickering is performing procedures with this equipment in Hamilton.
• North Mississippi Medical Center-Hamilton is operating at a $2.7 million loss through 10 months of the fiscal year. It is on track to be at greater than a $3 million loss by the fiscal year end which is Sept. 30, 2025. "We have been transparent about the past and current financial challenges," said COO David Wilson. "In spite of the challenges, we are committed to serving the people of Hamilton and Marion County. We are certainly open to having discussions with the city about future financial support."