Durham Regional Hospital lost $364,000 more than expected in the fiscal year ending July 1, but it has moved closer to ending its long-standing budget deficit, according to a hospital report released Wednesday.
The hospital's $2 million operating deficit exceeded the projected $1.7 million loss but was down from $7.5 million the previous year and $16.9 million the year before. Officials expressed optimism that Durham Regional-managed by Duke University Health System since 1998-has finally turned a corner after recent cuts in jobs and services.
"Everyone's very pleased with how we've done in the last fiscal year. We're certainly trending in the right direction," said Durham Regional spokesperson Katie Galbraith. "This year was a roller-coaster-type year for us... but our staff did an incredibly good job managing their budgets and we saw incremental increases in patient volume at the end of the year."
The deficit equaled about 1.3 percent of the hospital's total expenses of $155 million.
An unexpected, one-time $1.9 million payment for insurance hurt Durham Regional when its prior insurer stopped offering the service. Galbraith said the bill, along with a decrease in patients and fewer days spent in the hospital, contributed most to the deficit.
Adult and pediatric admissions were down 3.7 percent, rehabilitation admissions down 9.7 percent, psychiatric visits down 4.5 percent and special care nursery patients down 15.6 percent. Excluding newborns, patient days were down 1.5 percent. In addition, the hospital provided more care on a charitable basis, the report reads.
Durham Regional's deficit would have been higher without a gift from Durham County Hospital Corporation-$1 million for Durham Regional's 2002 operating budget and $950,000 for the 2003 budget.
For the 2003 fiscal year, Durham Regional officials project a $3.3 million loss, in large part due to decreasing state and federal funding for Medicare.
"There are a number of financial challenges that we're all facing as we look at potential cutbacks in government reimbursements," Galbraith said.
Durham Regional officials eliminated many staff positions and some services in order to pare down the budget deficit. About 130 employees were reassigned after their positions were cut last year, and the hospital eliminated the Oakleigh Substance Abuse Treatment Center and Northgate Mall's Senior Health Center. Galbraith said she does not foresee more cuts in the near future.
Dr. Robert Yankes, former president of the Durham Regional medical staff, said the cuts hurt services but that they have been necessary to keep the hospital afloat.
"Health care is a tough business. It's in a very difficult position nationwide and everyone's making do with what they have," Yankes said. "Durham Regional remains a very user-friendly place for patients. It's a small size, and it remains very personable."
The 2002 fiscal year budget report also expressed a reaffirmation of Durham Regional's stated vision to be "the community hospital of choice differentiated by personalized care, accessibility and as a partner in DUHS."
Toward that end, the hospital hired a new chief medical officer, has created a new customer service director position. The report also notes that plans are moving forward on a $17 million renovation of the hospital's main facilities, a second facility for magnetic resonance imaging and a 30-bed long-term acute care center.
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