Continuing maintenance issues were the focus of Allen County Regional Hospital Board trustees Tuesday night.
Administrator Ron Baker said the hospital’s information technology system has room for improvement.
“We need more bandwidth and redundancy,” he said.
Currently, the hospital uses two copper T1 cables, and they would like to at least double that capacity, he said. Other options include switching to fiber optics.
The construction punch list was discussed with maintenance personnel.
Some of the stonework on the side of the building may need to be replaced. There have been issues with the water circulating pump, which can affect hospital showers. There have also been issues with sewer gas coming into the building, but this does not appear to be necessarily a construction issue. The ventilation stacks on the roof are built to code, but some unknown factors occasionally cause gas pumped out to come back in through the intake system. Wind may be a factor. Maintenance is considering several options, including charcoal filters and one-way valves.
The draft of the 2012 and 2013 audit report was presented to the board. There did not appear to be anything abnormal, but the report found that it is difficult to say where the hospital stands because of several big factors: a lot of assets are divided between the hospital and the county, at this time; the impact of the Affordable Care Act and other governmental health care policies remains unclear; and because the new hospital changed operations, it is hard to compare the current numbers to years prior. The audit should have a clearer picture next year.
In other news, the board discussed getting new board members. A few have been approached, but nothing is official yet. Meetings are planned in early August with potential members to discuss duties with them.
Due to several issues, Baker said the hospital has decided to enact a no-smoking policy. Tobacco will not be allowed anywhere on hospital property as of Aug. 1. Signs will be posted to raise awareness of the new policy.
Hospital tackles building concerns
