The Mail-Journal, Volume 5, Number 43, Milford, Kosciusko County, 27 November 1968 — Page 7

/ Sports / Editorials

VOLUME 5

Fact-Finding Committee Report

10-Point Program May Be Hospital Answer

A 10-point program as suggested last Tuesday night by E. L. West of Leesburg may be the answer to the long battle over hospital facilities in the county. Prior to listing the 10 points Mr. West stated: It’s time now for some of our thoughts to be composed in written form for our deliberation and consideration. We have listened * to oral reports from the various factions involved in the hospital controversy, we have received volumes of written reports from the groups, and investigated at length some of the important issues which have required our attention. It’s my opinion that we should now move forward on our recommendations to the county commissioners. This report reflects my thoughts and recommendations and I submit it herewith to you, my committee associates, for your consideration.

ATTENTION: To all lrdies —new and old members — of the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 226. You are invited to our annual Christmas party Tuesday evening, Dec. 3, at Legion hall in Milfo:d starting with pot luck supper at 6:30 p.m. After a brief business session a Christmas program and $1 gift exchange will be enjoyed. “Come one—Come all.” Christmas party committee NOTICE: After the new year’s schedule starts, an initiation seiwice is being planned for all new members by the membership committee. Date announced latey. Thank you, President Marian R. Haab

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To begin, we all must take into consideration the entire health care problem as it affects every person in our community. When I say community, I mean every section of this county. We cannot think just for ourselves as it applies to our own town or township, we should be thinking of the county as a whole. What we do and recommend will affect you, me, our families and friends all people in Kosciusko county and not just tomorrow, next week and year, but for many, many years to come. We must do the right thing, not necessarily the popular thing. No matter what solutions we propose to this huge problem, will we satisfy everyone in our communities. We have been chosen to investigate and recommend solutions to the hospital problem by an elected county official who somehow, has confidence in us and our abilities to think and act ... to

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Consolidation of THE MILFORD MAIL (Eat. 1MB) and THE SYRACUSE - WAWASEE JOURNAL (Eat. 1907)

recommend the best solutions to this problem as it affects the entire county. Now, we must take into consideration the studies made by other citizen groups as well as the report from the firm of Herman Smith. These citizen groups spent many, many months on this problem and $5,000 was expended to provide us with the report from Herman Smith, hospital consultants. We are fortunate in having all this material available to us. The supporting material provides us with very definite facts from which to proceed. Our meetings have helped to provide us with other background information and facts. Simply stated, our committee must by all means, take these reports into consideration. From our meetings and data collected to date, it’s apparent that the present administration of the Murphy Medical Center and the medical staff are at arm’s length with no hope of coming any closer in the future. This un-rest, in my opinion, not only is un-wise, but if allowed to continue will greatly jeoparize the good-will of our citizens in the present ownership and administration of the Murphy Medical Center and the physicians who practice there, saying nothing about the deterioation of proper medical care of those sick and disabled people while hospitalized.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 1968

The Murphy facility is privately owned. It does not qualify for Hill-Burton funds, private tax deductible donations, or money raised from taxation through the sale of bonds to private lenders. This corporate set-up will have problems perpetuating itself and increased problems in financing long range expansions as our community continues to grow. It must be stated that the Murphy administration has spoken about setting up some sort of foundation. We wonder about this! Now, on the side lines, in the wings, we have another corporate entity composed of reliable people who have devoted their time, talents, and energies to a possible solution to the county hospital care problem. This group, known as the Kosciusko Community Hospital, Inc., has generated the following: A. A tax excempt voluntary hospital association which has been recommendated as a solution to this problem by the firm of Herman Smith. It qualifies with the Internal Revenue Service as a not-for-profit corp, entity which will qualify for HillBurton federal grants, private tax deductible donations and memorials and can upon application and approval of the county commissioners, receive monies from the proceeds of a county bond issue for the construction of a new hospital facility. B. The good-will of the medical community. C. The vehicle for continuant of ownersbio and management control over an acute medical facility in our county byway of a Governing board of directors composed of interested, reliable citizens from all geographic areas in our county. D. Providing increased possi-

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bilities for medical specialists and additional general practioneers to practice in our area, as well as keeping those already practicing here from leaving. Noting that these outlined items above offer a start to the solution to the hospital care problems of our communitv, I herewith submit a 10 point program for your consideration and adoption. 1. That we recommend to the countv. commissioners that the best inter°sts of the community will b° served hospital care wise as well as medical care wise through a tax exempt voluntary community hospital corporation approved as such by the Internal Revenue Service and dedicated to owning and operating an accredited hospital facility and its board of governing directors be composed of people sufficiently interested in community health and welfare who are all chosen to represent all geographic areas in our county, and that the coroorate structure of the Kosciusko Community Hospital, Inc., be used as the vehicle to accomplish this, and that the board of directors as constituted now, will be replaced with new members in the manner hereinafter described. 2. That these members of the voluntary community hospital be composed and appointed in the following manner: a. Five members will be appointed from each township in our county and five members from the city of Warsaw. b. That they be appointed by their township advisory boards and township trustees, and that the Warsaw members be anpointed by the Warsaw City Council. (This total 90 members from all areas in our county.) This grouo will be known as the Hospital Association Membership. 'Thies for membership should be no more than $1 each year and can b? waived if so desired. c. That their service as members be staggered so as to provide continuity of the membership. d. That at their first meeting, in accordance with good practice, they select their own board of directors composed of one member from each township, one from the city of Warsaw. (This would total 18 directors.) e. That from the remaining 72 association members, the county council or county commissioners

select and appoint three additional members to lhe board of directors. This will give a new total of 21 board members. f. That the board be approved for 25 board seats, the remaining of which to be chosen by the original 21 board members if they so desire to do so, but not compulsary. (This part left flexible.) g. That all board members have staggered terms of office so that only a certain portion of its members terms of office will expire in any one year. 3. That this n?w board of directors and/or members, adoot for its by-laws, the by-laws substantially the same as those recommended by the American Hospital Association and so amended by the approval of this group to conform with the wishes and thinking of the board of d’rectors by not necessarily limited thereto. (Proper legal counsel will best serve here.) 4. That the new board of directors of this voluntary community hospital proceed at once to acquire the .existing Murphy Medical Center, Inc., and its property, real and personal and all other ground and buildings, which are under its control and the control and ownership of Mrs. Hazel Murphy, using the best financial means possible to accomplish this. 5. That we recommend to this board that the price paid for these facilities should be set by them, taking into account the market value, usability, and other guidelines prudent to good judgement and management, but keeping in mind the “big picture” of the ultimate goals and needs. If the initial investment coupled with needed renovations and other expansions should be out of line to the costs of a new institution, then the initial investment should be kept at a minimum. 6. That once the offer to purchase has been made to the Murphy owners, that they be given no more than 30 days to accept and if not accepted by that time then the offer expires and: 7. Hie board then proceed to build a new hospital facility as soon as possible using Hill-Bur-ton funds, private donations and bond revenues. The bond money would be expressly used for the construction and equipping this new facility. 8. That the bonds be amortized

over an extended period and that the new hospital be constructed so as not to have any funded debt at its inception. 9. That additional tax monies should never be requested from the tax payer by this community hospital for the purpose of meeting operating expenses. 10. In the event that the Murphy Medical Center, Inc., is acquired, that the board of directors be empowered to decide in the future, if the existing facilities, at the present site with renovations and additions, will ultimately best serve the interests of the citizens and if not, to proceed in the best possible manner to provide a new institution elsewhere and upon occupancy, dispose of the old facility, or operate it as an ancillary if they so deem proper and prudent, but adhering to points seven, eight and nine above. In conclusion, may I add that the language used in these recommended articles should not necessarily be held in the strictest sense inasmuch as certain questions could be brought to light by legal counsel and proper changes might be needed. It should be left with flexibilities •for those who come after us, to proceed within the basic framework. I must go on record however, of being in sympathy with some of the positions and viewpoints taken by Mrs. Murphy in the

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NUMBER 43

past as well as the present and would definitely praise her for providing the good care to the sick and injured oven the many years at reasonable costs. At the same time. I am in sympathy with several other factions of the problem which upon their initiative and action, has brought this matter to the attention of the commissioners and citizens of our community. My report, if adopted, could provide a workable solution, in my opinion, to all those groups involved here, and at the same time, not burden the, tax payers excessively nor forever. £ .Jnnly HP