One year in, Health Center ‘on target’

Tue, 02/05/2019 - 1:00pm

When Boothbay Region Health Care, Inc. held annual and monthly board meetings Jan. 28, directors of the organization that operates its Boothbay Region Health Center in the Meadow Mall at 185 Townsend Ave., reviewed a 2018 profit and loss report and the projected budget for 2019.

Board president Patty Seybold reported, “We’re on target and we met our plan,” but cautioned that the numbers were preliminary and needed a final OK from the organization’s accountant.

Numbers show Q4, 2018 medical revenues at an 800 percent increase over Q1 of the same year. Quarter-to-quarter growth was impressive following an initial bump of 500 percent from Q1 to Q2 and revenues grew steadily at an average of 200 percent per quarter through the rest  of the year.

Despite the seasonal nature of area business, Q4 medical revenues exceeded those of the summer months. Practice manager Lynn Thompson told the board the practice has grown to 1200 patients from its initial 776 when the Center opened. “We’ve never had this many patients in the winter,” she said.

In addition to medical revenues, income was derived from grants, donations and events. A $100,000 grant was received from the Mildred H. McEvoy Foundation and will be received in $25,000 increments over four years to provide medical and therapeutic treatment to those suffering from opioid addiction. An anonymous donation of $100,000 helped boost matching donations from the community. Fundraising efforts were “close to target,” according to Seybold and off projections by only $20,000.

In a round table wrap up, directors spoke about the organization’s accomplishments during 2018. “We put in place the model of care we intended,” Seybold said. This includes spending as much time as patients need with the medical staff, the ability to recognize symptoms for – in some cases – unusual diseases and having care available to walk-ins.

During 2019, the Health Center will also offer a semi-monthly onsite health clinic at Bigelow Laboratories, chronic care management, and opioid substance misuse treatment. The Fit Flexible and Strong wellness program for area seniors is continuing into 2019.

Liz Lussier, who has been with the organization since 2015, was unanimously elected to another term on the board.

After completing the annual meeting, the directors conducted the monthly board meeting. Seybold was re-elected president, Lussier was re-elected secretary/treasurer and Carl Hamrin was re-elected vice president of Boothbay Region Health Care, Inc.