Salem Township Hospital President Alex Nazarian says the hospital is currently seeking a new Chief Financial Officer and adding a second general surgeon.
Nazarian says CFO Carolyn Davies has left the hospital to take another position in the St. Louis area. He reports a search is underway for a replacement.
Nazarian says after reviewing the number of general surgeries being completed at the hospital, he found enough volume to justify adding a second general surgeon. He has already talked to two candidates, but didn’t feel they would fit with the hospital’s needs and is currently seeking another interested surgeon.
Meanwhile, the hospital’s new general surgeon Dr. Kevin Claffey is preparing to replace Dr. Josh Knolhoff who has resigned to leave the area.
Nazarian reported the hospital had a net income of $505,000 in January on revenue of $ 3.7 million over budget. He says steep discounts by insurers, Medicaid and Medicare cuts deeply into the initial revenue projected. The hospital also faces higher costs with additional volume.
The number of inpatients at the hospital dropped from 158 last January to just 106 this year, the lowest level this fiscal year. The drop in number of COVID cases could be part of the reason. Nazarian says last year they completed 2,266 COVID-19 tests compared to just 683 this January. The positivity rate has dropped from 33 percent to just 5.4 percent.
Nazarian announced the sign design for the new electronic signs for the main hospital entrance off Route 37 at Spillway Road and in front of the Whitaker Street Family Medical Center was complete and construction would soon be underway.
