The Basin Clinic Board of Directors held their regular monthly meeting on Oct. 20.
Executive Director Christina Pierce told the board she has been scheduling temporary providers to cover vacancies at the clinic in the coming weeks. She confirmed that most of November is covered.
Pierce said she would be meeting with recruiters that have been searching for a full-time provider for the clinic soon, and said she would emphasize the urgency to find someone to fill the role.
The board discussed the upcoming Montrose Board of County Commissioners' budget reviews. Pierce said the Basin Clinic had been “penciled in” for the same amount of money as last year.
A board member asked if commissioners were aware that a lack of funding from the county to the Basin Clinic directly led to the board pursuing a health services district.
“I can write a letter since they're all new and don’t know the history,” said Pierce.
Board president Chris Daniels agreed. “They’re not aware of the history … commissioners thought we were a drain,” said Daniels.
Pierce added that she would ask if commissioners will be holding public budget meetings in the West End, as board members noted that last year’s public budget meetings took place only in Montrose.
Pierce reminded the board of an upcoming meeting with the public on Oct. 26 to discuss the election, at which voters will decide whether or not to pass a 20-mill levy to fund the formation of a health services district and eventually construct a critical access hospital.
(Please see last week’s Forum for a discussion of those measures, 6A and 6B. )
Pierce said the clinic received a preliminary award for a grant of $600,000. She said half of the funds are designated for incentive payments, and the other half are designated to support telehealth. She said she will be reviewing her plan for the funds with the grantor in November to adjust it as needed.
Pierce added that a different grant had been awarded by the Rocky Mountain Health Foundation to help offset costs of hiring temporary providers and the cost of searching for a candidate to permanently fill the role.
Pierce told the board that staff of U.S. Senator Michael Bennet recently contacted her. She said one of Bennet’s representatives visited the clinic, adding that Bennet has a strong interest in rural health care.
During the board’s review of their governing policy, Pierce said she would like to get a succession plan into place so the clinic can keep running smoothly in the event that she is unable to fulfil her role. She said she has a plan, but acknowledged that it still needs to be written and documented.
The Basin Clinic’s Board of Directors is currently made up of Chris Daniels, Lorraine Garvey, Ruth Reams, Peggy Case, Don Colcord, Randi Latham and Bob Ralph.
Board meetings are public and take place on the third Tuesday of every month. Meetings begin at 5:30 p.m. at Hopkins Field, Nucla's airport, or over Zoom. The next monthly meeting will take place on Nov. 17.
