Palo Verde Hospital Continues Improvements with Expanded Funding

BLYTHE (CNS) - Building upgrades and bulking up staff remain objectives in the ongoing turnaround plan for bankrupt Palo Verde Hospital in Blythe, officials said today.

"Every week, we learn something new about this hospital," Interim Hospital CEO Michelle DeArmond said Tuesday. "We brought operational expertise from the Riverside University Health System, but this hospital has its own history, its own way of doing things. The learning (has gone) both ways."

DeArmond was tapped for the executive post following the resignation in April of Sandra Anaya, who had been at the helm for 13 years, according to the Palo Verde Healthcare District.

The district said plans are afoot to modernize treatment rooms and the cardiopulmonary unit, as well as refurbish and expand the employee entrance, and install appropriate Americans with Disabilities Act signage around the edifice, located at 250 N. First St.

The process of overhauling the hospital roof and renovating the cafeteria is underway, while hundreds of boxes of decades-old documents are being removed, officials said.

In May, more than two dozen certified emergency room physicians were added to the hospital's payroll for 24-hour patient intake and treatment. However, additional slots remain unfilled, including radiology, environmental services, ultrasound and cardiopulmonary technicians, according to the
district.

Last week, an open house was held, dubbed the "180-Day Scoop," to give area residents a first-hand look at ongoing changes and answer some of their questions.

The county Board of Supervisors in February signed off on a six-month financial and technical rescue plan to bring the facility back to a sustainable condition.

The board authorized a $3.44 million allocation from the General Fund as payment to the California Department of Health Services on behalf of the healthcare district. That followed a separate $1 million General Fund disbursal directly benefiting the hospital. The money was the core of a stabilization
loan to keep the insolvent hospital afloat.

According to the district, the county's outlays enabled the district to tap into taxpayer-backed credit available under Medi-Cal totaling $9.9 million to bolster hospital operations. Afterward, the district was further awarded a $3 million state grant, which came on the heels of $1.8 million in federal relief.

A "strike team" authorized by the board and composed of RUHS medical professionals initiated a reformation on Feb. 23 intended to stabilize the hospital's emergency clinic.

Under the management services agreement between the county and PVHD, RUHS staff are implementing all necessary processes connected to the strike team support plan, with the goal of maintaining emergency operations at the cash-strapped hospital.

Without emergency services at the facility, the area's roughly 20,000 residents would lose access to "timely treatment for life-threatening conditions where minutes matter,'' according to a county statement in January. Outside of the hospital, the nearest option for emergency healthcare is more than 70 miles away.

The monetary agreement between the county and district specifies the county will have "first priority" status among the district's creditors and will not be liable for any of its debts.

Last September, the PVHD Board of Directors voted to seek federal Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection while efforts were made to stanch ongoing financial losses. Administrators noted the hospital had been struggling to remain afloat since the start of the current decade, with revenue streams withering while patient loads remained unchanged.

The California Health Facilities Financing Authority extended an $8.5 million infusion from the Distressed Hospital Program in 2023, but that turned into a short-term fix, according to the district.

Officials expressed frustration at the time about the inability to recruit a chief financial
officer who would stay the course in sorting out possible solutions. Four CFOs
came and went in an 18-month span. The possibility of a wholesale county takeover of the hospital's
emergency department has not been ruled out publicly.