SUMMARY MINUTES
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY HOSPITAL DISTRICT
REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING
County Commissioner Chambers/ Zoom
April 15, 2021 at 4:00 PM
TRUSTEES: Marybeth Cunningham Allen Jones
Ann Marie McCrystal Michael Weiss
Barb Bodnar Karen Deigl
Kerry Bartlett
STAFF: Kate Voss Jennifer Frederick
Jennifer Peshke, Esq. Ann Marie Suriano
Convene Meeting – Marybeth Cunningham, Chair
Ms. Cunningham convened the regular monthly meeting of the IRCHD at 4:00 PM by welcoming those in attendance and via Zoom.
Pastor Sempsrott provided an invocation and Dr. Weiss led the group in the pledge of allegiance.
Consent Agenda- Marybeth Cunningham, Chair
Mrs. Cunningham asked for a motion to approve the chairman’s meeting minutes dated March 17th, regular monthly meeting minutes dated March 18th, and a monthly disbursement of $1,248,722.18. Mrs. McCrystal made the motion to approve, which was seconded by Dr. Weiss. The motion carried unanimously.
District Chairwoman Report- Marybeth Cunningham, Chair
Mrs. Cunningham welcomed Ms. Bartlett as the newest District Trustee. She stated that the board looks forward to working with her over the next few years.
District Counsel Report – Jennifer Peshke, Esq.
Mrs. Peshke provided her district counsel report and stated that she has responded to questions from Trustees as they have arisen pertaining to various matters of the District. She also continues to review the annual deadlines and deliverables due to the District under the Lease with CCIRH. She is actively following the current legislative session for bills related to Special Districts. Lastly, she has worked with Mrs. Suriano as well as Ms. Bartlett to conduct a new Trustee Orientation and has shared with her the recent presentations given to the board regarding Conflict of Interest, and Robert’s Rules of Order.
Financial Statement Review- Allen Jones, Treasurer
Mr. Jones provided his treasurer’s report and stated there is approximately $12.7 million in cash and investments in the District’s accounts at of the end of March. The District expects to receive an additional $900,000 in tax revenues by the end of the fiscal year. Total expenses budgeted for the remainder of the year project to about $6.7 million of which $6.3 million is for approved healthcare programs. The remaining balance is for administrative and other operating expenses. Mr. Jones explained that after the approval of $1.2 million in expense for March, the District will have around $11.6 million in cash and investments. Lastly, he explained that the District investment structure with Water Walker has changed slightly. In the past, District funds went temporarily into a Qualified Public Deposit program and then shifted into a FDIC insurance CD as soon as practicable. This method has become impractical and banks no longer have much demand for deposits. The result is banks have much less desire for CDs of any kind of competitive interest rates. Therefore, about 2/3’s of the District funds are now sitting in Qualified Public Deposit accounts yielding about .25% in interest. Mr. Jones explained that the Qualified Deposit pools are authorized by Section 280 of Florida Statutes. These funds are not FDIC guaranteed but are in deposits deemed safe by the state and appropriate for public funds deposits. Therefore, the District’s interest income will be down this year as expected and predicted. The funds in the Qualified Public Deposit pool are basically the same as if the District deposited sums greater than FDIC limits in a local bank, so the funds are safe.
Executive Director Report- Ann Marie Suriano, Executive Director
Mrs. Suriano stated that the Alma Lee Loy memorial garden at the hospital has been completed and she showed pictures of the garden and memorial plaque that the District purchased in her honor. On April 10th a small ceremony was held at the garden, with a few hospital executives, and Mrs. Cunningham, as well as some family members of Alma Lee. Additionally, Mrs. Suriano discussed pending Senate bill 1624 and House bill 1103, currently being considered during this Florida legislative session. It appears that the those bills relative to Special District accountability have a good chance of being adopted and it will directly affect our District. She will keep the Trustees updated on this matter moving forward.
CCIRH Maternal Fetal Medicine Introduction and Update- Jeff Chapa, M.D.
Dr. Chapa addressed the board via Zoom and provided a brief introduction of his medical credentials and career. Currently Dr. Chapa is working for Cleveland Clinic Ohio and spends one week a month in Florida providing Maternal Fetal Medicine (“MFM”) care in Stuart and Vero Beach for Cleveland Clinic Florida. He explained MFM and provided a PowerPoint outlining the same. He discussed trends within this service line and the objectives they strive to meet through this specialty care. He further discussed the plans for future growth within this service line with plans to expand the NICU to a level three facility, as well as the integration of women and children’s healthcare. Dr. Chapa also discussed the risk factors with patients who receive MFM care, which include obesity and hypertension, along with substance abuse. Dr. Chapa stated that he plans to expand his time in Florida and will be providing additional support with MFM services in this area. He also currently participates in telehealth medicine with patients and is able to review ultrasounds virtually as well. The Trustees thanked Dr. Chapa for his work and look forward to hearing more from him on the future of MFM in the area.
Funded Agencies Semi Annual Report-
Mental Health Collaborative- Brett Hall, Executive Director
Mr. Hall provided the Trustees with an update concerning the Mental Health Collaborative and the McCabe Connections Center. He reviewed the performance metrics and preventative measures that the Collaborative is working on to better serve the clients in the county. He stated that the Collaborative has a therapist meeting every two weeks, which provides local area therapists an opportunity to discuss challenges they are facing within their profession as well as the influx of mental health needs due to COVID-19. Additionally, they discussed the trend of providing telehealth therapy and how to provide the same standard of care, in a virtual setting. The Collaborative also created an unmet needs committee to help work with the United Way and the task of providing CARES Act funding to those community agencies who have applied. Their biggest success has been working with long term care facilities and providing therapy to residents who have been isolated due to COVID-19. They are currently working with five facilities in the county and have provided a therapist to provide therapy services to the residents. He further discussed the additional training sessions they have provided to area therapists in additional mental health areas of service.
Senior Collaborative- Randy Riley, Executive Director
Mr. Riley addressed the board and provided a PowerPoint presentation with an update concerning the Senior Collaborative. He reviewed some successes that the collaborative has experienced over the last 6 months, which included the inception of a telephone assessment and referral system. This system provides individuals with information to local healthcare providers as well as information on assistance to access to the COVID-19 vaccine. He then introduced Ms. Abby Walters who is the Chair of Livable Indian River. She discussed the Health Needs Assessment that was conducted to address the needs of residents 55 and older. With the help of TCCH, they were able to distribute and receive responses to 1,200 surveys. Additionally, Mr. Riley stated that the collaborative has completed an update to its strategic plan and created three new subcommittees to focus on marketing; sustainability; and a connection center task force. He further discussed each initiative that the subcommittees were working on in detail. He also provided a walkthrough of their new website which includes a database that provides users with information on medical providers, community activities, and much more. Lastly, he discussed the Collaborative’s efforts with the Connection Center Task Force. The Connections Center would be a facility for seniors, family members and caregivers to access information and referrals for senior services. The discussions on this matter are in the beginning stages and he estimates that it will be a two year process to bring the project to fruition. Ms. Deigl stated that she has worked closely with Mr. Riley and serves on the Connections Center task force. She thanked him for his efforts and support of the senior community in Indian River County.
Phoenix Rising- Pedro Barnaby, CEO
Mr. Barnaby provided a review of Phoenix Rising for the period of October 1, 2020 through March 31, 2021. He reviewed the number of screenings conducted on prospective clients and stated that they made 103 referrals to other community organizations for clients to receive substance abuse and mental health services. Additionally, 25 clients have completed at least one level of care over the last 6 months. He further reviewed patient satisfaction data and outcome measures for the intensive out patient program and partial hospitalization program. Additionally, he discussed the center’s work with the non-profit organization Team Success. He stated that they also work collaboratively with TCCH and Mental Health Association in getting their clients primary and behavioral health services during and after their treatment at Phoenix Rising. Lastly, he stated that Phoenix Rising has received accreditation from the Joint Commission, which is a success.
New Business- Partners in Women’s Health Budget Deficit Request- Warren Fuller, CFO and Charles Mackett III, MD, Chief of Staff
Dr. Mackett addressed the board and stated that Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital is requesting financial funding from the District for the Partners in Women’s health budget deficit in the amount of $300,000. He explained that the Partners program experienced significant patient volume reductions due to COVID-19. Patients were reluctant to seek services due to the pandemic and either delayed services or chose to cancel scheduled appointments or procedures. He notes that patient revenue is projected to be $306,00 below budget for fiscal year 20-21. Mr. Fuller discussed further the request and also spoke to next year’s Partner’s budget. The Trustees questioned whether they felt their request for fiscal year 21-22 was sufficient to support the program. Mr. Fuller indicated that they are not comfortable with the amount of their request for next fiscal year and are hopeful that volumes will increase to offset any shortfalls they may experience. Mrs. Cunningham asked for a motion to approve the request for funding. Mr. Jones made the motion which was seconded by Mrs. McCrystal. The motion carried unanimously.
Public Comment/Adjourn
There was no public comment and the meeting was adjourned at 5:30 PM
