EDMONDS – Stevens Hospital, Snohomish County’s largest taxpayer-supported hospital, made an overall profit of $1.6 million last year, the first time since 2002 the Edmonds hospital has not lost money.
The announcement was made this week by auditors from KPMG, the auditing firm that just completed an annual report reviewing the hospital’s finances.
Hospital officials called the profit a strong indicator of the organization’s growing financial strength.
“We’re showing great results, but those are just the first steps,” said Fred Langer, president of the five-member hospital board. He said he hoped the hospital could double its profits over the next three to five years.
The money would be used to pay for new equipment and improve facilities, hospital officials said.
The overall profit reported for 2006 contrasts with a loss of $889,000 in 2005. The hospital worked hard to save money by streamlining its operations. In May, it cut about 90 positions after losses reached $765,000 during the first two months of 2006.
The hospital is off to a strong financial start during the first three months of this year, showing a profit of $1.5 million, said Gary Wangsmo, the hospital’s chief financial officer.
The hospital will spend $4.2 million on improvements this year, including $600,000 for new patient monitoring equipment and $300,000 to replace 13 beds in its intensive care unit, said hospital spokeswoman Beth Engel.
Plans also call for painting the buildings on the hospital’s campus this year.
Other indicators of the hospital’s continuing financial health include a nearly 10 percent upswing in the number of surgeries conducted during the first three months of this year compared to the same period last year. This year, 1,439 surgeries were conducted, compared to the 1,310 surgeries conducted during the first quarter of last year, Wangsmo said.
The number of patients admitted to the hospital so far this year has also grown 9.1 percent over the same period last year, rising from 1,872 in 2006 to 2,042 this year, he said.
A copy of the 2006 audit report is posted on the hospital’s Web site, www.stevens healthcare.org.
Reporter Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com.
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