MONROE — Valley General Hospital, whose history dates to the 1890s, will change its name to EvergreenHealth Monroe in March, the final step in consummating an alliance with Kirkland-based EvergreenHealth.
The two organizations first approved a partnership in 2012. The formal alliance between the two tax-supported, public hospital districts is effective March 1.
Bob Malte, chief executive of EvergreenHealth, said one of the reasons his organization was interested in an alliance with the Monroe hospital is that the community is projected to be one of the fastest-growing in the Puget Sound region.
Ties between Monroe and Kirkland have strengthened, he said, and not just due to their physical proximity. Thirty percent of EvergreenHealth’s workforce lives in Snohomish County.
In the two years since the two organizations began the partnership, Evergreen has added two primary care physicians to the medical office building on Valley General’s campus and two prenatal obstetrics physicians, Malte said.
A study is now under way to see about the possibility of restarting baby-delivery services at the Monroe hospital, he said. Valley General closed its birthing services in 2011. It also closed an in-patient psychiatric unit.
The hospital has battled financial problems for years. Last year, it asked for and received voter approval for a tax increase from 14 cents to 37 cents for each $1,000 of assessed property valuation. Approval of the tax measure “kept the hospital viable,” said Eric Jensen, the hospital’s chief executive, allowing 24-hour trauma services to continue in the emergency room, adding a pulmonary rehabilitation clinic and providing additional services at its drug and alcohol treatment center.
The tax increase also helped provide more financial stability. The hospital, which has an operating budget of $40 million, expects an operating loss of approximately $616,000 by year’s end, Jensen said. Next year, the hospital expects to have a net profit of $1.1 million, he said.
In the spring, Fairfax Hospital in Kirkland is scheduled to open a 34-bed adult psychiatric unit in the hospital. The $2.4 million unit is to offer programs for geriatric patients, dual-diagnosis patients, such as those with addiction and psychiatric problems, and patients either voluntarily or involuntarily hospitalized for psychiatric treatment.
More than $1 million in improvements are planned next year, including a new roof and replacement of some equipment, including a portable X-ray unit.
The partnership with Evergreen “stabilizes the whole health care system here,” Jensen said, and provides the opportunity for other speciality services to be added.
No money was exchanged for Valley General to join EvergreenHealth. The management agreement lasts 50 years. The governing board for EvergreenHealth Monroe will consist of two members of the EvergreenHealth board, two from the Monroe board and Malte.
The finances of the two organizations will be merged. “Ultimately, the auditors will view us as one entity,” Malte said. The Monroe hospital has 350 full- and part-time employees.
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
