Thank you for writing about what is happening to rural healthcare. I wish this legislature and this governor would write legislation that deals with the future of our state instead of focusing on these dangerously silly culture issues that cause many more problems than they will ever solve.
So true! What are our priorities? How can we act to improve life for the greatest number of Iowans? The approach seems to be quick, easy fixes that address non-existent problems. Thank you.
This is a sobering analysis, which, as a recently retired physician and longtime advocate for better rural health, comes as no surprise. Thank you for laying this out so coherently. I wish our local state senator and representative would read this and comment in public, as would our governor, whom I am now convinced is infatuated with power and cares not a whit about this state. (BTW I live only a few miles away from you.)
Thanks, Diana. I appreciate your perspective and expertise in this arena. I haven't received a single response from Rep. Phil Thompson (regarding any topic) since he was elected. Concentrating power seems to be the overriding concern of our governor. (I do recognize your name.) Thanks again!
Great post, great information. I recently read that Iowa is the only state in which the number of cases of cancer is increasing. Yet the legislature is doing nothing to address that. There are lots of challenges to life in rural Iowa as the population in many counties continues to age and decline in number.
This is an excellent, knowledgeable exploration of rural hospital survival; however a poor selection of an example: if 1.5/day inpatients (licensed for 49!) and 24 outpatient visits/day is accurate in a town with nearly 10,000 residents then this facility is moribund and should be put to sleep.
Obviously residents are electing to go elsewhere for care (Fort Madison is 30 minutes to the north and Quincy, IL is less than an hour to the south). Whether this is due to community reputational disaster or administrative mismanagement is moot and the residents are voting with their feet.
I suspect a major factor is a lack of medical professionals to staff the facility and parade through patients from which competent administration can extract fees for lab, imaging and surgical services to keep the hospital afloat. Particularly crucial are the surgeons, in residence or visiting, which are the facility's bread and butter.
Resuscitation is possible--after all, the buildings still stand and I don't see online a competing organization. But this would require recruitment of a competent and complementary physician staff and a new adminstration, both of which would require some start-up funding. Given the size of the community this will likely happen at some point.
Thank you for the excellent review of rural hospital situations and available and evolving support.
Thank you, Bob. The REH designation may well be the best possible outcome for the hospital in Keokuk. You're right that it does appear that community support was lacking. No doubt, as you point out, that surgeons can make or break such a facility. Thank you for contributing your insights and expertise!
Yes. In fact, the current leadership seems to not respect any advice from healthcare professionals, going against scientific studies on mask wearing for example, ignoring carcinogens, and of course being contrary to advice from the AMA concerning legal abortion. I one time wrote Joni Ernst because she was accusing doctors of infanticide. I asked her to consult with national groups to get the facts because she was making a dangerous climate for doctors. Instead, I got a form letter in reply accusing doctors of infanticide. (She also accused hospitals of making extra money from covid.) Besides having few doctors, Iowa hospitals have scant security for their healthcare professionals while subjecting them to hostility.
Thanks, Cathy, for adding your perspective. An anti-elite/anti-intellectual bias is playing a role in so many of our issues today. It's unfortunate that Sen. Ernst seems to feel a need to pander to the base.
Thank you for writing about what is happening to rural healthcare. I wish this legislature and this governor would write legislation that deals with the future of our state instead of focusing on these dangerously silly culture issues that cause many more problems than they will ever solve.
So true! What are our priorities? How can we act to improve life for the greatest number of Iowans? The approach seems to be quick, easy fixes that address non-existent problems. Thank you.
This is a sobering analysis, which, as a recently retired physician and longtime advocate for better rural health, comes as no surprise. Thank you for laying this out so coherently. I wish our local state senator and representative would read this and comment in public, as would our governor, whom I am now convinced is infatuated with power and cares not a whit about this state. (BTW I live only a few miles away from you.)
Thanks, Diana. I appreciate your perspective and expertise in this arena. I haven't received a single response from Rep. Phil Thompson (regarding any topic) since he was elected. Concentrating power seems to be the overriding concern of our governor. (I do recognize your name.) Thanks again!
Great post, great information. I recently read that Iowa is the only state in which the number of cases of cancer is increasing. Yet the legislature is doing nothing to address that. There are lots of challenges to life in rural Iowa as the population in many counties continues to age and decline in number.
Thanks, John. I would like to dig into those cancer statistics sometime. The declining demographics definitely are diminishing quality of life.
This is an excellent, knowledgeable exploration of rural hospital survival; however a poor selection of an example: if 1.5/day inpatients (licensed for 49!) and 24 outpatient visits/day is accurate in a town with nearly 10,000 residents then this facility is moribund and should be put to sleep.
Obviously residents are electing to go elsewhere for care (Fort Madison is 30 minutes to the north and Quincy, IL is less than an hour to the south). Whether this is due to community reputational disaster or administrative mismanagement is moot and the residents are voting with their feet.
I suspect a major factor is a lack of medical professionals to staff the facility and parade through patients from which competent administration can extract fees for lab, imaging and surgical services to keep the hospital afloat. Particularly crucial are the surgeons, in residence or visiting, which are the facility's bread and butter.
Resuscitation is possible--after all, the buildings still stand and I don't see online a competing organization. But this would require recruitment of a competent and complementary physician staff and a new adminstration, both of which would require some start-up funding. Given the size of the community this will likely happen at some point.
Thank you for the excellent review of rural hospital situations and available and evolving support.
Thank you, Bob. The REH designation may well be the best possible outcome for the hospital in Keokuk. You're right that it does appear that community support was lacking. No doubt, as you point out, that surgeons can make or break such a facility. Thank you for contributing your insights and expertise!
Yes. In fact, the current leadership seems to not respect any advice from healthcare professionals, going against scientific studies on mask wearing for example, ignoring carcinogens, and of course being contrary to advice from the AMA concerning legal abortion. I one time wrote Joni Ernst because she was accusing doctors of infanticide. I asked her to consult with national groups to get the facts because she was making a dangerous climate for doctors. Instead, I got a form letter in reply accusing doctors of infanticide. (She also accused hospitals of making extra money from covid.) Besides having few doctors, Iowa hospitals have scant security for their healthcare professionals while subjecting them to hostility.
Thanks, Cathy, for adding your perspective. An anti-elite/anti-intellectual bias is playing a role in so many of our issues today. It's unfortunate that Sen. Ernst seems to feel a need to pander to the base.