The deficit is dropping, and Chatham-Kent Health Alliance brass say they’re on target to balance the books by the end of the next fiscal year.
That’s the word from Adam Topp, president and CEO of CKHA.
“We need to do better. We want to do better,” he said. “The changes that are allowing us to do that involve the continued implementation of a variety of projects.”
In the short term, Topp said CKHA administration is forecasting a deficit of about $3.8 million for the end of the 2026-27 fiscal year. That’s down by about $400,000 from initial projections.
The year prior, the deficit was $6 million, and close to $13 million the year before that. For 2027-28, the goal is to reach the balancing point.
“We are making strides in areas and managing more efficiently,” Topp said.
Those strides include steps large and small. One large step was the recent reduction of 49 positions within CKHA, done through attrition and the elimination of vacant positions.
“No individual left the organization who didn’t want to leave the organization. There may have been some who took early retirement. That process was one of bumping,” Topp said.
The reduction process was completed Sept. 6.
“We worked very, very hard to make sure we found a place for anyone who was affected by those changes,” Topp said.
In terms of small steps, one area Topp highlighted while speaking to local reporters was the management of bed sores – more specifically how they are treated.
“Patients get pressure ulcers if they don’t move around enough. Minimizing or eliminating those is one of the goals for quality of care,” he said. “To do that, you need specialty bed surfaces just to change the pressure on the body on the mattress.”
Such beds are expensive, Topp added, and many hospitals will instead rent them as needed, which is what CKHA has done to augment supply when needed.
However, he said they have not rented such a bed since May, as hospital personnel have improved how they manage and maintain the ones they do own.
Savings amount to about $20,000 a month.
Another area of small-step savings is the switch of who handles just-in-time medication warehousing for CKHA.
Topp estimated savings will be about $100,000.
