Kathy Silver worked at UMC from 1988-1994, then returned in 2001, handling managed care and business development (negotiating contracts with Cigna, Aetna and the Culinary Union, among others). Tapped as interim CEO in January 2007, she assumed the CEO’s job last month. Silver chatted with the Weekly about her new gig.
What are your top priorities for the public hospital?
To increase our efficiency and reduce our reliance on the county for money. We want to increase the amount of patients who have elective processes here, meaning they choose us over another facility.
If I’m hurt, and the nearest hospital is, say, Spring Valley Hospital, why would I want to go to UMC?
If it’s an emergency situation, you’ll be taken to the nearest place. But we need to give patients a reason to come here.
Assess the impact of negative headlines (indicted former CEO Lacy Thomas’ firing, huge financial losses, criminal probes into business dealings and theft) on UMC’s image.
Morale was down. From the hospital’s perspective, we kept working. We’re focused on the future.
How is it that the losses ($56 million in 2007) didn’t compromise patient care?
These were accounting losses. Losing money didn’t mean that doctors weren’t getting paid or that we couldn’t pay for supplies or services.
What preventative procedures are being put in place?
The county’s chief financial officer, George Stevens, is our chief financial officer. The problem wasn’t the losses, it was that the board was surprised by them. Accountability and transparency will be my hallmarks.
Is a public-private partnership off the table?
It’s not. We’re already working with the Nevada Cancer Institute, and that’s paying off. UMC was never expected to make money. We will deliver $106 million in care that is not paid for this year. And yet we expect to reduce operating losses by 15 percent, to $46 million this year.
Lastly, can an insider be entrusted with reform?
I’m of the school of thought that it’s helpful to have an understanding of the community, the hospital and the challenges facing the hospital.