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NEWS
Cabell Huntington cuts 40 jobs
The north tower of Cabell Huntington Hospital on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2007. The new ICU will be opening Thursday.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON -- A troubled economy was among the factors contributing to the elimination of 40 jobs at Cabell Huntington Hospital on Tuesday, according to hospital officials.
The cuts to mostly supervisory and management personnel are a result of a wide-ranging expense reduction plan at the hospital, according to Brent A. Marsteller, president and chief executive officer of Cabell Huntington Hospital.
The plan is a result of the recent economic downturn, unstable financial markets, declining reimbursements and rising costs, according to a prepared statement from Cabell Huntington Hospital.
"The economy has been bad for everybody," Marsteller said.
The announcement is one in a series of similar moves by area companies. AK Steel in Ashland, Ky., laid off more than 600 steelworkers last November. The plant called 48 of the workers back to work this week, and more may return. The Toyota plant in Buffalo announced in November it would cut 120 temporary workers by the end of January 2009. Steel of West Virginia in Huntington also laid off 65 workers late last year.
Marsteller said the cuts at Cabell Huntington affect employees from departments throughout the hospital, but will not hurt direct patient care. The hospital is one of the top three employers in Cabell County, along with St. Mary's Medical Center and Marshall University, according to the Huntington Area Development Council. Cabell Huntington Hospital employs more than 2,000 people. Marsteller said no other jobs are currently in jeopardy.
Marsteller said the notification to employees, which began Tuesday morning and continued through the afternoon, came as a shock and disappointment to many of those let go.
"It's a tough thing to do. You do this with a lot of empathy and forethought," he said.
Talk of job reductions began taking place a couple of months ago, Marsteller said. All of the employees affected will receive severance packages and job placement assistance. Details of severance packages will remain private, according to Charles Shumaker, media relations manager.
While hospitals in the past have largely been unaffected by faltering economies, Marsteller said Cabell Huntington Hospital has been hurt. He said the hospital is seeing a decrease in investment income; an increase in uninsured or underinsured patients for which the hospital compensation; and rising costs.
"Our attempt is to flatten the organization," he said, adding that fewer layers of management will improve patient care and cut costs.
Marsteller said the cuts at Cabell Huntington are part of a larger plan to reduce expenses, including looking at ways to cut supply costs. Currently, he said the organization faces rising costs for medical supplies and pharmaceuticals, double-digit increases in employee benefit costs and declining or fixed reimbursement from payor sources.
In fiscal year 2008, the hospital opened its North Patient Tower and assumed more than $100 million in new debt, according to the news release. That same year, the hospital provided the community with more than $45 million worth of uncompensated and charity care because of the growing number of people who are uninsured or underinsured.
While some jobs are being eliminated, the hospital will continue to grow and hire in other areas, Marsteller said.
He said the hospital continues to grow in patient volume, revenue, physicians and services. The decision to cut jobs is "one of looking ahead and preparing ourselves to keep growing," he said.
Projects such as the opening of an additional nursing unit and the creation of a children's hospital remain "on target," he said. Plans for a children's hospital were announced last year, and the fundraising campaign will be conducted through June 2011.
"Our hearts go out to these employees and their family members, but these changes are necessary for our hospital to remain strongly positioned to fulfill its mission of caring for the community and providing leading-edge medical care," Marsteller said.
He said the cuts will increase the workload of other managers and some services will be consolidated, but direct patient care will not suffer.
Marsteller said he knew of no other layoff in the hospital's history. He's been with Cabell Huntington since 2000.
St. Mary's Medical Center has no current plans to cut jobs, according to Doug Korstanje, director of marketing and community relations at St. Mary's.
"We have no plans for layoffs. We're in a really sound financial position right now," he said.
Korstanje acknowledged that people with investments in general in the last year are likely watching the financial markets very closely, but he said there is nothing right now to worry the hospital.
