In the 12 months ending Fiscal Year 2014, Clarendon Memorial Hospital finished with a $655,655 profit, Chief Financial Officer John Shaughnessy reported to the Board of Trustees during Tuesday night's board meeting.
Shaughnessy's statement was greeted with hearty applause; also attending the board meeting were Rep. Bobby Ridgeway, Sen. Kevin Johnson and Council Chairman Dwight Stewart.
Shaughnessy said the financial turnaround represents a $5.6 "profitability swing" from Fiscal Year 2013 to FY 2014.
Half of the savings were attributed to collecting more money through the clinical documentation integrity program, bringing medical coding back in house, monitoring the case mix index and managing length of stay.
"Obviously we've seen results," he said.
Other funds identified as boosting the bottom line included CMH getting an additional $2.5 million from a $20 million fund Gov. Haley set aside for rural hospitals; an additional $600,000 in "DISH" (disproportionate share of hospitals that see more Medicare and Medicaid patients) money, he said.
Board Chairman Don Ellis credited the work of Chief Executive Officer Richard Stokes, who was not at the board meeting due to a death in the family. Ellis also told the board that Stokes takes the view that all employees are responsible for the turnaround.
"It's major," Ellis said - the turnaround they've done."
"We've still got a long way to go," Shaughnessy said.
