Why does Logan County Health Services need a new building?
There are several issues with the existing building including an outdated and deteriorating infrastructure, lack of fire suppression systems, and the building is not fully connected to generator power. There is a lack of space in many parts of the building including the clinic, radiology, laboratory, and surgery departments. There is no dedicated space in which to provide access to specialists. The building hampers the ability to provide dignity while caring for patients. The bathrooms in the patient rooms are 22 square feet making use of the toilet and shower with an assistive device difficult, if not impossible. There are also issues with accessibility, efficiency and privacy throughout the building.
The new hospital will be built on site and wrap around the existing Rehabilitation and Wellness Center. Much of the existing hospital will be torn down. The Rehabilitation and Wellness Center will remain where it is. The Logan County Health Department and New Frontiers Health Services will remain and be renovated and repurposed for the Logan County Health Department. The Independent Living apartments will remain in the current location and additional space will be added to the apartments for dining and activities.
The Logan County Health Department will be included in the new building plans. The current health department and New Frontiers Health Services building will be renovated and refaced to meet the needs of the health department. The Logan County Health Department currently operates in a 1500 sq. ft. space. This is much less than the space needed to serve the needs of the health department. Adding the clinic space will increase the usable area to 4200 sq. ft. This also ensures the health department will have generator power to protect vaccines when electrical power is lost.
Several things have changed since the building project was first proposed. The size of the latest hospital plan is 10,000 square feet smaller than the original building proposal. This helps the building fit in the existing space and provide for necessary parking. Those were both issues with original plans if built on site. Also, keeping the building on site created potential issues with future expansion. With the new proposal, the architects have developed some creative solutions for future expansion. Building on site will still create some challenges including working around existing structures, extended construction time, and parking issues during construction.
This project is estimated to cost $44.9 million. This includes the cost of construction, demolition, furnishings, fixtures, equipment and parking.
This project will be funded with hospital funds, sales tax and property tax. The hospital will pay for 53.5% of the project with funds received from Medicare and other hospital monies. Since Medicare pays critical access hospitals a portion of expenses to care for Medicare patients, this increased reimbursement will be used to help pay for the project. Approximately 25% of the project will be paid with county sales tax. Although the ballot question calls for 1% county sales tax, the sales tax rate will go from the current rate of 8.5% to 9%. This is due to the current ½% county sales tax that will no longer be used for the Rehabilitation and Wellness Center. The remaining amount would be covered with 8.75 mills in property tax.
See Property Tax section below to help determine individual property tax impact.
A lot has changed over the last four years with inflation and supply chain issues. This has impacted the overall cost of the project significantly and made it impossible for LCHS to fund the entire project. LCHS has worked hard to decrease cost and minimize the impact to tax payers by contributing as much money to the project as possible, significantly decreasing the size of the project, making changes to the proposed HVAC system, and keeping the space currently occupied by the health department and clinic.
Logan County Health Services will have a question on the ballot on November 5th. The ballot question will allow Logan County to vote on a new hospital that would be built at the current hospital location. The new hospital would be built around the existing Rehabilitation and Wellness Center and would include a new clinic, space for specialty services and updated space for the Logan County Health Department.
The $44,900,000 project would be paid for with a combination of hospital funds, county sales tax and property tax. The hospital would pay for over 53% of the project minimizing the impact to tax payers. Sales tax would increase the current sales tax rate by ½% and would pay for approximately 24% of the project. Property tax would involve a mill levy of 8.75 and pay for just under 22% of the project.
In order for the project to move forward, a majority of Logan County voters must vote yes on the ballot question related to the project. Logan County Health Services is working to educate Logan County on the project through several means including providing answers to frequently asked questions, posting information on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Be sure to subscribe, like or follow our social media pages. LCHS leadership invites you to reach out and schedule individual and group conversations. Please contact us at 785-672-1333.
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9/9/2024
I began my career at Logan County Hospital as a registered nurse 23 years ago. During that time, there have been a lot of changes. One thing that has not changed is the desire to care for the people in this community of Logan County and all those who come through our doors. This was a concept that did not start with me, or the leaders in the building today. It is evidenced by the fact that for decades, the hospital has managed public transportation and apartments for the elderly in addition to providing clinic and hospital services. Over the years, there have been many changes (too numerous to entirely list) to continue toward the pursuit of this goal. Some examples include, expansion of patient services to include surgery and
specialist care, adding the Wellness and Rehabilitation Center, and providing more outreach services such as providing meals to the Senior Center and participating in the Moving to Live Program.
LCHS staff works hard to provide compassionate care. We love to be here when people need us. We work hard to bring people home for their care, help them heal, and sometimes keep them comfortable as they pass into the next life. Those we care for are our family, friends, and neighbors and we yearn to care for them in more and better ways. We believe this is best accomplished through building a new hospital. While we continually strive to move forward, do more and be better in caring for you, the current building poses challenges. First, there are concerns directly related to the age of the building including an outdated and decaying infrastructure and lack of fire suppression systems. While the infrastructure does not directly impact our ability to care for the community, it jeopardizes the future of the building and our long-term ability to provide care. Second, we are running out of space in many parts of the building including the clinic, radiology, laboratory, and surgery departments. We also have no dedicated space in which to provide access to specialists.
Third, and perhaps most importantly, the building hampers our ability to provide dignity to our patients while providing care. The bathrooms in the patient rooms are 22 square feet, well below current code requirements. This often leaves the bathroom useless to patients, especially if the patient requires the use of a walker, wheelchair or lift. It means patients must be transported down the hall for showers (often on a rolling commode). The emergency room hallway is the main thoroughfare for the building, which makes it difficult to keep patients and their families from feeling as if they are not on display when tragic things happen. It is hard to access rooms in the clinic with a wheelchair and the rooms are not as sound proof as one would like for privacy. These are just a few examples of the ways in which the building is not optimal to providing the kind of care this community deserves.
Original plans for a new hospital started about 4 years ago. Although those plans have changed significantly, we are excited to finally be in a position to present these plans to you all. We have listened to concerns about location, safety, and cost. Our dedication has been to find a way to serve the healthcare needs of Logan County in the most responsible way possible. The hospital Board of Directors and organization leadership recognize that part of caring for the community includes being fiscally responsible. The economic impact of the hospital is not just measured by the amount the community pays to keep it going. Hospitals are an important part of keeping communities economically viable. Economic health is an additional way in which we strive to care for the
community.
As we move toward election day in November, I look forward to conversations with as many people as possible to discuss the hospital project. I want to make sure questions are answered and people understand the impact this project will have on individuals and the community as a whole.
Respectfully,
Aimee Zimmerman, CEO
Logan County Health Services
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