WARREN, Ark. (9/25/25) – The Bradley County Medical Center Board of Directors met Thursday, Sept. 25 in the hospital’s conference room for its monthly meeting with the budget for the upcoming fiscal year, financial reports, and executive updates among the subjects covered.
Minutes from the August meeting were approved first before transitioning to Controller Matt Pace’s financial report. Pace informed the board that patient days were down, but physical therapy, senior care, and home health remained steady. The gross patient revenue for August totaled $3,372,473, while the net operating revenue came in at $1,346,907. The hospital recorded a net income of $2,141,102 and cash increased substantially due to receiving the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. There was $118,071.66 in sales tax collected to bring the sales tax fund to $5,562,301.79.
CEO/CFO Lesie Huitt began her segment with concerns about the One Big Beautiful Bill Act funding. She has heard a few different things on how that money will be distributed, but at this point she is not hopeful rural hospitals will receive any of the funds. This led to what she had stated in previous meetings that rural hospitals will have to work together to survive if they wish to remain independent.
Huitt continued with concerns about volumes being down across most service lines. This month she has conducted budget meetings with managers and touched on volumes being down with each of them. The hospital isn’t keeping patients as long, which explains some of the decline in acute and observation days. Some of it may be due to the public not knowing exactly what services the hospital provides so there will be some marketing efforts to hopefully bridge that gap.
Cash collection and cash decrease continue to be Huitt’s biggest concerns. Income from operations continues to struggle even while year-to-date expenses are down close to 4% compared to last year. She concluded with an update on Dr. Russell Gregory at the BCMC Rural Health Clinic. His daily visits are good to have just started, and he has the Hermitage Fall Festival, BCEDC, and another open house at the clinic on his schedule to help market his services.
Chief Nursing Officer Jamie Wolfe began with praise for the Senior Care Department. They have had some tough patients lately and have done a great job with them. Additionally, Wolfe said the hospital staff have been very complimentary of Dr. Gregory in the interactions they’ve had with him. Wolfe finished by letting the board know the clinic providers are very happy with the new DAX Copilot solution recently purchased through grant funds. DAX Copilot is an AI-powered, voice-enabled solution that automatically documents patient encounters. Physicians inside the hospital are looking forward to utilizing it.
Chief Operating Officer Leeanna Williams reminded the board about the Nov. 3 start date for cardiopulmonary rehabilitation, the new service line BCMC will offer. The month of October will be spent marketing the service to local clinics along with training towards the end of the month.
The meeting moved forward with annual approval of the Information Technology, Radiology, and Risk Management policy manuals. All three were unanimously confirmed by the board. Additionally, the policy manual for Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation was up for a vote along with solo polices for Patient Discharge Following Expiration, Sepsis Screening Protocol, and Confidential Meetings and Recordings. All of them were approved unanimously.
The next item was the Community Health Needs Assessment Strategic Plan that needed board approval. The strategic plan was passed unanimously by the board and will be available to the public soon.
Huitt informed the board that the BCMC Laboratory Department passed its CLIA (Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments) inspection with flying colors. The inspector told Huitt it was one of the best labs they’ve seen. Huitt congratulated director Leah McIntyre and her staff. She also recognized Respiratory Therapy Director Sharee Williams and Leeanna Williams for the hard work they’ve put in getting the Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation service line off the ground.
The next portion of the meeting was spent on the discussion of the budget for the new fiscal year, which begins on Oct. 1, 2025, for BCMC. The board was able to ask questions while Huitt demonstrated how the hospital is making the budget inside MEDITECH. The board received a motion to approve the presented budget with an amendment to allow for the purchase of a generator and it was adopted unanimously.
The board then went into executive session with medical staff recommendations approved unanimously.
For the latest news and updates regarding BCMC please like the Bradley County Medical Center Facebook page or follow us on Instagram (BCMCWarren) or X, formerly Twitter (BCMC Warren). To keep up with the most recent news and updates for the BCMC Rural Health Clinic, please like the BCMC Rural Health Clinic page on Facebook.
