 |
Elect Johnson, Matarrese and Tam
Contra Costa Times - October 27, 2006
• City Council: (two seats) Frank Matarrese and Lena Tam
As with Johnson, you would be hard-pressed to find a person as dedicated to helping guide Alameda into the future as Frank Matarrese. He is a resourceful and dedicated public servant who is constantly thinking of savvy, out-of-the-box solutions to increasingly complex problems. Matarrese should be re-elected.
While perhaps a newcomer to Alameda City Hall politics, Lena Tam is not a newcomer to regional governance, serving both on the Alameda County Planning Commission and the Alameda City Health Care District board of directors. She is thoughtful, articulate and well-reasoned. We think she is ready for bigger and better things. Tam is very worthy of your support.
Read the full article
top
Alameda Hospital back from the brink
East Bay Business Times - April 14, 2006
by Susan L. Thomas
On a dreary day in April, cars circle the parking lot at Alameda Hospital searching for spaces. Some leave. Others keep circling. An attendant stacks cars for those willing to leave their keys.
Stuart Jed, the hospital's CEO, wonders aloud about how to solve this parking crunch. He could cut down trees to make more room, but he doesn't think that would be a popular solution.
In any case, a full parking lot is a nice problem to have, given that four years ago this month residents voted to bail out the debt-ridden hospital with a property tax hike to make it a publicly owned district hospital. The hospital gets a maximum of $298 per parcel, and this year that amounts to $5.7 million.
It's not that Alameda Hospital, the only hospital on this island of 75,000, is thriving financially. It is not.
But after slipping into a nearly $14.7 million deficit in fiscal year 2004 that once again raised serious concerns about its viability, the 112-year-old hospital is finding its way.
In its fiscal year 2005-2006 ending June 30, Jed expects the hospital will post its first, albeit meager, net gain in years. The roughly $600,000 gain would come after losing $600,000 a year earlier, and more than $7 million in 2004.
Seeking just such a turnaround, the board hired Jed in May 2004. He is a former hospital CEO and president of Delta One Partners Inc., an El Cerrito-based consultancy specializing in hospital turnarounds. The board this month approved a new three-year contract for Jed and Delta One.
"What happened at the hospital is, industry trends got away from us," said Lena Tam, president of the health care district's board of directors, noting expenses such high workers' compensation costs and low revenue at the 135-bed hospital. "We've stopped the hemorrhaging, stabilized the patient and we're in recovery mode."
Plainspoken and straightforward, Jed jokes that he's the paper clip guy. He monitors the care - and cost - of every patient at the hospital, every day. He speaks with doctors about "resource consumption." For example, he points out that in certain cases - with health interests still at the fore - patients don't receive CT scans while they are in the hospital. Instead he suggests they return as outpatients for the procedure, allowing the hospital a better reimbursement rate.
After Jed came on board, the hospital laid off about 14 people in administration. Much of the old leadership is gone.
The hospital's bottom line got a big boost under a five-year deal with Kaiser Permanente signed in August 2005 that allows Kaiser to perform outpatient surgeries there. The hospital expects to generate about $6.9 million from that deal in 2006, making it a crucial factor in its net gain.
Now, the hospital is eyeing new revenue generation. In October, it opened an infusion and chemotherapy cancer center, a department Jed said is growing by "leaps and bounds." The hospital also is forming a women's center to offer mammograms, bone density testing, nutritional counseling and other services already offered at the hospital, in one location.
The look and feel of the hospital has changed, too. Many employees began wearing uniforms last year, the lobby received a facelift, and a greeter now meets patients at the hospital's entrance.
Dagne Oas-Wesley, a 29-year veteran of the hospital who coordinates patient care, said the changes have mostly been well received by employees.
"It's still the same, but you can see a big difference," Oas-Wesley said. "The big people walk through the hospital to check things out (now). But we don't mind."
Morale is "still real good," she said. "We're a lot busier and that really helps."
No one feels the hospital won't make it, she said, adding, "The hospital has always been here."
Still, Alameda Hospital faces some challenging numbers. By Jed's calculation, the island's population includes about 33 percent Kaiser members, 8,000 women of child-bearing age and 10,000 children. Those numbers are meaningful because they illustrate the hospital's limited ability to gain inpatient business from locals.
Alameda closed its maternity ward long ago, so women often go to nearby Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Berkeley. Children may come to the hospital for broken bones, but would go to Children's Hospital & Research Center in Oakland for serious illnesses.
"We do need to continue looking at ways to bring in more patients, more revenue beyond Alameda," Tam said.
Tam points to the hospital's emergency room - which she boasts has a six-minute waiting time - as an asset to market to neighboring communities.
Jed said the hospital is considering opening outpatient clinics, including one possibly near the Posey Tube, and growing its occupational health programs.
He's also "talking to a lot of people" about new business. The hospital is courting physicians from Oakland's neighboring Chinatown.
Jed said he never doubted the hospital would survive.
"The interesting thing about this hospital ... is you need to look at the hospital, the board, the medical staff as a whole," Jed said. "It is a very, very good hospital. We don't have to be on our knees."
Still, Alameda Hospital would not survive without property tax revenue. And neighboring Alta Bates Summit, a Sutter Health affiliate, and Kaiser are deep-pocket competition.
That doesn't bother Jed and many others. Although Alameda Hospital will never be a major tertiary institution, he said, "We can be a damn good general acute care hospital."
top
Local Political Races Heat Up
Alameda Sun - Friday, 28 July 2006
by Dan Abbott
Tony Daysog considering a run for mayor
Several political newcomers have filed papers to run for two city council seats up for grabs this November, paving the way for a crowded ballot and lively debate over development issues and transparent governance.
The terms of city council members Frank Mataresse and Tony Daysog expire this year, according to the city’s Web site. Mataresse has announced he will be running for reelection, while Daysog, forced out by term limits, has left open the possibility of running for mayor against incumbent Beverly Johnson.
Five other Alamedans have thrown their hats in the ring for the city council race, most citing dissatisfaction with the city’s handling of projects like the Historic Theatre, Alameda Point, and the thorny debate over a possible Measure A exemption. The candidates for city council are Mataresse, Earl Mathiesen, Michael Rich, Corey Renner, Ashley Jones and Lena Tam.
Jones is a retired teacher who has never held public office, but said he got involved because the council is not responsive enough to the public.
“I can’t trust these people to vote the way I want them to,” Jones said. “I think there are too many closed sessions.”
Jones, a staunch proponent of Measure A, is critical of plans for a Target “big box” store at Alameda Towne Centre and plans for a parking garage in the Park Street business district.
“A six-floor garage in that location is just nuts,” Jones said.
Tam, who was elected to the Alameda Health Care District in 2002, said the debate over the future of Alameda Point motivated her to become a candidate.
“I think we have a unique opportunity to define a vision for Alameda Point,” she said.
Tam criticized what she called the city’s lack of fiscal responsibility, citing the ballooning budget of the Alameda Historic Theatre.
“We need to get away from being completely ruled by market forces,” Tam said.
Rich, a regional government air quality control manager with a background in labor relations, said the city council is indecisive and does not facilitate meaningful dialogue with the community.
“There’s a power vacuum,” Rich said. “Nobody can agree on a course of action. If people actually sat down and talked, we could get things done.”
Mathiesen, Renner and Mataresse could not be reached for comment by press time.
top
|
|
|
|
