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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-11-02 Hospital Development Commitee MinutesHospital Development Committee Meeting November 2, 2005 cr-s c., C ~ y i The meeting convened at 6:30pm in the Town Hall Lower Conference Room, 16 Lowell Street, INS Reading Massachusetts. Present were Chairman Bruce Cerullo (resident), Vice Chairman Nelson Burbank (resident), HDC members George Hines (Board of Selectmen), John Daly (Commissioners of Trust Funds), Neil Sullivan (CPDC) and Colleen Seferian (Board of Health). Also present was Reading ATM/FD Bob LeLacheur. Later in the meeting, resident Dr. Donald Green is scheduled to speak to the Committee. Chairman Bruce Cerullo called the meeting to order at 6:30pm. He reviewed his presentation done for the Board of Selectmen from two weeks ago. He outlined the extension received by this ad hoc committee through the end of December 2005, and asked each member if they wished to continue in their roles. George Hines responded that the narrow focus on the `needy' was not helping enough Reading residents, and that the point of this Committee was to explore ways to disburse more funds in an efficient manner to the community. Colleen Seferian agreed that she was interested in learning more about the needs of the general community, and seeking ways that those needs might be met using funds from the Hospital Trust Funds. George mentioned, as one possible example, the substance abuse problem in Reading. Could these funds be used to put a full-time employee in the Town's Health Department to steer & direct folks towards help & solutions? He mentioned that we had to get some expertise and do a needs assessment for the Town, and that the Board of Selectmen needed to pursue a new cy pres _ agreement for the Wills. John Daly reminded the Committee that the decision to pursue a cy pres change rests with the Commissioners of the Trust Funds. Nelson Burbank agreed that there seems to be a serious substance abuse problem in the Town, and was certain there were other problems that needed to be identified. He mentioned that with all of the new low-income housing coming to the Town, the Committee should bear in mind that serving the needy might change in the future. Bruce reminded George that we had conducted extensive discussion within our committee on the issue of "all versus the needy" in our meetings leading up to the Board of Selectmen presentation. We had achieved a majority consensus on focusing on the needy but would present the pros and cons to the Selectmen and ask for their decision. Bruce offered that he might be able to support a modestly broader definition of the term `needy' - such as a `needy' organization. He mentioned the Community Parish Nursing's desire for funding in recent years. He acknowledged that doing a broader good was fine, but that there would be many worthwhile organizations in Town that could use financial help - more than this fund could support. tr: Nelson mentioned that it is his preference that the Trust Funds continue to grow, and that only income earned in a given year should be disbursed, while the principle was protected. z Bob LeLacheur pointed out that the income of the Fund, and the current levels of expenses - mostly Reading Response - left at most about $100,000 per year to spend on additional programs, and that the HDC should bear this in mind if indeed principle preservation was strictly a goal. Bob pointed out that in a recent Boston Globe article, Bob Cummings (formerly a Trust Fund Commissioner) has been vocal that he believes these funds should be spent for the benefit of the community, as was intended by the original donors, and not simply invested in financial instruments. George added that there should be a provision to invade the principle in case of a health emergency - such as an outbreak of the `bird flu'. Nelson agreed. He thought we should present specific ideas to the Board of Selectmen. Neil Sullivan agreed that a broader use of the funds would be a positive outcome, and thought the emergency clause was a good idea. George said that we needed to know the wishes of the current Board. If the HDC wanted to pursue certain avenues, would the Selectmen be supportive? He asked that they send a representative to the HDC meetings, since he could no longer serve as the Board's liaison. All members agreed that while they had probable interest in staying on the HDC, many of their decisions would be strongly influenced by whether the Board of Selectmen sticks to its October 18, 2005 decision to focus on the needy or if they would be willing to broaden that mandate. George and Colleen indicated they would probably step down if the focus remained on the "needy" narrowly defined. Bruce stated he would probably not be the best match for the effort if the mandated was significantly broadened. At 7:15pm the HDC welcomed resident Dr. Donald Green. Don has been a physician in Town for 20 years, in a medical practice that has served the community for 106 years through four physicians. He emphasized that from his vantage point, there were a number of long-term services needed by the Town. He urged HDC members - and others - not to view this as a charitable mission. Instead, healthcare is like a public utility. Investing funds wisely in healthcare could enrich the entire Town, by making folks less sick, and more productive. Dr. Green said there were two main items that he came before the HDC to recommend. The first item was a drug treatment center, located in the Town. He agreed that the substance abuse problem was a very serious one. Folks being cared for had to be sent to other towns to receive treatment. He said many felt that the Town was `exporting their problems' instead of dealing with them. He mentioned that this emotional feeling was a vital part of the rehabilitation process, and that such a facility in Town would improve the success rate of rehab a great deal. Dr. Green added that the second item was hospice care, and that it was a very important service that should be provided in the Town for it's residents, and possibly for close relatives (such as a parent). He mentioned that this care cost only about $150 per day, and the average hospice stay was about 10 or 11 days. The HDC listened very thoughtfully to Dr. Green, and thanked him for sharing his experiences and ideas with the group. They set a meeting for Wednesday, November 9 at 7pm. On a motion by Sullivan, seconded by Burbank, the meeting of November 2, 2005 adjourned at 7:35pm by a vote of 6-0-0. Respectfully submitted, Secretary