A message from Shannon Brennan, candidate for St. John’s Health Board of Trustees:
JACKSON, Wyo. — St. John’s Health Board has done a tremendous job of overseeing the execution of the hospital’s mission both during the pandemic and throughout the search for a new CEO. Through the Board’s dedication, St. John’s Health (SJH) has opened a new long-term care facility, maintained a very capable workforce, executed extensive preparations for a 100-unit short-term employee housing, and worked diligently to find a new CEO. SJH’s organizational performance has been strong – good infection control, satisfied patients, and clean financial audits over the recent past. Most of us have benefited from this and will continue to benefit over the short term.
But we are at a tipping point, thanks to the pandemic, which resulted in people being able to live anywhere and work virtually without limits. Overnight, people have moved to Jackson in droves, ushering in a new, larger demographic of much wider ethnic, economic, and lifestyle diversity. There is not much to slow this tide, short of imposing limits on housing, something that probably won’t happen any time soon.
I am concerned that we are not ready for this. Our new residents need healthcare as much as we do. Is SJH up to providing it? Will it be sized appropriately for our population in 2030, 2040, or beyond? Are there capital construction plans and strategies in place right now to fund, design, and build facilities to meet the needs? Where will they be located? The Community Needs Assessment identified that elder care and mental health are areas in critical need of more attention and support. If they are critical now, what plans do we have in place to address them in the future? And what plans do we have to ensure all people of our county, regardless of economic status, have access to medical resources and healthcare?
There is something that can be done. SJH Board could sponsor the development of a robust, data-centered, well-researched future county health needs assessment, keying off the current community needs assessment (which lacks extensive forecasting and planning information, by design) with details for a path forward for the next ten and twenty-year horizons. From it, SJH could build an actionable long range plan and strategy for the healthcare needs of Jackson and Teton County.
The writing of this plan should be a joint effort between the public and the SJH Board. This approach is both efficient and strategic in that it can provide a way by which lingering issues of public buy-in and trust with the Board can be addressed. People should be encouraged to reach out to the SJH Board to offer help, provide input and suggestions, communicate their needs and expectations, volunteer to participate on focus groups, attend meetings, and help the Board as it navigates the dynamic new future. SJH is a publicly-funded hospital, and this means it is YOURS.
The other tipping point, and perhaps the more volatile one, is the workforce’s quality of life. Due to financial, pandemic, and housing issues, and extra work pressures, staff patience and emotional health, in too many cases, have been taxed severely.
A key to addressing this is to help the employees secure housing. A sudden, significant loss of personnel due to housing issues would place SJH – and all the rest of us – in a healthcare delivery crisis from which recovery would be very difficult. Even without a massive and/or sudden loss, as the workforce erodes, so does the quality of and accessibility to care. SJH, as one of the largest and most impactful organizations in the county, may not be able to address the sudden and/or chronic bleed of its most precious resource, its workforce. We need to help.
A step in the right direction is the proposed Hitching Post Workforce Rental Housing Project. Partial funding for this is proposed through Special Purpose Excise Tax (SPET), on the ballot for the Nov. 8, 2022 election. Please vote for this project. The Board could also seek innovative solutions to creating more permanent housing for those who want to make this area their home. I have proposed standing up a foundation dedicated to funding a long term scholarship program to partially assist employees in securing home ownership in the county, based on performance-based awards that require no repayment. This would be funded by contributions from the public and organizations who deem it a worthy cause and solid investment.
I am concerned for the future of SJH. I am a candidate for the SJH Board of Trustees. Please vote for me on Nov. 8, 2022. I will work to ensure the continued trajectory of excellence in healthcare delivery, and its availability to all, a deep understanding of the people’s needs and expectations, and an enduring support for the workforce.
I have an MA in Public Administration with an emphasis in Hospital Administration, am Stanford-certified in advanced project management (SAPM), have three decades of large-scale executive management experience, currently am a member of the Teton County Board of Health, and have been in the region since 1980. Please see shannonabrennan.org for more information, ask questions, or make comments.
