Extraordinary Financial Turn-Around Accomplished At Gila Regional

Liz Martin, R.N and Mike Martin, Senior Telecommunications Specialist speaking with Gila Regional Chief Executive Officer Brian Cunningham about GRMC's financial turn-around.

Brian Cunningham, CEO at Gila Regional Medical Center (GRMC) announced at the October Board of Trustee meeting that the State approved audited financials for Fiscal year 2014 demonstrated that, in less than 11 months, GRMC had achieved an extraordinary financial turn-around. "At the end of fiscal Year, 2013, as all of you know, Gila Regional was hemorrhaging financially to the tune of a $9 million negative bottom line and our entire senior leadership team had resigned," Cunningham said. And now, the State Auditor's Office confirmed that the by the end of fiscal year 2014, GRMC had achieved a positive $1.2 million bottom line. That is a $10 million turn-around in less than 11 months. "This is really extraordinary, unprecedented work," Cunningham added.

Cunningham then stated, "And this turn-around was no accident. It was the direct result of the effort and support of our Board of Trustees, our County Commissioners, our medical practitioners, our community and of course the incredible caregivers at GRMC. Because of our strong commitment to our communities and our caregivers, we put together a comprehensive turn-around plan and implemented it with a sense of great urgency."

The turn-around began with a focus on people first. The 68 caregivers, whose hours were cut in half by the previous administration, were addressed immediately, with most caregivers returning to full time status. The next major issue needing to be addressed was the leadership culture itself at GRMC. Cunningham brought all of GRMC's 40-plus leaders into a room to identify the major issues that lead to GRMC's troubles at the end of fiscal year 2013 and it was the leaders themselves that identified "leadership" as the root cause of their problems. This triggered the development of an expanded set of leadership values and expectations and a series of innovative, internally developed leadership trainings that continue to this day.