Letters to the Editor

Leadership change is overdue

Factors to Consider in your Cascade Hospital Commissioner Candidates.

Candidates who, in their campaign, address the issues and concerns important to patients, staff, and community members.  For years, CMC commissioners have neglected the public’s requests for fixing high staff turnover rates, low employee morale, billing and computer issues, inability to access physicians, patient care disasters, etc.  I plan to help correct these.  During this election, incumbents have not publicly engaged with the community on the real issues that affect patients and staff and have offered no commitment to change. Their silence has been deafening!

Recognize their role as representatives of the people. The current board is a continuously self-appointing board.  Incumbents incorrectly believe it is their personal duty to appoint people who think just like them. The abnormal over-involvement of acting commissioners promoting each other and even running other incumbents’ campaigns this year is a red flag they want full control of the board rather than the public.

Endorsement by professionals who have expertise in effective hospital administration. Personal pals can rush in to hail their candidate friends, but a cadre of healthcare professionals with intimate knowledge of CMC’s operations holds the weight. A letter to the editor from past CMC administrators, commissioners, and healthcare leaders recently provided a call for urgent change in the board.

Operate with transparency and integrity.  Our public hospital is owned by the people. That is you. Commissioners are public servants. The current board has kept far too much hidden behind a shrouded curtain, away from the public’s eye. The suggestion by dozens of healthcare professionals and community leaders last year for an independent leadership audit was summarily dismissed by the commissioners. Why did they not embrace the opportunity to improve?

Leadership change is overdue.   The community’s pleas for transparency, accountability, employee retention, and direct engagement in addressing patients’ concerns have fallen on deaf ears for too long.  Having personally conversed with over 100 Cascade Medical patients and staff in the last few months, it is clear the trust in the commissioners has been lost. The status quo is not the answer.

Duane Goehner
Cascade Medical Hospital Commissioner Candidate