Banker Joe Krukowski is being touted as the new chairman of the embattled Doctors Hospital Health System board, The Guardian has learned.
The board would also consist of Owen Bethel, Dr. Duane Sands,
Dr. Charles Diggis, Dr. Keva Bethel, Jeffrey Robertson and Felix Stubbs. Barry Rassin, who will resign as board chairman at the company’s annual general meeting June 19, will remain a director.
Additionally, the finance committee will be renamed the finance and audit committee, with an expanded responsibility for overseeing corporate activities and relationships with external advisers.
Part of the reason for unseating Mr Rassin as board chairman is a $5.1-million loss of the Western Medical Plaza and an overall operating loss of $8.1 million for the year ended Jan. 31, 2003, that the company’s financial report reflected.
At the heart of the company’s strategies is a commitment to returning to its core urgent care business at Collins Avenue, the company says and during the year, the company sold its interests in its group health plan, Doctors Hospital (PHO) and its subsidiary, BahamaHealth. At the time of its sale, BahamaHealth was the country’s fastest growing health plan.
The sale to Famguard Corp. Ltd. was a “win-win” proposition, because the company is well positioned to bring BahamaHealth to its full potential and Doctors Hospital realized a gain of $1.4 million. In DHHS’s financial statements, the operating results of the PHO were excluded from those of continuing operations to provide better comparability to prior-year results.
During the year, the companyclosed its Freeport diagnostic centre, saying that despite “long and deliberate efforts,” the goal of ensuring the stable and long-term presence of an appropriate alternative to the public healthcare facility was unattainable.
The company said, however, that it expects the growing demand for healthcare and diagnostic services in the northern Bahamas will allow return to that market in the future.
“The financial year ended Jan. 31, 2003, proved significantly challenging,” the company said. “While those challenges resulted in an overall loss from continuing operations, they did strengthen management’s commitment to make the necessary changes to reposition the company for the future.”
But despite the “dark clouds,” Doctors says it has maintained focus on quality of care and service.
Despite declining revenues and volumes, management reported that it maintained its commitment to education and training.
“Spending in this area will be increased in the current financial year to ensure that we further improve our success rate in meeting or exceeding customer expectations,” the company said.
By Lindsay Thompson, The Nassau Guardian
