Meet the candidates for the hospital board

Jennifer Hugenot: I am a lifelong resident of Texas County with a passion for serving my community. I have 13 years of experience in the healthcare industry as a human resources and payroll professional and possess extensive knowledge of hospital policy and operational practices. I also have 14 years of experience in the finance industry and feel that my collective skill set would allow me to make well informed contributions to the TCMH board in its oversight of the hospital.

George Sholtz: I believe in three things. God, family and country. My relationship with God and family is secure. However, I am losing my country. It is on a jet ski to socialism / communism. And if we cannot stop it we will no longer be the land of the free. Right now, there are not enough brave men and women that will stand up and be counted. We are lacking as a people to stand for freedom, including freedom for our health choices. We allowed communist pencil necks to tell us what to do and even how to think about our health. Which was seen during COVID, which we all want to forget about  now. But we should want to ensure that it does not happen again instead of trying to forget. The Bible says the pig will return to the mire and the dog to its vomit. So we should expect them to try to enslave us again. And we will only have ourselves to blame for allowing it to happen. I feel we need to take responsibility for ourselves and stop relying on the government to tell us what to do. America operates on the consent of the governed. And without bravery we can never have freedom. My background is that I am willing to stand and be counted. I have a good understanding of business, regulations and government. And I think I understand people.  

Jennifer Hugenot: TCMH should continue to support its healthcare employees by investing in them and working responsibly to retain them. Frequent reviews of services provided should be conducted to ensure alignment with the local needs of the community. Additionally, the hospital should always be conscious of the overall balance sheet and work actively to keep it strong.

George Sholtz: I am not sure that everyone in the community understands how important the hospital is to our area. Yes, the leadership of the community might say they do, but the general public doesn’t think about TCMH any more than they did about the Town and Country Mart that used to be in Houston. Which is no longer in Houston, because people would rather go to Walmart than shop there. However, the Town and Country Mart in Mountain Grove is doing fine and they have a bigger Walmart to compete with. Why? How many folks that you know (including your family) will go to OMC, Cox, Mercy or Rolla for services that they could have done right here at TCMH? As for the community leaders that say they understand how important TCMH is. How many of them have their medical procedures done here? Until the entire community (not just those that have no choice) wants TCMH to be their provider for medical services nothing will get better. What needs to occur is that folks need to choose TCMH for healthcare.  

Jennifer Hugenot: TCMH has done a very nice job of recruiting physicians to the hospital of late. The recent announcement of a physician for the Licking Clinic was exciting to see as this was a position that had remained open for quite some time, and I know that the community is happy to welcome a new physician to town. Also, the hospital has been able to attract and hire surgeons for the newly constructed surgery center at the main campus.  Recruiting in a rural community is not an easy task and I applaud the gains made in this area.

George Sholtz: There are lots of things that TCMH does great. The real question is how many people know that TCMH is doing great things? If the tree falls and nobody hears it, did it fall? I say no. Yes, TCMH is having fundraising golf tournaments. How many golfers are getting their healthcare at TCMH? I submit that most go elsewhere. TCMH needs to show and tell that they can and do provide high quality healthcare for everyone. Transparency is a vital part of every institution and I am not sure how transparent TCMH is. For instance: The county 911 was setting on over $1.5 million in CDs and a checking account, with two banks. But unless someone asks for this information does the community know? And it took several different questions to get the information. How much is unknown about TCMH because no one knows what questions to ask? 

Jennifer Hugenot: As we hear about healthcare facilities closing or merging with larger facilities in Missouri, the long-term goal should be to continue as a county owned healthcare facility here in Texas County so that we can all enjoy the benefit of receiving healthcare services close to home.

George Sholtz: Whatever strategy that gets developed needs to address the problem of a negative finance future. Meaning that if we continue on the same trajectory TCMH will be spending more than they are taking in. But at the same time reality is; the main revenue streams are from three sources. Medicaid / Medicare / Private Insurance. Medicaid patients are going to come to TCMH because they have no choice, however according to some reports, providers lose money with Medicaid.  Medicare patients will go where they feel comfortable. TCMH needs to show them they are the better choice for their health needs. However, according to some reports, providers breakeven with Medicare. And of course the (self pay) uninsured is what it is. The goal is to get the private insured to use TCMH.  That has been a bridge too far for a long time. This needs to be fixed.

Jennifer Hugenot: The role of a hospital trustee is to contribute to the advancement of the organization by being committed to the board, the hospital and the community.  A trustee should avoid conflicts of interest, observe high standards of integrity and maintain confidentiality of the meetings. Collectively, the board provides oversight of the hospital ensuring resiliency by establishing policy, reviewing financial performance and CEO performance. The board further approves the overall mission and sets the direction of the hospital.

The board of trustees should adhere to its by-laws. I don’t believe the board’s role is to micromanage the day-to-day activities of the organization. However, I do think that board members should be receptive to listening, questioning and following up on valid concerns voiced by hospital staff.  I also feel that the board should resist acceptance of summary reporting, particularly when interpretation is subjective yet still pertinent to the responsibilities that the board is charged with.

George Sholtz: The trustee position is defined in the origination of the hospital. However, as a member of this community I want to see our hospital meeting the needs of as many folks as possible. There are several things that TCMH can be doing to raise community perception. Some may not make money in the beginning but would yield great profits and positive support from the community. Our health system is based on people getting sick and seeking treatment. Why are we not promoting people staying well and preventing illness? Just as Jesus said “you will always have the poor with you.” I think that we will always have the sick. But everyone we can encourage to be healthy longer is better for our community. If the course is not corrected soon the choices of health care providers will be limited. The government cannot be allowed to control every aspect of our county hospital. And the TCMH board needs to make sure that does not happen. 

Jennifer Hugenot: It is important that the hospital collaborates with local businesses and organizations and board members should encourage dialogue with the community to better understand local needs to the benefit of all. Additionally, I encourage individuals to be involved in hospital activities and events through volunteerism. These interactions of mutual support are what strengthens the bond between the hospital and the community that it serves.  

George Sholtz: According to Texas County Commissioners, both Chris Strickland and Stace Holland worked to restore the relationship Between TCMH and Texas County.   Which in time past was a stressed relationship at best. The county was forced to outsource healthcare for the county instead of using TCMH. However, both Strickland and Holland are no longer here. Lack of transparency and truth is a huge problem for relationships. If I am elected I will ensure that issue will be on the forefront. We might not like how things look but it is better for the public if we know than don’t know. If TCMH can begin to work toward people’s health instead of just working toward people’s sickness, that will improve relationships.  If the (C) in TCMH is understood by everyone that it stands for COUNTY and TCMH is a county asset that will improve relationships.