Two candidates are running for a five-year term on the Texas County Memorial Hospital board of trustees. Learn more about the candidates.
Current board members are Jim Perry, Ross Richardson, Joleen Durham, Jennifer Hugenot and Jerri Crump. Durham’s seat is open.
Candidates are Joleen Durham and George Sholtz.
Joleen Durham
Tell us about yourself.
I live in Bucyrus, Missouri. My husband, Brian, and I own two small businesses in the county employing about 20 people. We own a small beef cattle herd. After earning an English writing degree from Eastern University, I returned to Texas County, where I grew up. I also have a master’s degree in administrative studies from Missouri State University. Brian and I are proud parents to Andy, currently a junior at Stanford University in Stanford, California.
Why are you running to be a hospital trustee?
I worked at TCMH from September 2002 until January 2018 as the public relations, marketing and physician recruiting director. As part of my job, I attended monthly board meetings, so I interacted regularly with board members and understand the role the board plays in overseeing the hospital.
I also personally use the hospital as a patient, and I believe everyone in Texas County is extremely fortunate to have the services TCMH provides in our county. I know that TCMH is a key part of the economic engine in our county, and the financial health of the hospital is crucial to our county thriving in rural America. TCMH board members volunteer their time, and I am eager to continue serving as trustee, applying my health care knowledge for another five years.
What are the responsibilities of a hospital trustee?
TCMH board members operate under the governing laws provided by state statute as well as the bylaws of the hospital. Board members are responsible for the hiring and oversight of the chief executive officer position at the hospital. Additionally, board members are responsible for looking at the hospital’s monthly financial, quality and safety data; the medical staffing; the annual capital and operating budgets; the strategic plan and related projects, and certain contracts within the organization.
Board members should attend monthly board meetings, arriving informed through data shared with them prior to the meeting, prepared to act on the data provided as needed. Additionally, board members may be asked to volunteer on additional hospital committees as required by hospital bylaws or federal regulations.
What is your understanding of the challenges health care workers currently face?
Employment in health care is very strong, and it is needed now more than ever as our aging population increases, and the current health care workforce shrinks as boomers retire. TCMH must provide competitive pay and benefit packages. Administration should be engaged with the day-to-day operations as well as planning for future needs. Employees need to have the training and management to meet customer service needs and to maintain high quality services in a safe environment.
The quality of life in our community is important for keeping health care workers here — child care, job opportunities for a partner, strong preschool and K-12 educational services, necessary retail goods and services are all important factors. The strength of TCMH as an employer helps drive the economy in the communities around the hospital which helps make the quality of life better for those working at TCMH.
Legislative decisions have a dramatic effect on the hospital’s strength as a primary care provider in rural America. The “stories” of the care offered by the health care workers at TCMH need to continue to be told so everyone from area residents to our state and federal legislators understand the vital work being done by the people that make up TCMH. The stronger TCMH is as a rural health care facility, the better it can help meet the challenges faced by the employees in all sectors of the hospital.
How will you endeavor to increase provider retention?
To retain providers at TCMH, I will continue to join the hospital’s board and administration in ensuring that competitive pay and benefit packages are offered to providers. I will continue to evaluate what we can do as a hospital to help meet “quality of life” needs. I will continue to do what I can to help TCMH remain operationally strong, making capital investments needed to provide the tools and spaces for our providers to do their best work.
George Sholtz
Tell us about yourself.
I believe in three things: God, family and country. Those aren’t talking points — they are the foundation of every decision I make. I am someone who shows up. For many years I have been engaged with the issues facing this community — asking hard questions, filing public records requests and standing up when it would have been easier to stay quiet. That work has not always been popular. I do it anyway. I believe in personal responsibility and local accountability. Government — including local institutions like TCMH — works best when the people it serves are paying attention and willing to speak up. Too few people are willing to do that. COVID showed us what happens when communities stop asking questions and start accepting whatever they are told. I will not stop asking questions. I will not accept the status quo simply because it is comfortable for those currently in power. I am willing to stand and be counted. This community deserves someone on that board who will do the same.
Why are you running to be a hospital trustee?
The “C” in TCMH stands for County — meaning this hospital belongs to every person in Texas County, not just those who have no other option. Too many people in our community drive past TCMH on their way to Springfield, Rolla or West Plains for services available right here. That happens for one reason — they don’t know what TCMH offers. Like insurance, the wrong time to think about your health care provider is after you need one. TCMH should be the first choice for this community, not the fallback. I’m running because I believe the gap between what TCMH provides and what the community understands about it is fixable. Closing that gap starts with a trustee willing to carry that message — not just inside the boardroom, but throughout the community it serves.
What are the responsibilities of a hospital trustee?
The bylaws spell out the formal responsibilities. But a list doesn’t capture what the job actually requires. TCMH and this community share a relationship that goes deeper than a business transaction. The hospital needs a healthy community to survive. The community needs a strong hospital to thrive. When one weakens, so does the other. A trustee’s most important responsibility is understanding that connection and protecting it — serving as the voice of the community inside the boardroom and the voice of the hospital throughout the community. That means asking hard questions. It means holding leadership accountable while supporting the mission. It means showing up — not just at scheduled meetings, but in the community year-round. A trustee who only shows up when things are going well isn’t doing the job. This community deserves a board member who is engaged, accessible and honest.
What is your understanding of the challenges health care workers currently face?
Health care workers face challenges from two directions — those we can address and those we can’t. Some frustrations exist above the trustee level. Prior authorizations, insurance red tape, regulatory paperwork that pulls a nurse away from a patient. I won’t pretend a local board can fix those. But what we can control matters just as much. Rural health care workers often choose TCMH over higher-paying positions at larger systems because they believe in serving this community. What they need in return is leadership that recognizes that choice, says so out loud and backs it up — not just at employee appreciation week, but consistently. I hear from health care workers regularly. What they tell me is that a paycheck alone doesn’t sustain you in a profession this demanding. They want to know their work matters and that someone in leadership actually sees it. A trustee can make that difference.
How will you endeavor to increase provider retention?
Provider retention starts at the top. When an institution cycles through multiple CEOs in a short period, the instability doesn’t stay in the corner office — it ripples through every department, affects every hiring decision and sends a message to providers considering whether to build a career here. I hear from health care workers regularly. What they describe is an environment where good people leave not because of the work, but because of the culture surrounding it. That is a leadership problem before it is a retention problem. Fixing it requires a board willing to prioritize stable, accountable executive leadership — and to hold that standard even when it’s uncomfortable. It also requires TCMH to rebuild its relationships with county government and community partners. A hospital that operates in isolation from the county it serves weakens both institutions. Recruitment and competitive compensation matter. But no salary package retains a good provider who doesn’t trust the institution they’re working for.