Dear friends;
You may or may not have heard that there is an election coming up at the local Hospital District (Clinic). Almost by accident, some in our group found out about it.
In the past, we, the general public, were not usually privy to such information. The Board of Directors were merely and routinely appointed and confirmed with the barest minimum of information to the citizenry. It is because of this lack of transparency that the clinic continued to operate at what many feel was, and continues to be, subpar performance. Despite a total tax payer mil levy contribution of around $850,000 A YEAR, the clinic continues its sub par performance especially with respect of having doctors on staff. In fact, there are again, currently no medical doctors on staff at the clinic. In the coming months we have a golden opportunity to change that status quo. We can take back the management of our clinic and turn it into a healthcare service that can benefit each and every one of the county residents.
If you are like many of the local residents around the county, the clinic has been known to have failed them in their times of need. Routinely sending people down the hill to seek basic medical assistance is well known locally. If you have experienced this, you know what we are talking about. The coming election is our chance to make important changes to the management and the financial viability of our local community healthcare provider.
Despite a recent new mil levy increase of approximately $360,000 A YEAR, earmarked for EMS, and sold as a ballot referendum that would provide the money needed to staff a second ambulance, there is still, more often than not, NO second ambulance available…. Just two weeks ago, on a Monday evening, a lady, who lives just south of Westcliffe, had a medical incident. Sheriff Office personnel responded immediately. It turns out she was having a heart attack. An ambulance was called to take her down to a hospital. Believe it or not….there was NO ambulance. It was out on a run. If you are the second person who needs an ambulance, you may be out of luck because there may not be a crew to run the second unit. So, in the case of the lady, immediately a call went out to a nearby hospital district (miles out of town) for help. It took much longer for that ambulance, from some other area, to show up. The time it took made it a bigger risk for the patient. This is not an isolated incident. The urgent need for an ambulance could happen to anyone. It could happen to you.
On May 8th, at the Courthouse, you can make a change for the sake of your health and the health of all your loved ones. Come in and cast your vote for new management at the Clinic. Called Patients First, this management team is interested mainly in providing great healthcare to each of the residents of Custer County. Each one of these individuals is eminently qualified to sit on the clinic board. In addition, this new board is backed by a group of consultants that include physicians who have worked at the clinic. Some of you may have been their patients at one time. They are Doctors Mohr and Bliss, career healthcare providers with extensive experience and expertise.
Mark your calendars, May 8th from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. come vote, at the Courthouse, for greatly improved healthcare services for you and your loved ones.
On April 26th (mark your calendar) you can meet the candidates for the hospital board personally and ask them your questions, face to face, with regard to their qualifications. Join us all at the Liberty Rocks event at Tony’s Mountain Pizza at 5:30 p.m. Meet your friends, neighbors and the candidates who will run for the directorship of the Clinic on May 8th. This is not, by any means, a political event. Absolutely not. This is entirely a meet and greet, informational event with the objective of making sure we have the best people involved in the actual, day to day, management of our local clinic to insure that the services the clinic provides are the best available for the sake of the health of each and every one of our families, residents and visitors to our county.
Vote On May 8th at the Courthouse

….for the sake of your own health.

Fred Hernandez
Silver Cliff, CO