By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette
During the Oct. 22 meeting of the Guthrie County Hospital’s board of trustees, Chief Human Resources Officer Mary Anderson reported on plans to bring on a new provider in Panora.
“Dec. 3 is when our new provider in Panora joins us. We’ve got a signed offer letter,” she said.
Stipe noted that a contract has not yet been signed, so the name of the new doctor is not yet being publicly announced, but Stipe feels the person is a good match.
“We’re very optimistic that this is going to be a real positive to help take the load off Dr. Strehle and Dr. Beckman in terms of rounding with patients,” he said.
Stipe shared information on upcoming events for the community and staff.
“We’re preparing for Strategic Planning on the 29th. Everybody’s got that on their calendar. And then the 75th anniversary. Dec. 3 is the big day. That’s the day the hospital opened 75 years ago. So, we’ll have lots of things that day,” he said. “Employees will probably get their Christmas bonus on the Tuesday of that week, and the admin team is going to be preparing breakfast for the employees. It will be kind of an appreciation day for our staff.”
Stipe reported on the completion of renovations at the Stuart clinic and the recent open house, which he said was well-attended.
“I really enjoyed going there last Friday. I hadn’t been there since the final changes were made. Stuart Rehab is just beautiful. If you didn’t make it there for the grand opening, and you want to stop in, please do. It turned out better than I ever expected,” he said.
The trustees heard a summary of the hospital’s Fiscal Year 2026 audit report. The report was approved as submitted.
The trustees went into a closed session for part two of the CEO evaluation. The next regular meeting of the trustees is set for Nov. 30 at 4 p.m. The public is welcome.