By Tara DeRock Mahoney
Senior Staff Writer

    Morgan Memorial Hospital billed for services worth $2,342,903 during the month of February, a lifetime high for the facility.
    “That is an all-time record for gross patient revenue,” said John Milliken, treasurer of the Morgan Hospital Authority, at a meeting last Thursday. Applause greeted his announcement.
    “That's 36 percent higher than the same month last year, and seven percent over the month before,” continued Milliken. “And keep in mind that February was only 29 days long, compared to 31 days in January...It just keeps getting better. We're 22 percent better than budget for February,” said Milliken.
    Further, Milliken reported that the hospital emergency room averaged 21 visits per day in February. “It wasn't that long ago that we were seeing about 14 [emergency room] visits per day,” said Milliken. “The community has gained a lot of respect for this hospital, and it's showing in visits.” Finally, said Milliken, the hospital has been profitable eight out of the past 11 months, and seven of those have been the past seven months in a row.
    Patient satisfaction at the hospital remains very high, reported Patrick Cook, vice president of Support and Services, with those completing exit surveys rating the hospital 4.79 out of five overall. Some negative comments by patients for inpatient services last month were attributed to the fact that the hospital had to use a number of contract employees due to a high patient census, because regular hospital staff positions were not yet filled. But nursing supervisory positions have now been completely filled, as are most shifts; the hospital is expected to be staffed with regular employees who have completed all training within a month.