by James Jordan, Sumner Newscow — Barry Harding has seen it before, and he is confident the Sumner Regional Medical Center will survive its current difficulties.

He started a week or so ago as the interim CEO and CFO, and is charged with turning the situation around.

Harding is working for Community Hospital Corporation, the consulting firm that has taken on the turnaround plan for the hospital. The group, paid through the SRMC Foundation, a private organization, did a study and made recommendations in a report that has not been made public. Harding has been in the hospital field for about 30 years, and for the last eight years he has been self employed, taking on projects such as this one.

This week, he said the situation the Wellington hospital is in, is not unusual for rural hospitals, and there are bigger ones with the same issues. He works on one project at a time, believing he can do his best by focusing on only one at a time.

“I am confident,” Harding said. “I would not have taken on this project if I did not think it could be done.”

While there are several changes in store for the hospital, Harding said he is confident there will not be any layoffs, and he said the hospital will not close. He also said the hospital will not be changing the services it offers.

“Those things are not going to happen,” he said.

He said there are a lot of positives to consider even though the hospital has had its struggles.

“I like the people here,” he said. “There is good morale here, very dedicated and loyal employees.

He is working closely with the board to implement the plan generated by CHC.

“We want to identify opportunities to improve the financial position of the hospital in a variety of ways,” he said.

He has worked with CHC in the past, as well as other consulting firms. He worked at Leavenworth, Kansas City and Washington, D.C., to name a few.

Harding lives in Dallas and flies to Wichita each Monday morning, and back home Friday night. Compared to previous jobs, this is an easy commute, he said..

“Last year I flew more than 120,000 miles. This is easy,” he said of his weekly commute. He plans on getting an apartment for his stay in Wellington, which will likely be about six months or longer.

Harding said he has been working with local physicians to find ways to increase volume. Billing and collecting are always a big issue for rural hospitals, and that is a major obstacle.

They are planning on changing the coding system, which is what is created so bills can be created. He believes that will help with billing, which has been a struggle.

Last year previous CEO Leonard Hernandez said the hospital was collecting only about 47 cents on the dollar for its services.

Hernandez resigned in September and has taken on a similar role in another hospital.

Harding said he did not want to comment on the past and wants to look to the future.

“We have done some things already, some things are in place, but there are no quick fixes,” he said. “The things we put in place will not materialize tomorrow, but I think in three to six months people should see some real differences.”

He said he did a similar project in a small town near Chattanooga, Tenn. There were a lot of similarities in the two projects, and it took about a year to turn the situation around.

“When I left there it was on solid footing,” Harding said.

The expansion of Medicaid, or the lack of it in Kansas, has been an issue for the hospital. Harding said that is something that is not in his control, so he does not worry much about it. He instead tried to focus on things he can change.

Still he has a lot of confidence in SRMC’s future.

“You cannot come into this type situation without a high degree of confidence. I am the eternal optimist,” he said. “I believe we can make a change here. There is a need for the hospital in the community, and there is a population to support the hospital. I have been in similar situations before,” he said. “I would not have taken the assignment if I did not believe it could be done. I wanted to go someplace where I can make a difference.”

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