Gov. Haley Barbour signed a bill March 31 to allow Natchez Regional Medical Center to file Chapter 9 bankruptcy. The purpose of a Chapter 9 filing is to provide a financially distressed public body protection from its creditors while it develops and negotiates a plan for adjusting its $4.5 million debt.
Jeffery Thompson, physical therapist at Natchez Regional Medical Center in Natchez, has been selected as one of the best orthopedic physical therapists in the U.S. by The Best of the U.S., LLC. Thompson is one of 1,479 physical therapists chosen from the 155,000 actively practicing physical therapists in the U.S. to be selected. In addition to having a master’s of physical therapy, Thompson is also board certified as a clinical specialist in orthopedic physical therapy and has manual therapy certification in mechanical diagnosis and therapy.
The Doctor’s Pavilion, a doctors’ building next to Natchez Regional Medical Center in Natchez, recently opened. The pavilion officially opened the offices of Internal Medicine Associates and Dr. Frank Guedon on the third floor. The rest of the building is still in the last stages of construction.
An opportunity to work in a one-year fellowship at the University of Mississippi Medical Center brought Pennsylvania native Dr. Jay H. Schwartz to the South. Now the doctor is settling into his Natchez office to begin his first private practice in general and laparoscopic surgery and image-guided minimally invasive tumor ablation surgery. He is on the active medical staffs of Natchez Community Hospital and Natchez Regional Medical Center. He is also still a clinical professor of surgery and radiology at UMC.
Natchez Regional Medical Center has named Dan Hogan the new food service director. His responsibilities will include overall management of the dietary services, including the hospital cafeteria and Riverbend Catering.
Hogan, a Natchez native, received his bachelor's degree in hotel, restaurant and tourism management from the University of Southern Mississippi. He is a registered dietitian.
Christine Rowland, a registered nurse, has been promoted to nurse manager over The Women's Center at Natchez Regional Medical Center. In this role Rowland is responsible for all three areas of The Women's Center: the labor and delivery unit, the nursery and the postpartum unit.
Rowland has more than 12 years of experience in the labor and delivery field and received her RN degree from Alcorn State University School of Nursing. Rowland was also a certified childbirth instructor for eight years.
Natchez Community Hospital recently announced awards to outstanding employees.
The Nurse of the Quarter is Lourdene Hendricks, a licensed practical nurse who has been in the surgery department for many years.
The Employee of the Quarter is Stella Bland, a managed care specialist in the Business Office.
The Department Manager of the Quarter is Karen Jo Smith, manager of the Surgery/Recovery Department.
A formal groundbreaking for a new medical office building adjacent to Natchez Regional Medical Center was held in April. The multi-story office building is the result of five years of planning and negotiating among Adams County supervisors, medical center trustees and doctors who are funding construction of the building. It is one of the biggest investments in health care since the renovation of the hospital that began back in 1990.
The building, expected to cost between $5 million and $6 million, will be four stories and 50,000 square feet. A covered walkway will connect the building to the hospital.
Located behind the Medical Arts Building, built in 1960, the new building will be built on land leased to the private investors, led by Dr. Kenneth Stubbs, by the Board of Supervisors.
Once the new building is complete, the old U-shaped, one-story office complex will be demolished and that space will be used as part of the new parking lot.
