Methodist Community Benefit Report

The community benefits plan adopted by Methodist is about improving health; the health of each individual, and the health of the community. In developing the plan, several sources of information were utilized to help identify specific healthcare needs. First, one of the more comprehensive local assessments is led by the Department of Public Health. The Peoria County Community Health Needs Assessment 2005-2010 identified local health priorities as cerebrovascular disease, hip fractures and infant mortality. The leading causes of mortality were identified as heart diseases. The second source was Healthy People 2010. Healthy People 2010 set out national objectives for health improvement and are built around the concepts of disease prevention and health promotion. Other source documents include disease specific incidence and prevalence data, mortality and morbidity statistics. The Methodist community benefits plan includes five major goals. The goals, together with the specific initiatives being undertaken by the Medical Center to achieve the goals, are summarized below.

Improve access to high quality healthcare services.

As a charitable organization, the Methodist Medical Center provides care without regard to a person's ability to pay or economic wherewithal. The hospital, physician offices and outpatient clinics have an open access policy, accepting all patients and all payers. This fact is evidenced by the volume of indigent patients served and by the financial support given to subsidize the care of the uninsured, underinsured and government programs. In 2009, Methodist provided $5,761,783 in charity care (at cost), underwrote $43,639,579 in expenses that were not fully reimbursed by Medicare and Medicaid, and wrote off $7,552,835 in bad debts at cost. Historically, Methodist has been the largest or second largest provider of inpatient care to the Medicaid population in the service area.

In addition to addressing the financial barriers, Methodist has undertaken several initiatives in the past several years to address structural limitations. In 2003, Methodist invested $2.4 million dollars to renovate and expand its emergency department in order to ensure access to emergency medical care. This year, Methodist will serve approximately 59,000 emergency room visits, of which 43.3% are Medicaid patients. Medicaid payments cover only 47.1% of the total cost of providing emergency room care.

Methodist is also one of the largest providers of primary care services and a principle access point for the medically underserved population. With 158 employed doctors operating from 39 clinical sites, Methodist cares for 55,882 Medicaid visits annually.

Finally, Methodist offers free patient transportation through the Methodist Courtesy Van and provides a $20,000 annual gift to MedForce, a non-profit air ambulance service to ensure access from the surrounding rural communities.

Reduce the incidence of disease through prevention and education programs.

Perhaps the greatest opportunity for long-term health improvement is to empower individuals to make informed health decisions through education and to encourage prevention of disease through wellness and early detection. Education is highly correlated to the health status of the population. In general, population groups with the lowest health status are those with the highest poverty rates and the least education. In response, Methodist has partnered with several school districts to integrate healthcare into the schools. Last year (2009) the school health program had 52,303 student visits, an increase of 18% from 2008.

Connected to education are individual behaviors that influence health. Methodist offers a variety of programs aimed at behavior modification such as smoking cessation classes, weight loss classes, dietary counseling and a wellness facility that has a wide array of cardiac and muscle development activities. Methodist is also a major sponsor of the "Moonwalk," a community-wide effort to engage people in exercise. Other forms of prevention activities include immunizations for both children and older adults. In 2009, Methodist immunized 16,920 adults against influenza (e.g. the flu shot). Methodist offers a wide array of community health screenings either free of charge or at little cost. In 2007, Methodist launched a major initiative to screen high risk children for lead poisoning. According to data published by the Illinois Department of Public health, Peoria County ranked #1 in lead poisoning across the State and fewer than 25% of the county's children had been screened. Methodist screened 4,535 children for lead in 2009. Other screenings offered by Methodist include blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, ABI, PSA, pulmonary function, and stroke. Combined, the Methodist Wellness Center screened 26,337 Central Illinois residents during 2009.

Improve cardiovascular health and quality of life through prevention, early detection of heart disease, and early treatment of heart attacks and strokes.

In Peoria, as well as the rest of the nation, the leading cause of death is heart disease. Over the past several years, Methodist has made major investments in an effort to improve the quality and scope of cardiac services available to the Peoria service area. Among these are 1) the acquisition of a 64-slice CT scanner to provide CT Angiography; 2) the recruitment of six cardiologists; 3) the establishment of a Heart, Lung and Vascular Institute which integrates physician and outpatient diagnostic and treatment services; 4) the opening of a chest pain center within the emergency department; 5) the installment of a new endovascular lab; 6) the establishment of the hospital's first EP lab; 7) the establishment of a HeartStat program to ensure quick access to cardiac catheterization; 8) participation in several clinical trials to test various devices; and, 9) The purchase of one of the first and most advanced CT/PET scanners in the world. The capital investment associated with these initiatives alone exceeds $9 million.

Reduce the health disparity that exists among segments of the population, including differences that occur by race and age.

The health disparities among various segments of the population have been a significant concern for Methodist. Methodist has undertaken numerous initiatives aimed at improving the health of minorities, and the elderly. Among those has been the initiation of a geriatric health fellowship to train physicians in the unique aspects of senior health and the operation of a school health program that targets children going to inner-city schools. Combined, these initiatives require annual subsidies of nearly $609,000.

Improve the quality of life for the residents of Peoria and the surrounding communities.

As Central Illinois' second largest acute care provider, Methodist fully recognizes its responsibility for meeting the healthcare needs of the communities we serve. The Medical Center's corporate responsibility, however, extends well beyond healthcare. Methodist is also the third largest employer in the Peoria metropolitan area and as such has a significant influence on the community's overall quality of life. Unlike many hospitals, Methodist does not use its not-for-profit status as a means to avoid charitable contributions. In 2009, Methodist provided $1,674,649 in financial support to the local community. While much of the financial support goes toward the funding of health-related entities such as Heartland Clinic, other proceeds are earmarked for enhancing the area's quality of life. As an example, Methodist is a major sponsor of Bradley University, United Way, and the Heartland Community Economic Foundation. In addition to Methodist's economic contributions, Methodist's management team is encouraged to get involved in their communities through volunteerism. Every member of the hospital's executive staff serves on at least one civic board. Methodist promotes volunteerism by linking executives to non-profit organizations, and allowing them to volunteer on Methodist's time. Last year (2009) nearly 14,790 volunteer hours were documented. Methodist also plays a key role in the economic development of Peoria. This year, Methodist has completed construction on a new medical office building, a new hospital entrance, and a new parking deck representing a combined investment of $75 million dollars.

In 2010, Methodist will continue to invest in the community's quality of life through donations, volunteerism and economic development.

Community Benefits Summary (In Millions)

Charity, Discounted, and Unpaid Health Care	$13.3
Unfunded Cost of Government Health Plans	$43.6
Unfunded Cost of Medical Education	$2.5
Community Health Programs	$2.8
Sponsorships and Donations	$1.7
Other	$1.2
Total Community Benefits Provided	$65.1

View Methodist's Community Benefit Report