By Malcolm Butler
Hospital Service District No. 1 officially began operating Monday, electing its leadership and putting the legal and financial mechanisms in place that will allow the newly created district to begin its work on the future of healthcare in Lincoln Parish.
The five-member Board of Commissioners held its inaugural meeting Monday afternoon in the Lincoln Parish Police Jury meeting room, with Jay Guillot unanimously elected chairman and Kyle McDonald unanimously elected vice chairman. Lincoln Parish Police Jury Administrator Courtney Hall was elected secretary.
The district’s five commissioners are Guillot, McDonald, Dr. Jackie White, Steve Davison and Annette Straughter.
For Guillot, Monday’s meeting represented another step in a process that began well before the Police Jury formally created the hospital service district.
“For me, it’s been active for a couple of years with the study and creating the roadmap of what we think success looks like and what we can support here in the parish and the city,” Guillot said. “And we’re going to be working toward fulfilling that mission.”
It also drew plenty of interest as the crowd included a number of police jurors (Logan Hunt, Glenn Scriber, Milton Melton, Straughter) as well as a number of local healthcare professionals.
The board members took their oaths of office before the meeting was called to order and then moved through the initial organizational steps necessary for the district to conduct business.
Following the election of officers, the board voted to enter executive session under Louisiana’s Enhanced Ability to Compete Act to discuss strategic plans and marketing strategies related to its business. Members of the public and media were asked to leave the room while the commissioners, Hall and legal representatives remained.
The executive session lasted approximately 31 minutes. Upon returning to open session, Guillot stated that no action had been taken during the closed-door portion of the meeting.
The board then unanimously approved several resolutions designed to establish the operational framework for the new district.
One authorized Guillot, as chairman, to execute agreements, contracts, memorandums of understanding and other documents deemed necessary and proper for the district to conduct business. Another authorized the retention of special legal counsel for operations, compliance and strategic planning related to healthcare delivery and Hospital Service District No. 1.
The board also authorized opening a bank account for the district, designating Guillot, McDonald and Hall as signatories.
“The resolutions that were voted on is the ability to conduct business,” Guillot said. “We’ve hired an attorney that is very experienced in healthcare districts and hospitals. And then the last piece was putting the banking mechanisms in place.”
The board opted not to establish a regular meeting schedule, instead agreeing to meet on an as-needed basis.
“We’re pretty excited to be at this spot,” Guillot said. “It’s been a long lift getting here.”
The Lincoln Parish Police Jury created Hospital Service District No. 1 earlier this summer as local leaders continue evaluating the long-term future of healthcare services in the parish.
The district’s formation follows a healthcare planning process involving the Police Jury, City of Ruston and Lincoln Health Foundation, including the North Central Louisiana Healthcare Planning Final Report prepared by Whitecap Health Advisors.
Guillot said the Whitecap study, which examined healthcare needs, patient utilization, physician supply and potential future healthcare models, will provide a foundation for the district’s work.
“It’s certainly going to be the starting point,” Guillot said.
He said additional expertise will be needed as the district moves into determining what healthcare model is financially feasible for Lincoln Parish.
“We’re going to have to rely on some other consultants to come in and assist us in just the financial part of hospitals as this progresses,” Guillot said. “But that was a really good starting point for us.”
He said the process will involve numerous factors beyond determining what healthcare services the community wants.
“There’s obviously a lot of moving parts in the healthcare space, from reimbursement to cost of construction to all the different pieces and parts that have to come together — the financing,” Guillot said.
Guillot also acknowledged the significant public interest surrounding the future of healthcare in Lincoln Parish, pointing to the response generated by the community survey conducted as part of the Whitecap study.
Monday’s meeting was primarily organizational, but it marked the point where months of healthcare studies and planning began transitioning into the work of the newly created district.
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