MACON – Access to speciality care in Noxubee County is set to expand significantly as Noxubee Medical Complex moves forward with an $8.5 million outpatient pavilion set to open in 2027.
Covered by grant funding and federal loans, CEO Meg Ebert said the project aims to provide targeted services to county residents while also increasing outpatient revenue.
“What we’re trying to do is provide local and keep everybody local,” Ebert told The Dispatch on Wednesday. “At the end of the day, strategically, we don’t want people passing us by. Get it done here. Stay in your community. We’ll support you. You support us.”
Noxubee Medical Complex operates as a critical access facility, meaning it focuses on primary and short-term inpatient care. It does not offer extensive surgical or trauma services. The hospital’s inpatient unit generally focuses on acute conditions that are resolved within two to three days, Ebert said.
As far as current outpatient services, Ebert said the hospital already has three primary care clinics providing family medicine and general practice to help coordinate care with specialists. With the new pavilion, those specialists will have a dedicated space to practice patient care.
“In recent years, we had the opportunity to bring in some specialists that rotate in on a schedule, where we’ve got cardiology coming in now,” Ebert said. “We’ve got orthopedics. We’ve got neurology. We’ve got a pediatrician coming to town. We’ve just not had the space. We’ve done it. We’ve made it work, but this new building is going to … give us the space we need to do that and do that well.”
Additionally, there will be a new infusion center inside the pavilion, along with a new therapy unit for occupational, physical and speech therapies and another primary care clinic. There will be a day program for geriatric adults suffering mental health issues, and new equipment, including for radiology, ultrasounds and electrocardiograms.
Ebert hopes to eventually see a women’s health service line added to the building, though there are no concrete plans made for one yet.
“I’m hoping I can get mammography here for early diagnosis for breast cancers,” she said. “I would also love to figure out how to bring DEXA in here to help treat bone density and things like that for women.”
Financial impact
Chief Financial Officer Thomas Browder expects the pavilion to increase outpatient revenue by about 5% each year.
In Fiscal Year 2024, the hospital reported $21,506,193 in operating revenue against $21,660,192 in expenses, nearly $154,000 in the red, according to mshospitaltransparency.com. The budget did not specify how much of the hospital’s overall revenue consists of outpatient revenue, and Browder did not provide those numbers.
Ebert said the hospital has been fortunate to not need to cut any inpatient services in recent years. Browder hopes to see the increase translate to inpatient revenue as well as patients are transferred from outpatient.
“We’re hoping with an increase in our outpatient revenue, that that will increase our inpatient levels,” Browder said. “But you’ve got to remember, we’re a critical care access hospital. … We’re just a short term, low acuity hospital. If it’s something much more serious … we would refer you to another facility that can handle that type of situation.”
Browder said the pavilion and the services offered there will be especially beneficial to residents who would have previously needed to drive out of the county for care.
“We’re a small, poor county, and for some of our residents, it’s difficult to drive to Meridian or Columbus or even Starkville,” Browder said. “So we would like to have as many services that we can here in the county because it would make it much easier for them to access those services without having to drive a long way.”
Calling the project “a true collaboration,” Ebert said the hospital has sought community input throughout the planning process to ensure services offered reflect the needs of county residents.
“We did, a few years ago, … a community needs assessment,” she said. “We heard from our community, ‘What is it you think we need here? What are we missing? What can we offer to support you and your wellness journey?’”
Ebert said she could see the same model work when it comes to sustaining other small hospitals in rural areas.
“For us to continue to be the foundation health care provider in our community, we have to look at ways to grow and improve,” she said. “Markets change. Patients’ needs change. This (gives) us … the opportunity to continue and grow to meet the needs of … our community.”
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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