PUTNAM — The Putnam Business Association is already busy planning for the upcoming season of First Fridays. This year’s events will occur over six evenings: May 1, June 5, July 3, Aug. 7, Sept. 4, and Oct. 2, and will continue the tradition of live music, community art projects, engaging performances, and art vendors.
The season-long theme is A Century of Art, with each month exploring a distinct period of art in the 20th century, including: Art Nouveau, The Jazz Age, World War II and the Arts, Pop Art, Urban Art, and Digital Art. With the 2015 theme as inspiration, there will also be a poster contest, allowing local artists to compete for the chance to submit the cover art for the 2015 First Fridays program.
For 2015, the First Fridays committee is eager to engage local artists once again with the Second Annual First Fridays Poster Contest. For a second year, the winning artist will receive a cash prize and will see their work on the cover of the 2015 program. The contest will allow artists to be inspired by the 2015 theme, A Century of Art. Entrants are encouraged to use creativity to interpret and explore art of the 20th century to create an original work. All pieces must fit into a 16x20 poster frame portrait orientation and must be submitted by March 14.
For more information on the 2015 season of First Fridays and for more on this year’s theme and poster contest, visit www.discoverputnam.com.
Over the past four years, First Fridays has grown in size and recognition from a small outdoor art festival, to an award-winning seasonal event. In December of 2014, the Connecticut Economic Resource Center and Governor Malloy recognized the Putnam Business Association’s 2014 First Fridays events with a Celebrate Connecticut award.
In 2014, First Fridays celebrated the different facets of cultural diversity with each monthly event. This year, First Fridays will focus on the evolution of art throughout the 20th century – a time of rapid change in the U.S. As technology transformed people’s everyday lives, the arts – music, dance, photography, and theater mirrored the leap forward taking place over the passing decades of the 1900s. Throughout the 2015 season of First Fridays, each event will be a journey back in time, viewing the past through six different periods of the 20th century. With each month, be on the lookout for theme related performances, community art projects, and art attacks.
Last year, the First Fridays committee held its First Annual Poster Contest, searching for original artwork to grace the cover of the 2014 event program. Fourteen artists submitted posters with the winning entry serving as the cover artwork for the program. At the July event, all 14 entries were part of a silent auction, with proceeds going to the Putnam Arts Council, the driving force behind the Art Attacks featured at each First Fridays.
Snowy Face
This is a hose holder in the shape of a quarter moon --- with a dash of snow. Spring will be coming sometime soon? Linda Lemmon photo.
caption, page 6:
DKH Board
The Day Kimball Healthcare Board of Directors at the Annual Corporators Meeting. Courtesy photo.
DKH losses
total $5.3M
in 2014
More corrective
action being taken
PUTNAM— Day Kimball Healthcare President and CEO Robert Smanik announced that DKH’s audited financials for the 2014 fiscal year reported at $5.3 million loss. This despite cutting expenses by more than $2 million dollars through the course of the year with reductions in pharmaceuticals, advertising and public relations, and employee benefits costs as well as restructuring and downsizing of departments without affecting the quality of patient care.
The most significant impact on the loss, however, was the result of adopting more conservative financial reporting practices in anticipation of financial obligations driven by government audits for Medicare and Medicaid payments. These accruals accounted for almost $4 million.
At the annual corporators meeting Smanik said, “The federal Affordable Care Act is forcing change at unprecedented rates for the health care industry. Our purpose – what keeps us going every day – is to be sure there are health services close to home for northeast Connecticut. In today’s climate, that does not allow us to remain the same. Change is an imperative, not an option. We are fighting the good fight.”
In 2013, DKH reported an $8.5 million loss, which was the initial year the organization was affected by the state’s cuts in Medicaid reimbursements. Corrective plans were implemented but there was not sufficient time to react without significantly affecting patient services.
The 2014 fiscal results reflect a reduction in expense from the previous year by $2.3 million, with revenue increasing by $1.3 million. Some services experienced an increase in volume such as Day Kimball HomeMakers that reported an increase of 20,000 service hours and the Day Kimball Medical Group which reported an additional 16,000 patient visits compared to last fiscal period. Most services were relatively flat in their volume year to year.
Despite this two-year loss, Day Kimball remains financially secure. However, more immediate corrective action was required to retain this strength in light of the 2014 results. Thus last week, DKH implemented another $1.2 million in expense reduction which required implementation of additional staffing efficiencies throughout the organization and the senior management team voluntarily accepted a 10 percent salary reduction. Additionally, Day Kimball HomeCare and Hospice & Palliative Care of Northeastern Connecticut are engaged in a comprehensive review of operations and will incrementally implement efficiency measures to improve financial performance of these business units.
“Day Kimball has committed its leadership team to continue its deep investigation of operations in all areas of the organization,” said Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nursing Officer Donald St. Onge, RN. He added, “We must be innovative and think outside the box, however, we will not make decisions that impact our proven ability to provide safe, high quality medical care for our patients.”
During this period of changes and expense reductions, DKH received quality accolades from nationally-recognized third-parties. Smanik shared some of the accomplishments received in 2014:
* Triennial accreditation by nationally-recognized The Joint Commission for hospital and homecare services
* Triennial accreditation by College of American Pathologists for laboratory services
* High quality ratings from Medicare for hospital acquired conditions, ranking number two in the state out of 30 hospitals
* Lowest readmission rates in Connecticut as reviewed by Qualidigam, beating state benchmarks in six out of seven categories
Smanik said, “Unfortunately, in the words of Charles Dickens, we find ourselves in the best of times, and in the worst of times. What we are facing and responding to are the impacts of the Affordable Care Act and the national transformation of the health care industry, which candidly, is not clearly defined. This means in many cases we are responsive rather than proactive. And despite these pressures and distractions, the employees continue to rise above, perform exceptionally well as indicated by industry experts, and more importantly, connect in personal ways with our patients. I am very impressed with the Day Kimball team.”
As testament to the dedication of Day Kimball’s team, outgoing Chairman of the Board Jack Burke announced Employee of the Year Barbara Chubbuck. She was Employee of the Month in June.
All 12 of the Employees of the Month were recognized at the meeting. They are in order from January to December: Marie Haggerty, Patient Accounts; Liza Greene, Housekeeping; Mary Ann Skarani, Behavioral Health; Jamie Vega, Patient Access; Linda Gervasio, Ambulatory Care Unit; Barbara Chubbuck, Human Resources; Rick Cyr, Facilities Management; Nicole Missino, Development; Melissa Greene, Patient Access; Robert Beaudry, Security; Lisa Briere, Oncology and Laurie Zisiades, Perioperative Services.
Other business conducted at the meeting included approving the election of new Board member Kevin P. Johnston and the renewal of Board members Joseph Alessandro, DO, Joseph Botta, MD, Hadi Bozorgmanesh, Jack Burke, William St. Onge, ESQ, and Janice Thurlow.
The Corporators also approved the slate of officers: Chairman Joseph Adiletta, Vice Chairman William St. Onge, ESQ, Secretary Karen Cole, Treasurer Janice Thurlow, Assistant Secretary and Assistant Treasurer Joseph Botta, MD.
In Adiletta’s comments as the incoming chairman of the Board, he reminded guests of DKH’s deep connection to the region, highlighting:
* Provision of care to 75,000 of the 93,000 residents of their 13-town, 450 square mile service area with inpatient, outpatient, and in-home care services, of which 35,000 are registered patients in Day Kimball Medical Group
* Employment of 1400 people of which 80 percent live in Northeast Connecticut and another five percent live in Connecticut
* Economic impact of $227 million annually
* Shared commitment with the community to sustaining DKH as demonstrated by close to
$1 million raised annually through fund-raising events and direct donations to services
Recognition was given to Burke as outgoing Chairman of the Board and to John Graham, MD for serving his maximum term of nine years on the Board. Graham was appointed DKH Chief Medical Officer, Vice President Quality & Risk Management in January of 2014.
..
Girls’ Wrap-up
Tourtellotte,
Woodstock
enjoy magic
of victory
By Ron P. Coderre
It doesn’t seem possible but most local girls’ basketball teams have already reached the halfway point of their seasons. At this juncture the playoff picture is beginning to take some clarity. The Tourtellotte Lady Tigers of coach Carla Faucher with eight wins have already qualified for the CIAC tournament. Three teams, Woodstock, Plainfield and Putnam, each with five wins, only need three more wins to make the postseason list.
All high school and prep schools were fully engaged in activity last week with Woodstock Academy 2-0 and Tourtellotte 3-0 posting perfect records. Killingly, which is much improved over previous seasons, split a pair of contests as did the Plainfield Lady Panthers. Putnam won two-of-three, while Ellis Tech was beaten three times, dropping to 0-8 on the season.
Some of the prep squads were still playing in tournaments. Marianapolis and Pomfret with wins over Governor’s Academy and JFK High School enjoyed success. Marianapolis V2 team was winless as was Hyde-Woodstock.
Lady Tigers Riding High
Tourtellotte rode the inside play of its twin towers Deanna Lazarra and Jess Dodd and the hot shooting of Allie Ablondi in posting three relatively easy victories to go to 8-1 on the season. They opened the week with a 46-17 lopsided win over Windham Tech as Lazzara (14) and Dodd (12) combined for 26 points to lead the way.
The Lady Tigers next victim was hapless Ellis Tech which was drubbed 63-11 as Ablondi led the way with 17 points. They closed out the week with a satisfying 41-27 win over Wheeler at home. Ablondi once again was the high scorer with 14 points.
Woodstock Academy evened its record at 5-5 with a pair of legitimate wins. The Lady Centaurs posted victories over Lyman and Fitch. The Acads took the measure of Lyman 50-40 in a game that they led throughout. Galina Gruder, who’s been Woodstock’s leading scorer all season, paced the win with 19 points. Long-range bomber Rebecca Messier added 14, with two coming from beyond the arc. Colleen Topliff chipped in 10 points.
The Lady Centaurs then faced Eastern Connecticut Conference Large Division foe Fitch. After trailing by two points at intermission Woodstock shut down the Falcons in the second half, limiting the visitors to 10 points as they won going away 48-33. Gruder (15) and Messier (11), including two more from three-point land, were the leading scorers.
Putnam posted wins over a pair of Tech school opponents, beating Norwich Tech 27-21 and Ellis Tech 35-17. Although no one hit double figures in the win over Norwich Tech, three players contributed to the win as the Lady Clippers spread out the scoring. Alyssa Frederick and Lynsay Dashnaw each had eight points, with Dashnaw’s entire production coming from the charity stripe. Freshman Ashley Burke chipped in five points. In the win over the Lady Eagles Burke was the high scorer with 12 points, while sophomore Alyssa Espinosa added 10. Sydney Tetreault with nine markers was high scorer for the losers. Sandwiched between the victories the Lady Clippers were beaten by former Quinebaug Valley Conference foe Griswold 40-25.
Plainfield, which is 5-5 overall and 1-3 in the ECC Medium Division, lost to Stonington 62-49 and rebounded for a 68-32 victory over archrival Griswold. Zoe Beaver had 17 points in the loss to Stonington. Julie Jordan with 20 points paced the Lady Panthers as they rebounded with the win over Griswold. Madeline L’Orange was also in double figures with 12 points.
Killingly with three wins in its first 10 games has already picked up more victories than it did last season. The Redgals behind Meagan Bianchi, who had her best offensive performance of the season with 24 points, beat Wheeler 48-42. Karissa Slowik was also in double digits with 14 points. In its first game of the week Killingly was dropped by Waterford at home 60-31.
In addition to being beaten by Tourtellotte and Putnam, Ellis Tech also lost to Grasso Tech 54-28.
Pomfret & MPS Victors in Tough Week for Preps
Pomfret School raised its record to 5-4 on the season with a convincing 76-44 victory over Governor’s Academy in a game played on the road in Byfield, Mass. The Griffins placed three players in double figures, led by Deja Ross with a game high 20 markers. Juliette Lawless turned in a significant all-around performance with 18 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots. Alyze Davis with 14 points and Rebecca Erosa with 10 were the other Pomfret double digit scorers.
Hyde-Woodstock despite an amazing 40-point performance by Trayniece Mims fell to the Wheeler School of Rhode Island 76-56. Dossou Ndiaye had 12 points for the 3-4 Wolfpack.
The Marianapolis V1 unit lost a heartbreaking overtime contest to Rivers School 66-65. Jordan Frye and Rachel Aho each had 17 points in the loss. In the New Year’s Resolution Tournament in Iselin, N.J., the Lady Knights were dropped by National Christian 62-36. Aho with a dozen markers was high scorer for 5-6 Marianapolis. The Lady Knights picked up the pieces, beating host JFK High School 55-46 behind Game MVP Caroline Soucy who dropped in 16 points for the winners. Sophomore Frye added 14 and Aho had 11 markers and nine boards.
The Marianapolis V2 squad, which is 2-4 on the year, lost its only contest of the week 47-15 to the Wheeler School.