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CHC panel chooses HealthTech for hospital assessment project
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Posted on Jun 14 2012
By Moneth Deposa
Reporter
Reporter
The four-member special committee tasked to select the firm that will assess the entire operations of the Commonwealth Health Center has picked U.S.-based HealthTech for the job.
Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. chief executive officer Juan N. Babauta, a member of the panel, confirmed with Saipan Tribune yesterday that HealthTech bested two other companies on the final list: Soyring Consulting and TMGI Inc.
Babauta disclosed that the panel interview with the companies’ representatives was done via teleconference this week. Based on the information submitted, costing, approach to assessment, and timeline, the panel chose HealthTech after the company garnered the most number of points among members.
The other three members of the panel are hospital administrator Karen Buettner, governor’s consultant for Medicaid Esther Muña, and the governor’s legal counsel James Stump, who is now coordinating the schedule of the winning firm.
Babauta said that HealthTech is expected to start work “very soon” as soon as the firm is ready to mobilize.
The hospital assessment aims to give the government and the corporation a clear picture of the Commonwealth Health Center’s standing in terms staffing, operation, and financial state.
Babauta disclosed that the general standing of the hospital has not been clear since the corporation took over the Department of Public Health in October 2011. By doing the assessment, both the government and the corporation will have solid information that could help turn around the hospital’s deteriorating condition.
HealthTech, he said, is a large company that specializes in broad hospital operations and has experience in running hospitals.
Funding for the assessment will be sourced from an Office of Insular Affairs grant amounting to approximately $150,000. It was agreed that the selected firm will be paid this amount plus expenses.
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial earlier initiated a request for proposal seeking firms to do a study on the public hospital. Five companies responded to the announcement, later narrowed down to three. The other companies that were eliminated in the process were Medical City from the Philippines and U.S.-based Sanigest International.
