Video: Local Hospital Is Now Under New Management

CALHOUN COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI)-Calhoun County Health Services will now be apart of the Baptist Memorial network.

County leaders approved a 50-year lease agreement with Baptist Memorial Health Care on Tuesday Morning.

Recently, Calhoun Health services was having a hard time staying afloat.

Now, hospital administrators believe being part of a larger health care system is a win for the community.

“We entered into a lease agreement which will take effect October first of this year,” said Derick Ziegler, Vice President of Regional Operations at BMHC. “It’s primary term is 30 years with two options for an additional ten year extension, so a total of 50 years.”

The Calhoun County Board of Supervisors, along with Calhoun City leaders and the hospital board of trustees signed the lease to make it official at Tuesday’s meeting.

It’s an agreement employees and residents are giving a thumbs up.

“I think they’ll see new equipment and new improvements in the services that we now offer, and I think it will benefit them greatly,” said James Frankiln, Calhoun Health Services administrator.

Under the agreement, Baptist Memorial Health Care will keep the existing services the hospital already has in place. That includes ambulance and nursing home services.

However, BMHC will continue looking for opportunities to expand.

“One of the stipulations in the lease agreement is that baptist will commit to, over these 30 years, commit to the 30 million dollars in capitol improvements,” said Ziegler.  “This is exciting and a benefit that Calhoun knows that Baptist is going to commit to investing capital dollars to improving the hospital, nursing home, and all of the other services.”

The lease also allows for current Calhoun Health Service employees to keep their jobs.

“Yea, they’ll just go through the normal Baptist screening process that we do, follow our normal standard HR policies and procedures, and then we’ll board them on, which is important because it makes them feel apart of the Baptist System,” said Ziegler.

Beginning October first, the hospital will be called Baptist Memorial Hospital Calhoun.

For information on job opportunities at the medical center, visit http://www.baptistonline.org/careers/ for more information.