Officials approve consulting contract

It's the first step in turning University Medical Center into an academic health center and becoming more efficient, according to Clark County commissioners.

County officials approved a $450,000 contract Wednesday with a Tennessee-based consulting firm, FTI Healthcare, which will study how other county hospitals changed their management structures to become teaching hospitals.

The consultant also will update the past analysis of UMC's operating and financial flaws. Last year, the financially strapped hospital ran up an $80 million deficit.

Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani, who acts as vice chair for the UMC board, justified the almost half a million dollar price tag in a tough economic time as a "wise expenditure in the long run."

UMC and the medical school "are two poorly funded organizations, and I don't want (the venture) to fail," she said. "We need to know where the pitfalls and savings come into play. In the realm of every­thing we spend, this is more prudent to make sure this is the direction to go in. Sometimes you have to spend a little bit."

That $450,000 includes all out-of-pocket and travel costs, according to Tom Layton, FTI Healthcare's managing director.

The county approached more than 120 vendors and got about a dozen responses, none from a firm in Las Vegas, officials said.

According to the contract, UMC will pay $359,500 from its operating budget and the Nevada System of Higher Education will chip in $91,000. However, the board is asking the regents to seek another $90,000 from the Lincy Foundation, which was started by casino mogul Kirk Kerkorian, to reduce the county's share of the bill, Giunchigliani said.

Parties from the county, the hospital, the Nevada School of Medicine and the Nevada System of Higher Education will collaborate on the project.

"This will allow each of the institutions from the medical school and the hospital to look at long-term viability," Layton said. "The UMC system will become a true vibrant county hospital, a true academic center and a medical school."

Kathy Silver, the hospital's chief executive, said the county is investing in a firm that understands the workload.

"There were some (bids) that were significantly higher than that, and there were some lower than that probably by about half," Silver said.

"But we didn't really feel that they had an understanding of the scope of work, and they didn't have the expertise. We're paying for what we need."

Contact Kristi Jourdan at kjourdan@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0279.