Renton has much at stake in the race to replace Don Jacobson on the Public Hospital District No. 1 Board of Commissioners, at a time when Valley Medical Center is undergoing historic change.
This is Renton’s “seat” on the commission and whoever sits in it should best reflect the interests of the Renton community. Two candidates running for the commission best fit that over-arching job requirement – Dr. Mary Alice Heuschel and Dr. Paul Joos.
The demands the commissioners face – on their time and on the talents they bring to the table – have grown with a strategic alliance between Valley Medical Center and UW Medicine. The five elected hospital district commissioners will also sit on the 13-member board that oversees the medical side and day-to-day operations of the hospital and also prepares its annual budget.
It’s clear there’s a new era of professionalism coming to Valley’s oversight and, more importantly, a keen interest in talking about health care and patient safety.
Heuschel has impeccable credentials to serve on the commission. The Renton School District superintendent is an education leader locally, statewide and nationally. The key word is leader. She knows how to run a large enterprise, how to write a budget and she can clearly articulate an organization’s mission. In other words she can see the big picture, yet still delve into the details.
As an added bonus, she will advocate for that important link between student achievement and good health care. That advocacy will not only benefit Renton’s students, but students throughout the hospital district in southeast King County.
A concern has been raised that Heuschel wouldn’t have the time to serve as a commissioner and at the same time run the school district. But other education board commitments have eased and, she pointed out, her contract requires her to take leadership positions in the community. She vetted the idea of a campaign with the School Board, which gave Heuschel its blessing to run. And she’s managed over the past several months to attend many of the commission meetings, sometimes using vacation time to do so. She has done her prep work.
Joos is well-known in the Renton area as an eye surgeon. His strength is his medical background and his understanding of how a hospital works from the inside. That’s important insight, which he, hopefully, would use to carefully question the executives on the medical side.
He is not as prepared as Heuschel to immediately become an effective hospital commissioner, especially on the new alliance board.
A scientist, Jim Grossnickle of Bellevue says he has the experience to break down a problem and find a solution. But the editorial board’s concerns were about his lack of overall experience. He made ongoing reference to resolved issues, such as CEO Rich Roodman’s pay and retirement payout. Joos and Grossnickle both said that Roodman’s time as CEO needs to end. All three candidates say they would have voted to approve the alliance, but Grossnickle expressed the strongest reservations.
The strategic alliance offers a fresh start for oversight of Valley Medical Center, with even more public input than in the past. Heuschel and Joos are most likely to look forward with the new day in mind and still remain mindful of their obligations to taxpayers’ financial stake in the hospital district.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: The following explanation was edited Friday, July 30, to reflect that everyone in the hospital district will vote in the primary and general elections. Originally, it indicated only voters in the commissioner district itself would vote in the primary.)
EDITORIAL BOARD
The Renton Reporter has convened an editorial board to make its endorsements in two races in the Aug. 16 primary.
The board is comprised of Publisher Ellen Morrison and Editor Dean Radford and two community members, Armondo Pavone and Jim Medzegian.
Today is our endorsement in the race for the Public Hospital District No. 1 Board of Commissioners, Position 1. This position is centered in Renton, but everyone in the hospital district will vote on the candidates in the primary and general elections.
The Renton Reporter is recommending two candidates to advance to the November general election in each race. The thinking is that it’s too early to endorse just one candidate now, well before the campaign has begun in earnest. We’re simply helping to whittle down the field to two candidates.
This fall, the board will meet again to endorse a candidate in those two races for the general election and for three contested races for the City Council.
