Rural Hospital’s Bet on Car Dealer Goes Bust
Monday, January 25th, 2016
A struggling hospital in this rural Georgia town embarked on a bold experiment a few years back, tapping the local Ford dealer to run its 54-bed facility. The bet was that his business savvy and ties with Duke University would save the hospital from financial ruin.
The experiment failed.
Eight years later, Washington County is once again facing the unsettling prospect that its hospital could close, and many in the community are second-guessing the motives and leadership of former CEO Jimmy Childre. It’s a classic example, some experts say, of the enormous challenges rural hospitals face these days, especially when local politics are part of the equation.
