By Clyde Noel

After a seven-month reporting period, the El Camino Hospital District’s financial operations are performing significantly below the industry median, but slightly above the year-to-date fixed budget.

“Net operating margin is a primary indicator of profitability and defined as net operating income divided by total operating revenues.

After seven months, the net operating margin is a minus 8.3 percent,” said Marla Gularte, the hospital’s chief financial officer. The industry median for all California hospitals is 1.6 percent.

The El Camino Hospital, the El Camino Hospital District and the El Camino Hospital Foundation are reported together for the seven-month period.

Net income from operations amounted to a $7.665 million loss.

However, the figures were below the fixed budget for the period.

On the balance sheet, the hospital has approximately $44.6 million in total current assets. Included in that figure is $34.1 million of patient accounts receivable.

Of the $8.1 million in current El Camino Hospital District assets, $8 million are unrestricted investments and cash.

The hospital foundation’s current assets total $3.9 million, of which $3.3 million are donor-restricted contributions.

Gularte said salaries and benefits made up 54 percent of the total operating budget. The industry median is 50.9 percent.

Paid full-time equivalent employees per occupied bed at El Camino Hospital stand at 5.9 while the industry median is 6.2.

The report was presented to the board for approval and passed 4-0 with Edward Bough absent.

In other action, the board approved a request from St. Francis High School to enter into a sublease for approximately a one-acre portion of the Higgins property located at the end of South Drive.

St. Francis officials are proposing improvements to the property to accommodate 130 additional parking spaces at the high school.

St. Francis was granted a license to use “hospital land” as an athletic field, but that was reduced when the hospital established parking lot No. 14.

“Although we haven’t needed to develop this property for any specific use, we desire to maintain our options and flexibility for the future, and I recommend that El Camino Hospital enter into the sublease agreement,” said Richard Warren, El Camino Hospital chief executive officer and administrator.

“We don’t have any power to block those kids anyway.”

The decision to provide a sublease was approved 3-1. Director Dave Reeder voted no. “This is great for San Francis High School, but I can’t see where it has any benefit to the hospital,” he said.

With numerous employees and hospital friends noting his 45-plus years of accomplishments, Richard Warren was presented with the California Healthcare Association Award of Merit.

Gregg Schnepple, president and chief executive officer of Hospital Council of Northern and Central California, presented the award.