San Juan Regional Health

San Juan County’s adult detention, juvenile services, and alternative sentencing facilities inmate medical services will be provided by San Juan Regional Medical Center beginning February 16, 2014. Dr. Eric Ketcham will be the medical director.

“San Juan County is pleased to partner with San Juan Regional Medical Center to provide their medical expertise and quality care to our incarcerated population,” said County Commission Chairman, Jack Fortner. “In addition, this contract keeps locally-generated tax dollars and jobs within San Juan County, which is always a benefit to our community.”

San Juan Regional Medical Center will staff about 20 full-time positions to fulfill this role including around-the-clock care. These positions involve a certain amount of primary care responsibilities, management of urgent needs, medical record input, prescription medication processing, and site administration. Nurses will also assess inmates, provide care and supervision of two short-term, inpatient beds, and distribute medication. When needed, physicians will be contracted through Stat Doctors.

“Our depth of experience as a hospital is a much more complex environment of care than a detention facility,” said San Juan Regional Medical Center Chief Administrative Office, Tom Dean. “Because our hospital population base is tens of thousands of people in our community, along with our level of expertise, we’ll be able to handle the 750 average population in these facilities.”
“When considering the types of policies the county required, we were able to show that the policies we adhere to are significantly more comprehensive,” said Dean, regarding one reason for securing the bid with the county.

Dean assured the county that the hospital’s core values, including sacred trust and personal reverence, will be present at all times. “We don’t see this as being a part of a punitive environment,” said Dean. “We’re there to deliver healthcare while following the same values we do in the hospital and bring that same spirit to this service.”

“We’re really exited for this experience and to fulfill this role, and we’re pleased that it was filled locally. Fulfilling the healthcare needs of the community goes along with our mission,” said Dean.