TIM CASHMAN
The hospital industry is very complicated. There are multiple professionals, trained in various disciplines, who are needed to operate a hospital: physicians, nurses, aides, technologists, and first responders.
In addition, the hospital must have administrative support staff, including experts to handle information technology, registration, billing, coding, the supply chain, housekeeping, building maintenance, etc.
The business gets even more complex when dealing with insurance companies, including Medicare and Medicaid (i.e., getting paid).
It truly takes a village.
Estes Park Health is one of our largest employers in the Estes Valley and a key economic driver. This hospital must survive.
The Board of Directors has a very important role in governing this enterprise, ensuring good leadership and accountability. This responsibility includes the ability to listen to our community and respond to unique needs.
I have spent the majority of my professional career managing the financials of hospitals. I am intimately involved in the details of how this works. I am retired, yet I believe that I can be of value to the community and to EPH. I am skilled and have practiced in the critical access hospital industry. EPH has worked with UCHealth before, including during and after the conversion to Epic, the electronic medical record and accounting systems. So, we know those UCHealth professionals, both in clinical roles and administrative roles.
I moved to Colorado in 1983, after graduating from college with an undergraduate degree in finance. I followed that up with a Master of Business Administration degree. I began working in hospitals in 1987, in Colorado Springs.
In 1997, my wife Lois and I moved to work with Gunnison Valley Hospital. We had fifteen very good years with that hospital and community. In 2012, we had an opportunity to move to Glenwood Springs and work at the Valley View Hospital.
After five years, EPH called, and we decided to move to Estes Park. During my time with EPH, we successfully navigated several significant events, including the fires of 2020, the COVID pandemic, opening the Urgent Care Center, and, unfortunately, the closure of the Living Center.
While I was at the hospital, we were positioned for success.
It is and will be important to keep critical healthcare services available to the community. I do believe that affiliation with UCHealth in concept could be beneficial to the financial health and administrative oversight of Estes Park Health.
However, with very few details of the proposed affiliation, despite the two years that have passed, it’s difficult to assess what the complete impact will be.
We need more information about the details of this discussion to make accurate judgements and ensure EPH’s best interests.
There are five qualified, well-intended candidates running for two seats on the Park Hospital District Board of Directors. I believe my experience, capabilities, and vision will be very helpful to the long-term success of our collective and very important community asset, Estes Park Health.
Accordingly, I appreciate your support.
TOM LEIGH
My name is Tom Leigh. I retired from the practice of emergency medicine last September after a 36-year career, the last 9 of which were at Estes Park Health.
I am running for the Park Hospital District Board of Directors because I feel a sense of duty to this hospital and this remarkable community. My wife Anna and I are here to stay.
My formal training began at the CU School of Medicine, and I completed residencies at the University of Michigan (Internal Medicine) and the Denver Affiliated Residency in Emergency Medicine.
I have practiced at everything from a remote four-bed critical access hospital to level one trauma centers. I served as chief of staff twice during the merger of our local hospital in Palmer, AK, with a large national Hospital system. I served 12 years on the board of a community mental health center and started an urgent care center.
Anna and I feel very connected to this town and this hospital. Having worked at multiple critical access hospitals in the past, I am acutely aware of how important and essential rural hospitals are to small towns like ours.
Hospitals like EPH are needed to manage emergencies, primary care, and as many specialty services as possible. This hospital is one of the main economic drivers in town, and this community has invested many millions of dollars through our property taxes to ensure a strong hospital and medical community in perpetuity.
This is a critical moment in the evolution of our local health care system. This Board election will determine the quality and availability of medical services in Estes Park for years to come.
I have spoken to many people in this town over the last several months, and there is widespread dissatisfaction over the loss of services, especially long-term care, home health, hospice, and primary care.
There is great concern about the work culture and staff turnover at the hospital. This hospital is not user-friendly, and access to care has become problematic. The financial condition of the hospital is poor. My priorities as a Board member will be:
1. Ensuring the highest quality care and access to as broad a range of services as is possible.
2. Developing an environment where medical and hospital staff are thriving, stable, engaged, and happy.
3. Restoring trust in the hospital and as many lost services as we can.
4. Maintaining our ambulance service.
5. Fostering effective communication between the Board of Directors and our constituents who elected us and to whom we have a fiduciary duty.
6. Providing maximal transparency in every way possible.
7. Shepherding the acquisition (we are already “affiliated”) by UCHealth, consistent with the needs of and subject to the approval of our constituents.
8. Expanding access to mental health care.
9. Improving the financial condition of EPH.
10. Restoring exemplary customer service and facilitating easy access to care.
11. Supporting and involving the medical staff in medical decisions.
I believe I am the best candidate to serve this community on this Board.
I am unique in that I am an experienced physician who has worked at this hospital recently and who understands the needs of our hospital and our community.
I am familiar with the current state of our medical system and with my responsibilities as a Board member.
I am deeply committed to this hospital, this medical staff, and this community.
I can be available to everyone. My phone number is 907-232-3976, and my email is akleigh@mtaonline.net. Information is available on my Facebook page and website. I will be available for meet-and-greet/community forums at the Estes Park Library, Hondius Room, on Wednesday, April 23, from 1 to 2 p.m., Monday, April 28, from 1 to 2 p.m., and Wednesday, April 30, from 3 to 4 p.m.
I look forward to meeting you, and I hope I can earn your trust and your vote.
MAX SALFINGER
I was born in a small rural village in Switzerland, with one schoolhouse and one family practitioner. I volunteered in the local fire department and rang the church bells on Saturday evenings and Sunday mornings before the service.
Community service was important to me then and is still important to me today. After winning the Swiss Youth Science contest, I decided to attend medical school at the University of Basel.
In 1992, I came to the United States to work in New York at the height of the nationwide tuberculosis epidemic. With my expertise in tuberculosis, I volunteered in countries such as Kosovo, Kazakhstan, Peru, and Afghanistan and even visited a prison in Siberia, which hosted only convicts with tuberculosis, to provide advice for the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis.
I held leadership positions in public health in New York and Florida and implemented award-winning programs for faster diagnostics in tuberculosis and expansion of the newborn screening panel.
My career has been built on improving public health systems, ensuring accurate and timely diagnostics, and leading teams toward innovation. Now, I want to apply that experience to ensure Estes Park Health remains a trusted, high-quality resource for our community.
Since moving to Estes Park in 2021, my wife and I have embraced this incredibly unique community. Whether it is volunteering, attending town hall meetings, or enjoying the natural beauty of Rocky Mountain National Park (I continuously hone my skills as a wildlife photographer), we are deeply invested in Estes Park’s future and are very active in the community in various capacities/groups.
As a frequent attendee of Park Hospital District Board meetings, I see both the strengths and challenges facing Estes Park Health, and I believe my experience can help shape a bright future for healthcare in our community.
I am a great communicator, and as an example, I implemented weekly reports with staff and a newsletter for patients at large at National Jewish Health in Denver, the number one respiratory hospital in the nation. As a former state legislator in Switzerland, I know how important it is to stay in contact with the people you represent.
The elected Board will have different responsibilities once the affiliation moves forward. I am very excited to help build a new relationship between the hospital, UCHealth, and the elected Board. This is not only of utmost importance during the transition period but also in the long run.
I am a dedicated healthcare leader with a lifelong passion for improving medical services. As an Estes Park Health Foundation officer, I am active in projects/activities that impact Estes Park Health, have first-hand insights into the needs of Estes Park Health, and have developed effective relationships with management and hospital staff. With decades of experience in public health and healthcare systems, I bring expertise, vision, and commitment to ensure Estes Park Health remains a trusted resource for our community.
Estes Park Health is vital to our community. Electing strong leadership ensures its success for years to come. I have the experience, dedication, and passion to be effective. I would be delighted to be an ambassador for our community to ensure that the health needs of our community are met.
During my entire professional life, I kept promises I made. I took the time and researched the topic at hand to ensure that additional facts are known before making decisions. Voters appreciate board members who are always prepared for a meeting – that is me. I do not consider having worked at Estes Park Health as an advantage, rather being free of old relationships and providing an outsider perspective or offering a fresh pair of eyes.
As a team player, my career has been built on working towards excellence in public health systems and leading teams toward innovation. Now, with your help, I want to apply that experience to Estes Park Health so that it continues to be a trusted, high-quality resource for our community.
RALPH STRICKLAND
Ralph Strickland, ‘Everyman’
Hi, friends! You may have seen me all throughout the Estes Valley – chatting with folks at the hospital, at the church, in our coffee shops, library, banks, and the grocery stores – I’m hard to miss. I do stand out. For those I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting, a little bit about me follows.
As a ‘youngish’ disabled veteran, who’s already been a patient of both the VA and several private hospitals scattered across the country and overseas, I have received many types of clinical services, from routine to critical care. This care was primarily provided by excellent medical centers, researchers, and schools of medicine in the South (i.e., Duke, MUSC, etc.).
After being so positively impacted by those experiences, I sought a position with the Veterans Health Administration to ensure that our veteran patients receive the quality of care due to them. It’s like I came full circle when I arrived at my first VA medical center to provide care.
Programmatically, my strengths centered around the administration of an area-wide clinical Telehealth program. Specifically, I supervised Nurses engaged in remote patient care management, deployed Health Technicians to outpatient areas on campus and at two satellite clinics in the adjoining counties, and managed the interface between the electronic health record and the patient portal.
After visiting Estes Park for several years, primarily because we had family here, I moved here in 2023. After establishing new routines, friendships, and employment, I sought out opportunities to serve, to leverage the sum of all my experiences above with non-profits, healthcare, and public service. Based on the suggestions and encouragement from neighbors and business owners, I chose to pursue a Board seat at EP Health.
So, why am I running? Because I can affect better communications and broker common sense, simpler solutions with the present Board.
Many residents also believe that not every financial and operational solution needs to come from someone with a medical license. In almost every position I’ve held, I participated in or ran some type of process improvement effort. I know I can facilitate refining operations and patient care through process improvement on the Board.
My family, just like many of yours, stands to be affected, for the good or the bad, by this proposed merger with UC Health. We all know that there are many moving parts, and a lot will no doubt change from the initial letter of intent, so I am eager to see what aspects of these changes I can influence for the greater good of those of us who call the Estes Valley home.
Why should I be considered above the other candidates? That’s a very good question. I hope through the recent forums, letters to the editor, and individual conversations with Estes Valley stakeholders and EP Health personnel, that I have convinced many readers – both friends and neighbors who may have attended and/or read what I had to say, that I am the “everyman” for the job.
Dear reader, you and I have much more in common than those whose lives have revolved around EP Health. Most of us cannot relate to how entrenched or beholden some have had to be, or are, to our hospital’s influence.
As for me, I have contributed greatly in my prior service to public health systems and do not owe (nor previously had to owe) such allegiances. I suspect I am in an enviable position in that the only allegiance I would owe would be to the citizen stakeholders who may elect me to represent our mutual interests on the EP Health Board.
Also, with an audiologist on the Board, Dr. Workman, I think what’s needed now is a new, fresh perspective on the challenges facing the Board, such as communication and transparency.
They should broker what they know to the citizen stakeholders and be more accessible to healthcare professionals and the hospital’s supporting staff. If elected to a Board seat, this would be my primary mission.
Perhaps one of the strongest reasons I can give, since I’m relatively new here (~2 years) and offer a fresh set of eyes, I’m getting to be known as the Estes Valley’s “odd duck” in this race, the “independent thinker” and a “non-conformist” candidate. My answers in the forums didn’t always align with others. This, too, leads me to think I’m probably the most relatable Board candidate to our friends and neighbors.
Friend, I appreciate you taking the time to hear my heart. I’d be honored if you’d reach out to me and share your concerns as I seek to serve you in this capacity. Here’s my personal email address: strickland803@gmail.com.
Again, thanks. I hope to hear from you soon.
JANET ZESCHIN
Running for the Board was a decision made after feeling personally and professionally compelled to do so.
I am a service-oriented individual and my healthcare knowledge and experience position me to be an effective advocate and voice for the community, EPH staff and the facility.
The EPH Board, its functions and processes/procedures are familiar to me from my previous employment at EPH as the director of quality, patient safety, and risk management, as well as my experience at other hospitals, both critical access and large metropolitan.
My role on the Board will be to bring my knowledge and experience to supplement the perspectives represented by other Board members in discussions and decision-making that are in the best interest of the facility and community, as well as fair and beneficial to all involved.
There are significant suspicions, emotions and opinions of the current Board and their workings. To repair community relationships, the Board should approach a workable solution that ensures transparency with community-raised issues while adhering to EPH/UCH nondisclosure agreements and Colorado statutes.
Discussions should address the community needs assessment, physician and employment engagement, reported toxic culture, current leadership, and partnership negotiations.
Soon there will be two new Board members (whichever candidates are elected), and therefore a new team that will develop their own dynamics. They deserve our support.
I am dedicated to contributing to the sustainability and growth of Estes Park Health, ensuring it remains a vital part of our community. I am committed to working collaboratively with the Board, medical staff, EPH staff, and the entire Estes Park community to address current challenges and seize opportunities for improvement.
Together, we can ensure that Estes Park Health continues to provide exceptional care and service for years to come.
My husband and I have lived in Estes Park since 2011, and our two adult children with their families are also here. I retired in 2020 from EPH after a 46-year professional nursing career that included the USAF Nurse Corp, almost 20 years in critical care and 20+ years in Hospital and Medical Staff Quality, patient safety, patient experience, risk management, utilization review, infection prevention as well as federal and state accreditation and regulatory compliance. This work included a leadership role working with hospital boards, administration, medical staff, and hospital staff, as well as the Colorado Hospital Association, Colorado Rural Health Center, and regulatory and quality improvement organizations. My experience also includes three years as a quality and utilization review consultant in hospitals across the country and in Alaska.
I have been a Rotarian since 2012, serving in numerous leadership positions. I have also served on the Friends of the Library Foundation Board since 2014. I have been a member of the American Legion for nine years and a member of the Land Trust since 2024.
Estes Park is our home. Our friends and family are here. We need quality medical care and exceptional patient experience to continue in our town.
Tim Cashman was part of group that closed the living center. I for one, won’t forget that. Vote accordingly.