RHD took over operation of the Humphreys County hospital
and performed a major financial and healthcare miracle

Located in the heart of the Mississippi Delta, the most medically under-served region in the nation, the Humphreys County Memorial Hospital spent the winter of 2006 mired in debt and declining health services, physical condition and morale.

The Humphreys County Board of Supervisors was looking for someone to perform what seemed to be a miracle. The alternative was to close the doors.

Ray Shoemaker, who had been hailed as the “Turnaround King” by the Memphis Business Journal for his performance in resurrecting the hospital in Panola County, was sought by the Supervisors and Hospital Board to come to Belzoni to save their hospital.

Three months before Shoemaker had incorporated Rural Healthcare Developers, a healthcare development company which would target underserved rural communities. RHD signed a management contract with Humphreys County Memorial Hospital and Shoemaker moved to Belzoni in January 2007 to take over the administration.

The hospital was $4.5 million in debt and had not turned a profit in the last four years. It lacked the confidence of the community, the exterior and interior of the building suffered from neglect and much of the equipment was outdated.

Those were just a few of the overwhelming obstacles the 34-bed critical access hospital faced. Shoemaker took the helm of HCMH with a new vision for rural healthcare.

He immediately began cleaning and remodeling the building. Even greater renovations were taking place in the operation of the hospital. Shoemaker solidified existing services and added a number of new outpatient services to enhance the hospital’s place in the community. Equally important to the survival of HCMH, his financial management added significantly to the bottom line of the hospital. The staff of physicians admitting to the hospital rose to 11and added about 60 new positions to staff the new programs.

After six months, the financial hemorraging had stopped, bills were being paid and the hospital was gaining the confidence of the community.

In April 2008, Shoemaker and RHD bought the hospital and renamed it Patients’ Choice Medical Center of Humphreys County.