After spending five months as interim administrator, the Española Hospital has removed the interim from 23-year hospital employee Brenda Romero’s title.
Romero, who took the interim leadership post in May, confirmed Monday she had accepted the full-time spot. The hospital’s Community Board of Trustees voted to recommend Romero for the job last month and she said she accepted the job Oct. 28.
“It’s been one of my goals for a while,” she said.
Romero, who was nursing director at the hospital for 17 years, said increased community involvement is one of her major goals in her new job. She said the hospital could sponsor local sports teams and community organizations could hold meetings in the building.
“I think that piece has been missing,” she said.
Despite her assertions for more community involvement, Board of Trustees meetings remain closed to the public despite multiple requests from the SUN asking to be allowed into the meetings.
The Board chose Romero without performing an external search, Board Chairman Ray Chavez said. An external search resulted in the hospital’s hiring former administrator Derrick Yu, who came from Deming in July 2007. That hire didn’t work out as well as some would have hoped, Chavez said.
“It’s just that (Yu) probably wasn’t accustomed to the customs and the traditions that we have here,” Chavez said.
Romero, a native of Vadito who now lives in Arroyo Seco, knows the local culture, he said.
Romero replaced Yu after he resigned effective May 1. Yu quit less than two months after announcing he would reduce the number of hospital ambulances from three to two, a decision that triggered an outcry from some local emergency officials.
On Monday Romero said the hospital had not reinstated the third ambulance because there is usually not a great enough need for it.
“Right now we’re adding a third ambulance anytime we think there’s going to be a surge in calls,” she said.
Romero said Presbyterian Healthcare’s study of the problem demonstrated two ambulances are enough, but she couldn’t provide documentation of that claim by Tuesday.
Between March 9, when the cuts took effect, and May 12, when the SUN was last allowed to inspect the ambulance logs, paramedics were delayed in responding to calls, or were unable to respond, at least 35 times.