Erica McDonald, the new administrator of St. John's Myrah Keating-Smith Clinic, says she's pleased with what she has found so far at her new workplace.
McDonald, who began work March 1, said she spent the first week looking over the clinic, its operations and its staff. While the building "is in good condition," she said, "it needs more attention to maintenance." She expressed the hope that "by the end of the month we will have a plan."
Staffing at the clinic is adequate — and, in some cases, more than adequate, she said. But she added that there will be no immediate dramatic changes in personnel.
McDonald comes to her new assignment from West Virginia, where she was the administrator of Mann Appalachia Regional Hospital, a 74-bed facility. In the territory, she said, she is enjoying the change of climate and the daily ferry rides across Pillsbury Sound from St. Thomas and back. "I wanted to make a lateral move. It's more of a scenery move," she said with a smile.
She recognizes that operationally things will be different for her here. "I have to adjust to how the government works and the difficulties it has in getting things done," she said. Often, she said, "people's expectations are for things to get done faster than the delivery of those expectations occurs."
Challenges that McDonald sees facing Keating Clinic are in the acquiring of medicines and other supplies and the delivery of medical services. She said she will be looking at how best to utilize the small ward of observation beds set up in the clinic when it was re-opened several years ago.
She pledged to pay particular attention to the area of maternity services. One of the first things she learned on St. John, she said, was how strongly some expectant parents feel about having their children born as native St. Johnians.
