TOOELE Buzzer-beater TRANSCRIPT lifts Grantsville over South S Summit T C S See A10 BULLETIN THURSDAY January 11, 2018 www.TooeleOnline.com Vol. 124 No. 65 $1.00 Hospital makes improvements in wake of Medicare penalty MARK WATSON The penalty against MWMC tion on quality measures that tubes inserted into veins. STAFF WRITER was announced in December, Medicare has for hospitals “Medicare audits charts to Mountain West Medical according to the Centers for across the country,” said make sure all hospitals are in Center will lose up to 1 percent Medicare & Medicaid Services MWMC CEO Phil Eaton. “The compliance,” Eaton said. “We of Medicare payments dur- (CMS). It is the result of program has been very help- self-report the information to ing the current fiscal year as not meeting standards by ful in helping all hospitals Medicare, and we knew that a penalty for six cases of the Medicare’s Hospital-Acquired improve.” we had scored adversely with infection Clostridium difficile, Condition (HAC) Reduction Eaton said the hospital was C. diff.” commonly known as “C. diff,” program that began in 2014 as sufficient in meeting other According to mayoclinic.org, which was detected in patients part of the Affordable Care Act, HAC criteria that includes rates C. diff is a bacterium that can FRANCIE AUFDEMORTE/TTB PHOTO during emergency room pro- according to Medicare.gov. of infections from hysterecto- cause symptoms ranging from Mountain West Medical Center CEO Phil Eaton explains the improvements cedures in 2016, hospital offi- “There are hundreds of mies, colon surgeries, urinary the hospital has made to better track infections. cials say. pages of technical informa- tract catheters and central line SEE HOSPITAL PAGE A6 ® Gov’t study group shares findings TIM GILLIE STAFF WRITER The committee that has been studying Tooele County’s government for a year believes FRANCIE AUFDEMORTE/TTB PHOTO FRANCIE AUFDEMORTE/TTB PHOTO it can give the county a new New Tooele City Fire Department Chief Rick Harrison. New Grantsville City Fire Department Chief Rob Critchlow. government with five council members and a county man- ager for less than its costs Family a driving Grantsville’s new taxpayers for the current three- member county commission. The Tooele County Government Study Committee force for new Tooele fire chief plans to held town hall meetings in Tooele City on Tuesday night and simultaneous meetings in City Fire Chief push fire prevention Stansbury and Grantsville on Wednesday night. Each meeting drew a dozen STEVE HOWE through the department. STEVE HOWE Fire Museum at the Deseret Peak or less people. STAFF WRITER “I got to experience the fire STAFF WRITER Complex, learning about the his- At each meeting, committee Fire service runs in the family department as a young kid and Like many other rural fire tory of firefighting and the older members reviewed their study for Tooele City Fire Chief Rick got to grow up in here,” he said. departments, the Grantsville City members of the department. process, recommendation, and Harrison, who stepped into the “Now, at my age, seeing the young Fire Department has its share of While he learned about its his- implementation plan to replace role at the beginning of the year. kids of the firemen come up here family legacies. tory, Critchlow has an eye on the Tooele County’s three-member Harrison is the third fire chief and their eyes are all lit up, it’s That’s certainly the case for its future of the department after commission with a part-time in his family and the sixth mem- definitely a family organization newest chief, Rob Critchlow, and being sworn in as fire chief at the five member council that hires ber of his immediate family to here.” his family. Jan. 3 Grantsville City Council a county manager. serve in a fire department. He said The 50 members of the volun- “I think you see a lot of that meeting, replacing previous chief The new county council he was close with his grandfa- teer fire department are about in these smaller communities,” Casey Phillips. First Assistant members will be elected for ther, who served as the fire chief split between those with a long Critchlow said. “There’s a lot of Chief Travis Daniels, Second four-year terms by districts, if in Spanish Fork, and his father family history in Tooele City and tradition there. My dad has been Assistant Chief Jason Smith and the committee’s recommenda- served as he was growing up. those new to the department, chief, I’m the chief and my little Secretary Jason Remick were also tion is ultimately adopted by “So it’s definitely in the blood,” Harrison said. A new generation brother is a firefighter now.” sworn in at the meeting. Tooele County voters. Harrison said. “(I) grew up of young members with a go- Critchlow said he learned the Critchlow said the department At approximately $120,000 around it.” getter attitude are coming into the value of hard work from watching is standardizing the advance- in salary and benefits for each With 23 years of service in department, he said. his father, Neil, who was serv- ment process, with each officer of the three county commis- the fire department, Harrison “I’ve been in for 23 years, and ing as chief when the younger moving through the ranks before sioners, taxpayers in Tooele said he’s watched other legacy Critchlow joined the department. County pay $360,000 a year members and their families come SEE HARRISON PAGE A7 ® He also spent time at the Utah SEE GRANTSVILLE PAGE A9 ® for the top layer of county gov- ernment, according to Richard Mitchell, committee chairman. The committee’s proposal SUN AND MOON SEVEN-DAY FORECAST FOR TOOELE includes paying five part-time UV INDEX The Sun Rise Set FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAYelected WEDNESDAYcouncil members a THURSDAY Friday 7:52 a.m. 5:24 p.m. Saturday 7:51 a.m. 5:25 p.m. $25,000 annual stipend, with Sunday 7:51 a.m. 5:26 p.m. no benefits. The county man- Monday 7:51 a.m. 5:27 p.m. Tuesday 7:50 a.m. 5:28 p.m. ager would be paid $90,000 COOL EVENING Wednesday 7:50 a.m. 5:29 p.m. to $120,000 per year with F Sa Su M Tu W Th Thursday 7:49 a.m. 5:30 p.m. benefits. The cost of the whole The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ The Moon Rise Set number, the greater the need for eye and skin WINTER GLOW Friday 4:01 a.m. 2:25 p.m. package, council and manager, protection. 0-2 Low; 3-5 Moderate; 6-7 High; 8-10 Saturday 4:57 a.m. 3:03 p.m. would run around $300,000 Very High; 11+ Extreme Sunday 5:50 a.m. 3:46 p.m. per year, Mitchell said. PHOTOS FRANCIE AUFDEMORTE Monday 6:40 a.m. 4:33 p.m. ALMANAC Tuesday 7:27 a.m. 5:24 p.m. An a.m. shower; “The five council members Statistics for the week ending Jan. 10. Sunshine and patchy Considerable Stormy weather dominated much of Wednesday 8:09 a.m. 6:19 p.m. otherwise, mainly Partly sunny Partly sunny Cloudywill cost aboutMostly as sunny much as one Temperatures Thursday 8:47 a.m. 7:15 p.m. clouds cloudiness Wednesday with some brief spurts of snow cloudy commissioner,” Mitchell said. High/Low past week 51/16 reaching the valley floor. But by evening, New First Full Last The $25,000 pay for council Normal high/low past week 39/22 45 28 42 27 43 27 44 30 49 35 43 33 47 32 Average temp past week 33.4 the clouds had cleared and the stage members would put Tooele Normal average temp past week 30.4 was set for a memorable sunset over the TOOELE COUNTY WEATHERCounty in the 80th percentile Daily Temperatures High Low Jan 16 Jan 24 Jan 31 Feb 7 Stansbury Mountains. According to the Shown is Friday’s weather. statewide for council pay, National Weather Service, more sunshine is ©2018; forecasts and graphics Temperatures are Friday’s provided by highs and Friday night’s according to Mitchell. forecasted for the weekend. lows. SEE STUDY PAGE A7 ® UTAH WEATHER Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Logan BULLETIN BOARD B6 Grouse 41/24 Wendover PrecipitationINSIDE (in inches) Creek 47/22 Knolls Clive WEATHER Lake Point CLASSIFIEDS C7 40/22 46/27 46/28 46/31 Ogden Stansbury Park Stansbury Park Oborn earns HOMETOWN B1 43/26 Erda 46/30 man survived statewide OBITUARIES A8 Vernal Grantsville 46/30 Pine Canyon Salt Lake City 43/17 47/31 33/24 0.21 0.32 0.21 0.47 0.21 0.47 brutality in recognition for SPORTS A10 Tooele 45/28 Bauer 45/28 Last Normal Month Normal Year Normal 45/29 Tooele Week for week to date M-T-D to date Y-T-D Ethiopia as a child fight against teen Provo Roosevelt 45/28 46/21 42/23 See Stockton Snowfall (in inches) See B1 suicide Price complete 46/29 44/21 Nephi forecast Rush Valley See A2 46/25 44/28 Ophir on A9 40/24 Delta Manti 47/25 45/19 0.0 0.0 9.0 Green River Last Month Season 47/21 Dugway Week to date to date Richfield Gold Hill 45/27 47/21 Moab 44/23 SNOWPACK Hanksville 47/23 Beaver 50/24 Vernon Tooele Valley-Vernon Creek Basin 48/21 Ibapah 44/27 46/23 Snow Water Equivalent as of 12 a.m.