Casper Star-Tribune from Casper, Wyoming • 19

Friday, Sept. 1,1978 Star-Tribune, Casper, Hospital use still low ByPAULKRZA ROCK SPRINGS Hospital occupancy remains low deplte the recent move to new facilities. space for several physicians. Because of the low occupancy rate, the new hospital may be overstaffed in some areas, except in the x-ray and laboratory departments and In the emergency room, where Sanders had indicated earlier it's been difficult to find persons willing to locate io Sweetwater County with those skills, which are also In high demand across the nation. In other action at Its regular August meeting, the board heard representatives of three private Insurance firms present pension plan proposals.

The hospital could go with the Wyoming State Retirement System, but Sanders said that program requires all employees to participate, and with the high rate of Hang gliders at Sand Turn in the Big Horn Mountains watch eagles soar while waiting for a good wind to Join them." Picture by Kathy Naugle. Soaring "It's a matter of attracting new physicians who want to put down roots in County," said hospital administrator Charles Sanders. "That would take care of 90 percent of our problems. Sanders' statements were in response to a question posed at the Joint Hospital Board's regular meeting this week by a board member. "What are we doing about Increasing asked current member and former board chairman John Kovach.

Information prepared for the board by the hospital administration showed that the new 100-bed Sweetwater County Memorial Hospital on College Hill was about 49 pecent occupied during July, compared to a projected goal of nearly 70 percent occupancy. Sander said the county, despite several continuing efforts to recruit physicians, was still short some 15-16 doctors "to give us the care we need." He told Kovach he doesn't "advocate unnecessary admissions," tut Sanders also pointed out (hat "some are still going to Salt Lake City," some 200 miles to the west, for medical treatment that could be delivered in Rock Springs. "At. least three" obstetrical gynecologists are needed in the county, which now has only one, Sander said. The doctor shortage is most accute In Green River, although the situation there has been eased somewhat with the recent arrival of two general practitioners, Dr.

Sidney Adler of Florida and Dr. E.S. McKay, -who previously practiced in Lander for some nine years. Green River residents will also be deciding at the Sept. 12 primary election the fate of a $1.5 million bond issue for a medical clinic designed to provide office "V'f Hickey to begin burglary sentence turnover in a hospital setting, that would mean high administrative costs.

An estimated 130 of the hospital's 200 total employees would be eligible for the pension plan, action on which was delayed until the next board meeting. The board also denied a request from an unnamed hospital employee to work past the mandatory retirement age of 65, excepted a $4,000 grant from the Union Pacific Foundation and $9,800 from the Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 322 for equipment pur- chases, and agreed to make July 1 the effective date for a $5,000 pay Increase approved earlier for Sanders. He has been hospital administrator for just over a year, hired then to replace a previous long-time administrator who was terminated following an extended' controversy over apparent mismanagement of the facUity. Sanders' initial starting pay was $35,000 a year. CHARLES SANDERS Doctors needed Doctors added EVANSTON, Wyo.

UPI) 23-year-old Lonetree, mart under federal grand jury indictment in an alleged attempt to blow up an Arizona attorney's car will begin serving a one to two-year sentence on an unrelated charge Sept. 5. Michael J. Hickey, convicted of a June 9, i976, warehouse burglary, received the sentence last Friday from District Judge C. Stuart Brown.

County attorney James Phillips said Brown ruled that Hickey's $150,000 bond in the federal case was adequate to assure Hickey's appearance at the Unita County Sheriff's office. He will serve his sentence at the Wyoming State Penitentiary in "He's staying with his family now," said Uinta County Undersheriff Leonard Hysell. Hickey was Indicted earlier in August by a federal grand jury in Cheyenne, on charges of possession, interstate transport and the receipt and concealment of stolen explosives in alleged attempt In 1977 to blow up a car belonging to George' Mariscal, the Phoenix, attorney. Also indicted in the same case was Mark Hopklnson, a Urie, businessman, who was linked in testimony at a Evanston murder trial to the August 1977 bombing at the home of Evanston attorney Vincent Vehar. The blast left three dead, but no charges have been filed in the case.

Both Hopklnson and Hickey have pleaded innocent to the federal charges. Hopklnson Was arrested In Salt Lake City but waived extradition and was' transported back to Cheyenne. wwmm Funds approved Ostlund says low morale, high turnover costs plenty FORT WASHAKIE The Public Health Service will have two new doctors stationed at the Arapahoe Clinic. A registered nurse and laboratory technician are also being added to the staff. Dr.

Jafties Holcomb of Richwood, Ohio, graduated with a degree in biology from the University of Virginia and attended medical school at Ohio State University. He interned at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. Dr. George Lindsay of San Francisco attended Berkley College and the University of California in San Francisco. He interned in eastern Virginia and completed one year of residency in pathology at Mt.

Sinai, Va. The registered nurse, Mrs. Kathy Gustln, a lifetime resident of Lander, received her RN training at Bannock Hospital in Pocatello, Idaho. The new laboratory technician, James Thompson, received his degree from the University of Wyoming, interned at Natrona County Memorial Hospital and has spent the last two-and-a-half years at the Veterans Hospital at Hot Springs; S.D. Gov.

urges gas bill passage CHEYENNE UPI) Gov. Ed Herschler, often a critic of President Carter, Thursday called on Congress to rise above political and regional differences and pass the president's energy package. Carter cut short a vacation in the Grand Tetons by two days and flew back to Washington Wednesday to fight for passage of his energy legislation. "In its present form, the president's energy bill leaves a lot to be desired and it's not entirely the bill I would have proposed, but if we are going to effectively conserve energy, tight inflation, and bolster 1 the dollar, it is imperative that we have a solid national energy policy," the Democratic governor said. "These national Interests should precede regional and political differences.

I urge the Congress to stop playing games with the president on this Important legislation and, with the public Interest in mind, to enact the energy bill as quickly as possible." On previous occasions, Herschler has criticized the president on water and agricultural policy. GLENROCK Fundine for 20 units of senior citizen housing has been given final annrAifol in Wochinrrtnn CHEYENNE Republican gubernatorial candidate John Ostlund has said 'low morale and high turnover among state employees has cost taxpayers "an enormous amount of money. In a speech to "the "Wyoming Public Employees Association, Ostlund said he is concerned about state employee complaints. "Any businessman can tell you that the public will be best served by employees with good working conditions and high morale," Ostlund said. But while promising the employees that he would be their "number one advocate," Ostlund said he would not support collective bargaining or "meet-and-confer" legislation for state workers.

"I don't think collective bargaining is necessary to achieve what public em ployees need, and a fight over that kind of legislation will hurt both your real objectives and my ability to work with the Legislature on your behalf," he said. He added that he will not accept Gov. Herschler's attitude that Wyoming cannot afford to compete for the best people, who are lured to other states or private industry by higher He pledged to move toward lessening the difference between private industry and government wages, adding that retaining good employees goes beyond pav levels. "Poor organization, lack of recognition for good work, bad communication all these things can hurt employee morale," Ostlund said. "There is no conflict between good working conditions and efficient -government.

In fact, the two go together. Wittier pushes experience Farmers urged to kill bill Roncalio predicts-more grand juries in the state The Glenrock Housing Authority will receive $894,820 from the Farmers Home Administration for construction of the elderly housing complex, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development has approved subsidizing the rent for residents. The senior citizens complex will be constructed in Indian Hills Subdivision on land the town has already purchased for the units. The town will be repaid through the approved funds, Town Manager Bob Forbissaid Next, the town will buy another piece of property it has an option on to make room for additional housing units. Forbis said the town applied for 46 units while only getting approval for 20, adding that the town will now apply for the additional 26 units.

Bids for the senior citizen complex will be sought as soon as architect John Freed of Cheyenne completes the preliminary work, Forbis said. Hearing held CHEYENNE Regulations concerning groundwater standards and a permitting process for in situ mining will be redrafted and another hearing held, according to Robert Sundin, director of the Department of Environmental Quality. The Environmental Quality Council balanced and diversified investment program requires "continued investment in Wyoming financial institutions as well as thenational market." Total Interest earnings for the investments and the Wyoming retirement system are $42.8 billion, the third largest source of income to the state, following mineral revenues and royalties, and state 'income and sales and use tax. She noted that the investments "substantially eases our tax burdens," and that she would like to see them continued. She added, however, that while the state is one of few operating in the black, "the WASHINGTON (UPI) Sen.

Cliff Hansen, called on American farmers Thursday to help defeat a pending natural gas pricing bill he said would allow daily fanning decisions to be influenced by a federal agency. "The pending natural gas pricing bill would put millions of farmers and ranchers under the thumb of the federal Energy Regulatory' Commission, which would administer the agricultural priority CHEYENNE A state treasurer candidate has said the state is in excellent financial condition, partly because of her efforts. Republican Shirley Wittier, who has served as deputy state treasurer for the past two years, said her experience as the state's chief investment officer has partly been responsible for earning the state $5 million in UiSpastyear. Mrs. Wittier deposits by the state in Wyoming banksand savings and loan institutions haybeen increasing by $10 to $12 million eacfryear for some time.

"Those deposits amount to nearly $80 million, and loans to farmers, ranchers, irrigation projects and to municipalities are more than $100 million," she said, Mrs. Wittier, 51, a real estate broker for -10 years before her appointment as deputy state treasurer, added that a carefully CHEYENNE, Wyo. (UPI) Retiring pricing and allocation aspects of the management could -proposal," Hansen said lack of careful decrease earnings. She said state government spending has reached an all-time high and must taper off. "The Wyoming Republican's remarks were contained in a telegram to leaders of several farm organizations.

Wyoming Congressman Teno Roncalio has predicted more grand jury investigations in Wyoming because of swelling population and crime. "There will be a lot of criminal investigation in this state. We might as Well get used to it. There will be more grand juries," said Roncalio, a Democrat, at a fund raiser (Wednesday for William Bagley, a former Roncalio aide running for the Democratic nomination to run for outgoing representative's seat. A state grand jury that has been meeting periodically since November has scheduled a short session Friday, to deliberate on possible indictments concerning Rock Springs, said Special Prosecutor Lawrence A.

Yonkee. Population growth stimulated by energy Springs has been called a haven for officially condoned prostitution and gambling, a charge denied by city fathers. "We need more attention to white collar crime," Roncalio said. "There are some other crimes on earth besides selling your body." About his own decision not to seek reelection, Roncalio said it 'was partly because "I doubt my own competence to make a contribution to problem solving. Roncalio also referred to demands on Congress to deal with minor matters that interrupt more important work.

The congressman also had a comment about the Republican U.S. Senate race, where formefTTduse Speaker Pro Tem Alan K. Simpson and oilman Hugh "Bigfoot" Binford are waging highly campaips. "If Bigfoot keeps giving speeches, he will drive Rock Springs off the front page." I 'y held a hearing Tuesday on proposed regulations establishing quality standards for groundwater, a permitting process for subsurface discharges through reltsimtr aTermitting process for special development has caused serious crime to increase not only in Rock Springs, but also in Gillette and Casper, Roncalio said. Rock process discharges and in situ mining.

A large number of protests and suggested changes were made, prompting the council to take a second look at the regulations. Also on Tuesday, the council held a regular meeting and approved a series of land aualitv regulations that had already Mayors Back Witzenburger Richard Waggener of Green River, Dan South of Evanston, Kathy Glode of Saratoga, Charles Parsons of Wheatland, Robert Johnson of Guernsey, former Mayor Gene Payne Jr. of Douglas, Bill Spencer of pouglas, Florence Shriver of Ten Sleep, Charles Keller of Lyman, George Blevins of Dubois, George Bloomquist of Shoshoni, Raymond Schlattman of Moorcroft, Arnold Hannum of Hanna and Alfrec Davidson of Mountain View. The document signed by the mayors cited Witeenburger's "knowledge of economic and excellent record of managing the investments of our state" as reasons for the endorsement. CHEYENNE State Treasurer Ed Witzenburger has announced that 22 Wyoming mayors support his candidacy for the U.S.

House. The Republican candidate also said the former executive director of the Wyoming Associate of Municipalities, Walt Kingham, has endorsed his bid for the U.S. House. Those mayors supporting Witzenburger Include M. Dean Marshall of Sheridan, Sam Rosenthal of Buffalo, Maxine Patterson of Edgerton, Willard Eckhardt of Glenrock, C.A.

Thomas of Glendo, Michael Enzi of Gillette, Ralph Updike of Newcastle, Marlon Wondra of Ranchester, been put Into effect under emergency procedures because of federal requirements. The land rules Involved such topics as self bonding for surface' coal mining, limited mining operations, small mining operations, diversion and mining plans. $67,000 awarded CHEYENNE A seller of Limousin cattle, a French breed, was awarded $67,000 In damages by a federal court jury for breach of contract Wednesday. Wyco Limousin, a Colorado corporation, was awarded the judgment against International Wyco Cattle -Coa Wyoming corporation. According to the suit, the defendant firm agreed to buy 312 head of the cattle for some $330,000, The "suit Involved the defendant's refusal to buy seven head of VJ i Campaign gains four men Cantrell appears the cattle because of a dispute over their ownership and management on a farm in -England.

The plaintiffs maintained that the cattle, which, bear such unusual names as "Hampton and Hermolne," constitute a unique property for which no readily available or standard market exists. CASPER Four persons have been named to the Hugh Binford for Senate campaign. Binford is running for the Senate as a Republican. Warren Knoll of Wheatland has been named chairman of the campaign in Platte County. Knoll is vice president of the First Wyoming Bank In Wheatland.

Ed Cantrell, accused of shooting a Rock Springs police undercover agent, surfaced Aug. 18 to hand out sportsmanship awards in Lusk. Receiving trophies from Cantrell were Jeff Oestman 'left) and Tommy Whiteaker i right). Cantrell is free on $250,000 bond pending trial. Picture by Ed Siel, also of Wheatland, has accepted a position on the advisory commiUpe of the Binford for Senate campaign for Platte County: Siel is an auto and motel trades businessman.

James Gamble and Rick Breedlove, both of Torrlngton, have been named co-chairmen of the campaign in Goshen County. u. 1.