UMass Memorial in the black

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UMass Memorial Health Care (UMMHC) has posted a $29 million operating surplus for fiscal 2014, according to an audited report the Worcester-based health care system released this week.

The operating surplus represents a turnaround from 2013, when UMMHC reported an operating loss of $55 million for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2013. Finalized numbers for the 2014 fiscal year released this week followed preliminary numbers published in November.

According to UMMHC, payments increased in fiscal 2014, rising to $2.25 billion, compared with over $2 billion in fiscal 2013. The system's net profit totaled $60.8 million in fiscal 2014, including investment income. That's down from $72.9 million last year, as UMMHC spent $16.4 million on reducing its workforce.

The system has orchestrated this financial turnaround by shedding services and cutting jobs over the last two years, in order to make the system more efficient, according to UMMHC.

That included the $107 million sale of its outreach laboratory business to Quest Diagnostics in 2013, as well as the closing of hospital units and the reduction of about 400 full-time equivalent positions. The sale of Wing Memorial Hospital in Palmer to Springfield-based Baystate Health was also scheduled to close in September.

Dr. Eric Dickson, CEO of UMMHC, said fiscal 2014 operating results show that the organization is on track.

“Our results are much better than last year at this time right now and are on track with where we wanted to be,” he said. “Now that we have stabilized the financial situation, we have spent much more of our time to how we transition and transform the organization to meet the needs of the community in the future.”

Dr. Dickson said there were no more planned reductions in staff for the coming year. He reported that the hospital had hired over 170 nurses over the 2014 fiscal year and has more openings for nurses. UMMHC employs over 2,300 nurses, according to Dr. Dickson.