BAMBERG, S.C. - Bamberg County is considering selling its nursing center to a Georgia company, with officials saying it could help them pay for hospital renovations.

Selling the nursing center is only one option among many, according to hospital board Chairman Randy Maxwell. The county also considered leasing the nursing center -- really, “whatever it takes.”

“We’ve got to find the money to repair the old hospital building,” Maxwell said. “County Council is looking at ways to do that.”

The county is in negotiations with Toccoa, Ga.-based UHS-Pruitt Corp., according to a release from the corporation. County Council is expected to hold a public hearing and consider giving final approval to the sale during its regular meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 3.

The terms of the deal were not released Monday.

“If the negotiations with UHS-Pruitt and the county are successful, this new arrangement will allow the hospital management to focus their attention on the renovations underway in the hospital and will provide the financial resources to carry out that work,” according to County Administrator Rose Dobson-Elliott said in the release.

“It also brings with it a new health care provider with an excellent reputation, a solid quality rating and hands-on experience in managing nursing centers and providing other long-term care services,” she said.

Once the selection process is complete and all negotiations are concluded, the transfer of control from the county to UHS-Pruitt would be expected to take approximately 90 days.

“It is necessary to request transfers of the operating license, the certificate of need and reimbursement contracts for both Medicaid and Medicare,” Dobson-Elliott said. “The county council and the hospital board would like to thank the citizens of the county for their patience and support throughout this process.”

Consultant Joe Lupica, the county’s financial advisor in the transaction, said the arrangement will help the hospital pay for renovations at the Bamberg County Hospital mandated by the federal Centers for Medicaid and Medicare.

“We are also negotiating a commitment from UHS-Pruitt to invest an additional $500,000 to upgrade the nursing center itself,” Lupica said.

UHS-Pruitt Corp. has more than 125 service locations serving more than 20,000 patients. It has 8,500 employees.

UHS-Pruitt Chairman Neil L. Pruitt Jr. said the company is excited about the opportunity to expand its long-term health care services in Bamberg County.

“We currently provide hospice services in Bamberg through our affiliate, United Hospice. If we are selected, the addition of the nursing center would allow us to better meet the needs of the post-acute patients by providing services such as rehabilitation programs, nutritional programs and medical supplies,” Pruitt said in the release.

Pruitt said the current nursing center employees should experience only modest changes. Each employee would be asked to continue in their current jobs at their existing salary and their years of employment with the hospital would be recognized for seniority and benefits, he said.

Pruitt said there would, however, be noticeable changes to the appearance of the building.

“We expect to make a substantial investment in the building over the next several years. Although the basic building is sound, we believe it would benefit from a fairly extensive refurbishing program,” he said.

Sandy Elliott, director of nursing at the Bamberg County Nursing Center, said although the nursing center staff members are “a little sad” at the potential of not being part of the hospital anymore, they are excited about the opportunities UHS-Pruitt will bring.

“They are a great company with a lot of resources. My experiences with UHS-Pruitt employees who work for their hospice company have been wonderful. They are progressive and caring group, and I think that will fit our nursing home perfectly,” Elliott said.

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