After Northern California fires, the virus, ‘nothing is predictable’ for Solano County health care system CEO

While being at the helm of a health care conglomerate is never an easy endeavor, B. Konard Jones for the last two-plus years has had a front row seat on a roller coaster that never stops.

As CEO of NorthBay Healthcare, this ride known as the pandemic started before California went on lockdown in March 2020. NorthBay VacaValley Hospital in Solano County was coping with COVID cases that February.

“We were at the tip of the sword,” is how Jones describes the early days of the pandemic when so little was known about this coronavirus.

The Vacaville hospital didn’t know it was dealing with a COVID patient until after she was transferred to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento. She had walked into the Solano County facility with flu-like symptoms.

After that first case, all COVID-positive patients who needed hospitalization have been treated at NorthBay’s Fairfield facility, NorthBay Medical Center.

While NorthBay Medical Center was involved with passengers from the Diamond Princess cruise ship who were taken to Travis Air Force Base after disembarking in Oakland, this first patient told officials she had no contact with anyone quarantined in Fairfield. Travis AFB was also where U.S. residents returning from China were first sent, with NorthBay Medical Center treating them as well.

“We are probably out of the woods, but we are not out of the challenge,” Jones said about the pandemic today.

The nonprofit system received a piece of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) in 2020, but Jones admitted nearly all health systems are facing challenges after enduring a worldwide pandemic.

While the medical provider has not released its 2021 annual report, for 2020 the numbers were dismal. The 2020 report from NorthBay Healthcare said, “Receipt of federal relief aid from the CARES Act and from FEMA totaled just over $40.2 million. Regardless, net income declined 52% from the prior year. The budgeted revenue shortfall in patient care revenue exceeded $80.3 million. The total financial impact of the pandemic on the health system was estimated to be $40.7 million.”

Jones said of the financial health of NorthBay: “It could always be better. We are an independent system, so we don’t have deep pockets. We run on a relatively thin margin. It has been difficult the last two years with the amount of care that our institution has provided during the pandemic.”

He added, “But when you choose health care, you choose to serve. Our motto here is we will care for those who can’t otherwise pay. As a health system we make adjustments as we move along. Being small and independent means we are more nimble.”

The 62-year-old is responsible four health care campuses that employ more than 2,500 people who mostly work in Vacaville and Fairfield. An urgent care is slated to open in American Canyon in May, with another in Dixon expected to be operational in late summer.

The following Q&A between Jones and the Business Journal has been edited for clarity.

In 2020, NorthBay VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville treated the first patient in the country who acquired COVID-19 through community spread. What was that like?

We didn’t learn of the COVID-19 diagnosis until the critically ill patient was transferred to UC Davis Medical Center. That’s because the patient didn’t meet the criteria at the time to be tested for COVID. Once we learned that our team interacted with this patient in many ways over a four-day period, we rolled into high gear for our first up-close and personal experience with contact tracing.

Even before that incident we were working closely with the CDC and the California Department of Public Health because we were identified as the responding hospital if any refugees at Travis Air Force Base needed medical care. In that role we helped establish some of the safety protocols that are common practice today at facilities across the country.

I’ve seen my team step up time and time again, even when they were exhausted, to do what’s right for our patients. From our physicians and nurses to nutrition services and environmental services team members, every one of them has kept a focus on the patient, delivering compassionate care and advanced medicine to the community. The team pulled together, stayed on top of ever-changing guidelines, stretched limited resources and got creative in delivering care in safe and convenient ways to patients who were, at times, fearful of any contact.

How have wildfires and power outages affected NorthBay Healthcare?

Just when we thought we were learning to take the ebb and flow of the pandemic in stride, power outages and fires reminded us that nothing is predictable. In fact, in August 2020, a wildfire came a little too close to home, tearing through parts of northern Vacaville and Fairfield, rendering travel between our two hospitals harrowing for a few hours, making it hard for some employees to get to work.

As it raged on in the days that followed, it forced evacuations of many of our employees and those in the community. It ultimately destroyed more than 200 homes, six of those belonging to our employees and one to a physician.

We arranged it so our employees could donate vacation and holiday hours to an employee emergency fund to aid their coworkers as they were reeling from the shock. Our team never missed a beat during this time when it came to patient care, and our operations team went into overdrive, deploying air filters to maintain air quality inside our facilities.

As for power outages, it seems to be an ongoing issue in California due to recurring high winds and sometimes due to wildfires. Our team has a protocol in place whenever an outage occurs. Our generators kick in and our team knows how to deliver care without missing a beat.

How does being part of the prestigious nonprofit Mayo Clinic Care Network help your Solano County patients?

We have been a proud member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network since May 2016. We are one of only two hospitals in California to be part of that elite group. What it means for our patients is they have peace of mind when diagnosed with a rare, serious or complex condition. Our NorthBay physicians can securely share patient and relevant test results with a Mayo Clinic expert for additional input on the diagnosis and treatment plan, all at no cost to the patient.

It means we have the best and brightest minds in medicine working together on complex medical challenges. It means that patients don’t have to travel far away to get a trusted second opinion.

What trends that affect your industry keep you up at night?

I’m often asked how I sleep at night and my usual response is, “Like a baby: I wake up every two hours crying and sucking my thumb.”

The health care landscape has changed in many ways and our patients expect or even demand that our system meet their needs when and where they want them met. This demands a laser-focus on how to stay ahead of the “ask” — telemedicine, expanded hours of care and more local care options, all while providing the best care for the lowest price possible. This coupled with the threat of cybersecurity matters can result in sleeping like a baby more often.

If you could change one government regulation, what would it be and why?

One of my mentors told me when you are on this highway called life and when you are delivering those things that affect others, to do the best you can to stay in your lane. I am going to stay in the health care lane.

I could probably spend the next 1½ hours talking about things I would do differently if I were in government. My cup of tea is to find ways to execute things that lay in front of us. I’m staying in the health care lane.

Where will your business and industry be in the next five years?

We have a unique place in Solano County. We are one of three health systems. Our goal is to continue to offer something different than large box medicine. We will also continue to advance our systems.

We were the first health system in Solano County to bring robotics, we are the stroke center, we are a level two trauma center. We don’t want people to have to cross a bridge for world-class health care or die trying to get it.

In 2017, you became CEO when your predecessor Gary Passama retired after 35 years at the helm. What has it been like taking over from someone who had such longevity in the health care group?

I was honored to take the baton from Gary Passama. I haven’t attempted to fill his shoes, but instead am focused on making new footprints in the sands of this great institution. I have to be true to who I am, and do it in my way, giving 100 percent to this organization every day.

I first started at NorthBay in 1995. I worked for Gary; he brought me here. He was not only my boss, but became a dear friend and mentor.

(After graduating from Grambling State University in Louisiana, Jones was an executive for the manufacturing company ITT Inc. He was employed by NorthBay Healthcare from 1995–2004, and came back in 2015. In between, he was at Broadline Medical Inc. and UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital in Oakland.)

Are wages the answer to recruiting great talent? Why or why not?

Wages and benefits are important, of course, but job candidates can earn good wages anywhere, especially in today’s competitive market.

What sets us apart is our culture at NorthBay Healthcare. We follow the “NorthBay Way,” emphasizing the value-based principles of caring, communication, collaboration and competence.

We listen and empower staff to get engaged through many channels, including shared governance, open forums, Zoom events, surveys, direct calls, emails, committees and focus groups. It turns out we find a lot of candidates through word-of-mouth because our employees honestly enjoy working here and feel appreciated. They know that they’re making a difference.

Yes, it’s been tough through the pandemic. It has been tough on all hospitals.

But NorthBay Healthcare has maintained a high number of long-term employees because they are committed to our mission: providing compassionate care and advanced medicine close to home. We are the only locally based nonprofit health care system in our county. We grew from a local grassroots effort to bring quality medical care to Solano County, and we believe that resonates with our community.

What advice would you give someone just starting his or her career in your industry?

Never stop following your dreams because they can come true.

What is your approach to making tough/important business decisions?

Through my career I have had highly trained, skilled and talented colleagues and mentors. When making tough/important decisions at NorthBay, I have been best served by listening, more importantly, hearing input from leaders closest to where the work gets done. Being fully equipped in data and information allows the decisions to be centered around the maximum outcome while benefiting the whole.

What qualities in other executives do you try to emulate?

The main qualities I attempt to display every day and in every interaction is to be present in the moment, listen to what others have to say, create a workplace that allows everyone to be their best self and always display servant leadership.

For me a servant leader is one who every day attempts to offer the resources and the latitude and opportunity for folks to express themselves in the best way possible.

Every day our teams cross the threshold of one our four campuses to give the best care possible. We ask our leadership team what that means. Often times we find ourselves making the big decisions to drive strategies of the organization, when really we are here for one reason and that is to care for people. So, we need to provide the tools to the people who care for those people.

What was the hardest lesson you learned early in your career which you now recognize as an important one?

Listening to understand the facts prior to reaching a conclusion.

When you are making decisions that will affect the delivery of product, in our case it is health care, too often you may be expected or may be required to make decisions very rapidly. Even when you are faced with that there has to be something that allows you to pause long enough to meet that moment in time.

To me it was learning when to balance the need to get something done and balancing what the real objective was, which was to get the right thing done. I have learned in my career you have to go slow to go fast; that you need to pause so you can listen. This way you are equipped to make the final answer to the matter to which you are addressing.

What from your childhood was a clear sign you would one day have an executive leadership position?

I was very fortunate to have two wonderful parents and six fantastic siblings growing up in South Central Los Angeles, which gave me a front-row seat when it came to family decision-making. It was artful.

Everyone had a role to play with how our family structure navigated and assimilated into our community, church, schools and workplace. Most importantly, it taught us how to grow up to be good citizens with the intent to leave the world in a better place than we found it. I had a wonderful childhood and wouldn’t change a thing.

When you aren’t at work, where might you be?

I might be at home in Fairfield with my wife Fairfield where we have lived for more than two decades. I could also be rooting on the Los Angeles Dodgers, or doing work for one the boards that I’m a member of. Those include Western Health Advantage, California Healthcare Insurance/Optimal, Hospital Council of Northern and Central California, NorthBay Healthcare Corporation, NorthBay Healthcare Group; and NorthBay Health Advantage.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the name of the hospital handling COVID patients for NorthBay Healthcare.