MMMC poised to be among state’s largest heart programs
Improving viability

By CLAUDINE SAN NICOLAS, Staff Writer
Article from: The Maui News

WAILUKU – With two new interventional cardiologists on staff, Maui Memorial Medical Center recorded its first angioplasty just three days into the new year.

Two more procedures – used to open blocked or narrowed coronary arteries – were successfully done at the end of last week, with the number of angioplasties projecting to run as high as 200 on Maui by the close of 2011.

“This is huge,” said Maui Memorial Chief Executive Officer Wesley Lo. “It’s something we’ve been working to do for a long time.”

Last November, Drs. Colin Lee and Joseph Chambers – colleagues who attended the same medical school – joined the cardiology and cardiovascular team of physicians at Maui’s only acute-care hospital.

“The center is poised to become one of the largest and most comprehensive heart programs in the state,” read an announcement of the latest development at Maui Memorial’s Heart Brain and Vascular Center.

Lee and Chambers spent their first eight weeks at work meeting with staff and orienting medical personnel to the angioplasty procedure and what it can do for patients.

Angioplasty is a common medical procedure, according to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, that may be used to:

* Improve symptoms of chest pain or discomfort.

* Reduce damage to the heart muscle caused by a heart attack.

* Reduce the risk of death in some patients.

Lee and Chambers each have more than 20 years of experience in angioplasty, treating thousands of patients on the Mainland. More than a million people annually in the United States undergo angioplasty, according to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.

Under Lo’s leadership, the hospital received final approval for a state certificate of need in July 2007 to offer cardiac procedures including angioplasty and open heart surgery.

Maui Memorial estimates that as many as 400 cardiovascular cases have been transferred off-island annually in the last two or three years because of the hospital’s inability to provide acute interventional care such as angioplasty. The medivac expense alone costs approximately $18,000 per patient, Lo said.

With angioplasty now offered at Maui Memorial, Lo said residents can be treated near their homes and be spared the transportation costs of being flown elsewhere. Angioplasties are covered by most medical insurance plans, and Lo’s office has already contacted the state’s major health insurers to inform them of Maui Memorial’s newest cardiac services.

In developing its cardiac unit, Lo brought on board cardiac surgeon Dr. Pat Cochran to lead the heart center and a team of cardiovascular doctors. Cochran served as the standby surgeon while the first angioplasty was performed at Maui Memorial.

Since Cochran’s hiring, two other noninvasive cardiologists have been added to the hospital’s staff – Drs. Jonathan Allen and Leslie Oberst. Dr. Koonlawee Nademanee, a renowned physician in cardiac electrophysiology, also is listed as part of the cardiac team and sees patients at Maui Memorial several times a year.

The first angioplasty procedure at Maui Memorial was completed Jan. 3 on 72-year-old Ruth Shorting, a visitor from Canada who experienced chest pains during a trip to Maui.

Shorting was admitted through the emergency room after reporting worsening chest pains. After a consultation with Oberst, Shorting was referred for a diagnostic angiogram with doctors determining that she needed an angioplasty.

Together, Lee and Chambers performed the procedure to treat what appeared to be a critical coronary blockage in Shorting.

The patient’s chest pain was resolved with no heart damage, and she was discharged after two days of observation.

Contacted in Canada, Shorting was grateful for her treatment.

“I could not have asked for a better hospital, and my daughter works in a hospital, so I know,” she said. “From the doctor’s office to the ER and procedure, everything just went so smoothly. It was just an amazing experience.”

Lee and Chambers described Maui Memorial’s cardiac center and its equipment as “state of the art.” They acknowledged that they had established medical practices and careers on the Mainland – Lee in Idaho, and Chambers in Oregon, but they wanted to come to Maui so they could focus on medicine.

“This is a rare opportunity because the services are needed. I figure why not do it where it’s important,” Chambers said.

For Lee, a 1974 Punahou School graduate, coming to Maui allowed him to fulfill a dream he had as a youngster to work and then retire on the Valley Isle.

“I’m really thrilled about the opportunity to contribute to the community,” he said.

Lo said the cardiac center and angioplasty procedures themselves could generate thousands of dollars for Maui Memorial, a state community hospital, and help reduce its annual budget deficits.

“This should have a major impact on us over time,” Lo said. “Certainly, it’s a start in the right direction toward improving our viability. Whether we’ll be entirely out of a deficit, I don’t know,” he said.

Lee and Chambers said angioplasties will require a referral from a patient’s primary physician. “We say to people this is not an easy fix,” Lee said.

About one in 500 angioplasties result in serious complications; and about one in 1,000 result in death, Lee said. The procedure takes about 90 minutes to complete. A patient would need to stay in the hospital for one to three days after the procedure.

First Hawaiian profits rose 4% in fourth quarter
The state’s largest bank grew its assets to a record $15.2B in 2010 despite the economy

By Dave Segal
Article from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser

First Hawaiian Bank’s earnings rose 4 percent in the fourth quarter to $50.2 million and its assets reached a record $15.2 billion despite an economy that Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Don Horner expects to remain sluggish through 2011.

The state’s largest bank in terms of assets said yesterday it ended the year with $212.6 million in net income, down 7.8 percent over a $230.5 million profit in 2009 that included a one-time leverage lease tax gain of $29.4 million for the sale of leased equipment.

Excluding the tax gain, First Hawaiian’s core earnings for 2010 were up 5.8 percent from $201 million in 2009. In the fourth quarter of 2009, First Hawaiian earned $48.3 million.

Horner said he expects the state economy to remain sluggish this year because businesses remain in a wait-and-see mode despite signs of recovery.

“They have not begun to reinvest in their businesses because they’re remaining cautious,” Horner said. “Therefore, they are not adding to inventory or hiring or beginning construction projects because they’re still not confident in the future. There’s more cautious optimism in 2011 than there was in 2010, but that optimism is, at best, guarded because they still have this attitude of wait and see.”

Still, First Hawaiian was able to increase its portfolio of total loans and leases 3.3 percent to $8.3 billion from 2009 when it reached $8 billion for the first time. During 2010, the bank made in excess of $2.5 billion in new loans compared with more than $2 billion in 2009.

“Even though the bank had an uptick in loan demand and was one of the few banks in the state that grew its portfolio, the increase was fairly modest,” Horner said. “When we see loan growth in the 5 percent growth area, I will be more optimistic that the business investment community has gotten off the bench and gotten back into the game. Most businesses in the state continue to be very conservative and cautious and actually continue to pare down their expenses on the balance sheet as opposed to making investments.”

First Hawaiian’s assets were up 10.9 percent at year-end from $13.7 billion a year earlier while total deposits rose 2.7 percent to $10.5 billion from $10.2 billion. During the quarter, the bank set aside $12.9 million to cover potential loan losses compared with $11.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Nonperforming assets to total assets remained low at 0.25 percent compared with 0.27 percent a year earlier.

First Hawaiian, a wholly owned subsidiary of French banking giant BNP Paribas, is not required to separately report its earnings but does so voluntarily each quarter.

The Honolulu-based bank, founded in 1858, has 58 branches in Hawaii, three on Guam and two on Saipan.

Betsill plans ‘aggressive’ sale
90% of properties are on the market
January 21, 2011 – By MELISSA TANJI, Staff Writer
Article from: The Maui News

Betsill Brothers Construction Co. has put up 90 percent of its property holdings for sale – from undeveloped oceanfront lots to possible commercial developments on Maui and the Big Island – to “reduce the debt and overhead” of the company, the Realtor for the Maui-based company said Thursday afternoon.

“This is just a prudent act by the Betsills to strengthen their financial position,” said Allen Yap, senior vice president and principal broker with Clearly Maui, an entity of Betsill holdings.

Yap said other developers in Hawaii have done the same.

“We just waited a little too long. We should have done this a while ago,” he added.

Attempts to reach Betsill officials were unsuccessful Thursday afternoon.

Because of the soft economy, companies like Betsill are stuck paying mortgages and taxes for properties that are just sitting, said Yap.

He said the appraised value of the more than 700 acres for sale on Maui and the Big Island is about $47 million, but the properties are being listed at reduced prices.

For example, a 2.4-acre vacant lot on Heona Place in Kihei, appraised at $970,000, is being listed for $500,000, according to data from Clearly Maui. A 6.6-acre property in Kona, which includes entitlements for a 149-unit multifamily project, is valued at $6.4 million but is on the market for $2.9 million.

“Cash and short escrows will produce investment-grade prices,” Yap said.

Still, he stressed that this is not a “distress” or “fire” sale but one that reflects an “aggressive” marketing approach by the Betsills.

“We’ve been quietly marketing for a while,” he said. “Now what we are going to do is become more aggressive.”

He said the properties have been listed with CB Richard Ellis, where Yap will be headed to next month to become a vice president after Clearly Maui is closed.

Yap wrote in an e-mail that Clearly Maui is closing because of “lack of necessity.”

Betsill does not have any projects scheduled for completion for the next year or two, and the primary purpose of Clearly Maui was to assist Betsill with the marketing of the company’s developed projects.

It also provided consulting services to Betsill and its partners regarding projects, Yap wrote.

Ten properties being sold are in Waihee and surrounding areas, five others are in Kihei, one is in Wailuku and four are in Kona, the property listings show.

**For information on the Maui market or for questions on these and other opportunities please email Clint Hansen at ClintHansen33@gmail.com**

 Please contact Donna D. Hansen, Realtor (S) at 808.280.1650 or

Bob Hansen, Broker, at 808. 283.9456