Bristol (CT) Hospital ends 2008 with small profit

Bristol (CT) Hospital ended its fiscal year with a small operating profit, although its parent company sustained a loss, the hospital announced. It was the first time since 2003 that the hospital made money and the second year in a row that it finished without the hefty annual deficits that added up to a $14 million loss between 2004 and 2006. President Kurt Barwis said perhaps the biggest achievement of the year was staying committed to long-term improvements. The hospital's $169,000 year-end profit could have been far larger if officials hadn't recruited new physicians, prepared for expansion of the cancer care center, and made other upgrades, Barwis said.