Auburn Memorial Hospital on Friday said it has a plan to save more than $7 million, the culmination of a three-month review by a health-care consulting firm.

The financially struggling hospital revealed few details about the six-month plan, but outlined broad areas that will be improvement targets. The hospital has hired the consultant, Wellspring Partners Ltd., to help implement the changes.

One change that will certainly take place is a reduction in staffing levels, said Administrator Brendan McGrath, but the hospital cannot put a number on how many jobs could be affected. AMH now has 718 full-time equivalent positions.

“At the end of this, are we going to have less people than we do now? Undoubtedly,” McGrath said. “It's the biggest expense any hospital has.”

He stressed that there would be no massive layoff of staff; he expects many changes will gradually happen through attrition.

Hospital officials plan to begin meeting with staff about the plan next week. Staff will also work on seven task forces to further develop the plan and implement changes.

AMH has been dealing with financial problems for several years. It showed an audited operating loss of more than $5 million last year. Projections for 2006 are that the operating loss will be $1.6 million. AMH lost $3.1 million in 2004 and $79,172 in 2003.

Prior to Wellspring's review, the hospital had already made a number of changes, including staff cuts, the shutdown of a community clinic in Scipio and consolidation of critical care units.

The Wellspring assessment has identified key areas for improvement:

* Reducing costs of supplies and contracts.

* Improving billing and collection processes.

* Reviewing where services are provided and the range of services offered.

* Maximizing the use of technology.

* Maintaining appropriate staffing levels.

The cost-savings projects would come annually, minus about $750,000 in one-time savings identified in the Wellspring plan.

McGrath declined to say how much AMH is spending for Wellspring's service, but characterized it as a significant investment.

“But it's something that should pay for itself very quickly,” he said.

He said the plan itself is incremental in nature, meaning there are not huge changes in hospital operations planned.

“There's not a million-dollar bill on the floor that we haven't picked up,” he said. “It's a case where there's a lot of $5 bills that we're trying to pick up.”

Hospital board President Robert Bergan said the goal is to make sure AMH can continue to serve the community.

“All of these efforts will allow us to continue to offer compassionate care and medical excellence,” he said in a press release.

McGrath acknowledged that a major challenge for hospital officials going forward is to keep the community and staff informed without creating undue anxiety.

“There is hope and there is anxiety, both” he said of staff morale. “The best thing to do is get out of this situation as quickly as possible.”