Missouri Delta Medical Center Announces Construction of New Medical Building
Missouri Delta Medical Center is pleased to announce the plans for a new $3 million dollar medical building to be erected on the land just north of the Sikeston Jaycee Regional Dialysis Center. This building will house an orthopedic clinic with two orthopedic surgeons, Dr. Cary Sanders and Dr. Larry Conley, who will join Missouri Delta Physician Services in July 2011. The new building will also have space for other services to be announced at a later date. A ground breaking was held this past Friday, August 13th with hospital personnel, orthopedic surgeons, donors, and board members of both Missouri Delta and the Foundation. Sides Construction of Jackson has been awarded the bid to construct the facility.
The Missouri Delta Medical Center Foundation received a generous gift from Brenda Bruce-Fountain in memory of her late parents Dr. Leo A. and Dortha M. Bruce. This gift will help fund the construction of the new building and will be named after them, the Dr. Leo A. and Dortha M. Bruce Medical Building. Dr. Bruce dedicated his entire adult life to the practice of medicine in the Sikeston community. Mike Conway, President of the Missouri Delta Foundation explains “We truly appreciate this kind act by their daughter.”
Jason Schrumpf, Senior Vice President, states “Missouri Delta Medical Center is excited to launch a comprehensive, full line orthopedic program that will meet the needs of the communities we serve.”
For more information regarding the Dr. Leo A. and Dortha M. Bruce Medical Building, please call Sharon Urhahn, Director of Marketing, (573) 472-7329.
MDMC Gets High Ranking
By Scott Welton, Standard Democrat
scottw@standard-democrat.com
Survey says: Missouri Delta Medical Center is doing an outstanding job.
MDMC recently celebrated a 97 percentile overall score on its most recent quarterly report from patient satisfaction surveys.
” That was the highest overall score we’ve ever received,” said Sharon Urhahn, MDMC’s director of marketing. Urhahn explained scores are given as a percentile which reflects the MDMC’s ranking in its class. A score of 97 means MDMC is doing better than 97 percent of the 1,400 hospitals in its comparison group, she said.
The surveys were mandated about three years ago to remain eligible for Medicare Hospital Care Assurance Program payments, according to Charles Ancell, president of MDMC, “but we started a year earlier than that.”
The questionnaires are distributed by Press Ganey, a company which specializes in patient satisfaction surveys.
Press Ganey provides survey services for over 10,000 health care facilities, according to Ancell. “They do most of the hospitals in the United States,” he said.
The hospital sends a list of discharged patients to Press Ganey “and they take it from there,” Ancell said. “They do the whole process – every inpatient that comes to our hospital gets a patient satisfaction survey. We survey 100 percent of our inpatient stays.”
Monthly, quarterly and yearly statistics are presented to the hospital for review. Statistics show how MDMC stacks ups statistically against hospitals of about the same size and other health care providers in the region, as well as score breakdowns for specifics such as the doctor who treated the patient and the medical unit the patient was treated in, among others.
Urhahn said after a complete survey is processed by Press Ganey, the company sends a copy to the hospital.
This is important, Urhahn said, as Missoui Delta officials are able to not only recognize trends using the statistical reports, but can also consider and directly address customer comments.
As copies of completed surveys are received by the hospital on a daily basis, MDMC’s patient satisfaction committee reviews incoming surveys weekly to spot any issues as early as possible, Urhahn said.
Ancell said Missouri Delta is getting an exceptional amount of feedback from its customers, as nearly half of the surveys sent out are filled out and sent in.
“We have an unusually high return,” Urhahn agreed, noting the typical rate of return for surveys is around 15 percent.
She sad this high return is no accident, though: “We encourage our patients to return them.”
The survey form has a place for the patient to sign their name, but the survey can be submitted anonymously. Patients who are willing to sign their name on their survey, however, are entered into a quarterly drawing for a $100 gift card. “I really do think that’s why we get such a good response,” Urhahn said.
The survey is made up of over 50 easy-to-answer, standardized questions which ask the patient to rate on a scale of 1-5 a wide range of subjects from promptness and courtesy of the staff to the skill of the physician.
“Everybody gets the same questions,” Ancell said.
While the surveys are a requirement for the hosptial, MDMC officials have enthusiastically embraced them as a great opportunity to help improve patient care and satisfaction.
“We’re striving to get 5s,” Ancell said, “and we have steadily increased our scores.”
Ancell said while they are always looking to improve, MDMC actually started with some pretty good scores. The obstetrics/gynecology and pediatrics unit, for example, initially scored high and have pretty much remained in the 99 percentile for the last two years, he said.
“a 99 percentile score is the highest possible score,” Ancell said. “You can’t get 100.”
On the questions regarding the room, MDMC had started with scores below the 50 percentile – which was one of the reasons officials decided to renovate patient rooms and make them all private rooms.
As expected, the score in this area “improved drastically,” Ancell said. “It’s gone to the top.” MDMC is now scoring in the 99 percentile in this category, he said.
Seeing scores improve is “gratifying,” Ancell said, as “patient satisfaction should always be our major focus. This has been our major emphasis in the last three years – and it’s shown: we’re getting results for our efforts.”
MDMC officials have been so pleased with the information received from the inpatient surveys, they are now considering expanding to include surveys for outpatient services beginning with outpatient surgery and home health.
MDMC Gets High Ranking
By Scott Welton, Standard Democrat
scottw@standard-democrat.com
Survey says: Missouri Delta Medical Center is doing an outstanding job.
MDMC recently celebrated a 97 percentile overall score on its most recent quarterly report from patient satisfaction surveys. “That was the highest overall score we’ve ever received,” said Sharon Urhahn, MDMC’s director of marketing.
Urhahn explained scores are given as a percentile which reflects MDMC’s ranking in its class. A score of 97 means MDMC is doing better than 97 percent of the 1,400 hospitals in its comparison group, she said.
The surveys were mandated about three years ago to remain eligible for Medicare Hospital Care Assurance Program payments, according to Charles Ancell, president of MDMC, “but we started a year earlier than that.”
The questionnaires are distributed by Press Ganey, a company which specializes in patient satisfaction surveys.
Press Ganey provides survey services for over 10,000 health care facilities, according to Ancell. “They do most of the hospitals in the United States,” he said.
The hospital sends a list of discharged patients to Press Ganey and they take it from there,” Ancell said. “They do the whole process – every inpatient that comes to our hospital gets a patient satisfaction survey. We survey 100 percent of our inpatient stays.”
Monthly, quarterly and yearly statistics are presented to the hospital for review. Statistics show how MDMC stacks up statistically against hospitals of about the same size and other health care providers in the region, as well as score breakdowns for specifics such as the doctor who treated the patient and the medical unit the patient was treated in, among others.
Urhahn said after a completed survey is process by Press Ganey, the company sends a copy to the hospital.”
This is important, Urhahn said, as Missouri Delta officials are able to not only recognize trends using the statistical reports, but can also consider and directly address customer comments.
As copies of completed surveys are received by the hospital on a daily basis, MDMC’s patient satisfaction committee reviews incoming surveys weekly to spot any issues as early as possible, Urhahn said.
Ancell said Missouri Delta is getting an exceptional amount of feedback from it customers as nearly half of the surveys sent out are filled out and send in.
“We have an unusually high return,” Urhahn agreed, noting the typical rate of return for surveys is around 15 percent.
She said this high return is no accident though: “We encourage our patient to return them.”
The survey form has a place for the patient to sign their name, but the survey can be submitted anonymously. Patients who are willing to sign their name on their survey, however, are entered into a quarterly drawing for a $100 gift card. “I really do think that’s why we get such a good response,” Urhahn said.
The survey is made up of over 50 easy-to-answer, standardized questions which has the patient to rate on a scale of 1-5 a wide range of subjects from promptness and courtesy of the staff to the skill of the physician.
“Everybody gets the same questions,” Ancell said.
While the surveys are a requirement for the hospital, MDMC officials have enthusiastically embraced them as a great opportunity to help improve patient care and satisfaction.
“We’re striving to get 5s,” Ancell said, “and we have steadily increased our scores.”
Ancell said while they are always looking to improve, MDMC actually started with some pretty good scores. The obstetrics/gynecology and pediatric unit, for example, initially scored high and have pretty much remained in the 99 percentile for the last two years, he said.
“A 99 percentile score is the highest possible score,” Ancell said. “You can’t get 100.”
On the questions regarding the room, MDMC had started with scores below the 50 percentile – which was one of the reasons officials decided to renovate patients rooms and make them all private rooms.
As expected, the score in this area “improved drastically,” Ancell said. “It’s gone to the top.” MDMC is now scoring in the 99 percentile in this category, he said.
Seeing scores improve is “gratifying,” Ancell said, as “patient satisfaction should always be our major focus. This has been our major emphasis in the last three years – and it’s shown: we’re getting results for our efforts.”
MDMC officials have been so please with the information received from the inpatient surveys they are now considering expanding to include surveys for outpatient services beginning with outpatient surgery and home health.
Missouri Delta Medical Center Recognized as One of the Top 10 Percent of Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities in the United States
Missouri Delta Medical Center is pleased to announce that it ranked in the top 10 percent of 805 inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) that qualified to be ranked in the IRF database of Uniform Data System for Medical Rehabilitation (UDSmr) in 2009.
“Award winning rehab doesn’t just happen, it requires a lot of work.” Dr. Stephen Welton, Medical Director of Inpatient Rehab unit, commented. “I am proud to see the unit get the recognition it deserves.”
The rankings were determined by using UDSmr’s program evaluation model (PEM), a case mix-adjusted and severity-adjusted tool that provides facilities with a composite performance score and percentile ranking drawn from nearly three-quarters of all IRFs in the country. UDSmr’s PEM Report Card uses the indicators of efficiency and effectiveness contained in the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Patient Assessment Instrument (IRF-PAI), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ reporting tool for the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Prospective Payment System (IRF PPS). The goal of the PEM Report Card is to recognize high-performing facilities for their delivery of quality patient care that is effective, efficient, timely, and patient-centered.
“Our goal is to see our patients return to their homes and getting back to their everyday lives.” Dr. Welton said. “This recognition proves our dedication to the improvement of our patients.”
“We are pleased to present this award to Missouri Delta Medical Center in recognition of the excellent care it provides to its patients,” said Dr. Sam Markello, Associate Director of UDSmr. “As the creator and caretaker of the nation’s largest database of rehabilitation outcomes, and with 20 years of experience and data, we have long worked with the industry to establish best practices. We developed the PEM Report Card as a tool to identify and recognize facilities that perform at a high level, to work with them to learn how they achieve high performance, and to share what we learn with others to elevate the performance of all. We look forward to working with Missouri Delta Medical Center and the other top performing facilities across the country that rank in the top 10 percent to improve care in all inpatient rehabilitation facilities.”
This is the fourth year that UDSmr has issued these awards. The PEM Report Card was developed as part of a proactive solution to the Institute of Medicine’s 2006 recommendation to Congress that every Medicare provider be reimbursed on a pay-for-performance basis. The data used for this report was based on 12 months of 2009 data, drawn from both Medicare and non-Medicare patients. The results were weighted and combined into a single composite score, and each facility was assigned a percentile rank from 0 to 100 relative to the other qualifying IRF subscribers in UDSmr’s database. The resultant distribution of the facility PEM scores for UDSmr’s IRF subscribers exhibited a normal distribution.
Missouri Delta Inpatient Rehabilitation includes private patient rooms that are located on the second floor of Missouri Delta Medical Center. Patients participate in a minimum of three hours of therapy per day, which includes a combination of physical, occupational, and speech therapy.
About UDSmr: Uniform Data System for Medical Rehabilitation (UDSmr) is a division of UB Foundation Activities Inc., a not-for-profit corporation affiliated with the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York. Founded in 1988, UDSmr administers the world’s largest medical rehabilitation database, and its instruments provide the field with a common language and measurement tools for outcomes and functional assessment. CMS has adopted UDSmr’s FIM™ instrument as the basis for the IRF PPS, and UDSmr provides exclusive training and support to the agency.
Lymphedema Needs to be Kept Under Wraps
By Scott Welton
scottw@standard-democrat.com
While bringing attention to women’s health issues is the focus this week, there is one condition that needs to be kept under wraps: lymphedema.
National Women’s Health Week, which is coordinated by the U.S. Department of health and Human Services, kicked off on Mother’s Day and runs through Saturday.
Lymphedema is a condition in which the fluid known as lymphatic tissue builds up in an area of the body causing it to swell, according to Tricia McClarty, an Occupational Therapist and Certified Lymphedema Therapist at Missouri Delta Medical Center’s ReStart.
“It’s primarily in the arms and in the legs,” McClarty said.
There are a couple different types and causes of lymphedema. “Primary lymphedema is usually discovered at birth or shortly after,” McClarty said. “Secondary lymphedema is the most common type. The reason we usually see it in the United States is due to breast cancer.”
The condition develops as a result of lymph nodes being removed in a mastectomy. How many are removed varies depending on the type of cancer, the physician and how far the cancer had advanced, according to McClarty. “You can be at risk if you have as little as two removed,” she said.
McClary said people don’t usually think about lymphedema until they begin to see the symptoms – but they should. “The earlier you catch it, the better,” she said.
In the earlier stages, the limb or affected area is normal or almost normal in size upon waking in the morning, but if allowed to progress to later stages, lymphedema can result in irreversible swelling and hardened tissues.
McClarty offers a treatment for the condition called Complete Decongestive Therapy through physician referrals.
“It’s proven with research to be the most effective treatment for lymphedema,” she said. “I get referrals from all over. There’s only four of us in the area (trained in CDT) – two in Cape, one in Dexter.”
Phase 1 of CDT, which is the treatment phase, requires daily manual lymphatic drainage sessions which use compression bandages to force the fluid from the affected body part.
For example, if the patient has swelling in the arm, “you wrap from the fingers all the way to the shoulder,” McClarty explains. “Or if it’s in the legs, from the toes up to the swelling.” Bandages remain in place for 24 hours during this phase.
The treatments also include exercise and massage to move the fluid.
Patients are also taught to apply the wrapping themselves in preparation for Phase 2, the maintenance phase.
Depending on how far the lymphedema advanced, the first phase can be as short as a couple of weeks to as long as four weeks to get the swelling down, McClarty said.
Once in Phase 2, the patient will wear a compression garment on the affected body part during that day and wrap it with compression bandages at night. Exercise, along with some self-massage, also helps to control the condition.
“We do a lot of education with the patient and the family,” McClarty said. “The goal of the treatment is to reduce swelling, improve mobility and range of motion, prevent infections and improve their overall quality of life.”
As catching the condition and beginning treatment in early stages can make a significant difference, McClarty regularly offers education for cancer survivors at places such as American Cancer Society “Look Good Feel Good” classes.
“Some people begin noticing their clothes are tighter,” McClarty said. Another indicator of lymphedema is “if you have some swelling or some pain,” she added.
Simply ignoring the problem and hoping it goes away is not an option, however.
“There’s no cure for lymphedema,” McClarty said. “Once you have it, you have it.”
Updated wing enhances stay for Missouri Delta patients
Michelle Felter, Standard Democrat
standard-democrat.com
Sunday, April 18, 2010
SIKESTON – The first telemetry patients will take advantage of the brand-new 3F wing this week at Missouri Delta Medical Center.
“We are expecting to move patients there on Tuesday or Wednesday,” said Karen Lawless, telemetry manager. The floor deals with patients who need to be connected to machines to measure heart rate, blood pressure and breathing rate, as well as blood-oxygen level and heart-rhythm monitoring information.
The 3F wing includes 18 rooms, all private, handicap-accessible, and with their own bathrooms.
There are several features in the individual rooms and on the floor that help make it a state-of-the-art facility, noted Emily Featherston, vice president of nursing at the hospital.
For instance, some of the rooms have ceiling lifts, enabled with slings. “They can pick up patients weighing up to 500 pounds and bring them to a chair to sit,” she explained.
The rooms with ceiling lifts also have portable IV’s on them, which travel to all areas of the room, other than the bathroom.
“We’re trying to cut down on the amount of equipment on the floor of the rooms,” she said.
All of the rooms include a “nurse server” – cabinets where nurses stock supplies, such as pillows, which can be opened from inside the room or in the hallway.
“This way, the nurses can stock those cabinets without disrupting the patients,” said Featherston.
Also in the hallways, a locked box is assigned to each room, she pointed out. Those boxes are used to store charts, as well as medications, for each patient.
Featherston continued that all rooms are equipped with a computer to enable computer charting. The nurses have adapted very well to the new electronic process, said Featherston.
Outside of the rooms, there is a nurses’ and doctors’ station, along with an isolation room that can provide positive and negative air, said Featherston.
Telemetry patients at the hospital currently use the 2E area of the hospital. “Once patients are moved, that area will be used as overflow,” said Lawless.
She said this is an “exciting time” for the hospital with all the new additions.
“It will improve the area for telemetry and cardiac monitoring,” she said. As telemetry patients stay in the hospital an average of five days, the new wing will enhance the patients stay, she said.
Dicky Chance, medical/surgical nursing director added, “We have a tremendous staff and look forward to servicing the surrounding communities with an exceptional high standard of care for the patients and their families.”
Missouri Delta Medical Center Focuses on the Future of Healthcare; New clinic will also house fitness and wellness center
CHARLESTON, MO – Missouri Delta Medical Center is proud to announce that our new medical clinic in Charleston will house outpatient physical therapy along with a fitness and wellness center for the residents of Mississippi County.
The fitness and wellness center will be open to the public for fitness use and will include comprehensive wellness programs such as weight loss and management programs, health screenings to include items such as glucose testing, blood pressures, lipid panels, arthritis classes, and much more.
Missouri Delta Medical Center is dedicated to providing quality, accessible health care to the residents in our service area. For more information, please contact Mike Greene, Director of Rehabilitation Services at 472-7375.
MDMC, Blue Cross Reach Agreement
by Scott Welton, Standard Democrat
www.standard-democrat.com
SIKESTON – Missouri Delta Medical Center will remain an in-network provider for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield insurance customers.
“Blue Cross and Missouri Delta have resolved their differences and have come to an agreement,” Charles Ancell, president of Missouri Delta Medical Center, confirmed Monday. “We do have a contract with Blue Cross now and it will allow us to offer neurosurgery and orthopedics in Sikeston and not lose money on it.”
Ancell said MDMC officials anticipate being able to offer neurosurgery for Blue Cross customers beginning April 1.
The agreement was reached “well in advance” of the may 28 contract termination date after which in-network coverage would have not been in effect, Ancell noted. “There will be no interruption of service to Blue Cross Blue Shield subscribers.”
Subscribers are expected to receive notification letters from Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield soon.
Missouri Delta Medical Center Contract with Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield
SIKESTON, MO – For many months, Missouri Delta Medical Center has been seeking to address shortcomings in our existing Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield contract including coverage for orthopedic and neurosurgical spine services. Without an increase in our payments we will not be able to offer these services in Sikeston. Despite significant effort no meaningful progress was made and in December of 2009, Missouri Delta Medical Center notified Anthem Blue Cross that it would no longer be a provider for them as of May 28, 2010. Since then significant progress has been made and we anticipate we will be able to sign a contract before our May 28th deadline.
“The Hospital and Anthem Blue Cross are focused on resolving this matter because we know there are a number of people in the community who rely on Missouri Delta Medical Center and Anthem insurance coverage,” said Charles Ancell, Missouri Delta Medical Center President.
“We are confident that the contract will be resolved and there will be no disruption in services to our community members that have coverage through Blue Cross and Blue Shield,” said Ancell. “In the meantime, Missouri Delta Medical Center will continue providing the quality healthcare services that are important to our community and that have positioned Missouri Delta as a provider of choice for Scott, Mississippi, and New Madrid Counties.
Missouri Delta Medical Center Contract with Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield
New Building Project for Healthcare Services
CHARLESTON, MO – Missouri Delta Medical Center is dedicated to providing quality, accessible health care to the residents of Mississippi County. To demonstrate our commitment, Missouri Delta Medical Center announces plans to build a new medical clinic in Charleston.
The new facility will house our Rural Health Clinic and ReStart Rehabilitation Center. The building will be located on East Marshall, just west of Flag Stop and will have approximately 6,383 square feet (line drawing of facility attached). The estimated cost for this project is $1.4 million. The Industrial Development Authority (IDA) and the Charleston Regional Economic Development (CRED) have both donated $50,000 each, making $100,000 toward the purchase of the land.
“We would like to thank the City of Charleston, along with the IDA and CRED board for their cooperation and generosity in making this project a reality,” says Missouri Delta Medical Center’s CEO, Mr. Charles Ancell. “Missouri Delta Medical Center is committed to providing excellent care to our patients and we are focused on the future of healthcare.”
“This will guarantee continuous healthcare to the residents of Mississippi County for years to come,” says Chairman of the Board for Missouri Delta Medical Center, Jim Cullison. “As a resident of Mississippi County,
For more information on the Missouri Delta Community Care Center building project, call Sharon Urhahn, Marketing Director, at 573-472-7329.
Sleep Institute Marks First Decade
By Scott Welton, Standard Democrat
www.standard-democrat.com
SIKESTON - The Sleep Institute at Missouri Delta Medical Center is celebrating a decade of helping people wake up feeling rested. Polysomnography, or a sleep study, is used to figure out if a patient is suffering from sleep disorders and, if so, diagnose them.
Around 2,500 different patients have come in for sleep studies at The Sleep Institute since it officially opened in January 2000, according to Jill Ortiz, Director of The Sleep Institute.
“We watch people sleep and test for 63 different sleep disorders,” said Dr. Stephen Welton, Medical Director for The Sleep Institute.
The two physicians trained in sleep medicine, Welton and Dr. S. Afraz Salahuddin, a neurologist, along with a staff of board-registered polysomnographic technologists, help patients with a wide variety of disorders.
“We’ve seen a little bit of everything in 10 years,” Welton said. Before working in The Sleep Institute, “I had no idea how bad a night’s sleep some people have.”
The two most common sleep disorders diagnosed are sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome, according to Sarah Gordon, a registered technician for The Sleep Institute. It is estimated about 4% of the population suffer from sleep apnea, which ranges from shallow breathing during sleep to actual pauses in breathing.
“There are people who stop breathing several times a minute, Welton said. He explained this can result in dangerously low oxygen levels.
For some suffering from restless leg syndrome, it’s like “running a marathon during the night,” he said. “Some are moving their legs 100 times an hour or more. And these aren’t just twitches, but significant leg movements.”
Bruxism, or teeth grinding, and acid reflux are also “very, very common,” Gordon said.
On the other hand, sleep disorders such as parasomnia, which is sleepwalking and night terrors, “are not as frequent as you would think,” Welton said.
They are, however, real he said. In an extreeme sleep disorder called REM behavior disorder, the person suffering may even execute complex tasks such as driving a vehicle while completely asleep.
The brain is supposed to be disconnected from the body during sleep but sometimes id doesn’t work,” Welton said.
Welton said the idea for establishing a sleep lab came up during a conversation he and the late Dr. Edward Felker had. Felker, who was an ear, nose and throat specialist, thought having access to this type of facility would be useful in diagnosing many of his patients while Welton received some training in sleep disorders during the residency phase of medical school.
“We said, ‘We really need to have a sleep lab here,” Welton recalled. The physicians pitched the idea to the hospital’s administration and got the green light, although Felker died before it opened.
Welton said they were nearing completion on the sleep lab facility when they decided additional training was needed so he and the staff made up of respiratory therapists went to Birmingham, AL, for specialized training.
That training has proved to be worthwhile. Welton said it is very common for those suffering from a sleep disorder to have several disorders that have no discernible common cause. For example, before moving to the area, Vickie Johnson of Dexter was already diagnosed with sleep apnea at a hospital in Illinois and was treating the condition with what Welton describes as “the gold standard” therapy for sleep apnea: continuous positive airway pressure.
“Then I started having some symptoms I had never had before,” Johnson said. “I was awake and knew what was happening but couldn’t speak or move or do anything.”
So in the fall of 2009, she came to The Sleep Institute “and they did a study with me using the CPAP,” she recalled. It was then determined the machine needed to be recalibrated to a higher setting.
Johnson said while this helped, she found she was still suffering from “extreme fatigue all the time.” After another sleep study at MDMC in January, they discovered Johnson was also suffering from hypersomnolence, a condition similar to narcolepsy in which the person is frequently sleepy.
“A person could be in the middle of a conversation and just fall asleep,” she said. “They referred me back to my neurologist, Dr. (Riyadh) Tellow,” Johnson said. “This is now being rectified and that’s wonderful.”
Having had experience with more than one sleep lab, Johnson described the Sleep Institute’s staff as “more personal. They talk to you more, explain things to you more. The experience here was 100 percent better.
“Our unofficial motto is, We’re not the biggest-we’re the best,” Welton said. Our patient satisfaction is probably 99 percent,” Ortiz said.
“We do get compliments on how thorough we are and how fast we get the patients treated and taken care of,” said Crystal Calhoun, day technician for The Sleep Institute. “Patinets are usually set up iwth their treatment within 24 hours. We also follow up with our patients.”
“I am so grateful that Crystal got the ball rolling for me,” Johnson said.
Welton said diagnosing and treating sleep disorders is important to a patient’s overall health. “Sleep apnea increases the risk for high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke and heart attack,” he noted.
Vicki Pritchett, registered technician for The Sleep Institute, said most patients come to them because their husband or wife insists on it, however. Ortiz said the bed partner questionnaire is one of the best tools for giving staff an idea of what to expect as the patient is almost always unconscious when the disoerders are affecting them.
National Sleep Awareness Week is March 7-13 this year, Ortiz noted, and MDMC will hold a sleep awareness workshop from 10:00am until 6:00pm on March 19 in the hosptial’s classroom area.
“We’re going to offer free information on all the sleep disorders,” she said. Vendors will be at the workshop as well with samples and demonstrations of the latest sleep disorder treatment products. Welton will be presenting on Restless Leg Syndrome at 11:00am and Sleep Apnea at 5:00pm that day. For more information about the workshop, call The Sleep Institute at 472-7754.
CEO Announces Retirement
Charles Ancell, President of Missouri Delta Medical Center, has announced that he will retire at the end of 2010. Ancell has been employed by Missouri Delta Medical Center for thirty-eight years and has served as President for twenty years.
Jason Schrumpf has been promoted to Senior Vice President. Schrumpf has been employed by Missouri Delta Medical Center since May of 2006. He was hired as the Director of Rehabilitation Services and served in that position until when he was promoted in June 2009 to Vice President of Professional Services. He was promoted to Senior Vice President in December 2009. Schrumpf has a BS degree in Physical Therapy and a Masters degree in Business Administration. Schrumpf resides in Sikeston with his wife Catherine and his 2 children.
Missouri Delta Medical Center Focuses on the Future of Healthcare
SIKESTON, MO – Missouri Delta Medical Center will soon offer the latest in spine surgery with the addition of the PARE Minimally Invasive Neurospine Institute, led by Joel W. Ray, MD, FACS, a neurosurgeon with Cape Neurosurgical Associates, PC, in Cape Girardeau, Mo. Providing the latest in surgical innovations, Dr. Ray and the medical center’s team of qualified healthcare professionals can help reduce pain associated with back and spinal conditions through minimally invasive techniques.
Chronic back pain is a serious health concern for adults in the U.S. Each year, nearly 75 million physician office visits and more than 125 million hospital visits occur due to musculoskeletal and spine conditions. In fact, four out of every five U.S. adults report having had back pain at some point in their adult life, and approximately 4.6 million Americans will need back surgery.
“Back pain is a frustrating ailment and is the leading cause of missed work days for adults under the age of 45,”says Missouri Delta Medical Center’s CEO, Mr. Charles Ancell. “At Missouri Delta Medical Center, we remain focused on the healthcare needs of our patients, and work to ensure the medical services most needed are available today and for the future.”
“I am pleased to be joining the team at Missouri Delta Medical Center,” says Joel W. Ray, MD, FACS. “The hospital is committed to assuring the best clinical outcomes for patients in a compassionate, caring environment. Coupled with the advancements in minimally invasive surgery, Missouri Delta Medical Center offers an excellent resource for those suffering from back pain.”
There are many non-surgical, or conservative, and surgical treatment options for conditions of the back and spine. The PARE Minimally Invasive Neurospine Institute will implement the most appropriate course of treatment for the patient and their condition, utilizing a multi-disciplinary team approach to medicine. “The concept of PARE is visualized in a team of professionals all working in unison to achieve the best possible outcome for the patient,” explains Dr. Ray. “If physical therapy is a viable option that could positively impact the patient’s condition, it will be prescribed. If the patient needs surgery, we will work diligently to get the pain resolved, and the patient will be educated and consulted about their options each step of the way.”
The focus of the PARE Minimally Invasive Neurospine Institute is on the patient and their positive outcomes. “The small incisions used during surgery, the expansive education of the patient prior to and following surgery, the quality rehabilitation programming, and the hospital’s dedicated staff all equate to positive outcomes for the patient,” adds Dr. Ray.
Jim Henson, Vice President of Human Resources, says, “With the first case scheduled for early October, our team is working diligently to prepare the state-of-the-art operating room and clinic area.”
Following the minimally invasive surgery, patients will recover in one of the newly designed rooms on our patient care floors. “If you haven’t visited one of these renovated patient floors lately, you will find the focus on the future of healthcare is evident throughout Missouri Delta Medical Center,” says Henson.
Each of the patient care rooms on floors 2F and 3H are private with flat panel TVs and new furniture. The décor provides a calming atmosphere, and the central nurses stations add to the enhanced efficiencies on each unit. In addition, the newly renovated surgical services floor offers private rooms for both inpatient and outpatient guests.
“At Missouri Delta Medical Center, we are committed to providing excellent care for our patients, and the addition of the spine program is a true testament to that commitment,” adds Ancell. “We welcome Dr. Ray to our medical team at Missouri Delta and are confident in the spine care alternative that area residents now have at our facility.”
For more information on the Missouri Delta PARE Minimally Invasive Neurospine Institute, call Sharon Urhahn, Marketing Director, at 573-472-7329.