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OMAHA, Neb. — The statistics are staggering - one in four families in
Nebraska are affected by mental health issues. They are families where mothers,
fathers, children, cousins or grandparents struggle with a biological condition
that affects the brain. Philanthropist and business leader Ken Stinson knows the
toll it can take on a family. So does Rhonda Hawks of the Hawks Foundation. Her
dad lived with mental illness. Their experiences and deep compassion became a
crusade to provide others a lasting hope of recovery.
“Our ultimate objective is to have a continuum of care where the recovery
center is perhaps the entry point or a key element of it, but that we can move
those with behavioral health issues along a spectrum of care that becomes less
costly, less intensive and more nurturing as they go closer to and then back to
their homes,” explained Ken Stinson, co-founder of the foundation that raised
the money for and oversaw the Lasting Hope Recovery Center project.
“The number of beds this facility will bring on line – the 64 - will
certainly serve a very important, really valuable—almost invaluable—role
relative to taking care of those who are often unserved and underserved,” said
Roger Pentzien, M.D., medical director of Lasting Hope Recovery Center. Alegent
Health Bergan Mercy Medical Center has agreed to license and operate the
facility. Alegent Health and The Nebraska Medical Center will
provide financial support for facility operations. In addition, the state of
Nebraska is providing critical funding for operations. The Nebraska Department
of Health and Human Services credits the strong partnership between state
government, local community leaders and private donors in creating this great
resource for people with behavioral health needs. It sees the Lasting Hope
Recovery Center as a role model for other communities.
Read more
or view a related article from the
Omaha
World-Herald.
It was a stressful six weeks last year when JoAnn Fuller's mother was in the
hospital with a broken hip and other medical problems. Talking with someone from
the pastoral care staff at Bergan Mercy Medical Center helped.
"They were very calming," said Fuller of Bellevue. The chaplain prayed with
the family and then left the room for a while, telling the family there was so
much love in the room at the moment the chaplain's presence wasn't needed. "She
knew when to be there, and she knew when we should be alone," Fuller said.
A chaplain comforted the family again in January when Fuller's mother,
Katherine Markesi, died. "They're a vital part of the care of the family
and the patient," Fuller said. Chaplains learn to help people deal with
end-of-life crises and work with a variety of people, said Barbara Brumleve,
clinical pastoral education program director for Alegent Health. "You are a
member of the health care team," Brumleve said. "You've got to be a team
player."
Alegent, which manages five hospitals in the Omaha area, including Bergan, is
one of two hospital systems in Nebraska that trains individuals in clinical
pastoral care. The Nebraska Medical Center is the other.
Read the
full article.
— Qianna Bradley, Omaha World-Herald, April 5, 2008.
.
Hospitals employ more than 5 million people and rank second as a source of
private-sector jobs, according to a
report
released this week at the AHA’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C. Hospitals and
their employees also purchase goods and services from other businesses,
supporting nearly $1.9 trillion in economic activity. In addition to economic
benefits, hospitals offer an array of community services and provide free or
reduced-cost health care services for patients with limited financial means.
“Hospitals provide so much for a community,” said AHA President and CEO Rich
Umbdenstock. “In addition to caring for the sick, hospitals provide jobs, good
wages and benefits in the communities they serve.” The report includes a
state-by-state analysis of the economic contributions of hospitals to their
communities.
— AHA News Now, April 7, 2008.
Hospitals that lead by example in their communities can help set the stage
for meaningful health reform, AHA President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock told
hospital leaders Monday. “We must show the public and policymakers that we are facing
the cost, quality and safety issues head on,” he told attendees at the AHA
Annual Membership Meeting in Washington, D.C. By improving performance and
“making great strides forward in the work we do for our patients,” he said
hospitals can bring to the reform debate “not only a vision of better health and
better health care, but an unparalleled level of credibility to influence the
outcome.” Umbdenstock said hospitals face a tough environment. “Our communities
need us more than ever as health care safety nets and as economic cornerstones,”
he told AHA members. “Yet, there are those here in Washington who would cut
Medicare and Medicaid dramatically; who would reduce - not expand - money to
educate tomorrow’s health professionals; and who would leave more people, not
fewer, without access to care in a dignified way.” He said hospitals must defeat
those efforts, and suggested that the public and policymakers “change the
debates over health care as a right versus personal responsibility, and access
versus rationing, to a conversation about using a limited, precious resource in
a way that gives Americans the greatest return possible in health, national
productivity, community stability and quality of life.”
— AHA News Now, April 7, 2008.
A new AHA
TrendWatch report examines the growing body of research on the negative
impact physician ownership and self-referral in hospitals have on the entire
health care system. According to the report, the number of physician-owned,
limited-service hospitals has grown dramatically since the government imposed
limits on physician self-referral to new specialty hospitals, but the evidence
to date does not support claims that these facilities deliver more efficient or
higher quality care. In fact, physician-owned facilities damage the health care
system as a whole by driving up utilization and costs and weakening the health
care safety net. According to the report, these facilities focus on
well-reimbursed services, serve fewer high-acuity patients and treat fewer
low-income and uninsured patients, resulting in lost revenue to community
hospitals, and compromising their ability to offer essential services such as
emergency and trauma services and uncompensated care. AHA Executive Vice
President Rick Pollack said, “The evidence is overwhelming. The practice of
self-referral tears apart the health care safety net, jeopardizing patients' and
communities’ access to vital services, and creates a conflict of interest
between a patient's needs and the physician's financial interest.”
— AHA News Now, April 2, 2008.
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death for
babies one to12 months old. The deaths remain unexplained after a thorough case
investigation, including performance of a complete autopsy, examination of the
death scene, and review of the clinical history. Experts cannot predict which
babies will die of SIDS.
To protect the health of Nebraska’s children, the Nebraska Legislature in 2006
passed a law requiring that every hospital, birth center, or other medical
facility that discharges a newborn to request each maternity patient, and father
of a newborn child, if available, view a video presentation and read printed
materials approved by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS),
on the dangers of shaking infants and children, the symptoms of shaken baby
syndrome, the dangers associated with rough handling or striking of an infant,
safety measures which can be taken to prevent SIDS, and the dangers associated
with infants sleeping in the same bed with other children and adults.
DHHS has produced a “Safe Sleep for Your Baby and Shaken Baby Syndrome”
informational video, in addition to printed brochures about safe sleep for
babies and preventing shaken baby syndrome. Brochures are available in English
and Spanish. To order videos or brochures, or for more information, go to
http://www.dhhs.ne.gov/sids/ or
contact Sue Huffman at 402/471-1938 or sue.huffman@dhhs.ne.gov.
Ground was broken in Norfolk, Neb., Thursday, on a new $58 million
addition to Faith Regional Health Services. Hospital officials say the new four-story facility will include over 100 beds
with the ability to add 39 more private rooms. Officials say the new addition will help continue their mission of serving as
a regional medical center while keeping up with the demand for more space.
— KETV, April 4, 2008.
KEARNEY, Neb. — For the 35th consecutive year, Good Samaritan Hospital (GSH)
will be hosting hundreds of local school children during Kindergarten Days.
On April 7, 8 and 9, these bubbly kids will be learning and touring at GSH in the
hopes that their fears of hospitals and doctors will be alleviated. Each year,
Good Samaritan teams up with Educational Service Unit 10 and Kearney Public
Schools to provide this opportunity for youngsters from Buffalo County schools
to become a little more familiar with healthcare settings. While they're here,
the kindergarteners will check out a hospital bed, get a pretend shot, examine
an X-ray, and watch a new video featuring Sam the Moose, the hospital's hand
washing mascot. They'll also take a tour of the Emergency Department and will
have a chance to ask lots of questions.
— Good Samaritan Hospital news release, April 4, 2008.
FREMONT, Neb. — Fremont Area Medical Center, a leader in diabetes education
and awareness, announces the addition of a new class aimed at staving off the
disease. FAMC’s Prediabetes Class is for anyone with: elevated blood glucose; a
family history of diabetes; identifiable risk factors for diabetes; or a
diagnosis of prediabetes.
Prediabetes is a condition in which blood sugars are elevated above normal,
but are not high enough to warrant a diagnosis of diabetes. If treated early
with diet and exercise, type 2 diabetes may be prevented or delayed.
The class, taught by FAMC’s Diabetes Case Specialist Julie Kamphaus, RN, BSN,
and a registered dietitian, is scheduled for Tuesday, April 22, from 6–9 p.m.,
on the third floor of Fremont Area Medical Center’s Health Park Plaza, located
at 450 East 23rd Street. The class is free, no preregistration is necessary, and
physician referral is not required. For more information, call
402/727-3355.
NORFOLK, Neb. — The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) requires the
Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services to survey all licensed nursing
and skilled nursing facilities in Nebraska every year. The purpose of the
surveys is to assure that Nebraska nursing facilities are substantially in
compliance with the federal regulations and state licensure regulations,
including fire protection and the Life Safety Code. Surveyors can write a
deficiency statement for any standard of practice or regulation that is not in
substantial compliance. During the surveyors’ four day review and observation of
resident care and regulatory compliance, the surveyors found Faith Regional
Health Services' Saint Joseph’s Rehabilitation and Care Center to be in
substantial compliance and did not cite any deficiencies. Saint Joseph's
Rehabilitation and Care Center is an 83-bed facility with a reputation for
exceeding standards of excellence in care and treatment since 1968.
Read the
full news release from Faith Regional Health Services.
The IRS recently
released
for public comment draft instructions and worksheets for Form 990, Schedule H
and other schedules tax-exempt hospitals must file, including schedule J on executive
compensation. Comments are due by June 1. To help hospitals better understand
and comment on the worksheets and instructions for Schedule H, the AHA will host
a call for member hospital and health system executives from 2-3:30 p.m. Eastern
Time April 17. To register for the call, visit www.aha.org. Mindy Hatton, AHA
senior vice president and general counsel, will host the call and Ron Schultz,
senior technical advisor in the IRS’ Tax Exempt and Government Entities
Division, will discuss the instructions and worksheets for Schedule H and answer
questions. In tax year 2008, hospitals must complete only “Part V Facility
Information” on Schedule H, as the remaining sections are not due until tax year
2009.
— AHA News Now, April 7, 2008.
LINCOLN, NEB. – The state’s hospice association, the Nebraska Hospice and
Palliative Care Partnership (NHPCP), honored end-of-life professionals at its
annual banquet last week.
Aloha Schmid, RN, CHPN, Hospice of Tabitha-York, received the state
association’s highest honor. The State Impact Award recognizes Schmid’s
contributions to the work of NHPCP and end-of-life care over the last year.
Also awarded was the 2008 Shining Star Award, for contributions made to
increase awareness of end-of-life issues. Carol Schroeder of Valley County
Hospice and Lisa Weber-Kohler of Hospice of Columbus Community Hospital received
the Shining Star Award.
Kelly Keller of AseraCare Hospice-Omaha and the team at Saint Elizabeth
Hospice and Palliative Care in Lincoln received the 2008 Spirit of Hospice Award
for their dedication to the hospice philosophy of care.
Many volunteers were recognized as “Outstanding Nebraska Hospice Volunteers.”
Click
here to read more.
— Nebraska Hospice and Palliative Care Partnership news release, April 7,
2008.
The University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) continues to be positioned
among the nation’s top programs in the latest U.S.News & World Report’s
rankings of the country’s graduate schools. The rankings, which are available online and on newsstands, reflect UNMC’s longstanding hold in such program areas
as primary care, rural health and physician assistant education.
The annual health disciplines rankings are reported in the magazine’s 2009
edition of America’s Best Graduate Schools. The online edition includes longer
lists of some specialty rankings, as well as additional school directory
information. “I’m delighted that the work of our faculty and students continue
to place us among the elite programs in the United States,” said Rubens Pamies,
M.D., vice chancellor for academic affairs at UNMC.
Read
more.
— UNMC news release, April 4, 2008.
Minority
Health Week Activities
April 6-12, 2008
Nebraska Department of Every Woman Matters Celebration of Life
April 11, 2008 – PlaMor Ballroom, Lincoln, NE
The Nebraska Breast and Cervical Cancer Advisory Committee is holding a
fundraiser for Every Woman Matters on Friday, April 11 at the PlaMor Ballroom in
Lincoln. All money raised helps pay for treatment for women who are diagnosed
with breast or cervical cancer or pre-cancer through the program and do not
qualify for the Medicaid Treatment Program.
National Healthcare Decisions Day
April 16, 2008
Elderfest '08 sponsored by Providence Medical Center
April 17, 2008 – Wayne City Auditorium, Wayne, NE
Rebuilding
Lives in Nebraska: 2nd Annual Brain Injury Conference
April 24 - 25, 2008 – Midtown Holiday Inn, Grand Island, NE
Nebraska Association of Medical Staff Services
(NeAMSS) 2008 Education Conference
April 25, 2008 – Georgetown Club, Omaha, NE
Alegent Health April Events Calendar
April 1-30, 2008
2008 Nebraska Healthcare Quality Forum
May 13, 2008 – Embassy Suites, Lincoln, NE
Click here for a list
of upcoming NHA audioconferences and webinars.
Visit the
Events page on the NHA Web site for more information on any of the events.
If you have an event you would like listed in Newslink or on the NHA Web site,
submit it to Heather Bullock, marketing and events coordinator, at
hbullock@nhanet.org. Send news items to Christy Rasmussen, director of
communications, at crasmussen@nhanet.org.
NHA Newslink is published by the Nebraska
Hospital Association, 3255 Salt Creek Circle, Suite 100, Lincoln, NE 68504-4761.
Phone 402/742-8140, Fax 402/742-8191. Contact Christy Rasmussen, director of
communications, at 402/742-8151, or email,
crasmussen@nhanet.org.
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