It was important that the remodeled spaces suite the tastes and needs of the 23 current tenants and their children and/or close relatives, Mueller said. "It has to be a win-win."

It has been fun for Washburne Court's tenants and their families to watch the progress made on the renovation during the past three months, Mueller said.

"It's been a good project," she said. "The tenants really deserve this. It was time."

This year the main floor was the focus of the renovation, but PAHCS has plans to renovate the second and third floor of the facility as well, Mueller said.

PAHCS offers three senior living location options in Paynesville. Koronis Manor, a long-term care facility and 700 Stearns, senior housing with assisted living services available, are both located on the Paynesville Area Health Care System main campus. Both of these facilities are directly connected to the hospital and clinic. Washburne Court is located just a few short blocks away and is very convenient to downtown shopping.

The January internal grant cycle awarded a $200 grant to Specialty Services. The funding is for a new project for chemotherapy (Oncology)pa­tients. New patients to oncology will receive a take home package with a water bottle, chapstick, soft toothbrush, lotion and thermometer. When patients first receive chemo it is important to get new products along with instructions for usage. Debbie Glenz, Specialty Services RN shared, "When patients are started on chemotherapy their immune system is lowered and their chance for infection goes up. With new supplies they have a start in the right direction with their care.“

We also were informed by the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care that PAHCS has been invited to submit a final grant appli­cation for Step 2 of the Rural Hospital Capital Improvement Program to create two inpatient bariatric suites, which is due 3/18/13. Step 2 will be a highly competitive process as the re­quested funds from the pre-applicants remain far greater than the available budget. Thanks to Jennifer Engen, Rachel Walz and Todd Lemke for their expertise in our grant program suc­cess!

Paynesville Area Health Care System (PAHCS) announced today that they will be giving a $500 check to the American Diabetes Association from proceeds raised from their first annual Healthy Strides 5k walk/run. The health care system also will be providing funds to their local diabetes program offered at their hospital. “We were exceptionally pleased with the turn-out for our first year hosting this event”, said Paulette Hagen, Human Resource Director. “Approximately 100 people are diagnosed with diabetes each year through our health care system, and we wanted to do our part to help prevent and create awareness of this disease.”

James Evans, a Paynesville resident diagnosed with diabetes in July of 2012, was motivated to participate in the 5K walk/run. With help from Melissa Weber, PAHCS Dietitian, Evans is currently not taking insulin or medication for his diabetes; he is managing the disease through healthy a diet and exercise.

Doreen Kern was also motivated to get involved with the 5K walk/run. “I volunteered to help out the day of the Healthy Strides 5K in part because “I just wanted to volunteer.” But even more, I wanted to volunteer because my son is diabetic. He is presently a teenager and has been diabetic for over half of his life. My family has participated in other American Diabetes Association walks in the past and they were fun to be a part of. This time I wanted to be a part of the volunteer team hosting the event. It was a fun event and rewarding as well.”
Kern volunteered to help work at the 5K along with several other PAHCS employees.

“We are extremely excited to keep this important program going”, said Dennis Miley, PAHCS CEO. Plans are already underway for next year’s event, which will be hosted on August 18, 2013. To learn more about our race and diabetes prevention, click here.

Pictured from left to right: Doreen Kern, RN, Dennis Miley, CEO, Paulette Hagen, Human Resource Director

She has a MBA in Healthcare Administration from Regis University, Denver, a Medical Laboratory Scientist degree from the Mercy School of Medical Technology in Des Moines, Iowa, and a Bachelors in Biology from Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota.

Before joining PAHCS, Melissa was employed as the Director of Physician Clinic & Laboratory Services with New River Medical Center, Monticello, MN. Prior to that, she had management responsibility for Lab, Radiology, and Ultrasound at the Rainy Lake Medical Center in International Falls, Minnesota.

Melissa, her husband Jeffrey, and their three children Benjamin, Chandler, and Austin plan to relocate to the area. In her spare time, Melissa enjoys outdoor activities, canning, and being with family.

Welcome Melissa!

The SHIP grant award is $8,694 and will be assisting in training and preparing for the transition to ICD-10. Internation Classification of Diseases (ICD) is the standard diagnostic tool for epidemiology, health management and clinical purposes. It is also used for reimbursement by insurance's. All healthcare facilities in the US are converting to ICD-10 by October 1, 2014. Staff training for ICD-10 code structure will involve providers, coding, nursing, billing, radiology, lab, specialty services and pharmacy.

Many staff hours and training mechanisms such as: ICD 10 Boot Camps, webinar, web-based training, on-site training and off-site training seminars will be required to become proficient in the ICD-10 coding structure. Compared to our current system ICD-9, ICD-10 provides better specific data and reflects current medical practice and new technology used to treat patients and manage their disease processes. The added detail within ICD-10 codes informs health care providers and health plans of patient incidence and history, which improves the effectiveness of patient case-management and patient care-coordination functions. Accurate coding reduces the volume of claims rejected due to ambiguity and more specific code structure presents the patient’s medical provider with specific information to treat the patient. ICD-10 provides detailed data to better analyze disease patterns and track and respond to public health outbreaks. This grant will assist us in working toward the conversion now as it impacts how we schedule a patient, how providers and ancillary staff dictate and document services, how our system interacts with payers, our billing forms, as well as the remits we receive from payers and lastly, the patients bill. “Health Information is very excited to have received this grant,” stated Sheri Leibl, Manager, Revenue Cycle Services.

Optimal Diabetes Care (ODC) quality measure.

The Paynesville Medical Clinic has received an award for meeting the Optimal Diabetes Care (ODC) improvement goal. The Target Goal for ODC was 85%. This award is from the Minnesota Health Action Group, the Minnesota Bridges to Excellence Champions of Change and the State of Minnesota Quality Incentive Payment System Public Purchasers. Todd Lemke, PharmD, commented that part of our quality improvement process has been doing manual chart reviews of patients with diabetes, and sending letters to those patients who did not meet our quality measures, perhaps for a followup physical, lab test, etc. Other changes have involved laboratory testing, modified chartware and collaboration with providers. “This is a quality services initiative aimed at making sure persons with diabetes are going to live healthier, longer lives. PAHCS is being proactive with patients to control their diabetes, “ said Todd. “It’s a team effort.”

58 employees were honored on May 12th for their service achievements. Awards were given to: (5 years) Rebecca Ahrens, Yvette Andrews, DuDonne Andrie, Lisa Anselment, Viola Bengtson, Ashley Blomker, Phyllis Bushman, Susan Deadrick, Erin Frankk, Barb Hanson, Heather Holzer, Ruth Hormann, Teresa Kneip, Christine Kodet, Pat Kubat, Nancy Liebrenz, Carrie Sjoberg, Tom Rudnick, April Stadtler, Rich Symanietz, Britney Thielen, Melissa Weber. (10 years) Tracy Donabauer, Gail Fink, Crystal Fleischhacker, Melissa Hartkopf, MaryLou Hemmesch, Leilani Jansen, Mildred Janssen, Angela Kulzer, Amanda Manuel, Kristen Mehlhop, Carol Menk, Carol Michels, Tammi Nelson, Jodi Schindler, Marci Schwinghammer, Karen Theis, Shirley Theis-Jacklitch, Marilyn Torborg. (15 years) Tom Fordyce, Sharon Kruger (20 years) Denise Fischbach, Leila Linn, Sandy Rausch, Karen Whitcomb, Margie Winter (25 years) Marilyn Cooper, Carol Symanietz, Rose Welle (30 years) Kim Gabrelcik, Donna Mackedanz, Amy Miller, Bonnie Schmidt, Susan Schneider, Margaret Schutz, Sharon Skuza (35 years) Paula Lingl.

Congratulations!

Mary Ellen has called Minnesota her home for many years, although only one of her sons lives in state. Her other son lives in Phoenix, AZ and her daughter lives in Indianapolis, IN. Outside of the office, she enjoys reading and gardening. “I’m only really happy when my hands are in the dirt,” she said with a smile. Another interesting hobby Mary Ellen has is raising pure-bred Birman cats & kittens for showing for competition (which is not as exciting as a dog show according to most.)

Mary Ellen and her husband recently moved to Paynesville. She added that Koronis Manor is a very nice facility and it has a good feel for being a part of the community and an extension of the resident’s home. Welcome Mary Ellen!

Jennifer Dean-Dwyer, PA-C

Jackie Osterhaus, PA-C

Jennifer Dean-Dwyer and Jackie Osterhaus, Physician Assistants for Paynesville Area Health Care System, were recently honored by the Minnesota Academy of Physician Assistants with the Physician Assistant of the Year Award and Presidents Award, respectively, at their annual association meeting in Bloomington March 2nd – 4th, 2011.

Dean-Dwyer, who has 32 years of experience as a Physician Assistant (PA), accepted her award from MAPA’s President-Elect, Terence Panvica. The Physician Assistant of the Year Award is presented to a PA who exemplifies the commitment of the profession to quality patient care and community service. Dean-Dwyer, a medical provider for Paynesville Area Health Care System at the Chain of Lakes Medical Clinic in Cold Spring, has given many years of volunteer work in her community, international medical mission work, and assisting with language skills for immigrants. She has served as a Girl Scout leader, PTA president, mentoring students entering the PA profession, and other leadership opportunities on a local, state, and national level. Jennifer has served as the President of the MAPA for 3 previous terms, and is currently serving as the chairperson of the Public Relations committee for the association.

Dean-Dwyer was praised by her children for the role model standards she set, which has had a major influence in their lives. “She has consistently demonstrated to us the need for balancing professional aspirations, a successful career, and our personal life. Our mother reinforced the need to work hard, excel at what you do and nurture hobbies and passions.” In conclusion, Dean-Dwyer summarized her career experience by stating, “As a Physician Assistant, we are team members with Physicians to provide a broad range of medical care, including diagnosis and management of medical conditions. I am so honored to be recognized and I love being a PA.”

Osterhaus, a 1997 Augsburg graduate, was selected to receive the Presidents Award from Past President, Gene Beavers for her outstanding contributions to her patients, military, family and MAPA. Jackie, who has 14 years of experience as a PA , has held the roles of President, newsletter editor, and human resources committee chairperson for the MAPA association along with being active in various community health events, American Heart and Diabetes Association speaking opportunities and cancer research fundraising. Osterhaus, Captain for the US Army, joined the military in 1999 and has served in medical deployments to Iraq. She is currently serving as the president of the MN Chapter of the Reserve Officers Association.

Osterhaus, Physician Assistant with the Paynesville Area Health Care System at the Eastside Medical Clinic, Belgrade, was praised for her courage, grace and commitment in all areas of her life while exemplifying the dedicated service of the PA profession. “It is an honor to receive such an award from my peers who I regard with such high esteem. Practicing as a physician assistant in Minnesota is truly a privilege that I don’t take lightly, and I enjoy serving in leadership positions as a way of giving back to a profession and an academy that has given so much to me”, stated Osterhaus.

The Mission of the Minnesota Academy of Physician Assistants is to promote quality, cost-effective, accessible health care, and to promote the professional and personal growth of Physician Assistants.

Shelly Schmidt earned her PHR (Professional in Human Resources) Certification from the Human Resource Institute. The national passing rate for PHR certification is only 56%. Congratulations Shelly!

Ambassador Rounding follow a consistent pattern.
The Ambassador for that week will first meet with the charge nurse to review patient status before visiting. The Ambassador will ask the patient if they are willing to visit with a management team member. The Ambassador will introduce themselves, hand out a business card, and ask patients 4 questions that cover satisfaction levels with providers, direct care staff, dietary, pain management and room environment. Before leaving, the Ambassador closes with the statement, “Is there anything else I can do for you? I have time.”
Ambassadors chart patient responses in a log book, and are prepared to take immediate action on patient need requests. Rounding will assist in providing another level of service above the already excellent care that we provide.

Ambassador Rounding serves many purposes. Goals include staff team building, interdepartmental communication, patient care team building, reward and recognition, physician satisfaction, patient satisfaction and process improvement.

On December 10th the Radiology Department went through a Mammography Quality Assurance Audit (MQAA) with the FDA. Through the audit, no deficiencies were found. Some of the things that are checked with this audit are: Quality Assurance (QA) on the mammography unit, technologist’s for continuing education, radiologist’s continuing education, and many other QA processes. The entire personal that performs these exams are registered by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists in mammography. These technologists have more than 60 years of experience in performing mammograms. Besides performing these procedures, they have to continue be proficient at all other parts of the department. Deb Norris heads up the Mammography program and there have not been many deficiencies in this area thanks to her leadership as well as her staff, Laurie Meyer, Angie Kulzer and Steph Hemmesch, who seek high quality standards in radiology. Great job to all of you!