Each March, healthcare organizations take part in an annual awareness campaign by deploying educational resources to hospital staff. The National Patient Safety Foundation has been pursuing one mission since its founding in 1997 – to improve the safety of care provided to patients. Read the rest of this entry »
March Celebrates Patient Safety
March 1, 2011 by Dan
February is American Heart Month
Having a healthy heart is key to a healthy, active life. Since 1963, February has been recognized as American Heart month.
Women & Heart Disease Facts:
- Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women age 20 and over, killing approximately one woman every minute.
- While 1 in 30 American women die of breast cancer, about 1 in 3 die of cardiovascular disease.
- Eighty percent of cardiac events could be prevented if women made the right choices for their hearts involving diet, exercise and abstinence from smoking.
- Hispanic women are likely to develop heart disease 10 years earlier than non-Hispanic white women.
Manageable changes, done gradually, can protect many from cardiovascular diseases. Swift County Benson Hospital encourages women to keep their hearts strong by getting enough exercise, practice portion control, reduce salt, and cut fat from an everyday diet to add up to a healthier you.
The New IV/Chemo Therapy Rooms at SCBH are AWESOME!
The results are in…Ione Laycock, RN, therapy nurse, David Johnson, therapy patient, and Deann Johnson, David’s wife and caregiver, all agree the IV and Chemo Therapy program and the new therapy rooms at SCBH are AWESOME.
“Most of the larger hospitals, like Mayo or the University of Minnesota, refer patients who live in this area to SCBH for IV or Chemo therapy treatments. I coordinate these treatments with them and stay in touch with the referring doctors. That’s how I met the Johnsons,” said Ione Laycock.
“When my doctor at Mayo told me he was prescribing IV therapy, I asked him if I could have it in Benson. He checked with SCBH and said there would be no problem coordinating my care with Benson. This saves me time. I’m not away from my business like I would be if I had to drive to Mayo and allows me the flexibility tommer, 2009 schedule treatments around my work plans. That’s important to me,” said Clontarf resident, David Johnson.
“Ione and the scheduling people are exceptional. They are so friendly and make everything convenient for us. I schedule the treatments, and we know if I schedule David for an 8 a.m. treatment, everything will be ready for us at 8 a.m.,” Deann Johnson said. “The rooms are private and comfortable. I watch TV, relax or talk to Ione if I have questions,” added David, “Ione coordinates my care with the Mayo Clinic. She calls them if she has questions. One time there was a discrepancy in my therapy plan, and she called my Mayo doctor to discuss it. He was impressed that she did that.”
“We have two new rooms for IV and Chemo therapy. They are situated off a hallway, so people walking by can’t look in and see who is in the room. Each room has two chairs, so we can accommodate four patients at a time,” Ione said.
Generally, most IV or Chemo Therapy sessions last from 30 minutes to six hours depending on the prescription. “Part of my job is to help patients find resources for their specific condition. Sometimes they need to talk with their pastor, a counselor, or family members. Sometimes I order them specific materials about their condition, sometimes they need home health or some other kind of support. And sometimes they need hugs. It’s all part of my job,” quipped Ione. Deann added, “SCBH is a wonderful healthcare facility for Benson. We are indeed fortunate to have this hospital and service available in our community.”
New SimLab Hits the road to bring training to SCBH RNs
The SCBH RNs were some of the first to host Children’s Hospital’s $2.5 million mobile training lab called SimLab L1. SimLab L1 is a high-tech mobile training facility which uses the latest in simulation technology to educate and train healthcare and emergency response professionals. It began as a vision by the Children’s Hospital healthcare leaders to deliver the realism and effectiveness of simulation training directly to the doorstep of healthcare professionals.
Inside the large van, top of the line equipment and tools set the stage for training, mimicking a real emergency care facility. Simulation manikins breathe, cough, talk, act, and feel very much like real patients. Simulation training experts record each training session and debrief the scenario with the participants.
Besides high-tech training, bringing training directly to Benson can realize a cost savings. Traditionally, we sent a limited number of employees to major metropolitan areas to receive this level of training. With SimLab L1, we were able to train almost all of our RNs in the new procedures. Plus, the cost of travel, overtime, and staffing problems is virtually eliminated by using SimLab L1 to deliver training. SimLab L1 definitely fills a need in rural healthcare training.
Cardiologists Visiting SCBH Come From a “Top 100 Cardiovascular Hospital”
The Central Minnesota Heart Center at St. Cloud Hospital is a comprehensive cardiac care center dedicated to the discovery, management and control of cardiac disease. The Heart Center is committed to providing excellent patient care, attracting high-caliber staff and developing state-of-the-art facilities. The Heart Center was one of the first “heart hospitals” in the state.
The Heart Center has become a national leader in the treatment and prevention of cardiac disease. It is ranked as one of the nation’s “100 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals” by Thomson Reuters and has earned this prestigious designation eight times in the award program’s 10 years.