FIRST BABY BORN IN 2015 at the Ortonville Hospital was Hayden Claire Pedersen. Hayden is the daughter of Jordan & Brittany Pedersen of Wilmot, SD. She entered this world on Monday, Jan. 5 at 6:37 a.m., weighing 7 lbs. and measuring 20 1/4″ in length. Grandparents are Kari & Mike Pedersen of Wilmot and Shaun & Denice Hooth of Milbank, Dr. Susan Andersen delivered the baby. Hayden is shown in a New Year blanket, a gift from the OAHS Auxiliary

Ortonville Area Health Services designated as a stroke ready hospital

 Ortonville Area Health Services (OAHS) joins 67 hospitals recognized for their preparedness to evaluate, stabilize and provide emergency treatment to patients with acute stroke symptoms.

In 2013, the Minnesota Legislature authorized the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) to designate hospitals in Minnesota as “stroke hospitals.” Ortonville Area Health Services choose to apply to be designated as one of these stroke ready hospitals and received the notice of this achievement at the end of December.

“Choosing to be a part of the state’s stroke department, allows us even better access to current standard and guideline resources so we can continue to provide the best care possible for patients who present to us with stroke symptoms,” said Maria Botker, Stroke Designation Coordinator and ER/OB Nursing Coordinator at OAHS.

Nearly one in three Minnesota stroke victims first receives care at a small, rural hospital. In addition, more than one-third of Minnesotans live more than 60 minutes away from a Primary Stroke Center. These facts highlight the importance of local hospitals becoming designated as stroke-ready facilities.

“When it comes to stroke, time lost is brain lost,” said MDH Commissioner of Health Dr. Ed Ehlinger. “That is why it is so crucial that all Minnesota hospitals are ready to deliver high-quality stroke care close to home.”

It is important for Minnesotans to know how to spot a stroke quickly and call 9-1-1. You can recognize the signs and symptoms of a stroke by remembering F.A.S.T.

F – facial droop/numbness, A – arm weakness, S – speech difficulty, and T – time to call 9-1-1.

Ortonville Area Health Services welcomes Grant Botker, M.D. who joins our professional staff of practitioners. Dr. Botker will begin seeing patients at Northside Medical Clinic in September 2014.

Birth records are a necessity for every patient. Every hospital is required to complete birth registration forms for every baby born in the facility. The data contained within the forms is collected by  Minnesota Department of Health Office of Vital Records and submitted to the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The MDH Office of Vital Records monitors the timeliness and completeness of birth registrations in all Minnesota facilities. Ortonville Area Health Services was notified that the Health Information Management department received the Excellence in Birth Registration Award.

The standard the MDH establishes is that all birth registrations are completed in full and submitted within five days of each birth. The medical facilities that fully complete and submit 98 percent of birth registrations within five days of birth receive the Excellence in Birth Registration Award. For the calendar year 2013, 57 of 104 medical facilities that deliver babies in Minnesota were honored with this award. A greater accomplishment is that of the 57 facilities that received the award, only 19 of those facilities submitted 100 percent of birth registrations within the five day time frame. Ortonville Area Health Services is one of the only 19 medical facilities in Minnesota that submitted 100 percent of birth registrations within the five day window.

This award highlights the Health Information Management team and the excellence of their work. The primary person at OAHS responsible for birth registrations is Kristen Ohm, and her back-up is Joett Nicholson. This award, and achieving 100 percent of our birth registrations completed in full and submitted on time, highlights the teamwork and dedication of Kristen and Joett. Congratulations!

From Stacy Longnecker, MD

As a physician at Northside Medical Clinic/Ortonville Area Health Services, I see many pregnant women who are a few weeks from a full-term pregnancy and are feeling really uncomfortable. Some are ready to schedule a delivery by induction or cesarean section before they have reached their 39^th or 40^th week of pregnancy. They know friends or family members whose doctors have agreed to schedule such a delivery.

But I know that healthy babies are worth the wait. At least 39 weeks of pregnancy are crucial to a baby’s health – and I won’t schedule a delivery before that unless there is a medical necessity. Here at Ortonville Area Health Services, we’ve made a pledge to give babies a healthy start in life. In December 2013 we were recognized by the March of Dimes and Minnesota Hospital Association for this work. We have reduced the number of early deliveries that are medically unnecessary. When the award was received at the beginning of December, OAHS had 67 total births (more since that date) and 15 deliveries of those births were prior to the 39 weeks and only 4 of these were inductions or 6% of our deliveries. All 4 of these inductions were medically necessary.

Development of critical organs, including the brain, lungs, and liver, occurs during the last weeks of pregnancy. Research published last year shows the risk of infant death doubles when a baby is born at 37 weeks of pregnancy as compared to 39 or 40 weeks.

I have been working with the March of Dimes and our hospital to eliminate the medically unnecessary c-sections and inductions before 39 weeks of pregnancy because all babies deserve the best opportunity for a health start in life. We are proud of this recognition of our work by the March of Dimes and the Minnesota Hospital Association.

OAHS welcomes our 2013 Christmas Baby: Izieli Ramona

Isieli was born on December 26, 2103 at 10:36 p.m. weighing 6 lbs., 12 ounces and was 21 inches long. She was welcomed home by her parents and 4 siblings.

In just two short months, our OAHS family welcomed 19 new babies – 16 of those babies were present for this photo shoot.

Ortonville Area Health Services Receives Press Ganey 2013 Guardian of Excellence Award^SM for

Achieving 95^th Percentile in Patient Satisfaction

November 27, 2013: Ortonville Area Health Services is proud to announce it has been named a 2013 Guardian of Excellence Award winner by Press Ganey Associates, Inc. The Guardian of Excellence Award recognizes top-performing facilities that consistently achieved the 95^th percentile of performance in Patient Satisfaction.

The Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence Award is a health care industry symbol of achievement. Fewer than 5% of all Press Ganey clients reach this threshold and consistently maintain it for the one year reporting period. Press Ganey partners with more than 10,000 health care facilities, including more than half of all U.S. hospitals, to measure and improve the patient experience.

“We are proud to partner with Ortonville Area Health Services,” said Patrick T. Ryan, CEO of Press Ganey. “Achieving this level of excellence reflects the organization’s commitment to delivering outstanding service and quality. OAHS’s efforts benefit patients in the Ortonville area and will lead to improved patient experiences.”

“We are honored to be recognized with this award, “said Richard Ash, CEO.  Providing the best possible care for our patients is our mission and this award is a direct reflection of the commitment and dedication of everyone at OAHS toward achieving that mission.  It’s important to recognize that this award is the result of the combined teamwork of everyone. Excellent patient care is the culmination of teamwork of everyone at OAHS; every department, every person, every patient, every day. This award confirms that.

OAHS has committed to provide patient centered care to each patient and their family.  Ways the OAHS Inpatient Unit provides such care is by providing hourly rounding, bedside report and whiteboards for communication for each patient and their family benefits.  Each patient’s care is individualized to meet their needs when they require a hospital stay.  The dedicated caring professionals are committed to doing all they can to make the stay as comfortable as possible.  “It is truly an honor to know our patients reported the care they received exceeded their expectations.  It is our faithful patients that awarded OAHS and we thank each of you for committing to receiving your healthcare at OAHS.” Jennifer Wiik, MA, RN, Director of Nursing comments.

Press Ganey Associates, Inc.
Recognized as a leader in performance improvement for nearly 30 years, Press Ganey partners with more than 10,000 health care organizations worldwide to create and sustain high-performing organizations, and, ultimately, improve the overall health care experience. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of solutions to help clients operate efficiently, improve quality, increase market share and optimize reimbursement. Press Ganey works with clients from across the continuum of care – hospitals, medical practices, home care agencies and other providers – including 50 percent of all U.S. hospitals. For more information, visit www.pressganey.com.