Acupuncture Services Now Available at OAHS

[ORTONVILLE, MN] 08/31/22 Allan Ross, MD, assumes role as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ortonville Area Health Services (OAHS).

On July 12th, OAHS Health Care Board of Directors, in collaboration with Sanford Health, announced Dr. Ross as upcoming CEO, a long-time medical provider and then-current Chief Medical Officer at OAHS.

Dr. Ross reflected on his new position, “I feel fortunate to be able to continue to serve OAHS in this new capacity. OAHS is a strong organization and I look forward to working alongside the dedicated employees and providers to continue to be the premier healthcare organization in the region and best serve our patients and residents.”

Ross, originally from Ortonville, is a graduate of University of Minnesota earning his M.D. in 1997 and completed his Family Practice Residency with HealthSystems Minnesota/University of Minnesota-Methodist Hospital. Dr. Ross has been a medical provider at OAHS for the past 22 years and was named Chief Medical Officer in 2019. He has also served on the Sanford Health Network Board of Directors since 2021, the Minnesota Community Measurement Advisory Board from 2010-2018, and was on the Board of Directors of the Minnesota Rural Health Core Cooperative from 2006-2009. Dr. Ross and his wife, Lisa, raised their three daughters in Ortonville and enjoy traveling to Duluth, Minn. to visit them.

Ortonville Area Health Services is a regional healthcare leader providing personalized, high quality and compassionate care through caring professionals in a healing environment.

OAHS services include:
• Northside Medical Clinic that provides family medicine and specialized care in Family Medicine/Obstetrics, Emergency Medicine, and Psychiatry – with satellite clinics and outreach services in Wheaton, Canby, and Clinton, MN and the OAHS Trojan Clinic within Ortonville Public Schools.
• The Ortonville Hospital, a state-of-the-art facility that provides 25-inpatient beds and obstetrical care, surgery, and outpatient services.
• The comprehensive Fairway View Senior Communities that provides catered living and assisted living apartments with numerous on-site amenities and Fairway View Neighborhoods, a resident-focused facility that provides long-term care nursing services and support.

Photo Credit: Caiti Barr Photography

In the Fall of 2020, monoclonal antibody therapy was approved by the FDA under the emergency use authorization for the treatment of COVID-19. Monoclonal antibody therapy introduces laboratory-produced molecules that act as substitute antibodies that can restore, enhance, or mimic the immune system’s attack on cells. Not long after the approval from the FDA, the leadership of Ortonville Area Health Services (OAHS) chose to offer the treatment in Ortonville, MN. “After looking at the data, we saw clear benefits,” explained Dr. Allan Ross, Chief Medical Officer at OAHS. “That led to us being one of the first facilities in the area to use monoclonal antibody therapy.” Dr. Ross continued, “I saw an article at the end of December of 2020 showing the number of infusions Massachusetts General Hospital (Harvard Medical School) had done. At that point, we had given more infusions at OAHS!”

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Who can get their vaccine now?

• Minnesotans aged 65 or older
• Health care workers and people working at health care facilities, first responders who provide direct patient care as part of the EMS system, and primary caregivers for people with complex medical needs or disabilities
• Long-term care residents and staff members at long-term care facilities in Minnesota
• Pre-kindergarten through Adult Basic and Community Education school staff members, or contracted school staff members, at schools in Minnesota
• Child care staff members at licensed and certified child care centers or programs in Minnesota
• People with specific underlying health conditions:
  • Sickle cell disease, Down Syndrome, or oxygen-dependent chronic lung or heart conditions, and those who are in active cancer treatment or immunocompromised from organ transplant
• Targeted essential workers
  • Food processing plants
• People with rare conditions or disabilities that put them at higher risk
• People age 45 and older with ONE or more underlying medical conditions; or, age 16 and over with TWO or more underlying medical conditions*
• People 50+ in multi-generational housing
• Essential frontline workers
  • Agricultural, airport staff, additional child care workers not previously eligible, correctional settings, first responders, food production, food retail, food service, judicial system workers, manufacturing, public health workers, public transit, Postal Service workers

Who will get their vaccine soon?

May-June

• 16+ with any underlying medical condition*
• Age 50-64 (regardless of health condition)
• All other essential workforces
  • Transportation and logistics, finance, housing/shelter construction, IT/communications, energy, media, legal, public safety, water, and wastewater

Summer

• General public
  By this summer, every Minnesotan who wants a shot will be able to get one!

*Underlying Medical Conditions

• Active cancer
• Chronic kidney disease
• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
• Diabetes – Type 1 or 2
• Down Syndrome
• Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
• Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant, HIV, bone marrow disease, chronic steroids for more than 30 days, immunodeficiency disease, or taking immunosuppressive medications
• Obesity – body mass index (BMI) greater than 30 kg/m2
• Pregnancy
• Sickle cell disease

Ortonville Area Health Services (OAHS) is pleased to announce that Amanda McMahon, MD has joined Northside Medical Clinic and will begin seeing patients in January.

“We are very excited to welcome Dr. McMahon to the provider group and medical team here at OAHS,” said Clinic Director Liz Sorenson. “She has a strong passion & understanding of what it takes to provide whole-person & family care. Her top-notch clinical training as a Family Practice physician will only enhance the already talented group of medical providers. We are excited that Amanda & Adam have decided to make the Big Stone Lake Area the place they want to call home and raise their family.”

Dr. McMahon received her Medical Degree in 2016 from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Additionally, she completed her Family Medicine Residency this summer through Altru Health System in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

“My favorite part of being a doctor is being able to build relationships with my patients and their families,” said Dr. McMahon. “I am excited to be back in my hometown where I can serve my community and have the privilege of getting to know my patients on a more personal level to provide the best health care possible.”

For more information on Ortonville Area Health Services or to schedule an appointment with Amanda McMahon, MD please contact 320-839-6157.

Maria Botker, CNS, RN, Dr. Bob Ross, and Nicole Lovgren, RN pictured holding the Rural Health Team Award at the Minnesota Rural Health Conference on June 18, 2019.

Ortonville Area Health Services (OAHS) was awarded the Minnesota Rural Health Team Award for outstanding obstetric (OB) care at the Minnesota Rural Health Conference earlier this year. At a time when many small hospitals are no longer able to offer OB care, OAHS OB/ER has collaborated with local hospitals in Minnesota and South Dakota to provide high quality OB for their shared rural populations. OAHS, a Critical Access Hospital, is located on the border of Minnesota and South Dakota. Appointments are shared between facilities to fit the needs of pregnant women and telehealth allows for neonatal and obstetric care available at the push of a button. These partnerships allow for OB delivery of care that addresses the unique needs of women in their own rural settings. Congratulations!

Click here to view the acceptance speech delivered by Maria Botker, CNS, RN

Dr. Bob Ross, with grandson Cane, pictured holding the Rural Health Lifetime Achievement Award at the Minnesota Rural Health Conference on June 18, 2019.

Dr. Bob was the recipient of the 2019 Rural Health Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr. Bob joined the Ortonville medical staff in 1977 and hasn’t sat still since. In 1989, Dr. Bob and his partners formed the Big Stone Health Care Foundation. The Foundation, along with Dr. Bob and the entire Board’s vision, has provided health care opportunities to our community that otherwise would not have been possible. We thank Dr. Bob, his wife Mary, and their entire family for the sacrifices that have been made in order for him to be one of the leaders for his partners, the staff, and most importantly his patients. Congratulations, Dr. Bob!

Click here to read about Dr. Bob’s lifetime of success.

Click here to view Dr. Bob’s acceptance speech.