Lori Andreas, JMHS Hospital Director of Nurses said “It’s always good to refresh your knowledge.  Because emergency medicine is constantly changing it is important to continually enhance our staffs’ skills. It is critically important that we are on the same page with the air ambulance crew.”

With bases in Bemidji, Brainerd, Princeton, Redwood Falls and LakevilleAir Care, North Memorial’s Air Care service can respond 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to all of Minnesota and parts of Western Wisconsin, northern Iowa and the eastern Dakotas.

North Memorials flight nurses and paramedics have years of critical care experience from a variety of high volume intensive care, emergency department and ambulance services. The medical flight crews have additional training to provide the highest level of care for adult and pediatric patients. The crews responds to over 4,500 requests for service each year.

Air Care owns and operates a fleet of seven Agusta 109 helicopters, which is the fastest civilian helicopter on the market. The twin engine aircraft can fly at speeds of up to 180 mph. Depending on weather conditions and terrain, crews can often respond directly to the scene of an emergency. Even though they are affiliated with North Memorial’s Level I Trauma Center in Minneapolis, they will transport patients to and from any appropriate facility.  

During the training session three nurses from JMHS were able to have a quick flight to simulate what happens during an actual emergency. It provided them with an opportunity to learn how to safely load a patient into the helicopter and to see how the flight crew operates in such tight quarters.

Dr. Homam Alkaied
Oncology & Hematology

Johnson Memorial Health Services is pleased to provide Oncology and Hematology services at their facility. Dr. Homam Alkaied, from Prairie Lakes Cancer Center, specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with cancer and blood diseases.

Dr. Alkaied approach to cancer care is all encompassing, treating the whole human being. He believes in collaborative and collegial teamwork to deliver the best quality of care possible to patients.

Dr. Alkaied is board certified in Medical Oncology, Hematology, Internal Medicine and Geriatric Medicine. He completed his Hematology/Oncology fellowship at Staten Island University Hospital in Staten Island, New York. Dr. Alkaied also completed his Internal Medicine residency and Geriatric Medicine fellowship at Staten Island University Hospital. He completed medical school at the Damascus University Medical School in Damascus, Syria.

Dr. Alkaied is available to see patients at JMHS starting June 20^th. He is scheduled to see patients on a monthly basis. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please call Outreach Services at 320-312-2133.

 Johnson Memorial Health Services is hosting its first mini-triathlon for kids this year on Saturday, June 29 during Riverfest. This event is replacing the track and field events held in the past for kids. All participants will receive a t-shirt with 1^st, 2^nd & 3^rd places receiving medals for both boys and girls from each category.

 The mini-triathlon will begin at the Dawson City Pool. Lifeguards will be on duty, but younger kids are encouraged to wear life vests if they are not strong swimmers. 50 meters equals 1 lap in the pool. 

 After they are done swimming, they are encouraged to quickly run to their bikes and start the bike portion of the race. Please note that especially for the younger children they will need to have an adult there to help them quickly dress for the bike race. The bike course begins at the pool. The bike course will be easily mapped out with orange cones and signs. The bike race will end at the football field track, where the running portion of the event will be held.

The mini-triathlon begins at 9:30am with the younger kids going first. We encourage everyone to be at the Dawson City Pool by 9:00am for registration.  

  
Click here to download registration form.

Dr. Timothy Nealy

Dr. Timothy Nealy, a locum physician who worked at JMHS last summer, will be available to see patients. During his 48 years as a physician he has practiced at both large and small facilities. The staff at JMHS has really enjoyed working with him. Patients who have received care from Dr. Nealy have been impressed with the knowledge and care he has provided. He has consistently received high ratings on the facility surveys.

Dr. Nealy lives in Adrian, MN. He graduated From University of Minnesota Medical School 1965 and did his internship at St. Lukes Hospital in Duluth, MN from 1965-1966. He practiced in Blooming Prairie from 1966-1976, in New Ulm from 1976-1985, in Adrian, from1985-2000 and in Ivanhoe from 2000-2009. Dr. Nealy joined Wapiti Medical Group in 2011 and has been practicing as a Locum Physician.

Dr. Nealy and his wife Mary have 6 children. He is an avid Gopher Football Fan and a huge football fan at all levels. In his spare time he enjoys golf and spending time with his grandchildren.

 JMHS improved in 5 of the 6 domains from last year and ranked higher than the state average in each of the 6 domains measured. These domains include Relationships/Communication, Environment, Medical Care, Food & Activities. 93.8% of family members said they felt confident that their resident is well cared for whether they are present of not. 94% said they would enthusiastically recommend the facility to another family!

Said Julie Turnberg, Director of Older Adult Services, “We look forward to receiving our results because we always want to provide excellent care and services to our residents. The scores really validate all the hard work our staff does to make sure each resident feels comfortable and cared for in their home.”

 The JMHS Care Center was built in 1959, it houses 56 residents and has 26 private rooms. The focus is on the residents’ quality of life, ensuring dignity, respect and the right to make choices. Independence is encouraged and each resident’s activity level is maintained or improved as a vital part of preserving well-being. For more information on the Care Center or the survey, contact Julie Turnberg, Director of Older Adult Services at Johnson Memorial Health Services at 320-312-2130

Few people know about the critical testing they perform every day, since most lab professionals work behind the scenes. Lab Week is a time to honor the more than 300,000 medical laboratory professionals around the country who perform and interpret more than 10 billion laboratory tests in the US every year.

Since the development of this career group in the 1920s, the clinical laboratory science professional has played an increasingly vital role in the diagnosis and prevention of disease. Today, the clinical laboratorian is a key member of a health care team.

Johnson Memorial Health Services would like to thank its team of lab professionals for their outstanding service and dedication to their patients. They include: Manager Kelly Wente, Cindy Staab, Sharon Schnackenberg, Joel Ehrenberg & Rachel Schilling. It is quality professionals like our clinical laboratorians that set us apart from other Healthcare facilities.

 For more information on our lab team at JMHS contact Kelly Wente, Lab and Radiology manager at 320-769-4323 x2387

Pictured: Peggy Johnson, Rice Hospice Social Worker; Deb Ulstad, Rice Hospice; Kathy Johnson, JMHS CEO /Administrator; Tom Ludvigson, Farmer; Ken Club, Monsanto Rep.

Tom Ludvigson of Madison was selected as a winner in America’s Farmers Grow Communities℠, sponsored by the Monsanto Fund. He selected Johnson Memorial Hospice and Lac Qui Parle Food Shelf to both receive a $2,500 donation.

Grow Communities gives farmers the opportunity to win a $2,500 donation to direct to their favorite local nonprofit organizations. To further support counties that have been declared disaster areas due to drought by the USDA winning farmers in these counties were able to direct double the donation, a total of $5,000 to further support the community. Lac Qui Parle County was declared a disaster area by the USDA, giving Ludvigson, the opportunity to place two $2,500 donations.

In 1,271 eligible counties in 39 states, farmers could sign up for the opportunity to win a $2,500 donation for their favorite community nonprofit. This year, the Monsanto Fund will invest over $5 million in rural America through Grow Communities, which includes double donations for counties suffering from the historic drought. America’s Farmers Grow Communities is sponsored by the Monsanto Fund to highlight the important contributions farmers make every day to our society and to help them positively impact their communities. This program is part of the Monsanto Fund’s overall effort to support rural America. For a complete list of Grow Communities winners and more program information, please visit growcommunities.com.

Pictured: Jon Riewer, Aging Services Board Chair; Gail Ochsendorf, JMHS Activities Director; Nancy St. Sauver, LQPHN program coordinator; Deb Sather, JMHS MDS Coordinator; Julie Turnberg, JMHS Director of Older Adult Services; Sara West, JMHS Rehab Nurse; Judy Dahl, JMHS Assistant DON; Jodi Speicher, Aging Services Awards & Recognition Committee Chair and Gayle Kvenvold, President & CEO of Aging Services.

The Lac qui Parle Health Network a collaboration of Johnson Memorial Health Services, Appleton Area Health Services and Madison Lutheran Home has received a 2013 Leading Change Innovation Award from Aging Services of Minnesota. The Innovation Awards showcase the very best innovative programs and ideas in older adult services in the state of Minnesota. The Aging Services awards are among the highest honors for aging services organizations in Minnesota.

The facilities worked together to combine restorative nursing, or rehab, with the fun and interesting activities to encourage residents to exercise and follow through on their rehabilitation. The program, dubbed Putting the FUN in Rehab Nursing, is a first-of-its-kind combination in the country.

Faced with unenthusiastic, reluctant participation in rehab therapy by residents, The Lac qui Parle Network of care centers – Johnson Memorial Health Services, Dawson; Appleton Area Health Services and Madison Lutheran Home searched quality improvement organizations throughout the country for a model they could adapt.

“We contacted other facilities and searched online for ideas on how to do this, and we were unable to find anything,” said program coordinator Nancy St. Sauver. “So we decided to create our own.”

The result was an innovative coordinated program that took residents’ past interested such as fishing, bowling, gardening or sports to create a collection of fun exercises around each interest area.

“The results were stunning,” noted St. Sauver. Soon the residents were looking forward to the social interconnection, friendly competition and feelings of accomplishment. Quality indicator scores improved, residents experienced an improved ability to move around the room and range of motion.

Representatives from the care centers shared their experience at the three-day conference in Minneapolis last week. In addition they developed a toolkit to share the program with other senior care organizations.

For most of tests, you don’t need to follow any special instructions. On some tests, however, your test results may be more accurate if you follow a few simple instructions before coming in for the test. JMHS encourages individuals to contact them in advance or visit our website for instructions.

Test results are confidential and will be mailed to the given address of the patient. Individuals are encouraged to make an appointment with their healthcare provider to review the results. Patients will receive educational information with their test results. Patients with abnormal results will be asked to contact their practitioner. If you don’t have a primary care physician, JMHS can help you find a doctor.

Test fees are due at the time of service. Acceptable forms of payment are cash, check or credit card. For more information on Direct Access Laboratory Testing and list of available tests please visit our website at http://jmhsmn.org/services/laboratory-services/.

Laurie Dahl, BS-RN
Cardiac Rehab Nurse

Cardiac Rehab is a program offered in the therapy department at Johnson Memorial Health Services (JMHS) that provides patients education, nutrition guidance, physical exercise, weight management.  JMHS offers Phase 2 and Phase 3 Cardiac Rehab at their facility.  Phase 3 is a supervised maintenance phase of cardiac rehab.  It is for both graduate patients of phase 2 and for individuals at risk of heart disease. 

Risk Factors of heart disease include:  family history of heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes, stress/depression, and smoking.  Patients with past pulmonary issues are encouraged to consider this program for improving endurance and breathing.

Phase 3 Cardiac Rehab helps individuals meet their long-term lifestyle change goals, such as a regular exercise program.  One wonderful benefit of phase 3 rehab is that it allows a safe exercise environment, with medical equipment immediately available.  Participants are also provided daily interaction with a registered nurse and the rest of the therapy department.

Specific Benefits of exercise include improved blood vessel function, improvement in cardiovascular risk factors, improved coronary blood flow, and reduced risk of blood clots.  The average cardiac death is 26% lower in rehabilitation exercise-trained patients compared with those who received the usual care.  There are 21 percent fewer nonfatal heart attacks and 13 percent fewer bypass surgeries. Year after year studies from the American Heart Association are released showing the physical benefits of cardiac rehabilitation.  Rehab has been shown to help patients get back on their feet, lower blood pressure, boost good cholesterol, decrease body fat, increase muscle mass, and reduce the risk of a second heart problem.  There is also evidence that cardiac rehab can also help reduce depression, anger and other psychological problems that often follow heart problems.

JMHS offers cardiac rehab to anyone that wants to benefit and be heart healthy.  The cost for phase 3 is $11 per one hour session.  For the month of November we will be offering your first session free (usually 90 minutes). Call the cardiac rehab department at 320-312-2125 to set up a time to come in.