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Mt. Baker Imaging/Northwest Radiologists employee newsletter 3.21.2013

issue no. 2

Message from Admin

CHANGE… All of us, as em-ployees in modern healthcare, can relate to that word. Three

of the big changes coming our way this year will be:

1. The implementation of a new RIS (Radiology Information System) by the end of the year. 2. The move of the Administrative of-fice to the Northwest building. 3. Installation of a fixed PET CT site at the Squalicum building.

As demand upon information tech-nology from private insurance, gov-ernment payers and from local pro-viders continues to grow, our current RIS needs to be replaced. We have just signed a contract with MedInfor-matix, the company we have looked at intensely for the last six months, to provide that solution for us. Beginning around April 1st, we will map out our current business processes and begin to put in place a system that will meet our needs for the foreseeable future.

The transition to MedInformatix as our new RIS will also allow us to bill out our own claims, instead of outsourcing that work to a third par-ty. This will require additional ad-ministrative space for the coding and billing staff necessary to provide that service. As the space (and parking) at the Squalicum building is already limited, we have made the decision to move Admin to the Northwest cam-pus, which will allow the necessary workplace integration for us to do this successfully.

Many staff will be involved in both of these major projects this year. The outcome of all of this will contribute to the increased financial health of the company, efficiency of our pro-cesses, and ability to better monitor and react to our business realities.

Alliance Imaging has been pro-viding mobile PET services at our NW building for nearly two years. Throughout that time, we have been negotiating with them to transition to a fixed-site model. The move of our

administrative offices to the NW campus allows a perfect location for Alliance to land. SIC suite 201 is just the right size for them, highly visible and near the new cancer cen-ter. Remodeling for this service will begin as soon as administration va-cates the suite.

Thank you all for your hard work and continued flexibility through-out these changing times!

-Executive Administration

contentsMRI Open House

MRI department hosts a special evening of MRI safety, information, food and fun!

WDC receives distinguished title

Mammography becomes a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence.

Bellingham Boys and Girls Club

A lighthearted look at the MBI-sponsored team (and its fierce competitor).

a message from

Northwest Youth Services

Dear employees,

Each year hundreds of youth find themselves without a safe place to sleep at night. The impact of your involvement with Northwest Youth Services provides Whatcom Coun-ty youth with a safe and healthy environment.

Thank you for donating to the future of our youth and youth programs.

- Northwest Youth Services

MBI and NWR employees donated two boxes of warmth in the second annual “Baby It’s Cold Outside” clothing drive.

Thanks to all who participated!

Each year, the MBI philanthropy contri-butions support other establishments in the medical community. These are the details of some recent donations.Governing Board Philanthropy

2011

The new Peace Health Cancer Center rec-ognizes MBI as a financial supporter in their Survivorship Resource Center. This is a bright and welcoming space for cancer patients to find information and support during their visits to the cancer center.

2012-2013Jo-Ann Wynne

2011-2012Melissa Fitzgerald

2010-2011Amanda Snow

Now an MBI employee!

Peace Health Cancer Center

2009

The MBI philanthropy monies also support the BTC x-ray technologist program by of-fering a scholarship that covers program tu-ition for one selected student. Below are the scholarship recipients from the past three years.

Bellingham Technical College

2012

MBI supported the expansion of the Interfaith Community Health Center as a leading sponsor, enabling additional pro-vider exam rooms, expansion of the facility, and the addition of an in-house pharmacy. This project significantly expands the reach of ICHC into the community to serve greater num-bers of Whatcom County residents in need of health care.

Interfaith Community Health Center2013

This year, MBI is donating the Cordata CT scanner to the SJH Foundation. The scan-ner is intended to be used at United General Hospital in Skagit County.

St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation

Currently finishing studies

Now working at SJH

MRI Safety Open HouseThe MRI Department saw a need to educate the medical community about MRI’s, the impor-tance of screening questions and patient preparation. Hence, the MRI Safety Open House was born! After many months discussing, planning and perfecting the details of the event, the team invited medical offices who typically order MRI exams. Using MRI 3 as their domain, team members guided visitors through the MRI patient experience. From the check-in process to the scan room, the guests learned valuable safety information that they can relay to their staff.

February 25, 2013

waiting room

After patients fill out their MRI ques-tionnaires, technologists Belinda Bot-zong and Lauren Frank overview pre-liminary screening questions. Pre-auth specialist David Alex discusses in-surance authorization for MRI exams while receptionist and MRI aide, Shelby Hickox waits to lead guests back to the tech area.

dressing booth area

MRI tech Denise Case, scheduler Alicia Gates and MRI support member Jaime Pike go over the importance of compre-hensive screenings.

Take the TourMany other MBI/NWR employees, not pictured,participated in the Open House on 2/25/13: Monica Felmley, Amber Hanstead, Cassie Schriver, Sara Rose, Kellee Timpson, Carly Stratton, Devlin Sturdevant

February 25, 2013

tech area

Kristen Schimshal, Amber Manz and Bree MacDonald give a scanning demonstration while teaching the parts of the MRI machine and what goes on in the tech station.

conference RoomTechnologists Mike Curtis and Joel Blackburn oversee the conference room, using videos and visuals to demonstrate device safety.

Eye for Foreign Body x-rays show tiny specs of metal that must be screened before a patient goes into their MRI exam.

What better way to show the danger of aneurysm clips than by implant-ing them in a brain jello mold? Joel and Mike used the mini magnet (pictured below) to show guests the safety hazards these devic-es can cause.

wining and dining

Guests ended their tour with wine, coffee and hor d’ oeuvres.

ANNOUNCEMENTS!Congratulations to these MBI and NWR employees who have exciting news to share!

12.27.2012

1.1.2013

Teal Large (CT team member) is now Mrs. Robinson! She ended 2012 by marrying Mi-chael Robinson. The two were married at Broad-way Hall in Bellingham.

Mel Custer (Help Desk Operator) became Mel Spinks in January! She and her husband, Chris, had a small ceremony at Whatcom Falls Park.

Congratulations to the Women’s Diagnostic Cen-ter! They have been awarded the distinction of being a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by

the American College of Radiology.The designation was awarded after undergoing a

rigorous review process by the ACR. The breast imag-ing services at the WDC are fully accredited in mam-mography, stereotactic breast biopsy, breast ultrasound and ultrasound guided breast biopsy. Our facility has

ACR designates WDC as

Breast Imaging Center of Excellence

achieved high practice standards in image quality, per-sonnel qualifications, facility equipment, quality con-trol practices and quality assurance programs. Though many Washington state facilities offer breast imaging, the WDC is one of only 22 Breast Imaging Centers of Excellence in Washington state.

The Women’s Diagnostic Center has always aimed for excellence in everything they do. Now, the designa-tion has been officially awarded. Congratulations to all!

with Jessica Serdowich

take a ride

CT technologist, Jessica Serdowich rides her bike to work every day - no matter the weather. Though she lives near Squalicum, she has never driven a car to work! If that’s not impressive enough, Jessica com-petes in mountain and downhill biking races. She was recently in a mountain biking video featuring pro bikers Jill Kintner and Katie Holden. Check out the video at the link below (Jessica is the one in teal shorts and a black jacket).

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/Galbraith-Winters-With-Jill-Kintner-Katie-Holden-video-2013.html

How long have you been biking and mountain biking?

I started getting into riding around 2007 and started downhill (DH) racing CAT 2 in 2008. The first race was in Port Angeles for the Fluidride Cup series. Some friends were putting on the race and racing in it. Sam, my husband, used to race long before I met him. He wanted to participate in the race, so I thought “why not? Race events are fun and you meet lots of new people. I moved to CAT 1 in 2010 and raced the NW Cup series. I prefer the more technical courses so that was a lot more fun for me.

Photo: Sam Burkhardt

Photo: Sam Burkhardt

How and when do you practice for races?

I don’t really practice for races. This past year I only did two races: “Garbo DH” at Crankworx Whistler, BC and “Suicide 6 mile” a local race in Glacier, WA. I love riding, so I try to get out there as much as possible after work and weekends. I ride for the fun of it, and if there happens to be a race I want to do, I will. Mainly, I want to ride and have new adventures.

Who are the pro mountain bikers in the video?

Jill Kintner is a BMX Olympian, 4 Cross champion and races World Cup DH. She previously rode for Transition Bikes where my husband works. She is an amazing athlete and always encourages me to do better. Katie Holden is a long time pro DH racer and now working for Giant Bikes.

Tell us about the making of the video.

Jill texted me asking if I wanted to ride SST, I said “yes of course.” Then she told me to wear something bright and that we were filming a video.

It was raining pretty good and we all met at Birch Street (Galbraith). It took about 5 hours to shoot the video. It was really wet to start with, but the rain eased up as the day went on. There were only the five of us; Jasper, Jill, Katie, Tyler and me. Jasper filmed us riding from one angle then we would hike back up and do it from a different angle. It was a lot of fun, but made for a very long day.

What are your favorite local bike trails?

Some of my favorite trails for cross country are on Gal-braith. It’s so nice to be able to go for a quick ride after work or a long ride on days off. The trails are well main-tained, and there is a lot to choose from. I almost always end my ride with SST though.

Sadly, I am no longer able to ride my favorite DH trails. North Fork had the best riding, and last year the DNR eliminated mt biking access. With the work of many in the community, we hope to be able to ride there again. Now, I enjoy riding the trails at Glacier when the snow level allows.

Any mountain biking stories to tell?

I am very lucky to have a husband that enjoys new ad-ventures as much as I do. We traveled to Costa Rica two years ago, with our DH bikes of course. While we were there we rode some beautiful DH trails in a remote vil-lage up in the mountains. Butterflies were everywhere, it was steep and completely amazing. Another great memory was shredding a huge gravel pit that was fea-tured in one of the original “Kranked” bike movies with the original rider from the movie, Brett Tippie. One of the longest DH trails I have had the opportunity of rid-ing was last summer in Nelson, BC. The trail descends over 5000 vertical feet from the top of Baldface Lodge to Kootenay Lake, just outside town. We started in the snow, rode some fresh new trail, rocky steep sections, and across meadows with amazing views. It was one of the most amazing rides I have done.

Photo: Sam Burkhardt Photo: Virginia Johnson

Jim McNeely publishes third book

Jim McNeely (IT Programmer) has a way with words as well as technology! Read our Qs&As with the author!

“it’s...remarkably profound...because the book’s every bit as much an emotional exercise as a rational one.”

-Mockingbird blog review

What is “The Romance of Grace about?” Who is the audience?The book is about the message of scandalous grace, of one way love and limitless forgiveness. It is about going beyond karma into a world of gift, beyond co-ercion and judgment and threat into the freedom of acting from a base of being loved unconditionally by the Almighty. It is about virtue that issues from the heart and from grace instead of coming from obli-gation and duty. It is a book for everyone, especially people interested in love, theology, and human rela-tionships and aesthetics.

How long have you been working on your book/what was your writing process like?I worked on it for two years or so. I write almost daily in a blog, www.thereforenow.com, and I culled some of the material from the blog.

What publisher are you using?Vox Dei, which is an imprint of Booktrope Publish-ers in Seattle.

When and where will your book be available?It is available now, mostly through Amazon and Barnes and Noble online. You can also buy the books directly from me, because we sell them at speaking and music events. My family is very musical. We play

at church, retirement centers, festivals, in Canada and in the US. I play piano and flute, my son (Jona-than) plays guitar, and my wife (Betty) sings like you can’t believe. I don’t know why she’s not famous.

Have you written/published anything else?This is my third book, but the first book I’ve seriously published.

Did you do anything special to celebrate the completion of your book? It is actually difficult to tell when a book is “finished” until you get it back from being printed. Once I had printed copies we had a book release party at my church and ate lots of snacks and had lots of music and general fun.

I’m very excited about it! I’ll be giving a presentation about it at a conference in NYC towards the end of April.

Congratulations, Jim! check out this blog for a great review on Jim’s book: http://www.mbird.com/2013/02/desire-beauty-and-mer-cy-the-romance-of-grace-by-Jim-mcneely/

A LibrarianWhat did you want to be when you grew up?

Where did you attend elementary school?Parkview Elementary School, Bellingham

What was your first job?Picking strawberries in the local fields and babysitting.

Dorothy Pope (Reception Supervisor)

employee spotlight

A mommyWhat did you want to be when you grew up?

Where did you attend elementary school?Fisher Elementary, Lynden (Go Lions!)

What was your first job?Working at Claires.

Kathi Abitia(Receptionist)

Dorothy at age 7 or 8 with her dog, Taffy.

Kathi at age 2 1/2.

Than

k yo

uMBI employees

for working extra hours,caring for patientsgoing the extra mileand staying positivewhile the MRI machines were down in February.

Belinda Joel Amber M. Michelle Bree Mike Denise C. Kristen Lauren Cassie Amber H. Jamie Monica Nicole Alicia Sara R. SIC Reception

Bellingham Arthritis and Rheumatology Center (BARC) Grizzlies vs. Mt Baker Imaging (MBI) was an epic struggle between two finely tuned basketball

teams competing at the highest level at the Boys and Girls Club in Bellingham. BARC was coached by Stephen Bue-tow. Don’t let the pink shirts fool you . . . this team was defensively strong and aggressive. MBI, coached by Devlin Sturdevant, was an offensive juggernaut, having lost only one game all season. Royal blue shirts with Mt. Baker Im-aging prominently displayed on the front and in the case of Devlin (if anyone didn’t know,) “COACH” was largely print-ed on the back.

A Night to Remember

1.31.2013

Pre-Game

The battle rages

Before the game, the angelic Ferndale girls lined up in sin-gle file to individually thank Dr. Buetow for sponsoring their team (as if HE had anything to do with it!) and pres-ent a card they had all signed. After questioning the ages of Buetow’s 6 foot tall Bellingham team, and inspecting their birth certificates (which, oddly enough, were all from the Dominican Republic…) the referee allowed the game to commence.

Nights like these are what make youth athletics so much fun. Many thanks to all the partners at MBI for support-ing the Boys and Girls Club - even if it was for a team from Ferndale coached by Sturdevant.

Thank you!

OK, it was 7-year-old girls playing a game that loosely resembled basketball. On several occasions, a girl on ei-ther team held the ball over her head for what seemed like an eternity (probably 20 seconds) looking for someone to pass the ball to (there is no stealing allowed). Turnovers and air balls were common. Baskets were rare. Buetow and Sturdevant’s voices could be heard barking directions over the din in the gym, such as “Evelyn the basket is that way”, “Rhianna your shoe is untied” and, “Tjasia, SERI-OUSLY! Pass the *%#?~> BALL!”.

The game came down to the last minute. Tied at 14-14 the tension mounted. MBI scored with 20 seconds left after a long possession having taken about 20 shots and 3 minutes off the clock to go up by 2. BARC was not to be discouraged as little Emmy Hart drove the length of the floor and heaved a basketball about the same distance as her body weight to tie the score as time ran out. The crowd went wild—at least BARC’s coach S. Buetow went wild jumping high in the air (for him, about 4 inches – and resulted in a sprained ankle – which was added on to the next day’s MR schedule “STAT” and “NO CHARGE”). Devlin couldn’t help but smile, as well, knowing his job depended on his girls throwing the game.

Sturdevant gives advice to the league’s MVP.

Events!

Mark your calendar,

and join the team!

Thanks to everyone who signed up to receive produce bins this harvest sea-son! If you’re still interested in this opportunity, feel free to contact Kellee (ext 1006) or Trent (ext 1088).

Please visit the wiki for more details.

Do you have ideas, announcements, suggestions or newsworthy stories for the next employee newsletter? If so, please contact Carly at cstratton@nwrads.com.

The 2012 MBI Relay for Life tent. Join the fun this year!

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)from Jordan Creek farms

Event Details

Date: July 12, 2013Time: 6:00 PMLocation: Downtown BellinghamCurrent Fundraiser: Booksale in WDC (year-long)Future Fundraisers: To Be Announced

Like last year, we will raffle off items/baskets at our booth, donating the proceeds to Relay For Life.

If you’d like to participate in MBI’s Relay for Life team, contact Jessica Edwards (ext. 1046). Look for more info on the wiki soon!