The Neighborhoods at Brookview

From the Administrator’s DeskIt’s hard to belIeve that spring is finally here. This has been one of the longest winters that I can remember. The residents and staff are anxious to use their new courtyards for grilling food, planting flowers, and watching the birds on the bird feeders.

The Neighborhoods at Brookview continues to deliver great results. Our award winning facility had an excellent State survey this year. We received fewer deficiencies than the average facility in the State receives.

Our facility does a lot of short term rehabilitation and has recently contracted Aegis Therapies to head up our therapy department. They come with a lot of experience and best practices to aid in the recovery of our residents. If you have any questions regarding therapy services, please contact our new Director of Rehab Shawn Even.

Jason Hanssen, LNHA

NeighborhoodN E W SSpring 2014

the resIdents are countIng down the days for WARM weather. As most of us, we are ALL sick of winter.

We continue to be busy during the week with a wide variety of activities offered both on the houses and in the Town Center. BINGO continues to be our number one attended event, being held every Friday and two Tuesdays a month. The room is packed with hardly any room to move!

Different music groups continue to come in to entertain the residents. The Karoke Krooner out of Sioux Falls is by far the residents FAVORITE. Weekends have been filled with mainly house activities as a lot of residents have company, are tired from the week and just want to relax. We do offer a few large group activities on weekends during each month.

I recently joined a partnership with our local Dairy Queen here in Brookings where they send each resident a “FREE”

Activities UpdateAmanda Uecker, CTRSActivity Director

meal voucher for their birthday! So not only do residents get a birthday meal provided by The Neighborhoods, but they also get a free meal from DQ! A HUGE thank you to Dairy Queen for doing this for our residents! Who doesn’t enjoy a DQ meal?

Easter is right around the corner and like with other holidays we will be inviting in family and friends to share the noon meal with their loved one. The cost of a guest tray continues to be $9.00.

We look forward to warm weather, sitting outside, and outings into the community. Volunteers are still needed here at The Neighborhoods for shopping partners, walking buddies, group events, one-to-ones--the list is endless. Please feel free to give me a call if you are interested in volunteering at The Neighborhoods. My direct line is (605) 696-8716. Thanks again for all you do, and the count down is on for SPRING!!!

Outreach Specialty Clinic Completed

the new 2,000 square foot clInIc is located on the east side of the hospital. It was remodeled from a portion of the former nursing home, Brookview Manor.

The clinic includes three exam rooms, a procedure room, office space for visiting physicians, and a waiting room and reception area.

Specialists hosted at the clinic include those out-of-town physicians who formerly conducted regular outreach at the hospital’s emergency department. Because of the limited capacity to host outreach specialists in the emergency department, the new area allows Brookings Health System to increase the number of specialists who establish outreach in Brookings.

To learn more about outreach services at Brookings Health System, please visit www.brookingshealth.org/Outreach.

This winter the new outreach specialty clinic at Brookings

Health System opened. Currently patients may see specialists

for allergies, pain management, plastic surgery and ear, nose

and throat conditions.

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Family & Resident Satisfaction at The Neighborhoods

The Neighborhoods at Brookview’s latest family/resident survey indicates the new skilled nursing

home has seen an improvement in overall satisfaction and recommendations to others since

incorporating the new household model of long-term care.

the household model of care aims to create a homelike, social setting for residents. This social model of care, which is revolutionizing the long-term care industry, was

chosen for the new facility based on several evidence-based benefits for residents. These include improved physical and mental health outcomes, improved resident

and staff relationships, and improved overall resident and family satisfaction scores.

“We have noticed significant changes in some of the residents who were in the previous facility with us,” said Administrator Jason

Hanssen. “Residents are coming out of their rooms more often to socialize and join in activities. We’re also seeing stronger resident and staff friendships forming, and families are visiting their loved ones more frequently.”

In the latest family/resident survey conducted by independent research firm My Innerview, 96% of those

interviewed indicated they would recommend The Neighborhoods to others, a 5% increase from the previous survey at Brookview Manor. In addition, overall satisfaction jumped 4% to 96%.

Since transitioning to the new facility and care model, The Neighborhoods has also seen a 40.7% improvement in mood severity scores, an assessment mandated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services that measures resident depression levels.

“These quality indicators validate that Brookings Health System made the right choice in building a new facility

that supports this new long-term care philosophy,” said CEO Jason Merkley. “The smaller households, home living

spaces and private rooms for autonomy are delivering the quality of life our residents deserve.”

Last June, residents and staff moved from Brookings Health System’s old nursing home, Brookview Manor, to The Neighborhoods at Brookview. It is a pod-style facility with three distinct neighborhoods. Each neighborhood consists of two households, and each household accommodates 13 residents with a total of 26 residents per neighborhood.

To learn more about The Neighborhoods at Brookview, please visit www.brookingshealth.org/Neighborhoods.

““

The smaller households, home living spaces and private rooms for autonomy are delivering the quality of life our residents deserve.—Jason Merkley

spring 20143

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Physician Assistant

(PA-C) Karen Bumann

will join Nurse

Practitioner Tonya

Froehlich and the

staff at Arlington

Medical Center as of

March 20.

Brookings Health to Provide Free Advance Directives

Bumann Joins Arlington Medical Center Staff

she wIll be avaIlable to see patients in Arlington every Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Her addition to the staff will allow Arlington Medical Center to care for patients 40 hours per week, Monday through Friday.

Bumann has 20 years of experience as a PA-C. She also currently serves as the provider at White Medical Clinic in White, S.D. and cares for residents at The Neighborhoods at Brookview. She previously worked for Horizon Health

Care as the Clinical Informatics Director and PA-C for Lake Preston, Howard and Bryant Community Health Center clinics.

Bumann received her Master of Physician Assistant Studies from the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Medicine in 2005 and a Physician Assistant Certificate from University of North Dakota School of Medicine, Department of Community Medicine and Rural Health in 1994. She is a member of the American Academy of Physician Assistants and a fellow of the South Dakota Academy of Physician Assistants.

“I am excited to serve the people of Arlington and the surrounding area and look forward to providing exceptional health care and education services,” said Bumann.

An open house to welcome Bumann will be held at Arlington Medical Center on Thursday, March 27 from 2 to 4 p.m. with cookies, juice and coffee served.

To schedule an appointment with Karen Bumann at Arlington Medical Center, please call (605) 983-3283.

Brookings Health System will provide information on advance

health care directives on National Healthcare Decisions Day,

April 16, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the hospital front lobby.

Staff will also be available to discuss and answer questions about advance directives.

An advance health care directive, which includes a living will and/or a health care power of attorney, is a legally binding document that allows a person to plan in advance for a situation in which the person is not able to speak for him or herself. A living will allows a person to record his or her wishes concerning medical treatments at the end of life or in the case of a serious illness or injury. A health care power of attorney is a person appointed by an individual to make medical decisions when she or he is unable to do so.

“An advance directive gives a patient a voice in his or her medical care and protects his or her wishes when they are unable to make choices for themselves,” said Social

Worker Mavis Gehant. “It also eases the burden for loved ones and health care providers, knowing decisions are being guided by the patient’s desires.”

Advanced directives do not go in to effect until a patient is no longer able to make decisions for him or herself. They also stop when a patient regains his or her ability to make decisions.

For more information on advance health care directives, please contact Social Worker Mavis Gehant at (605) 696-7700 or Case Manager Lynne Thompson at (605) 696-8870.

spring 20145

T h e S p i r i t u a l A s p e c t o f CareAfter a four-wheeler accident nearly ended Jerry Ellingson’s life, his spiritual beliefs helped him heal and recover. But what

surprised him was the acknowledgment of spirituality by Brookings Health System’s care team in treating the whole person.

“It was by the grace of God I could reach my cell phone in my shirt pocket to call my wife,” said Jerry, a lifelong Lake Preston resident.

It was 4 p.m. and he was riding his four-wheeler out by the lake. He went up a steep slope and his four-wheeler tipped over, pinning his left arm and body down past his waist. He managed to reach for his cell phone in his left shirt pocket with his right hand and called his wife for help.

Within minutes, EMTs arrived at the scene and Jerry was rushed to the emergency room at Brookings Health System. He was admitted to the hospital and kept overnight for observation due to rib fractures and pain.

Two weeks later, he saw P.A. Karen Bumann at White Medical Clinic for follow up care. He was having reoccurring rib pain and started experiencing shortness of breath. Bumann ordered a chest X-ray and discovered a delayed response to Jerry’s initial injury: a collapsing lung. Dr. Rebecca VandeKop admitted Jerry immediately to the hospital and general surgeon Dr. Theresa Oey performed an emergency chest tube insertion.

He spent three days in the hospital recovering. While there, Jerry was not only impressed by the high-quality care he received from staff, but that he could talk openly about his faith.

“When I told the nurses about my experience and spoke with them about my testimony, they were so open to listening to it,” said Jerry.

“I talked to the supervising nurse about it, and she told me that when she visits with people, she asks them if she can pray with them if she thinks they are open to it.”

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology shows that integrating spirituality with patient care helps improve positive outcomes for patients and increases patient satisfaction. In addition, some research suggests positive beliefs, comfort and strength gained from spirituality contributes to healing. While spirituality alone may not cure an illness, it may help a patient feel better, prevent health problems and help cope with illness, stress or death.

The acknowledgment by Brookings Health System’s care team of the whole person was important to Jerry, as it is to many other patients. For Jerry, it made him grateful to have high-quality care so close to home.

“We’re blessed to have the advanced facilities we do in Sioux Falls,” said Jerry, “but we still need these local hospitals like Brookings Health System.”

Want to learn more about Jerry’s experience at Brookings Health System? Visit www.brookingshealth.org/spiritual to watch a video.

Jerry Ellingson

F R I E N D S G I V E I N M A N Y D I F F E R E N T WAY S

Thank You for Being a Friend!Thank You for Being a Friend!

V O L U N T E E R L O C A L

> Give your time to Brookings Health System Hospice. Contact Mavis Gehant: 696-7700.> Become a doula helping parents at New Beginnings Birthing Center. Contact Emily Delbridge: 696-9000.> Help out at The Neighborhoods at Brookview. Contact Amanda Uecker or Joyce Krein: 696-8700.> Be a hospital patient companion or help with swing bed activities. Contact Amy Christensen: 696-8846. > Join Brookings Health Care Auxiliary. Contact Nadine Pollman: 696-8827.

D O N AT E L O C A L

> Participate in local health care philanthropy.> Perennial Club $100/yr+; Pioneer Club $1,000+; Prairie Nightingale Society members $10,000+ and Pathfinders $25,000+. Members are acknowledged in our newsletter, honored on the donor wall and are invited to social events each year. > “Aiming to Inspire Health” event sponsorships or shooting teams. Over 100 shooters compete at sporting clays.

C R E AT E A L O C A L L E G A C Y

> Various options available through charitable remainder trusts and gift annuities can provide you with steady payments during retirement as well as tax advantages while also providing a gift to Brookings Health System Foundation.> Name the Foundation as the beneficiary on your life insurance, IRA or 401(k).> Talk to your financial advisor or tax consultant about these and other options today.

Sponsored by Brookings Health System Foundation,

your local 501(c)3 health care charity.

Email: foundation@brookingshealth.org

Phone: (605) 696-8855

WA L K B E S I D E U S A N D B E O U R F R I E N D

> Learn about Brookings Health System and its impact on local quality of life and economy.> Visit the website, www.brookingshealth.org, or “Like” the Facebook page, www.facebook.com/brookingshealth, for current news, videos and testimonials. > Watch for your Inspiring Health newsletter mailed direct to your home four times per year.> Track Brookings Health System’s quality performance at www.brookingshealth.org/Quality.> Read the 2014 economic impact study at www.brookingshealth.org/Impact.> Come to know the current staff, services and efforts of Brookings Health System.

Watch The Neighborhoods at Brookview on YouTubeare you or someone you know interested in becoming a member of the community at The Neighborhoods at Brookview? Perhaps as a volunteer or resident? If so, then take a moment to view our videos. Scan the QR code with your smart phone or tablet or visit us at www.brookingshealth.org/Neighborhoods and get a glimpse of our facility and the care we provide.

spring 20147

In MemoriamWe extend our condolences to the families and friends of the following individuals who have passed away at The Neighborhoods at Brookview over the past three months:

It was an honor to know and serve each of them and their families.

• Floyd Abrahamson

• Mae Begalka

• Leora Colbeck

• Margaret Gerdes

• Noble Graversen

• Glenna Halseth

• Mary Hayes

• Hannah Jensen

• Michael Lother

• Betty Nagel

• Bert Neiber

• Charles Peterson

• Norma Tandberg

• Margaret Ullery

• Jeanette Waage

This is arecyclable product.

Brookview News is published by Brookings Health System. This publication in no way seeks to serve as substitute for professional medical care. Consult your physician before undertaking any form of medical treatment or adopting any exercise program or dietary guidelines.

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