System and Hospital News: August 2019

UVMC Patient Flow Project

Upper Valley Medical Center is reconfiguring and updating the hospital main lobby and registration areas to provide greater ease of access and convenient wayfinding for patients and visitors. The new UVMC Patient Flow Project, projected to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2020, will include a 6,600-square-foot addition on the south side of the hospital to provide space for the relocation and expansion of the cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation program and an employee wellness area. The employee wellness area will feature 1,235 square feet for exercise and wellness activities.

Patient access/registration will be reconfigured to optimize customer experience and convenience, as will reception and waiting areas for cardiac diagnostics, medical imaging, and lab. Additionally, the retail pharmacy and hospital gift shop will be moved to an easier access location near the front entrance. The coffee bar also will be relocated to help lessen congestion and noise in the main lobby area.   

First and second floor signage/wayfinding will be enhanced as part of the project, and waiting areas will be improved and refreshed to help provide a comfortable, healing environment for patients and visitors.

Nemadji Information Security Incident

We would like to make you aware of a recent information security incident involving one of our business associates, Nemadji Research Corp. (Nemadji). Nemadji provides patient eligibility and billing services to Premier Health. The incident occurred in late March when a Nemadji employee fell victim to a phishing email scam. Nemadji notified us of the phishing email scam in May but was unaware of any access to personal information at that time.

Nemadji notified us in early June that an information security incident occurred. The compromised email account contained personal information that might have been accessible as a result of the incident. This personal information belonged to about 2,400 of our patients, including some employees, at Miami Valley Hospital, Atrium Medical Center, Upper Valley Medical Center, and the former Good Samaritan Hospital. To date, Nemadji has not made us aware of any actual or attempted misuse of the compromised information.

The company has taken steps to remedy the matter and to ensure that it does not happen again. Although Nemadji is unaware of any actual or attempted misuse of information as a result of the incident, Nemadji is offering potentially affected individuals access to credit monitoring and identity protection services at no cost to them.

Premier Health, City of Dayton Launch Community Paramedicine Initiative

Premier Health and the City of Dayton Fire Department have launched a community paramedicine program designed to assist City of Dayton residents in improving health and wellness. In addition to educating enrollees on managing their health needs, the program will provide access to primary care physicians, prenatal care, senior care services, medications, and basic needs such as food and safety around the home. It will be the first collaboration of its kind in Dayton to bring together hospital and fire department staff to identify patients in need of in-home care.

As part of the program, a team of three professionals – a paramedic, emergency medical technician, and social worker – will visit eligible patients in their homes and provide health assessments, safety checks, education about managing their health condition, and medical care as needed. Patients might only need one visit to ensure their needs are met, or could be enrolled for up to 90 days.

Randy Marriott, MD, FACEP, medical director of Premier Health’s EMS Center of Excellence and EMS medical director for the Dayton Fire Department, will oversee the program. Premier Health will fund the program for three years, thanks in part to the generous support of the Good Samaritan Foundation - Dayton.

Premier Health and Dayton Physicians Network Enhance Radiation Oncology Treatment

Tumor-fighting linear accelerators at Atrium Medical Center in Middletown, Greater Dayton Cancer Center in Kettering, and Upper Valley Medical Center in Miami County are being upgraded to deliver radiation treatment more efficiently and reduce side effects in patients. Linear accelerators produce a range of very high-energy radiation beams that are directed to deliver radiation dose to the tumor inside the body. Premier Health’s new linear accelerators will feature high resolution CT imaging, robotics, and rapid dose delivery. Atrium, the first hospital to receive a TrueBeam® linear accelerator, held its ribbon cutting event on June 25.

Ryan Steinmetz, MD, medical director of Premier Health’s radiation oncology program, explained that the new linear accelerators will decrease treatment time for patients, as well as allow for more accurate treatments, which can improve cure rates and decrease complications. Along with upgrading the linear accelerators at Atrium Medical Center, Greater Dayton Cancer Center, and Upper Valley Medical Center, the Wayne Cancer Center in Greenville also will receive an upgraded linear accelerator.

Radiation Oncology Services – a joint venture of Dayton Physicians Network, Premier Health, and Wayne HealthCare – will have upgraded cancer care technology at six of its radiation oncology centers: Atrium Medical Center, Miami Valley Hospital North, Miami Valley Hospital South, Upper Valley Medical Center, Greater Dayton Cancer Center, and Wayne Cancer Center.

Foundations Receive Grant to Improve Quality of Life for Cancer Patients

The Gala of Hope Foundation has awarded a $353,200 grant to the Premier Health foundations in support of integrative therapies for cancer patients at the health system’s cancer centers. In addition, the grant will help fund a replacement of Premier Health’s Mobile Mammography Coach that served more than 3,000 women in 2018.

Premier Health’s cancer centers are located at Atrium Medical Center, Miami Valley Hospital North, Miami Valley Hospital South, and Upper Valley Medical Center. At each location, certified instructors tailor classes to meet the patient’s individual needs and abilities. Muscular strength and endurance, cardiorespiratory fitness, flexibility, and body composition are assessed.

CompuNet Clinical Laboratories Partners with Premier Health Urgent Cares to Offer Lab Collections

CompuNet Clinical Laboratories, in partnership with Premier Health Urgent Care – Mason and Premier Health Urgent Care – Miamisburg, now offers patient lab collection services at those two locations.

Urgent Care Staff will provide lab collection services for patients with CompuNet lab orders. Patients can schedule appointments at Mason and Miamisburg; however, walk-in patients are also welcome. To schedule an appointment, patients can visit www.premierhealth.com and click on the urgent care bandage icon in the upper left-hand corner. On the appointment page, click “Schedule Urgent Care,” then scroll down to Mason or Miamisburg to reserve an appointment time.

Lab collection hours at Mason and Miamisburg are from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Glucose-timed testing is only available until 5 p.m. Direct access (patient-ordered testing) and biometric screenings through CompuNet are not available at these locations.

OneFifteen Treatment Center Opens

OneFifteen, a non-profit ecosystem dedicated to the full and sustained recovery of people living with opioid addiction, celebrated the opening of the first facilities within its state-of-the-art campus in Dayton. OneFifteen, launched earlier this year by Premier Health, Kettering Health Network, and Verily, is set to begin seeing patients this summer, with clinical care to be provided by Samaritan Behavioral Health, Inc., a subsidiary of Premier Health. Natalie Lester, MD, will serve as medical director. Dr. Lester comes to OneFifteen from Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, where she was the medical director of psychiatric emergency services.

Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. designed and is developing the OneFifteen campus to connect patients with social and other support services, consolidating the many needs of patients in one location. The June 14 ribbon cutting marked the completion of two of the six spaces that will comprise the full campus. Guided by the concept of recovery as a journey, rather than a linear path, the campus will be anchored around a curved, looped pathway that connects all of the experiences and elements of the OneFifteen ecosystem. OneFifteen will provide the full continuum of care to patients on its campus, which is expected to be complete in 2020.

Outpatient Neurosurgery Team Improves Access and Patient Care

Premier Health’s Clinical Neuroscience Institute (CNSI) has created an Outpatient Neurosurgery Clinic that’s staffed and led by a team of Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) with oversight from our neurosurgeons. This has not only opened up more time slots for new patients; it has allowed patients to come into the practice without first completing a myriad of medical prerequisites.

Because of this team, CNSI has been able to improve their neurosurgery scheduling process. Now, when a referral for neurosurgery comes in, it is reviewed to identify specific imaging, testing, and subspecialty needs, and appointments are then scheduled. Once the team has the imaging and everything else a patient needs, the neurosurgery appointment date will be scheduled within 48 hours. In the past, this process could have taken several weeks.

Another significant goal of the team was to create more consistent and ongoing communication with patients. If a patient calls with a question or concern, they are connected to an APP on the team right away. The team works with CNSI physicians to get answers quickly, and patients have faster access to care. The team is also responsible for scheduling all follow-up visits and spends a lot of time on care coordination, family education, patient education, and making phone calls.

Premier Health Expands Healthy Heroes Program for First Responders

Premier Health is expanding the reach of its free comprehensive wellness and fitness program that supports the effectiveness, efficiency, and durability of first responders. The Healthy Heroes program helps prepare first responders for the physical readiness of the job and fight risk factors associated with sudden cardiac arrest. Healthy Heroes programs are being implemented in Huber Heights, Clayton, Troy, Moraine, Vandalia, Brookville and Beavercreek Fire Departments. The Centerville Police Department has joined the program as well.

As part of the program, a certified athletic trainer credentialed as a certified tactical strength and conditioning facilitator conducts weekly injury evaluation clinics at the participating fire station. Working one-on-one with firefighters, the athletic trainer provides preventive consultations and education, clinical diagnosis, therapeutic intervention, rehabilitation of injuries, and referral for medical conditions as needed.

The expanded reach of this free program for first responders has been made possible through the support of Premier Health’s hospital foundations: Miami Valley Hospital Foundation, Good Samaritan Foundation - Dayton, Atrium Medical Center Foundation, and Upper Valley Medical Center Foundation.

Emergency Virtual Care at Miami Valley Hospital North

Premier Health has implemented a new virtual care option for patients with low-acuity needs that present to the Emergency Department at Miami Valley Hospital North. Patients that present with an appropriate chief complaint that fits within our virtual visit triage criteria will be given an option to see a remote certified, experienced, Premier Health emergency provider.

Virtual care is a private and secure videoconferencing system that allows patients to see and speak with a provider and interact in real time. The virtual provider has access to the patient’s Epic medical record and can order prescriptions as necessary. If, for any reason during a virtual visit, the virtual provider determines an in-person examination needs to take place, they will transition to an on-site provider.

This new care delivery option allows us to expedite treatment for patients with low-acuity needs. We will continue to provide the same visit documentation and recommend that the patent seek follow-up care with a primary care physician.

Samaritan North Surgery Center Update

The Samaritan North Surgery Center converted from an ambulatory surgery center to a hospital outpatient department of Miami Valley Hospital on April 1. New outpatient services will be added, while current services and providers were unchanged. At Miami Valley Hospital North, the Samaritan North Surgery Center location is Surgery Center A (Main Street entrance), while the surgery center at the inpatient entrance is Surgery Center B. New signage within the hospital reflects these references. All medical records from the Samaritan North Surgery Center will be transferred and maintained by Miami Valley Hospital in accordance with applicable law.

Back to the August 2019 issue of the Nursing Newsletter