3D Mammography – Ready for Patients

Event, People, ,

Bertrand Chaffee Hospital had a fantastic turnout for its Ribbon Cutting event on October 6 for 3D Mammography!

Special thanks to our board members and foundation board members who were in attendance!

We welcomed Assemblyman David DiPietro, Erie County, NY Legislator John Mills, Cattaraugus County Legislator Richard Helmich, Town of Concord Supervisor and BCH Board Chair Gary Eppolito, Town of Ashford Supervisor Charles Davis, Village of Springville Mayor William Krebs, and representatives from NYS Senator Patrick Gallivan’s office. 


Radiologist Anne Ehrlich, MD educated the many guests about the advantages of digital tomosynthesis and how thrilling it was to have this and other new technologies available at BCH.

This was the first of several events we will have to mark projects funded through the New York State Department of Health and its Statewide Healthcare Facility Transformation Program.

Thank you also to the Springville Area Chamber of Commerce, BCH and JBR staff who wore pink today, and our many friends in the community who inspire us to keep healthcare local! And also, the Cancer Services Program of Allegany and Cattaraugus Counties, which sent material and flyers to promote their important public health work.

And an extra special thanks to our Imaging Department. #teamchaffee

“Fall into Health” With BCH and Tri-County Kiwanis

Event, , ,

Bertrand Chaffee Hospital and Tri-County Kiwanis of WNY are coordinating a “Fall into Health” event on Thursday, October 19 from 6-8 p.m. at the Arcade VFW Hall, 550 West Main Street in Arcade.

This evening has a goal of highlighting National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and women’s health. Health and wellness resources, including information about Bertrand Chaffee Hospital’s new 3D mammography service, will be featured.

Refreshments and light fare are provided at this free event, but registrations are required as seating is limited. Attendees will receive goodie bags, and we plan to include a special recognition for breast cancer survivors as part of the evening.

Call (716) 592-2871 ext. 1485 or email kkane@bch-jbr.org to register.

Dr. Wnuk: “A tradition of quality healthcare that will extend far into the future…”

Community, People,

William Wnuk, MD sent the following letter to local newspapers in regards to Bertrand Chaffee Hospital’s award through the New York State Department of Health.

 

To the Editor:

Bertrand Chaffee Hospital’s recent award of $11.3 million from New York State’s Department of Health represents a significant investment of taxpayer dollars in our community. For the medical staff of our facility, it represents something else. That is, that our progress and plans have been recognized as meaningful and worthy of funding.

Health outcomes for individual patients and community at large are a priority for us as medical practitioners. This award will reinforce the work that we are doing to develop primary care, specialist practices and imaging services at our campus.

The direction of healthcare has been leading towards an emphasis on preventive care. Bertrand Chaffee Hospital stepped out on that path in 2010 with the introduction of primary care services. With providers caring for hundreds of patients each week, we are committed to continuing our significant role in the region’s health initiatives.

We’ve introduced a new phrase at the hospital and nursing home: #teamchaffee. It represents that we are all here, working together, to make sure the health of our patients is maintained and improved. As rural facilities like ours continue to face challenges, our efforts are being encouraged – not just by New York State, but by our patients and our community.

Thank you for being a part of a tradition of quality healthcare that will extend far into the future.

William Wnuk, MD
President, BCH Medical Staff
Medical Director and Physician, Bertrand Chaffee Hospital Primary Care Center

My Hospital, My Home, My Heart

Community, People

The Buffalo News published an article by Darlene Schrantz, RN, BSN, former director of patient care services. She shared what she submitted with BCH and we are glad to share it with you.

Darlene Schrantz, RN, BSNMy hospital sits on a well-traveled country road in rural Erie County. It draws in patients from Arcade to Gowanda and everywhere in between. They visit to get healthy, to stay healthy, and to heal what ails them.

I call Bertrand Chaffee Hospital “my hospital” with good reason. I started my first-and-only nursing job there 45 years ago and spent my entire career caring for patients as a nurse and leading the nursing staff as a manager.

Before I retired in March, I clocked in tens of thousands of hours at the “Gem on the Hill” that became my home away from home. My husband was a teacher during the day, and I worked many evening and overnight shifts as we raised our children, Matt and Susan. Matt has a special connection to BCH, as he was the first patient transported by Mercy Flight to Springville when he was an infant. On that occasion, I was able to be their first flight nurse as well!

I saw so many changes as a nurse on the front lines of healthcare. We watched as technology made equipment smaller, faster and more accurate. Computers changed the way we interacted with patient charts and with each other. Inpatient stays became shorter. Advances were made in medications and treatments. And being in the maternity unit, I eventually saw women who had been born at BCH having children of their own.

I can also say what didn’t change. A nurse’s best tools are the ones he or she is born with. Eyes can monitor a patient’s condition. Ears can hear what patients and family members are saying. And a simple touch can let a patient know that they are in good hands. That’s the advice I brought with me when I started nursing, and that’s what I tell anyone looking to work in the healthcare field.

Words weren’t enough to express how delighted I was to learn that my hospital received an $11.3 million award from New York State to invest in imaging equipment and space for primary care. To me, that was confirmation after a lifetime of work that my hospital has the tools and the team to keep my community healthy.

The funding that New York State is providing for my hospital’s future is incredible. But it would not have happened without careful planning. Under the leadership of CEO Nils Gunnersen, Bertrand Chaffee Hospital looked ahead to the future of healthcare and saw some challenging times ahead.
With input from doctors, nurses and patients, my hospital made a series of investments that established primary care and cardiology services. Those decisions transformed our small hospital into the central venue for healthcare that it is today.

I take a long walk down Main Street and through the village of Springville nearly every morning. Each time, I am virtually guaranteed to see someone I know who has been cared for at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital. That’s the strength of my hospital. That’s the purpose of my hospital. And that’s the future of my hospital.

I like to tell people that if I were born a thousand times, I’d always want to be a nurse. I’m still a nurse, and I’ll always be a nurse. I am enjoying life now with a focus on being a wife, a mother, a grandmother and a friend. When my neighbors need healthcare, I know my hospital is there for them. And I know that my husband and I can depend on it for our medical needs as we enjoy a long and well-deserved retirement.

Department Spotlight: Physical Therapy

People,

The Bertrand Chaffee Hospital Physical Therapy Department is here to walk with patients on their road to recovery from injury, illness, surgery or chronic conditions.

Mary Lou Wright, PT, manages the PT Department and has seen patients at BCH for 42 years. Her team works with patients to relieve pain, restore movement, increase strength, improve balance and reduce fall risk. Outpatient therapy can be a few sessions or can last for several months.

“Our main goal with our patients is to get them back to their normal routine,” said Wright. “For some that means getting back to athletics or strenuous physical activity and for others that means being comfortable in their everyday activities, hobbies or work tasks.” She continued, “It’s all about quality of life, and that is different for each person.”

“Balance, strength and movement are the core of physical therapy,” said Emily King, a Doctor of Physical Therapy. “We are able to guide patients through exercises and give them practical tips to use as they resume their activities…The education process is vital, as patients then understand the importance of following through with recommendations once formal PT is ended.”

The department also provides services to in-patients on the medical-surgical floor. “For inpatients, we are able to evaluate their function and help the providers determine the appropriate discharge plan,” said Wright. “This could include discharge to home, short-term rehab, a skilled nursing facility, or possibly home PT services or outpatient therapy.”

When a provider prescribes physical therapy, patients have the freedom to choose where to go for treatment. “We encourage you to consider the local resource of Bertrand Chaffee Hospital’s PT department,” said King. “We are open 10 hours a day Monday through Friday for your convenience.”

To schedule an appointment or for more information, please call (716) 592-2871 ext. 1262.

Emily King, DPT, Sherry Stevens, Ronalyn Kassel, Mary Lou Wright, PT

Family, Friends, Food and Fun at Employee Summer Picnic

Event, People

What a Saturday! Dozens of BCH and JBR employees and hundreds of family members and friends turned out for a fun-filled picnic at Sprague Brook Park on August 19. The activities started before noon and continued until almost dusk. Ping-pong, kan-jam, washers, a vigorous game of volleyball, and an assortment of kids and dogs made the day exactly what we wanted it to be, which was a memorable event that brought #teamchaffee together.

Thank you to all of the employees who helped with set up, food prep, manning the grill and clean up!

We will add pictures from the day on our Facebook page and here on our web site; please share your pictures too with kkane@bch-jbr.org.

Congratulations, Amber Kohn, RN

Announcement, People, ,

At its July meeting, the BCH Foundation gave a scholarship to Amber Kohn, RN, to apply to her educational expenses. She earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Alfred University, and is a nurse in the BCH emergency department. She previously worked on the medical-surgical floor at BCH as a registered nurse and in the ED as a nursing assistant.

The Elizabeth Dedrick Scholarship Fund is a way to support BCH and JBR employees as they pursue degrees and training, that they can then bring to their career in caring for patients and residents.

Congratulations, Amber!

Department Spotlight: Medical-Surgical Department

People, ,

The inpatient care provided on Bertrand Chaffee Hospital’s second floor forms the core of healthcare services in Springville. For recovery from a serious illness, ailment or injury, a stay at “the Gem on the Hill” is one service among many available at our community hospital.

The culture of a hospital stay has changed over the years. Weeks of recuperation in an inpatient setting used to be the norm. Today, there is an emphasis on recovering at home in consultation with one’s primary care provider.

A shift in inpatient stays at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital has been the introduction of a hospitalist program. Hospitalists are physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners who manage patient care during their time “on the floor.” They coordinate medications, tests, treatment, education and discharge as a team with respiratory therapists, physical therapists, a pharmacist, social worker and family members to aid patients as they heal. Add to that a first-class nursing team and BCH patients are in good and caring hands.

“Our nursing staff understands that no one looks forward to being in the hospital,” said Donelle Thomas, RN, medical-surgical nurse manager. “We want our patients and their families to be as comfortable as possible as they recover, and that they’re prepared to continue to heal and resume normal activities once they’re released.”

With support from the BCH Foundation and donors like the BCH Women’s Association, Cordelian Club and Springville-Griffith Community Education Foundation, the hospital has invested in new inpatient beds, vital signs equipment and room renovations.

BCH Nurses Certified as Diabetes Lifestyle Coaches

Announcement, Community,

Kathleen Hebdon, RN and Sheri Plummer, RN of the Bertrand Chaffee Hospital Diabetes Education team have completed the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) Lifestyle Coach certification. This complements the Diabetes Self-Management accreditation that the hospital has achieved, and will result in additional services that can be offered to patients and covered by most insurance plans.

Studies have shown that patients who attend weekly sessions in diabetes programs for an extended period of time have been rates of prevention because of the healthy lifestyle habits they develop. After an initial 16 weeks, patients are encouraged to attend a monthly support group. Those who commit to attendance up to a full year have the lowest rates of converting to a diabetes diagnosis.

As instructors, Hebdon and Plummer hear myths and misinformation about diabetes reflected back to them from patients. “Some people think that they just have ‘a little diabetes,” said Hebdon. “But the prevalent thought now is that once someone is diagnosed with pre-diabetes, about 50 percent of their pancreatic function is lost, and by the time they are diabetic, that ratio is 80 percent.”

Diabetes causes more deaths in the United States than breast cancer, and type 2 diabetes is very much a lifestyle disease. “People are resistant to starting diabetes treatment,” said Sheri Plummer, RN. “And they give excuses like ‘I’m too old’ or ‘I’m too out-of-shape’ – but they would not hesitate to start a cancer treatment!” She explained, “Pancreatic changes are permanent and progress with age, and we want our patients to start treatment and lifestyle changes immediately to preserve pancreatic function and delay or prevent having to take insulin.”

Diabetes can be treated by three modalities: medication, diet and activity. “Without exercise and activity, you are missing out on a third of the possible treatment regimen,” said Hebdon. “Our programs can help patients overcome barriers with alternative exercises for all conditions, like arthritis, back pain and immobility, and ways to work those into everyday life.”

For information about upcoming Diabetes Education programs, call (716) 592-9643.

Marion Igel: 20 Years as a BCH Volunteer

People, , ,

For a woman like Marion Igel of Boston, volunteering is seen in terms of a commitment to a job. She started as a transport volunteer at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital and its Physical Therapy Department on June 18, 1997. And at the end of this June, twenty years later, Igel has kept that commitment to the patients of BCH.

After retiring from the banking industry and roles at the “Big E” (Erie County Savings Bank), Igel looked for a way to fill her time. Her second-oldest sister was volunteer at Our Lady of Victory, and later at Mercy Hospital in Buffalo. Igel lived in Boston, she wanted to find something closer to home.  She called Bertrand Chaffee Hospital, and was soon connected with the PT department. Her assignment: for one day a week, spend six hours transporting patients to physical therapy appointments from the Jennie B. Richmond Nursing Home and the medical-surgical floor of BCH.

“It’s the people that have kept me volunteering all these years,” explained Igel. “I grew attached, especially to some of the residents at the Jennie B.”

Igel continued, “Volunteering and helping people made me feel good, and I made great friends along the way.”

Mary Lou Wright, director of the Physical Therapy Department, explained, “Marion has put in miles of walking over the years, transporting patients and running interdepartmental errands.” Wright added, “Volunteers can ‘walk away’ at any time…Marion chose to stay, and we have been very fortunate to have her as part of our team, and to know and love her as part of our family.”

Igel has a son in Texas and a daughter who lives just a few minutes away in Boston (NY), with five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. She said that she would tell future volunteers at BCH about the empathy involved in being a hospital volunteer: “Be devoted and learn to associate yourself with the patients…one day you could be in that position.”