HJAR May/Jun 2020

58 MAY / JUN 2020  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS Hospital Rounds CHI St. Vincent Providers Thanked for Service CHI St. Vincent Infirmary healthcare provid- ers rose to the challenge posed by the COVID- 19 pandemic. Staff caring directly for COVID-19 patients at the hospital volunteered to be there, stepping forward in a time of crisis to stand on the front lines. In fact, more staff volunteered to care for COVID-19 patients than were needed as of mid-April. Their dedication drew an outpouring of commu- nity support, including sidewalk chalk messages of thanks and praise outside the CHI St Vincent Infirmary. Medical Center of South Arkansas Provides Grocery Store, Free Childcare for Healthcare Team Medical Center of South Arkansas is providing services to their healthcare “heroes” in an effort to thank them for the critical roles teammembers are playing in the fight against COVID-19. By run- ning a teammember grocery store and providing free childcare, MCSA is offering services to ease strain during these challenging times including. The in-hospital store helps to reduce the stress of grocery shopping and facing empty store shelves after a long shift of patient care. MCSA food services is selling staple food items for employees for purchase at cost. Team members can buy toilet paper, eggs, milk, flour, and bread at a convenient location inside the hospital before they go home. During planning and preparation for COVID-19, MCSA identified that childcare may be an issue for essential employees. The hospital collaborated with Douglas Chapel Missionary Baptist Church to provide free childcare for all MCSA employ- ees. Due to school closures, the service is critical in retaining staff for patient care and easing the strain of finding childcare. MCSA encourages the public to visit their Face- book page and write a message of encourage- ment to their employees as a public forum of inspiration for team members. CMS Rates Mercy Hospitals Highest in Area The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released its latest hospital ratings, and Mercy Hospital Fort Smith and Mercy Hospital North- west Arkansas in Rogers received the highest rat- ings in the region, a four-star and a five-star rat- ing, respectively. The five-star rating earned by Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas is the highest given by CMS, which evaluates hospitals annually using more than 100 measures divided into seven catego- ries: mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience, effectiveness of care, timeliness of care, and effective use of medical imaging. “Five stars means Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas is performing at the highest level for patients who entrust their care to us,” said Mercy Hospital NWA President Eric Pianalto. “We’re proud of this achievement, and we congratulate every co-worker who helps make Mercy Hospi- tal great.” Just 407 hospitals in the United States and four in Arkansas received CMS’ five-star rating. Ryan Gehrig, president of Mercy Hospital Fort Smith, said, “This is a reflection of the dedicated and compassionate physicians and co-workers at Mercy who continuously seek ways to deliver a safer and better experience for our patients. We are very proud of this accomplishment, and we remain relentless in our pursuit to get health care right.” The hospitals’ top ratings come on the heels of both receiving an A safety grade from The Leapfrog Group last fall. In addition, IBMWatson Health has named Mercy Health System a top five large U.S. health system and designated Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas a Top 100 Hospi- tal in 2019. Baptist Health-Little Rock Earns National Recognition for Surgical Safety Baptist Health-Little Rock recently became a Go Clear Award Gold Level recipient from the Asso- ciation of Perioperative Registered Nurses for its achievement in eliminating hazardous smoke from surgical procedures. The Go Clear Award is given to recognize healthcare facilities that are committed to pro- viding increased surgical safety by implementing practices that eliminate smoke caused by lasers and electrosurgery devices. Surgical smoke is the unwanted by-product of energy-generating devices that are used in 90 percent of all surgeries. Inhalation and absorp- tion of this smoke can cause serious health risks to patients and surgical staff. Studies compare the inhalation of smoke from vaporized human tissue to the smoke created by cigarettes. The average daily impact of surgical smoke to the surgical team is equivalent to inhal- ing between 27-30 unfiltered cigarettes. An esti- mated 500,000 healthcare workers are exposed to laser or electrosurgical smoke each year, accord- ing to the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety & Health Administration. Baptist Health-Little Rock is one of the first hos- pitals in Arkansas to receive this award. Baptist Health-Heber Springs also holds Go Clear Award Gold Level recognition. Conway Regional Health System Announces Accreditation for Family Medicine Residency Program Conway Regional Health System has received initial accreditation from the Accreditation Coun- cil for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) for its Family Medicine Residency program. The pro- gram will inaugurate its first class of residents in July of 2020. “Receiving accreditation for our first Gradu- ate Medical Education Program is a result of our team identifying a need and coming together to develop and implement a solution,” said Matt Troup, president and CEO of Conway Regional Health System. “In Conway, or the City of Col- leges, education is a part of the fabric of our com- munity. Because of this, a Family Medicine Resi- dency programmade sense for our health system and for our community. Our program will train a generation of physicians who are critical thinkers, compassionate providers, skilled clinicians, and future leaders in medicine.” The Family Medicine Residency program will offer further opportunity for Arkansas medical stu- dents to complete their residency in state. “In 2019, we received Institutional Accredita- tion and have since been on a journey to estab- lish our Family Medicine Residency program,” said Rebekah Fincher, chief administrative officer and designated institutional officer. “Beginning in 2020, we will see more Arkansas medical students