A Family Medicine Doctor Comes Home to Kingston p. 3

A Quick and Healthy Pizza Kids Will Love p. 7

Stay Safe in the Sun! p. 7Close-by Chemo: Hills & Dales General Hospital Offers Certified IV Prep and Infusion Area p. 7

CONTENTSCEO Notes .......................p. 2

Auxiliary Member Spotlight ...........................p. 4

Hills & Dales Foundation Update .............................p. 4

What’s New to Benefit You: “Smart” IV Pumps ...............p. 6

Convenient Clinic Locations ...........................p. 7

Community Calendar ..........p. 8

QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER FROM HILLS & DALES GENERAL HOSPITAL | SUMMER 2013

An Affiliate of Covenant HealthCare

Patient Ann Retherford uses weight training to strengthen muscles under the guidance of Physical Therapist Deborah Doherty, PT, PhD, CEAS

“I Can Do Things Now I Couldn’t Before!”Oncology Rehab Improves Quality of Life for Cancer Survivors p. 5

I’ve had the opportunity to serve people through health care for 35 years. I’ve seen many changes come and go during those years, some better than others. But it has been a joy and a privilege to be part of the team of Hills & Dales General Hospital physicians and employees that has served our community for more than 50 years.

I recently had the opportunity to listen to a health care futurist talk about the changes he sees coming in health care. His prediction agrees with many other experts in that we will shift from focusing on helping the sick get well to helping

people stay healthy. As you might imagine, changing focus so dramatically creates some real challenges

in planning what services we are going to be offering in the future and the facilities and equipment we’ll need to deliver them.

However, no matter what changes come in the future, you can be assured that the staff at Hills & Dales General Hospital will always focus our efforts on keeping our services in line with the needs of the people we serve. We are currently conducting a community health needs assessment, and we’ve worked hard to keep our facilities and equipment up to date. We’ve also brought several new physicians to our community to serve you better.

We know that health care delivery has been changing for decades and will continue to change in the future, which is why we created the Hills & Dales Foundation. The money raised by our foundation will help Hills & Dales General Hospital assure it has the capability to deliver services that are relevant to your needs.

But no matter what changes may come, we promise to do our best to continue to meet those challenges so we can continue serving Cass City and the surrounding area.

Michael J. FalatkoPresident and CEO

PLANNING THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CAREMessage from the CEO

Michael J. FalatkoPresident and CEO

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOUWhether you call, write, send an email, or like us on Facebook, we welcome your feedback! Call Ashley Patrick, Director of Business Development and Community Relations, 989-872-2121, or email apatrick@hdghmi.org. And visit us at www.hdghmi.org.

VISIONTo be the premier Critical Access

Hospital in Michigan

MISSION To be the Provider of

Choice and the Employer of Choice in our primary markets

2 | Hills & Dales General Hospital

Ashley Patrick

They say you can’t go home again, but Dr. Melanie Kramer-Harrington is doing just that. After practicing in Sandusky for several years, Dr. Kramer-Harrington is joining the staff of Hills & Dales General Hospital and returning to practice in

her hometown of Kingston. She’s heard that patients in Kingston are looking forward to having a female doctor in the area, and she’s excited about stepping into that role.

Family medicine is a busy specialty that serves the general health needs of people of all ages. Doctors in family practice handle everything from immunizations and infant care to sports physicals and helping older adults manage chronic conditions like diabetes.

“I love my job,” Dr. Kramer-Harrington says. “I like the variety in family practice. I might see newborns, a 5-year-old with an ear

infection, and an 85-year-old, all in the same day. And practicing family medicine in a small town means that I don’t have to ask about a grandparent’s health history, because I treat those generations of the family and have that information firsthand.”

Dr. Kramer-Harrington is also bringing along her Nurse Practitioner, Elizabeth Paling. The two women have worked together for several years and have a similar practice style. Eventually the two health care professionals will practice on alternating days out of Kingston and a Cass City location.

“Hills & Dales seems like such a great organization,” Dr. Kramer-Harrington says. “Everyone seems very positive and welcoming. I’m thrilled to be coming home to serve the community where I grew up.”

To schedule an appointment with Dr. Kramer-Harrington or Elizabeth Paling, NP, please call 989-683-8065.

HOMETOWN HERO A family medicine practitioner comes back home to serve Kingston and Cass City

Hills & Dales General Hospital | 3

Getting Ready to ReadThe doctor promotes reading to her youngest patients

Dr. Melanie Kramer-Harrington cares for many children, and she always leaves her young patients with something special. She gives the youngsters an age-appropriate book at each well-child visit between 6 months and 5 years old.

“When I hand over the book, it gives me a chance to talk to the parents about the importance of reading,” Dr. Kramer-Harrington says. Reading to children from an early age offers benefits that include promoting greater school readiness and improved speech development. “The kids love it, too, because they think it’s cool to get free books,” she says.

Dr. Melanie Kramer-Harrington consults with a patient about shoulder pain.

Elizabeth Paling, NP, sees patients at Kingston Family Practice.

4 | Hills & Dales General Hospital

S ome people love their jobs so much that they just can’t leave their workplace behind after retirement. That’s what happened with Mary Ann Hirn, a registered nurse who still spends up to 15 hours a week at Hills & Dales General Hospital, even though

she officially retired in 1997. Hirn, as a Hills & Dales Auxiliary member, manages the hospital gift shop. This position

comes with a great deal of responsibility—and it extends far beyond just a couple of hours each week. Hirn sometimes works at home on gift shop duties, including making phone calls to other volunteer workers and setting appointments with vendors. She is also responsible for the finances, ordering, and inventory of the gift shop. She also organizes fund-raising activities like book sales, jewelry sales, and twice-weekly popcorn sales.

“I really enjoy seeing all the people come into the gift shop,” Hirn says. “Not only do I get to see the employees, but I also like seeing members of the community and working with the sales reps.”

THANKING OUR HELPERSSponsors and volunteers made Millionaire’s event a successWe want to say a special thank you to our 2013 Millionaire’s sponsors, contributors, and volunteers. There are too many names to include in this newsletter, but the full list will be included in our Hills & Dales Foundation Annual Report this fall. The event was a huge success and raised just over $14,500. Thank you to all for your continued generous support!

Most of us don’t give much thought to hospitals until we need them, but when the need arises, we all want and deserve the best care possible.

At Hills & Dales General Hospital, we are fortunate to have an excellent, not-for-profit hospital with superb doctors and a good financial base. But every day, hospitals face new financial challenges in the delivery of health care.

What can you do to help ensure quality health care is available through Hills & Dales General

Hospital? That’s simple: Give a gift to the Hills & Dales Foundation.

Your gift will help maintain the excellent care provided by Hills & Dales, and you will experience the personal satisfaction of knowing that you have helped preserve health care services for our future generations.

For more information about making a gift, please contact me at 989-872-2121.

—Danielle Blaine, Director, Hills & Dales Foundation

Hills & Dales Foundation Update

A retired RN stays active in the Hills & Dales Auxiliary

GIVING BACK AT THE GIFT SHOP

Auxiliary member and Gift Shop volunteer Mary Ann Hirn has put smiles on customers’ faces since 1997.

Danielle Blaine

Hills & Dales General Hospital | 5

Cancer is a life-changing diagnosis. From the first day you hear those dreaded “it’s cancer” words, you’ll experience a roller coaster of

emotions. You may assume that once you’ve received cancer treatment and you’ve been pronounced cancer free, that’s the end of it. But even once the cancer is gone, you’ll still be dealing with the aftereffects.

Ann Retherford is a breast cancer survivor. She recently passed her one-year anniversary of being cancer free, but she still had a lot of lingering pain, particularly in her arms. Retherford is thankful she heard about the new oncology rehab program at Hills & Dales General Hospital and enrolled for services. Oncology rehabilitation is similar

to traditional physical therapy in many ways. Both focus on restoring strength, flexibility, balance, mobility, and function.

Oncology rehabilitation is distinct in that it recognizes and treats the unique side effects that may occur from surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and hormonal therapies. These side effects can drastically alter the response and outcomes of physical therapy. For example, after cancer treatment, Retherford found that it was difficult to move her arms. “The therapist, Deb, works with me on breaking up the scar tissue in my arms so that I can move them more freely,” Retherford says.

Deborah Doherty, PT, PhD, CEAS, is the therapist who works with the patients in the oncology rehab program. “We’d love to see every cancer survivor right at the time of diagnosis,” Doherty says. “The quicker we see cancer survivors, the easier it is to prevent

the severe side effects or decrease their intensity.”

As a cancer survivor herself, Doherty understands the physical and emotional struggles that are part of the recovery process. “Working with cancer survivors has been incredibly rewarding,” she says. “Oncology rehab deals with improving survivors’ quality of life. Through education, exercise, and treatment of the side effects of cancer care, we give survivors hope.”

Although Retherford is not yet finished with oncology rehab, she’s already experiencing the benefits. “I can move my arms so much better. And Deb is a wonderful therapist. She’s helped me out tremendously, and I can do things now that I couldn’t before.”

If you are interested in the oncology rehab program, please call 989-872-2121 for more information.

BOUNCING BACK AFTER CANCEROncology rehab helps survivors get back to normal

Caring Chemotherapy That’s Close to HomeWhen you have to go through chemotherapy, you want to be in good hands. Hills & Dales General Hospital offers just that with its certified IV preparation and infusion area. The certified area allows patients a comfortable location for treatment, close to home. The chemotherapy is administered by specially trained staff. This service provides patients a full continuum of cancer care, from the time of diagnosis through remission and rehabilitation.

Patient Ann Retherford walks on a treadmill to improve stamina under the supervision of Physical Therapist Deborah Doherty, PT, PhD, CEAS.

6 | Hills & Dales General Hospital

WHAT’S NEW TO BENEFIT YOUSpecialized hospital beds and medication pumps improve patient safety

Shining Stars at Hills & Dales

CT certification means “ready in radiology”

You don’t have to go to a bigger city to find highly qualified medical staff. One provider who shares her dedication and expertise with patients is Kelly Hartz, Radiology Technician. Hartz has worked for Hills & Dales General Hospital for seven and a half years in the radiology department. She recently earned CT certification, enabling her to perform computerized tomography, or CT scans.

Hartz was already a registered Radiology Technician when she decided to pursue the CT certification, which meant additional study. “I had to perform and document 125 procedures within 24 months, and I also had to study hard,” she says. Hartz joins Dorothy Willis and Peggy Davidson as the radiology staff members with this additional certification. Being qualified to perform more tests makes Hartz able to help more patients. She says, “I always wanted to be able to help people and this occupation helps me to do that. I love working with patients!”

Hills & Dales General Hospital has been on a mission to modernize its facilities to improve patient care. Even some of the smaller details you might overlook have gotten a major upgrade, such as the hospital beds and patient pumps. According to Jennifer TerBush, Director of Nursing, these details add up to greater patient safety in several ways.

The new Alaris IV pumps administer medication according to pre-programmed amounts, which can actually prevent dangerous medication errors. “The pumps would stop a nurse from making a tragic mistake like accidentally giving a lethal dose of a medication, or even giving it at too fast of a rate,” says TerBush.

The new Avanta II hospital beds are called “smart” beds because they can be designed to work interactively with nurse-call systems and patient pumps. That function will be rolled out in coming months, but, in the meantime, the beds are safer and more comfortable for patients.

“These beds have higher-quality mattresses, which prevents skin problems [from developing] from wounds. They even make patients less likely to slide up and down when we have to move them,” says TerBush.

In addition to being more comfortable, the new beds have an exit alarm that alerts nurses if patients get out of bed. “Our new beds and pumps will keep our patients safer and help us provide the best that modern hospitals can offer,” says TerBush.

Katie Loss, LPN, uses the new “smart” IV pump to administer medication to a patient.

CLINIC LOCATIONSExpert Care…Close to You

Hills & Dales After Hours Clinic4672 St, Cass City989-912-6114Mon-Fri: 5 - 9 p.m.Sat: 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.Sun: 2 - 6 p.m.

Hills & Dales Center for Rehabilitation6190 Hospital Dr, Cass City989-872-20841186 Cleaver Rd, Caro989-673-49992201 Main St, Ubly989-658-8611

Hills & Dales Orthopedic Clinic6190 Hospital Dr, Ste 104, Cass CityRichard A. Moyer, DO989-912-6115

Cass City Family Practice6190 Hospital Dr, Ste 106, Cass CityDonald Robbins, DOAngela Zaucha, FNP-BC989-872-8303

Cass City General Surgery6190 Hospital Dr, Ste 107, Cass CityFrancis Ozim, MD989-872-5582

Cass City Medical Practice4674 Hill St, Cass CityRichard Hall, DOJohn Bitner, MDJodi Smale, PA-C989-872-8202 Cass City Primary Care6190 Hospital Dr, Ste 103, Cass CitySurendra Raythatha, MD989-872-5010

(coming soon) Family Healthcare of Cass City6230 Hospital Dr, Cass CityMelanie Kramer-Harrington, MDElizabeth Paling, NP989-872-2410

Thumb Pediatrics6190 Hospital Dr, Ste 105, Cass CityNancy Wade, MDDarcy Schlund, FNP-BC989-872-8503 Kingston Family Practice5915 State St, KingstonMelanie Kramer-Harrington, MDElizabeth Paling, NP989-683-8065

Ubly Medical Clinic2254 Main St, UblyCandelaria Castaneda, MD989-658-9191

1 cup tomato sauce1 cup diced grilled chicken1 cup cooked broccoli, chopped

(or other preferred veggie)2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil

(or 1 teaspoon dried)4 whole-wheat pitas

Preheat oven to 450°.

Spread ¼ cup tomato sauce on a pita. Top with ¼ cup each chicken and broccoli, ½ tablespoon cheese, and ¼ tablespoon basil.

Place pitas on a baking sheet; bake 5-8 minutes until chicken is heated through.

Hills & Dales General Hospital | 7

A fter a long, dreary winter, seeing the return of sunny days is always a welcome change. But according to the World Health Organization, when it comes to

sun exposure, you can have too much of a good thing. Between two and three million people are diagnosed with non-melanoma skin cancers each year. In addition, 66,000 people die each year from fatal forms of melanoma and other skin cancers.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends some of the following ways that you can protect yourself and your children from the risks of dangerous sun exposure:

Use sunscreen. Choose a sunscreen with at least 15 SPF UVA and UVB protection, and reapply after every 30 minutes spent in the sun or after swimming. Use caution when

SOAK UP THE SUN—SAFELY!Take important steps to prevent skin cancer

SERVE A DINNER THE KIDS WILL LOVEMake a fun, healthy pizza meal By Diana Achatz, RD, Hills & Dales

Diana Achatz, RDKid-friendly Pita Pizzas

HEALTHY YOU! HEALTHY YOU! HEALTHY YOU!HEALTHY YOU! HEALTHY YOU! HEALTHY YOU!

applying sunscreen on infants younger than 6 months old.

Wear hats. Hats that cover the forehead, ears, scalp, and neck offer the best protection.

Wear sunglasses. Bright sun doesn’t just make it hard to see; it can also be dangerous. Blocking out the sun’s rays may protect your eyes from cataracts later in life.

Seek out the shade. The sun can still cause damage even on cloudy days. Stay under a tree or umbrella and avoid being outdoors in the middle of the day if possible.

Using sunscreen and shade gear protects you from the harmful effects of sun exposure.

Hills & Dales General Hospital4675 Hill StCass City MI 48726

COMMUNITY CALENDARDon’t Miss These Great 2013 Events!June 2013June 12 and 13: American Red Cross Babysitter Training (Thursday, 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. and Friday, 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.). Must be at least 11 years old on day of class. Cost is $35. Must pre-register; call 989-912-6365.June 14: Stop and see us at the Tuscola County Senior Fair at Caro High School, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.June 20: Diabetes Support Group. Free for all people living with diabetes and those who care about them. Conference Room 1 at hospital, 2 – 3 p.m.

July 2013July 6: 17th Annual Hills & Dales General Hospital Center for Rehabilitation & Fitness 5K Run, 5K Walk, and 8K Run. Visit www.hdghrehab.com for more information or to register. July 17: 15th Annual Hills & Dales Foundation Golf Outing at Ubly Heights Golf & Country Club.July 18: Diabetes Support Group. Free for all people living with diabetes and those who care about them. Conference Room 1 at hospital, 2 – 3 p.m.

August 2013August 15: Diabetes Support Group. Free for all people living with diabetes and those who care about them. Conference Room 1 at hospital, 2 – 3 p.m.

September 2013September 19: Diabetes Support Group. Free for all people living with diabetes and those who care about them. Conference Room 1 at hospital, 2 – 3 p.m.

October 2013October 12: Women’s Wellness Event. Join us for a day of health screenings, refreshments, information, great speakers, and more! At the hospital, 8 a.m. – 2 p.m.

“WE’LL MEET YOU AT THE CORNER”

An Affiliate of Covenant HealthCare

Featured EventHills & Dales Foundation15th Annual Golf BenefitWed, July 17, 2013Ubly Heights Golf & Country Club2409 E Atwater Rd, UblyRegistration & Breakfast Snacks: 8:30 a.m.Shot Gun Start: 9:30 a.m.Lunch at the Bend: Whenever you arriveDinner & Awards: 4:45 p.m.

• The day also includes a cash bar, silent auction, and 50/50 raffle.

• Hole-in-one, longest drive, and closest-to-the-pin contests.

• A winner is awarded in each division: Men’s, Women’s, and Mixed Teams.

• There are numerous sponsorship levels available to meet the needs of businesses and supporters!

Cost: Per individual: $85; per 4-person team: $340

If you don’t wish to golf but would still like to attend the dinner/awards ceremony, you’re welcome to do so! Tickets are $25 per person.

For additional information, contact Danielle Blaine, Foundation Director, 989-912-6401, or dblaine@hillsanddales.com