From the Desk of Chad Olinde
As we move into the spring season, the staff at Pointe Coupee General Hospital is excited about the new opportunities to continue to expand services and to serve the people in our community. We are also fortunate to be able to collaborate with some of the finest healthcare systems in our state.
Our partnership with Ochsner has enabled our Telestroke program which began in 2011, to rapidly grow beyond expectations. The program has helped to save the lives and prevent permanent damage to over fifty of our patients who arrived in our ER with stroke symptoms in the past year.
Our relationship with Our Lady of the Lake has paved the way for plans of a new medical office building which will house our current Lake physicians. The facility will consolidate the operations of these five physicians, and open the opportunity for additional specialist support.
Our advancements in healthcare information technology have positioned us well ahead of many hospitals in the area, and greatly assisted our providers in diagnosing and treating our patients.
Our renovations to the inpatient areas of the hospital have resulted in an updated appearance, as well as adding a hospice visitor's room for the families of the terminally ill.
The past year was an exceptional year for the improvement of hospital operations, and the staff at Pointe Coupee General will continue to focus on being your healthcare leader in our community.
Each year during the month of February is known as American Heart Month. This annual awareness unites millions of people for a common goal: the eradication of heart disease and stroke. Throughout the month, Pointe Coupee General Hospital held multiple initiates to help raise money and support for the American Heart Association.
In recent data released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Pointe Coupee General Hospital was ranked 76 out of 1,134 Critical Access Hospitals in the United States in clinical quality. The analysis is intended to provide Critical Access Hospitals with an estimate of their performance potential under a scenario for the Critical Access Hospital Value-Based Purchasing program.
Pointe Coupee General Hospital is pleased to announce the appointment of Ashley Doucet Bordelon, MD, as the new Chief of Staff. The appointment was made by the medical staff of Pointe Coupee General Hospital earlier this month.
After 11 years of service as the Pointe Coupee General Hospital’s Director of Nursing, Chief Nursing Officer, Elaine Hurme, PhD has retired effective December 2015. Hurme was a tremendously effective director who spearheaded numerous changes to improve the overall deliverance of health care at PCGH.
Pointe Coupee General Hospital has been named as a best practice recipient in the key area of the Quality Index. Pointe Coupee General was the only Louisiana hospital recognized in the quality category. "We are extremely proud of this award. Our clinical staff has worked tirelessly to ensure the highest quality is provided at our facility” said Chad Olinde, Hospital Administrator.
Every September, the nation joins together to celebrate National Recovery Month. The 2013 Recovery Month theme, “Join the Voices for Recovery: Together on Pathways to Wellness,” represents the many ways that people can prevent behavioral health issues, seek treatment, and sustain recovery as part of a commitment to living a mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually healthy life.
The state of Louisiana is currently undergoing a major shift in its healthcare network. The charity hospital system in Louisiana dates back many years and was expanded during the Huey Long administration in the 1920's. The hospitals have provided healthcare to the under-served for approximately a century. For the last two decades, LSU has provided the oversight for these safety net hospitals.
Over the past several months, our staff has been working diligently to obtain Critical Access Hospital Joint Commission Accreditation. The accreditation will signify our organizations ongoing efforts to meeting performance standards excellence. Pointe Coupee General Hospital was last accredited by the Joint Commission in the mid 1980's. I am proud that our hospital staff is committed towards the improvement of our facility and would like to commend our department managers for their tireless efforts towards continuous performance improvement.
In November, Dr. James Christopher retired from his medical practice after 50 years of service to Pointe Coupee. Dr. Christopher came to Pointe Coupee in 1964 and began his Family Medicine and General Surgery Practice. Over the years, he has played a major role in the development of the healthcare environment in our parish. The hospital staff will miss seeing Dr. Christopher making rounds in our facility. We wish him a happy retirement.
The last week of August brought another storm to Pointe Coupee Parish. This time the winds were less than forecasted and our area was spared the widespread damage that we were subjected to during Hurricane Gustav.