HAYWARD AREA MEMORIAL NAMED TO TOP 100 CAH HOSPITALS

Hayward Area Memorial Hospital was recently notified they are one of the 13 Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in Wisconsin placed on the list of the 100 top performing CAH hospitals across the nation.

Research conducted by iVantage Health Analytics used publicly available data from 1,267 hospitals to determine the list. It is the first nationwide hospital rating system to evaluate U.S. general acute care hospitals using a balanced scorecard approach covering care measures, market strength, population growth, value based purchasing and financial measures to predict sustainabililty.

Among the Process of Care Measures studied for all CAH hospitals were acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, pneumonia, congestive heart failure, the Surgical Care Improvement Program and Outpatient services.

By definition, Critical Access Hospitals are small, with only 25 licensed beds. They are usually geographically remote facilities that provide outpatient and inpatient hospital services to people in rural areas. The designation was established by law, for special payments under the Medicare program. To be designated a CAH, a hospital must be located in a rural area, provide 24-hour emergency services; have an average length-of-stay for its patients of 96 hours or less; be located more than 35 miles from the nearest hospital or be designated by its state as a "necessary provider".

Hayward Area Memorial Hospital received critical access status on May 1, 2004. The designation has been beneficial to the local hospital as witnessed by the growth of the medical complex and this prestigious award.

Tim Gullingsrud, CEO of the hospital and Water’s Edge said, “I am extremely proud of the staff for their hard work and dedication to our patients, and our Board of Directors who have had the foresight to carry our vision of a small, but excellent hospital forward.” “They all deserve this award.”

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 YOU MAY BE BILLED FOR SELF-ADMINISTERED DRUGS 

During the course of outpatient treatment, visits to the emergency department, observation stays, or during outpatient surgical, chemotherapy, pain clinic services, or other outpatient visits, patients may receive drugs that Medicare defines as self-administered drugs.

What is a self-administered drug?

Medicare defines self-administered drugs as drugs that the patient would take by mouth or administer to themselves. Such drugs include, but are not limited to: oral medications, insulin, eye drops and topical treatments.

Who is responsible for payment of self-administered drugs?

Self administered drugs for Observation/Outpatients are not covered by Medicare and therefore payment is the responsibility of the patient. In order for Hayward Area Memorial Hospital to remain compliant with Medicare regulations, these drugs will be listed as “self administered drug” on our billing statement.

If the patient is enrolled in Medicare Part D they will be responsible to submit a claim to their drug plan for a refund, which may or may not be granted.

For detailed information on how Medicare covers hospital services, including premiums,
deductibles and co-payments, contact
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227)
or
visit http://www.medicare.gov/Publications/Pubs/pdf/10050.pdf 
to download and view the Medicare & You Handbook.

How is Inpatient vs. Outpatient/Observation status determined?

Physicians and hospitals follow specific guidelines set by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to determine the status of a patient, including severity of illness and intensity of service needed to diagnose and treat the patient. The patient’s symptoms and condition are evaluated and how quickly they respond to treatment is considered. The final patient status is determined by the physician.

If you or a family member are in the hospital for more than a few hours, ask the physician or hospital staff if the patient is an “hospital inpatient” or “outpatient/observation.”  The status will affect how you are billed and what you will pay out of pocket.

Outpatient status refers to patients who typically go to an outpatient department such as laboratory, radiology or to the Emergency Department for diagnostic services or infusion therapy.

In some cases, patients will remain under outpatient/observation status on the medical unit during testing and evaluation to determine the severity of the illness and intensity of service needed to treat the patient. The observation stay is intended for short term diagnostic testing and monitoring to evaluate the patient’s condition. This is done to determine whether the patient needs to be admitted as a hospital patient, transferred to another facility for other care, or if they may be discharged to return home.

Am I allowed to take my own medications?

For the safety of our patients, it is hospital policy that we will not allow medications from outside our facility to be taken by the patient.

When coming to the hospital please bring a complete list of all medications you are taking, including over the counter and herbal medications. 
 

Please contact your health care provider or Medicare for additional information.  

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HAYWARD HOSPITAL REQUIRING PHOTO IDENTIFICATION AT ADMISSION

Properly identifying patients is the first step to patient safety in any health care facility. Throughout the health care industry the improper identification of patients results in medication, transfusion and testing errors and wrong person procedures. The Hayward Area Memorial Hospital takes patient safety very seriously and has many systems in place to make sure that patients are properly identified from the point of admission to the time they are discharged.

The first opportunity to properly identify a patient is during the admission process.

“If you are a patient age 16 or older you will be asked to present photo identification during the admission process,” explains Tim Gullingsrud, Hayward Area Memorial Hospital CEO. “If you do not have photo identification with you, we will continue with the admission process and you will be asked to bring photo identification with you to your next visit.”

For patients unable to admit themselves a family member will be asked to provide the patient’s photo identification and all other information required at admission.

Acceptable forms of photo identification include state driver’s license, state identification card, tribal identification card, United States uniformed service identification card, United States Passport, Certificate of Naturalization and student identification cards. In addition to a photo, the identification card should also include first and last name, middle initial and date of birth.

Any Wisconsin resident may request a photo identification card. There is no age limit on the card and they can be obtained at a Department of Motor Vehicle service center. Applicants will be asked to provide proof of name, identity and United States citizenship, as well as date of birth and social security number. Applications and more information about state photo identification cards are available at www.dot.wisconsin.gov

Once registered the registration staff will place an armband on your wrist. This armband includes unique patient identifying information such as: patient name, date of birth, admitting physician’s name, medical record number and date of service.

“Each time you obtain services from our hospital we consider this a new visit requiring you to complete the admission process,” says Gullingsrud. “Even patients receiving ongoing services, such as chemotherapy, are required to register at the front desk, show photo identification and receive an armband with their pertinent information.”

The next step of proper patient identification occurs every time the patient comes in contact with hospital personnel. The staff of Hayward Area Memorial will ask the patient’s name and date of birth before administering any medical service, procedure, distributing medication or blood products.

“We know that this process may seem cumbersome and unnecessary for a small town hospital, where we know so many of our patients,” says Gullingsrud. “However, the procedures are standard practices in all medical facilities throughout the country. The systems are in place to protect all patients and we train our staff to follow the steps with each and every person.”

Accurately identifying patients in health care facilities provides proper medical treatment and reduces medical identity theft and insurance fraud.

“When you enter our hospital for services be prepared to present your personal identification and be patient with our staff when they verify your identity throughout your care in our facility,” said Gullingsrud. “We strive to provide high quality, compassionate health care to people of the Hayward area. Patient safety is our highest priority.”