Newsbriefs

Cassville hospital opens wellness and rehabilitation center

St. John's Hospital-Cassville in the fall opened a new 10,000 square-foot wellness and rehabilitation center, thanks to generous donations from the community. A significant amount of the funds needed to open the center came from money left in a trust of the late Jack Byrd, a successful Cassville businessman who served on the hospital's board of directors for nearly 20 years.

St. John's West Region Foundation raised $32,000 for equipment to fill the center, which will serve cardiac and pulmonary rehab patients as well as physical, speech and occupational therapy patients.
The center is equipped with treadmills, bikes, stair steppers and a stacked weight system.

"This is exciting for our patients and the community," says Dave Steinmann, the center’s clinical executive director. "We are happy to provide a state-of-the-art facility for patients and a place for members of the community to exercise before and after hours.

Memberships are $25 per month for singles and $30 per month for family memberships.

ENT services expand in Lebanon

Joel Waxman, M.D., St. John’s Clinic ear, nose, and throat surgeon has joined Allan Allphin, M.D., to provide ENT services to the Lebanon area. Dr. Allphin has practiced in Lebanon two days a month for more than 10 years and provides care the first and third Mondays of the month. Dr. Waxman practices in Lebanon on the second and fourth Mondays of the month at Lebanon Medical Building, 120 Hospital Drive.Please call 417-820-5750 (toll free 800-658-0454) to schedule an appointment.

St. John’s Hospital-Lebanon opens temporary cancer center

Lebanon’s Craig and Tracy Curry hosted a reception for St. John’s oncologist Gary Hoos, M.D. and the new Lebanon cancer center Oct. 4 at St. John’s Hospital - Lebanon.

The Currys are helping bring cancer care to Lebanon, thanks to a signature gift pledged to St. John’s Lebanon Heritage Foundation last spring.

Cancer services are currently provided in a temporary center until the 3,000-square-foot St. John’s Curry Cancer Center is built this year.

Two young donors, Grady and Sean Rogers of Lebanon, were present to see what their $3,000 donation will help fund. The Rogers boys, ages 15 and 13, made the personal donation after hearing about the cancer center from their grandfather Duard Johnson, a foundation board member known for his philanthropic efforts in Lebanon.

“I decided it was for a very good cause because lots of women die from breast cancer,” Grady Rogers says. “He (Johnson) has been a very big inspiration. He gives to all types of charities and is so nice to people. He gives and it influences me to give.”

“They lost a grandmother and a great aunt to cancer in the past year,” explains mom Kelly Rogers. “That was the biggest reason. I think their grandfather had a little bit to do with it, too. He sets a good example.”

The boys raised funds from doing odd jobs such mowing lawns and through trusts set up by their family members.

“If people would just give a little bit of money it could help take care of our community,” Duard Johnson said.

Johnson credits the Currys for stepping forward when the community needed cancer services close to home and feels the people of Lebanon will greatly benefit from the generosity of many others who support St. John’s and other charitable causes. The boys presented their donation at the reception
Wednesday.

“I think if younger kids do it, it sets a good example of what the future might be,” Kelly Rogers says.

St. John’s named Consumer Choice for second year in a row

St. John’s has been named the “Consumer Choice” most preferred health system in the Springfield area by the National Research Corporation (NRC) for the second year in a row. NRC annually provides Consumer Choice awards in 180 U.S. markets.

The Consumer Choice award is based on consumer preference responses to surveys in the following areas: best doctors, best nurses, best overall quality and the best image and reputation. NRC Chief Executive Officer Michael D. Hays said winners are determined by consumer perceptions on multiple quality and image ratings collected in annual NRC Healthcare Market Guide study. Of the 3,000 hospitals named by consumers in the study, the winning facilities rank highest in their Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. The 2006/07 NRC Healthcare Market Guide study surveyed nearly 200,000 households representing 400,000 consumers in the U.S.

“This is a great honor to be recognized in this way by those we serve,” says Bill Hennessey, senior vice president of planning and marketing. “It places St. John’s among the elite providers in the country and is a testament to the outstanding service and focus on quality provided daily by our co-workers, physicians and volunteers.”

Other 2006/2007 winners include the Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins and Duke University Medical Center.

St. John's designated as a neuroscience center of excellence

St. John’s Hospital is among the nation's top neuroscience programs, and was designated as a Neuroscience Center of Excellence (COE), according to the 2006 Neuroscience Center of Excellence Survey, co-sponsored by NeuroSource, Inc. of Chicago, Ill., and HealthTech, of San Francisco, Calif.

The 2006 survey, the only one of its kind in the neurosciences, analyzed 150 neuroscience programs, across 41 states. A hospital's overall performance is determined by measuring program progress in four key areas: clinical and research programs, staff, facilities and technology and business.
Last year was the third year for the Neuroscience COE Survey. The annual assessment evaluated 150 hospital-based programs, and only 42 percent of those programs received sufficient scores to be recognized as a 2006 Neuroscience Center of Excellence.

“Center of Excellence designees represent many of the leading, innovative programs across the country, and St. John’s is proud to be acknowledged for our multidisciplinary approach and commitment to the highest standards of neurological and neurosurgical patient care,” says Linda Earnest, St. John’s Hospital vice president.

The survey findings underscore the importance of St. John’s multispecialty approach to care.
“In addition to offering the most comprehensive range of neurological specialists, St. John’s has state-of-the-art neuro-imaging technology and patient services,” says St. John’s neurosurgeon Alan Scarrow, M.D.