Pioneer Memorial Hospital wins award for being an outstanding community partner
Prineville, Ore. - Pioneer Memorial Hospital was recently honored with the Outstanding Community Partner award from the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems for the hospital's Community Health Improvement Partnership projects. Participants at the OAHHS summit for rural hospitals awarded PMH with the distinction. PMH was one of three other rural health facilities nominated.
Sharon Vail heads up the Crook County Community Health Improvement Partnership, or CHIP. CHIP is a volunteer organization sponsored by PMH and provides a variety of community-based health initiatives. Vail said these programs cover the gamut and offer everything from dental education and check-ups to nutrition education by planting gardens in schools and offering teenagers healthy, farm-fresh snacks. CHIP worked to reach adult populations and those in the mental health community by offering community seminars on a variety of mental health topics, Vail said.
"We really saw the effect these programs had on people and they we very literal," she said. "We saw kids understand the importance of dental care and eating healthy and we provided resources and information for populations who truly needed it."
PMH offered healthy cooking classes in 2008 along with a variety of classes for patients including child birth courses and how to live well while facing a chronic illness.
Most recently, PMH received a grant from the Oregon Office of Rural Health for a weight management program developed by PMH. The Choose Well … Be Well … program will be piloted with Crook County employees to address the rising incidence of adult obesity and Type 2 diabetes. The program promotes lifestyle changes and takes a no-diet approach to losing weight and being healthy.
According to Linda Lang, director of Rural Health Services for OAHHS, leadership played a role in PMH receiving this award.
"The leadership of Pioneer Memorial's CEO, Don Wee, and CHIP coordinator Sharon Vail led to the success of these programs," Lang said. "It was their hard work and leadership that their peers identified and felt was worthy of recognition." Lang also said the other two hospitals up for the award, Good Shepherd in Hermiston and Samaritan Lebanon were excellent candidates.
PMH's programs will continue to grow over the year with plans for further community integration.
About Pioneer Memorial Hospital
Pioneer Memorial Hospital (PMH) in Prineville, Ore., has served the people of Crook County since June, of 1950. PMH is a 25-bed acute care, Critical Access Hospital and employs approximately 185 caregivers. PMH is a proud member of Cascade Healthcare Community, Inc. CHC is headquartered in Bend, Oregon. CHC also owns and operates the St. Charles medical centers in Bend and Redmond, and provides management services for Mountain View Hospital (MVH) in Madras. CHC is a private, not-for-profit Oregon corporation and is the largest employer in Central Oregon with more than 3,000 caregivers in Bend, Redmond and Prineville. In addition, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with CHC to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.
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