| Hospitals
awarded $100,000
Clearwater Valley and St. Mary’s Hospitals and Clinics have been chosen from hundreds of programs nation-wide to honor their creative efforts to improve health. They are the national winners of the 23rd annual Monroe E. Trout Premier Cares Award. The award recognizes the hospitals’ programs to provide mental health services to a remote population of at-risk patients. The two hospitals received a total of $100,000. Clearwater Valley Hospital and Clinics in Orofino and St. Mary’s Hospital in Cottonwood learned patients had great difficulty accessing psychiatric services. Some patients were driving for many hours, to Coeur d'Alene or Boise, to seek care. The hospitals partnered with Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center to deliver adult and child psychiatry specialty services using teleconferencing. . Patients travel only to their local doctor’s offices in Orofino and Cottonwood to see a psychiatrist hundreds of miles away. Psychiatrists treating patients as part of this program work closely with local doctors to ensure that care is coordinated. They are able to chart directly into the electronic medical record at local clinics, ensuring continuity of care despite the distance. Cost of care for those enrolled in the program has decreased by more than half. The program has received state and national recognition for its excellence and the care it is providing an at-risk population. “It was an absolute honor to be a finalist for this award, let alone be the winner!” commented Lenne Bonner, Chief Administrative Officer for Clearwater Valley Hospital “I am so proud of our facilities and teams that are doing the work to continue to build and improve our telepsychiatry program.” Sponsored by Premier and its member hospitals, the Cares Award recognizes exemplary efforts by not-for-profit community organizations to improve the health of populations in need. A panel of national healthcare leaders selects the Premier Cares Award winner and five finalists, all of which receive cash awards for use in further improving their programs. The Cares Award program spotlights these community-based healthcare initiatives and helps other organizations learn to replicate the unique programs by featuring information about them on the Cares Award website. “One of the benefits of this award is a video featuring one of our patients-Christopher Minard,” stated Pam McBride, Chief Grants and Strategy Officer for CVHC and SMH.“Christopher is a remarkable young man, and his great success story demonstrates what a difference this program can make. We hope his willingness to tell his story will encourage other people to get the help they need, other health systems to consider offering this type of program, and insurance companies, Medicare, and Medicaid to pay for more of these types of services.” To view the video, go to www.smh-cvhc.org- video-Telepsychiatry wins Premier Cares Award 2015 “Our Cares Award program honors six outstanding organizations that are helping to care fora medically underserved population in their community,” said Susan DeVore, Premier’s president and CEO. “Through its innovative program to help at-risk patients, this year’s top Cares Award recipient - Clearwater Valley and St. Mary's Hospitals and Clinics - are making a true impact on providing care for those with mental health needs.”Representatives from CVHC and SMH received the Cares Award during Premier’s annual Governance Education Conference, February 23-25. Premier has presented the Cares Award annually since 1991, when it was created by Dr. Monroe E. Trout, former CEO of American Healthcare Systems, one of Premier’s heritage organizations. The program has provided more than $3 million to more than 100 organizations nationwide. The Cares Award winner receives a cash prize of $100,000, while five runners-up receive $24,000 each. The competition is open to not-for-profit organizations that have been in existence for more than two years, are providing creative solutions to health status improvement, can provide documentation of outcomes and impact on a specific population, and have programs that can be replicated in other communities. Clearwater Valley and St. Mary's Hospitals and Clinics have doctors’ offices in Cottonwood, Orofino, Kamiah, Kooskia, Craigmont, Pierce, Nezperce, Grangeville, and Elk River. Both hospitals provide a variety of services including but not limited to; OB Care with C-Section coverage, general surgical services, endoscopic procedures, on-site radiology services and physical therapy. In addition to the telepsychiatry program, several other areas of service are provided through telehealth; cardiology, emergency department, stroke and ICU support, and telepharmacy. 
Clearwater Valley and St. Mary’s Hospitals and Clinics receive the national Premier Cares award for their telepsychiatry program. Pictured left to right: Alan Yordy-Board Member for Premier, Dan Davis-Hospital Board Chairman for Clearwater Valley and St. Mary’s Hospitals, Lennie Bonner-Chief Administrative Officer for Clearwater Valley Hospital, Dr. Kelly McGrath-Chief Medical Officer forClearwater Valley Hospital and Susan DeVore-CEO for Premier. |
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