Community leaders and hospital personnel gathered April 5 to unveil the new Heritage Building on the Wamego Health Center campus.

The Heritage Building houses the area’s only senior behavioral health service and serves the Wamego and surrounding communities.

“When we started this project, a lot of community members came and asked me what was going in this building,” said Steve Land, Wamego Health Center administrator.

“As we go through any phase of life we go through different health issues, including emotional and mental issues,” he continued. “Not every community has this type of program. We are extremely blessed to have this our team of providers here.”

Wamego’s senior behavioral health program cares for only Medicaid patients, according to Bob Copple, Via Christi Hospital in Manhattan president.

“Geriatric behavioral health is few and far between in Kansas,” he said. “There’s a huge shortage and we don’t have enough resources in our state.”

The senior behavioral health program moved from Manhattan to Wamego several years ago, Copple added.

“That was a way to protect a program, support it and allow it to continue,” he said. “It’s important for people to realize that this is a key service. We are serving our region and we should be proud of that.”

“One of the great things about this program is we actually have the funding to transport patients here for care,” Copple explained, adding that the new building brings in a home-like feel to patients because the environment where a person is being treated matters.

Wamego Health Center was recognized by Professional Research Consultants, a third-party organization that gathers patient satisfaction data, for earning a five-star rating in nine categories.

The categories include:

• Inpatient Services – Communication with Doctors
• Inpatient Services – Discharge Information
• Inpatient Services – Overall Rating
• Inpatient Services – Communication about Medications
• Inpatient Services – Communication with Nurses
• Inpatient Services – Hospital Environment
• Inpatient Services – Responsiveness of Staff
• Emergency Department Services – Overall Quality of Care

“This achievement can be attributed to our team’s dedication to compassionate care that is individualized for each of our patients,” said Steve Land, WHC administrator. “We are a small town hospital and we care for our friends, families and neighbors every day.”

“From the leadership team to our associates in direct patient care roles to our hospitality and environmental teams, we are engaged and focused on providing excellent patient care,” he continued.

Ryan Jackson, RN, was one of 32 nurses from across the state to complete the Kansas Hospital Association Leadership Institute last month. He works in Wamego Health Center’s cardiac rehabilitation department and serves as the hospital’s risk manager,

The program took place in Wichita and spanned from July through September, and aims at training clinical and nonclinical leaders who work at Kansas hospitals.

“The students represented a variety of departments – staff nurses, radiology techs on up to chief financial officers from very small critical access hospitals to larger 500+ bed organizations,” Jackson explained.

“We had a variety of instructors from a variety of industries who all had decades of experience,” he added. “The training consisted of simple, straightforward lectures, but there were also group, team-building exercises. Most lectures and exercises addressed customer service and conflict management as well as a myriad of other subjects.”

Jackson said much of what he learned will be useful in his role in risk management and customer service – helping patients resolve any issue or concerns they may have with their care, billing or other needs.

“I’ve been a registered nurse for more than 28 years, working in mostly high-acuity areas such as the Intensive Care Unit, Emergency Department and Cardiac Catheterization Lab, but I’ve also worked as a director in Cardiovascular Services and Emergency Department, as well as Research and Data Collections,” he said.

Since he arrived at Wamego Health Center in 2015, he has helped the cardiac rehabilitation department grow while also serving as risk manager. Jackson recently started a home sleep study program that has also been successful.

When you or a family member is feeling unwell, how do you know where to go for treatment?

Stacia Brown, RN, Wamego Family Clinic manager, offers a few tips to help you decide whether to visit the Wamego Family Clinic’s walk-in services or if you need to go to the Emergency Room.

When to Use Walk-in Services

For non-life threatening circumstances including but not limited to:

• Colds
• Flu symptoms
• Cough or upper respiratory symptoms
• Ear or sinus pain
• Minor burns and bruises
• Scrapes and minor lacerations
• Sprains
• Possible fractures
• Asthma
• Pediatric illness over age of 3 months
• Abdominal pain – mild to moderate without fever or abnormal vitals
• Rash or hives
• Stings and bites
• Allergies
• Fevers – ages 3 months to 70 years old
• Headaches
• Vomiting
• Eye irritation or minor
• Urinary symptoms
• Minor work related injuries
• School physicals

Will it be a long wait?

It depends, and we’ll do our best to help you quickly. Typical waits are 15 minutes to 1 hour.  You can check the wait times before you go or when you arrive.

Who will I see at the Walk-in Clinic?

You’ll see one of our healthcare providers: a medical doctor, a nurse practitioner, a physician’s assistant.  They work together and each one is committed to making lives better through health and healing and doing what is right for each patient.

Is it going to be expensive?

Check with your health insurance plan for details and co-pay amounts. Our walk-in services are billed as an office visit, not billed as ER care.  You are expected to pay your co-pay or $50 at the time of your appointment and will be sent a statement for the balance due, following insurance response.

I don’t have a primary care provider. Does it matter?

You can utilize our Walk-in Services for circumstances listed above whether you have a PCP or not. If you don’t have a PCP, we think it is important to find one.  For the best health, establish a relationship with a Primary Care Provider for annual visits, follow-up care, and to manage your health conditions.

When to Schedule an appointment with Primary Care Provider or covering provider

You can always request to schedule an appointment with your Primary Care Provider. There may be a wait time before your PCP has an available opening so plan ahead and request an appointment several days in advance.

• Medication management and refills
• Treatment/Plan of care for known diagnoses and conditions
• Mental health
• Referrals needed
• Yearly or routine physical exams
• KDOT Physicals
• Pre-operative physical exam

When to Use Emergency Care or call 911 from home

• Severe trauma or injury
• Chest pain (suspected heart attack or stroke)
• Amputation of limbs or deep wounds with severe bleeding
• Sudden confusion, weakness, dizziness, numbness, severe headache
• Difficulty speaking or breathing
• Head injury
• Motor vehicle accident
• Loss of Consciousness
• New onset of Seizures
• Major burns involving the face, dorsal surface of hands, fingers, large areas of the body
• Vomiting blood
• Smoke or chemical inhalation
• Poisoning, overdoses
• Suicidal behavior
• Physical or sexual assault
• Pregnancy complications over 20 weeks including labor, bleeding, fluid leakage, decreased fetal movement
• Abdominal pain – Severe or if it includes fever or abnormal vital signs
• Pediatric illnesses – when infant is less than 3 months of age
• Post-operative complications
• Foreign object in eye

After years of planning and fundraising, Wamego residents finally witnessed the first step toward Wamego Health Center’s first upgrade in more than a decade.

The $10.8 million construction project, funded by Ascension Health and local donors through the Wamego Community Health Foundation, will improve the appearance, flow and functionality of the facility’s outpatient services and provide additional safety measures for staff and patients.

“I want to acknowledge our amazing staff,” said Steve Land, Wamego Health Center administrator. “These dedicated employees are the heart of WHC and the proud tradition our community has come to expect. Without their demand for excellence and growth, this expansion would not have been possible or necessary.”

“The dirt-turners we have today represent so many businesses and individuals in our community who have contributed to our success,” Land said. “We could probably line up 100 shovels with the amount of work it’s taken to get to this spot.”

Dwight Faulkner, president of the Wamego Hospital Association and vice president of Bank of the Flint Hills, thanked the donors and volunteers who contributed to the project.

“This is a great day for our community,” Faulkner said. “We’re blessed to have such a wonderful community in Wamego, we’re blessed to have such a wonderful staff at Wamego Health Center and we’re blessed to have such a great partnership with the city of Wamego, Via Christi and Ascension Health.”

 

Local donors included:

• Ascension and Via Christi Health
• The White Family & Bank of the Flint Hills
• An anonymous donor in honor of Pinky Barker
• International Organization of Odd Fellows No. 80
• Kaw Valley State Banks
• WTC
• Bennington State Bank
• Rob & Jan Eichman & Midwest Concrete Materials
• Don & Shawn Coleman & Tri County Insurance
• Central Mechanical Construction
• CoBank

              

Beginning in late summer, Wamego Health Center will break ground on its first construction project in roughly 10 years. From the front entryway to the emergency room to the surgery and laboratory departments, the outpatient care departments will receive a face lift, new safety features and equipment, and renovations to help us better care for you, our community members.

We understand that there might be some headaches when it comes to navigating around a construction area or finding a parking spot close to the entrance, but rest assured, we will all benefit from this yearlong project and we will do our best to accommodate your needs and listen to your concerns.

Please take a moment to view our master site expansion video here:

“There’s a certain anxiety that overcomes you when you have a sick child and you don’t know what to do to help them.”

Laura was home with her young son, who had been sick for a few weeks, when he suddenly started having trouble breathing. With Andrew away at work, she drove her family to Wamego Health Center’s Emergency Room by herself. After looking at [son’s name], the doctors and nurses determined he needed more than they could provide, and sent him on to Children’s Mercy Kansas City.

 

“One of the nurses came and put her arm around me . . . she gave me the strength to keep going.”

Steve Land, who for the past four years has served as director of rehabilitation for Wamego Health Center, has been named as its senior administrator.

“I am extremely excited to be a part of such a wonderful organization as the opportunities that we have within our community are exciting and growing,” said Land. “Our organization has such a great history, and I am grateful to be involved in its future and the development to come.”

Land, who will assume his new position on Sept. 11, has more than 18 years’ experience as a licensed physical therapist. During his time as director, he oversaw Wamego Health Center’s physical, occupational, speech therapy, cardiac rehabilitation and the organization’s Heritage program for seniors.

Wamego Health Center is a 25-bed critical access hospital located in the heart of Wamego and provides care to the residents of Pottawatomie and surrounding counties. Wamego Health Center is owned in part and managed by Via Christi Health, a member of Ascension, the nation’s largest Catholic and nonprofit health system.