Support Group Cancelled for Feb. 1

Grinnell Regional Medical Center’s Bariatric Support Group will cancel its regular meeting on Saturday, Feb. 1, due to the impending weather. Regular attendees should plan to attend the March 1 meeting.  

Manatt Family Urgent Care Open House – Feb. 6

Grinnell Regional Medical Center invites the public to an open house to show case the new Manatt Family Urgent Care on Thursday, Feb. 6. Guests are welcome from 5 to 7 p.m. The clinic staff will provide tours, information on defining urgent versus emergency conditions, and activities for kids. The Manatt Family Urgent Care is located immediately inside the front door of the Ahrens Medical Arts Building, 210 4^th Ave., Grinnell.

Urgent care is new to Poweshiek County residents so the open house allows residents to see the location, and talk with staff about appropriate conditions to come to the urgent care center, what to expect when you arrive, and payment process.

“We also invite parents to bring children to the open house so when the time comes to visit, this clinic isn’t new and different,” says Wendi Beck, PA-C. “The extended hours allow parents to bring their children before or after school or work and on weekends, when the primary care offices are not open. We’ll work with primary care providers to make the continuum of care as seamless as possible, yet meet the immediate medical needs of the individual.”

This new walk-in style clinic will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays. Providers in the clinic include Beck, and Heidi Powers, who will be an ARNP. Michelle Rebelsky, MD, and Roy Doorenbos, MD, will serve as supervising medical directors.

No appointment is necessary. Healthcare providers will take patients on a first come, first seen basis. For specific questions, call the Manatt Family Urgent Care office at 641-236-2378.

New Urgent Care Clinic Opens in Grinnell

Grinnell Regional Medical Center will open a new urgent care clinic on Thursday, Feb. 13.  Named after a major donor, the new Manatt Family Urgent Care is located on the first floor of the Ahrens Medical Arts Building, 210 4^th Ave., Grinnell.

Hours for the walk-in format clinic will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday. This allows individuals to receive medical attention when other medical clinics may not be open. Staffing the clinic will be Wendi Beck, PA-C, and Heidi Powers, ARNP, both current employees of GRMC who will shift into these new positions. The medical director will be Michelle Rebelsky, MD, who also practices in Grinnell Regional Family Practice.

Beck joined the GRMC medical staff in 2009, practicing at the former Grinnell Medical Associates and most recently the Victor Health Center. She graduated from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine with a physician assistant advanced degree. She completed a bachelor’s degree at Simpson College in biology. Beck is a familiar with GRMC, where she worked from January 2005 to April 2007 as a patient care tech in med/surg and nursing technician in ICU. She grew up in Brooklyn and graduated from BGM High School.

Powers joined the GRMC staff in 2000 after earning a nursing degree from Iowa Methodist School of Nursing. She completed her bachelor’s in nursing from Chamberlain University and completed her master’s degree in nursing to be a nurse practitioner from Clarkson College. As a member of the GRMC emergency team, she has completed advanced trauma certifications required for the emergency department.  Area residents may have also seen Powers as the nurse for Jeremy Vos, MD, visiting ENT specialist at GRMC. Powers grew up in Barnes City and graduated from Sigourney high school.

Rebelsky joined the medical staff in 1998 as a private practice primary care clinic. In 2011 she joined with Roy Doorenbos, MD, and Kristen Phelps, PA-C, to form Grinnell Regional Family Practice. She also services as the medical director for Deer Creek Family Care.

This urgent care clinic operates like an outpatient medical practice. For individuals with many insurance plans, the individual would pay their co-payment, like an office visit. Because insurance plans vary widely, individuals will want to contact their carriers to know their plan coverage, prior to needing the urgent care services. Payment is due at the time of service. Cash and credit cards are also accepted.

Urgent care provides medical care outside of a hospital emergency, on an unscheduled, walk-in basis. The urgent care clinic treats injury and illness that require immediate care but are not serious enough to warrant a visit to the emergency department. Conditions that might require urgent care include allergies and asthma; bruises, cuts, scratches, and minor burns; cold or flu, cough, or sore throat; ear and eye infections; rashes or minor swelling; headaches; sinus pain; and sprains and other muscle and joint sprains.

“The urgent care clinic does not take the place of your primary care physician but works in cooperation with your physician or primary care provider,” Beck says. “We know that some residents do not have a primary-care provider so when an urgent needs arises, they may not have a medical home to contact. We can bridge that gap in care.”

The Manatt Family Urgent Care is made possible by a donation from Manatts, Inc., of Brooklyn and the Manatt family. One reason the Manatt family made this gift is because family members see a need for quality healthcare being available outside normal business hours.

“The idea of this clinic is dear to us because our employees work long, odd hours. We want to make sure there is a facility available to them to get the care they need during off-business hours,” says Brian Manatt, president of Manatts, Inc., a diversified construction company specializing in asphalt paving, concrete paving, and ready-mix concrete.

GRMC will host an open house for the Manatt Family Urgent Care prior to its opening. The public is invited to tour the space on Thursday, Feb. 6, from 5 to 7 p.m. To contact the clinic for information, call 641-236-2378.

Live Healthy Iowa Challenge

It’s competition time! Live Healthy Iowa will host its 10-week Wellness Challenge that kicks off on January 27.

Poweshiek County has been challenged to increase its participation rate by 10% in the Live Healthy Iowa program. This year all teams from Poweshiek County will be entered in a drawing for free chair massages for the entire team. You and your friends could make a team and win a chair massage.

The adult 10-Week Wellness Challenge  encourages Iowans to team up with 2-10 with friends, family or co-workers, commit to making healthy lifestyle choices, support each other and track their progress on their personal dashboard. New in 2014, challenge participants will have the ability to sync their favorite mobile apps and devices with their Live Healthy Iowa dashboard, create specialized, detailed fitness plans to meet their goals, experience updated tracking features in your ‘myProgress’ tab  and receive half price registration for one of 14 statewide Live Healthy Iowa 5K events held on April 12, 2014.

For $20 per team member, each participant will receive an official 10-Week Wellness Challenge t-shirt, a one-year monthly subscription to a magazine of your choice including Fitness, Men’s Health, Every Day with Rachel Ray, and 8 other popular covers, exclusive discounts at businesses in your area, and chances to win a four night tropical cruise for two, gift cards, bikes, fitness shoes plus other great prizes!

Challenge participants will have unlimited access to an abundance of wellness resources on Live Healthy Iowa’s website such as healthy recipes, workouts and a personal tracking page where they can track their progress, message teammates, set goals and much more. 

All teams from Poweshiek County will be eligible for a drawing to win free chair massages for all members of their team. Simply contact Poweshiek County’s Community Transformation Grant office in Grinnell Regional Public Health, 641-236-2385. Let the office know your team name, number of participants, and contact information.

Participation is simple and the benefits are great. Here’s what we mean.

• Form your team of 2-10 people – family, friends, and co-workers – who want to improve their health and have fun.

• Choose a team name and captain.

• Register your team at http://www.livehealthyiowa.org/aspx/Public/Page.aspx?pid=13658

• Pay the $20 fee per member.

•Begin competing in a web-based tracking weight loss and/or activity minutes for 10 weeks. The program runs January 27 – April 4, 2014. Research shows that people can change habits after 21 days. 

With a 10-week challenge, you could make significant and life-long healthy changes in your life.

Would your community, business, or organization like to participate in Live Healthy Iowa’s 10 Week Wellness Challenge? Contact info@livehealthyiowa.org today for your group ID!

Healthcare Legislative Day Scheduled for February

The Grinnell Regional Medical Center Auxiliary invites the public to participate in the annual Iowa Hospital Association’s Legislative Day, scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 26. Legislative Day allows area residents to be healthcare advocates about the government’s role in healthcare policy and funding. This is especially of interest as healthcare reform is being implemented on the state and federal levels.

Legislative Day begins with lunch and program at the Veterans Memorial Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center Ballroom. The GRMC Auxiliary has reserved a motorcoach to transport area residents to Des Moines. The coach will leave Grinnell at 10 a.m. The event is sponsored by the GRMC Auxiliary without charge to participants.

Dean Borg, political correspondent for Iowa Public Radio and host of Iowa Public Television program, “Iowa Press” will be the keynote speaker.

Greg Boattenhamer, IHA government relations senior vice president, will discuss the 2014 legislative agenda. Kirk Norris, IHA president and CEO also provides an overview and message to the assembled crowd.

Another highlight of the day is meeting with legislators representing the Poweshiek County area. Plans are in the works to meet with State Representative Dave Maxwell and State Senator Tim Kapucian.  

“Legislative Day provides a great opportunity to learn about healthcare policy, particularly at the state level,” says Shannon Reding, GRMC Auxiliary president. “The Auxiliary feels strongly about this event and we encourage anyone who is interested in learning more about healthcare policy or just to represent GRMC to our legislators to attend.”

To sign up for this free event, please call the GRMC volunteer office at 641-236-2588, or email at kolson@grmc.us, by Wednesday, Feb. 5. 

Legislative Day is the largest annual gathering of healthcare advocates during the year, with more than 1,000 in attendance. The event, sponsored by Iowa Hospital Association, is free to all hospital supporters across the state. The purpose of Legislative Day is to give hospital advocates the tools and skills needed to directly address issues facing Iowa hospitals, healthcare providers, and citizens with their legislators at the Iowa Statehouse. Grinnell Regional Medical Center has been a leader in this program with more than 30 participants attending in recent years.

“It is a particularly interesting time to be in healthcare,” explains Todd Linden, GRMC president and CEO. “Historic healthcare policy and funding reforms are being implemented right now and Legislative Day provides a great opportunity for community members to learn more about what’s going on.” 

The IHA provides legislative papers explaining current healthcare topics. Issues under consideration include healthcare reform implementation, the Medicaid State Innovation Model, and behavioral health redesign.