TCH takes steps to ward off H1N1 virus – Tahlequah Daily Press
TCH takes steps to ward off H1N1 virus
The hospital has also received acclaim in patient surveys.
By BETTY RIDGE
Press Special Writer
If you visit Tahlequah City Hospital very soon, you may notice some staff members wearing masks and gloves.
That’s not a cause for concern, Dr. John Galdamez told members of the TCH Board of Trustees during its September meeting Monday evening. The institution is following standards mandated by the Oklahoma State Department of Health to combat the H1N1 flu strain.
All health care providers who have contact with H1N1 patients are required to wear the gear as an infection control practice, Galdamez said.
“We will do that,” he said. “Sometimes some family members find that insulting, but the State Health Department has made that guideline clear.”
Galdamez said Cherokee County has been selected as one of the counties the State Health Department will use to gather statistics on the “swine flu” virus.
“The flu has certainly come to our area,” he said, although he did not mention any reported cases of the H1N1 virus.
Galdamez reported the average stay in the emergency room, from admission to discharge, is 2.3 hours – one of the best in the state. Only 1.2 percent of people discharged return to the emergency room for the same condition within 72 hours.
“Again, well below the national average, one of the best in the state,” he said.
He also told board members about new policies for reporting unusual lab results, for suture removal, and for snake bite treatment in the emergency room.
“Every summer, we wind up treating a number of snake bites in our emergency room, and some of them are from poisonous snakes,” he said.
A patient survey found 96 percent of patients were satisfied with the care they had received, he said.
Board members recognized the hospital staff for the results of a survey by Press, Ganey, a national corporation that performs surveys of more than half the hospitals in this country. TCH ranked high in overall patient satisfaction, and patients said they were “most likely to recommend” TCH for people needing care.
Board President Gary Harrington said he was especially pleased with the latter rating.
“One of our greatest selling points is word of mouth, and that’s wonderful to hear,” he said.
