Ashland Memorial Medical Center Improves Patient Safety And Admission Processes

The winters in northwestern Wisconsin are long and hard; but while many of us might simply hibernate and wait for spring, there’s something about surviving—even thriving—in such an environment that brings out the best "can do" spirit in Wisconsin’s residents. It’s the same sort of approach operating at Memorial Medical Center (MMC) of Ashland and Hayward Area Memorial Hospital, two facilities of Regional Enterprises, Inc. Memorial Medical Center is a 100-bed acute care hospital offering a wide range of medical/surgical services and emergency care. Hayward Hospital, a 50-bed facility some forty miles to the southwest, offers hospital and skilled nursing home facilities. Both locations serve counties in rural Wisconsin and Michigan. But don’t let geography fool you. These oases of healthcare are employing cutting edge technology to ensure patient safety and quality of care. And FormFast, Inc. is helping them achieve their goals.

According to Todd Reynolds, Director of Information Systems and Chief Information Officer at Ashland, Ashland and Hayward wanted to improve their processes for patient safety. Patti Patefield, R.N., Clinical Systems Analyst, and former Director of Nursing at Hayward, adds, "We wanted to give our patients name bands as soon as they walked in the door. And we wanted to have their correct medical information immediately available." As it turned out, addressing these two crucial issues has also yielded time and cost savings at both facilities.