Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital ~ New Medical Office Plaza

Press Release ...
Jan. 15, 2002

NNRH 2001 State of the Hospital Report

ELKO, NEVADA, January 15, 2002 – Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital (NNRH) began 2002 with an annual Report Card to the Community summarizing the hospital’s role in 2001, not only as a regional acute care hospital, but as a viable business that contributes to the local economy as a leader in community development.

“As we begin 2002 at NNRH, we’d like to take a moment to say that it has been our honor to care for our neighbors here in the Great Basin,” said Jim Seward, NNRH Interim Chief Executive Officer. “In 2001, we cared for 2,706 patients in our hospital for a total of 7,950 patient days and approximately 15,000 patients were treated in our Emergency Department.”

“We are here because of all of you and it is an honor to be “The Hospital” of northeastern Nevada.”

The 2001 economic impact that NNRH has made to the regional economy includes, first and foremost, the opening of a new $39 million hospital and medical office plaza at 2001 Errecart Boulevard in September. Along with the completion of this major construction project, NNRH paid $12.4 million in payroll to 263 employees last year. In addition, approximately $2.3 million was spent by the hospital with local vendors who provided services ranging from construction of the new hospital at 2001 Errecart Boulevard to services for the four-day Grand Opening events held in September. NNRH also paid approximately $3.5 million in income tax in 2001 and approximately $144,579. to Elko County for property taxes.

A very important part of providing healthcare services is having modern, state-of-the-art medical equipment for physicians and patients. NNRH invested a monumental $7 million last year on a variety of purchases that included $5 million that was part of the $30 million hospital construction. The medical equipment purchases made last year included a $79,932. mammography machine; a $368,469. nuclear medicine dual head gamma camera that allows for heart imaging with stress testing; and a $1.2 million GE MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machine that allows for advanced diagnostic imaging procedures previously unavailable such as imaging of the vascular system and detailed imaging of the temporal mandibular joint in the jaw. Additional MRI attachments were also purchased such as a breast coil to provide for advanced procedures such as breast imaging to view and locate abnormalities and a wrist coil that allows for a closer look and more details of the wrist area.

“I am excited about our Diagnostic Imaging Department,” said Mary Doucette, NNRH Radiology Director. “With all of the new equipment additions, we can offer many services to the community that were only available out of town before now.”

A major equipment investment to improve the delivery of care to hospital patients involved the purchase and installation of the Marquette Telemetry Unit, an extensive patient monitoring system. This system, which cost over a half a million dollars, allows for nursing staff to monitor the heart rate and rhythm of a patient from various locations of the hospital such as the Emergency Department, the Radiology Department and Surgery.

On the community outreach front, NNRH also provided approximately $3.1 million in charity and uncompensated care to patients last year and provided $125,000. to local non-profit healthcare agencies. Approximately $22,000. was donated to Horizon Hospice of Elko to pay for office space rental. Also NNRH encourages all department directors and employees to give of their own time to service groups and organizations, as well.

“We made a commitment to the Elko County Commissioners 4 years ago to build a $30 million healthcare facility with state-of-the-art equipment that would create more opportunities for the citizens of this region to receive medical care without traveling many miles out of town,” said Tom Salerno, Province Regional Vice President. “With the opening of Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital in 2001, we have fulfilled our commitment to developing a firm healthcare foundation for the communities we serve to build on and we look forward to the future as a leader in regional healthcare.”

The new Marquette patient monitoring system allows for instant monitoring of patients in the Intensive Care Unit from several locations in the hospital. Pictured from left viewing the new system are ICU Nurse Lori Ayala, Telemetry Technician Lynda Ricker and Chip Bridges, Repiratory Therapy Aide.

Bruce Jonas, Diagnostic Imaging Tech, is pictured above preparing the new $1.2 million MRI for another patient procedure utilizing a head coil.

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