MOHALL The administrator of the Good Samaritan Society-Mohall has passed away.
According to an announcement made on the center's website on Jan. 23, Kelly Vig, a cancer patient for many years, died on Jan. 22 at the age of 51.
Vig began working at the center in 1979 as a personal care attendant. She worked in restorative therapy, and then as a nursing assistant before she took the training required to become a licensed practical nurse. She served as interim administrator before being named administrator in 2007.
Funeral services were held in Mohall on Jan. 28.
-----------------------------
Rolla hospital first to benefit from program
ROLLA -- The Presentation Medical Center here has been the first to benefit from an incentive program regarding the conversion to electronic health records.
According to a press release from the North Dakota Department of Human Services, Presentation received state Medicaid incentive funds totalling $498,500 from the department to defray expenses for implementing electronic health records software.
"An electronic health record system can cost a medical facility over $1 million to implement," said Michael Pfeifer, chief executive officer of Presentation Medical Center. "This incentive payment will help our organization offset some of the costs so we can continue to provide quality care to the patients we serve."
The Medicaid Electronic Health Records Incentive Payment Program provides payments to eligible hospitals and medical professionals to enable them to implement electronic health records and move toward electronic health information exchange that may improve care for all North Dakotans, the press release states.
"Electronic health records benefit the patient by making their medical information available so it can be shared in real-time regardless of where the patient goes for care," said Nancy Willis, Medicaid Systems Operations and Health Information Technology director. "It helps the patient's provider coordinate care with other providers involved in the patient's care to ensure they receive high quality care. We congratulate Presentation Medical Center for investing these dollars on technology that helps improve patient care."
Prior to receiving the funding, Presentation Medical Center also sought and received a low interest loan through the Bank of North Dakota to help pay for electronic health record implementation, planning, and software installation. The North Dakota/Minnesota Regional Extension Center for Health Information Technology provided consulting services to the rural medical center for this work.
In 2010, the N.D. Department of Human Services, which administers the Medicaid Program, agreed to participate in the incentive program.