Bartlett Regional | House Calls | Summer 2019

www.bartletthospital.org 7 WATCH AND LEARN To see hands-only CPR in action, visit the AHA at www.heart.org/ handsonlycpr . Bartlett Regional Hospital and Airlift Northwest fund trauma trainings When people in smaller Southeast communities experience sudden injury or illness known as trauma, they may need to be stabilized and kept safe before they can be flown to Juneau, Anchorage or Seattle for treatment. Health care providers in communities like Petersburg—population 3,000—need training to best provide trauma care. That’s where Bartlett Clinical Program Specialist Jenny Twito, RN, comes in. “They have limited resources,” says Jenny. “They have the same access problems that we have in getting trauma patients out of here. They have to be able to manage trauma patients hours or days until they can get to a higher level of care.” To help with that need, Jenny brings her years of experience in the Bartlett Emergency Department and Critical Care Unit to communities like Haines, Sitka and Petersburg. Along with a flight nurse from Airlift Northwest, she teaches the Trauma Nurse Core Course (TNCC). It consists of information, critical thinking skills and hands-on training for dealing with trauma patients. In May, they taught the course at Petersburg Medical Center, a critical access hospital with 12 acute care/swing beds. It has 24-hour emergency care and is staffed by four family practice physicians and nurses who work on call. After taking the TNCC, nurses can systematically assess the trauma patient, intervene and/or assist with interventions, and provide evidence-based trauma nursing care as part of a trauma team. Bartlett Regional Hospital and Airlift Northwest both contributed labor costs for both instructors. The Alaska Chapter of the Emergency Nursing Association also contributed greatly with a grant to help cover the cost of books and study materials. Obstetrics professionals from around the region—including Bartlett Regional Hospital nurses, practitioners from local clinics, flight nurses, midwives from the birth center, and nurses from PeaceHealth in Ketchikan and SEARHC hospital in Sitka—now hold specialty certifications for labor and delivery. In mid-March, generous grants from the Crossett and the Bartlett foundations paid for a three-day inpatient obstetrics course taught by Cindy Parke, RNC, CNM, MSN, from Ohio. “It’s kind of a big deal,” says Bartlett Beginnings nurse Anjela Johnston, RNC, who spearheaded the organization of the course. The course was much more than just test preparation. “She had the latest science, but she also talked about the heart and soul of labor and delivery nursing,” says Anjela. Extra thanks for extra certification No need to go far Usually such courses are only available outside Alaska and cost upwards of a thousand dollars, including travel. Bartlett staff development and education offered the courses free of charge, thanks to the grants. Another bonus: Attendees earned more than half the continuing medical education (CME) hours they are required to complete every two years, and they were able to connect with peers from other parts of Southeast Alaska. “We have things in common, and we can make it better for all of us if we have opportunities to come together,” Anjela says.