Rural Hospitals Aim to Keep Services Close to Home
Norton County Hospital is a 25-bed critical access hospital, Level IV trauma center, and has an outpatient and specialty clinic and rural health clinic. It is located in rural northwest Kansas. Specific to the outpatient and specialty clinic, the hospital aims to keep care close to home for patients but offering a variety of services and bringing specialists in monthly for clinics. Some on-site physicians and specialists perform surgeries as well.
Featured Speaker:
Jennifer's first job out of college was at the Good Samaritan nursing home in Oberlin. She began working at Norton County Hospital on April 19, 1999, as a floor nurse on nights and evenings and doing OB nursing. She moved to working at the medical clinic in 2003 when her daughter was born and worked there for 17 years until taking the position of Outpatient Clinic Services Manager.
Jennifer Schoenberger, RN
Jennifer Schoenberger, RN, was born in and raised in eastern Colorado and enjoyed growing up on her family farm. She is the oldest of four children. Her younger sister was born with cerebral palsy. Jennifer's love and passion for taking care of people began by taking care of her sister, and she always knew she wanted to be a nurse. She worked at an assisted living facility as an aid in high school and on breaks from college. She graduated high school in 1995 and received her associate's degree in nursing from Colby Community College in 1997.Jennifer's first job out of college was at the Good Samaritan nursing home in Oberlin. She began working at Norton County Hospital on April 19, 1999, as a floor nurse on nights and evenings and doing OB nursing. She moved to working at the medical clinic in 2003 when her daughter was born and worked there for 17 years until taking the position of Outpatient Clinic Services Manager.
Transcription:
Rural Hospitals Aim to Keep Services Close to Home
Joey Wahler (Host): Well ,ever wonder about the extent of what's offered at a local rural hospital? Many rural hospitals like Norton County Hospital in Northwest Kansas work to provide a variety of services and specialty healthcare locally to reduce travel stressors and offer convenience to patients. So we're discussing Norton County Hospital's lesser known outpatient services.
From the Plains of rural Northwest Kansas to you, this is Health in the Heartland presented by Norton County Hospital, where medical experts aim to empower health at any stage of life. I am Joey Wahler. Our guest Jennifer Schoenberger, a registered nurse and outpatient clinic services manager at Norton County Hospital. Jennifer, thanks for joining us.
Jennifer Schoenberger: Thank you for having me.
Joey Wahler (Host): So let's start with this, what are generally speaking some of the outpatient services offered at Norton County Hospital?
Jennifer Schoenberger: We offer wound care. We offer specialty clinic infusions. I have two registered nurses that are able to insert PICC lines. We can do COVID infusions. We also have our variety of specialty clinic doctors that come in.
Joey Wahler (Host): And when you say specialty clinic doctors, what do they offer?
Jennifer Schoenberger: We have five cardiologists that come in. I have dermatology, I have general surgery. I have a nephrologist, which is a kidney doctor. I have a neuro spine doctor, one OB GYN that comes in, a podiatrist, which is a foot doctor; pulmonology, which is lung, and a urologist.
Joey Wahler (Host): It seems to cover a lot of ground. Now, some of Norton County Hospital Specialists also do onsite surgery. Tell us more about.
Jennifer Schoenberger: Correct. Our podiatrists does onsite surgery, general surgery does, and our OB GYN also does onsite surgery here.
Joey Wahler (Host): So, what are some of the challenges as a rural hospital, including just what this will hopefully help with, Jennifer, getting the word out about what's available?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Some of the challenges would be where we're located and ideally hoping to get more providers here; getting patients here, if they're unable to travel, weather restrictions and stuff like that. We do use telemedicine. We have had to do that a couple of times. With bad weather and providers that weren't able to get here because of that, we've done telemedicine appointments also when they weren't able to travel because of bad weather.
Joey Wahler (Host): Well, you led me into my next question, Jennifer, because you mentioned telehealth. Obviously, that's become much bigger all over it seems because of the pandemic. So being able to offer that to your patients, how much has that helped?
Jennifer Schoenberger: That helps a lot. We use that for oncology, as we do not have oncology that comes here right now. So we have a lot of patients who do telemed oncology appointments. But we are looking into getting an oncologist that is going to be coming in-house in the near future.
Joey Wahler (Host): How about any upcoming or new services you want to highlight?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Besides the oncology, one of our family practice doctors is starting to do vasectomies, which we have not had in-house since our last family practice general surgeon that we had in-house was doing. So now, Dr. Gaede is now doing vasectomy. So that is something new that we are offering to patients.
Joey Wahler (Host): So have you yourself worked in a medical facility other than in a rural area? I'm curious.
Jennifer Schoenberger: No, I have actually worked at Norton County Hospital since 1999.
Joey Wahler (Host): Wow. Okay. So you've got some longevity there to say the least. So what would you say though, just from what you know about being in this industry, what would you say is maybe an advantage or a plus that a hospital in an area like yours offers that may be in a metropolis isn't available or isn't quite the same?
Jennifer Schoenberger: One of the things small towns offer is that we get to know our patients more on a one-on-one basis. You know who patients are, you know their families and you get that one-on-one rapport with them, which you don't get in a big area because in a big hospital, you're more of a number; where here, you're more of a person, kind of you almost take them in as your family, because you get to know them so well. So I feel with a small hospital, you just have a closer bond with your patients than you do in a big hospital.
Joey Wahler (Host): Well, that's great to hear because so many of us that go to a hospital or go to the doctor, even know that oftentimes you feel like you're being rushed almost seems sometimes like several people are being seen at once. Doctors or nurses kind of running back and forth between patients. I guess it's more low key where you are, and that makes people feel more comfortable right?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Yes.
Joey Wahler (Host): How about an emergency room visit? I would imagine that the wait wouldn't be what it would be if you were in a big city or a much larger area, right?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Correct. Yes.
Joey Wahler (Host): And that too, that relieves a lot of stress, doesn't it? Talk about how that really takes a lot of the mental anguish away from a patient, whether they're there for something serious or not, just to know that, you know, they're in a situation where the visit itself isn't going to add to their stress load.
Jennifer Schoenberger: Exactly. Yes. They'll have less stress, because they're getting more one-on-one care, quicker one-on-one care by being at a small
Joey Wahler (Host): How have you seen the outpatient services grow during your 20 some odd years there? How about that?
Jennifer Schoenberger: I would say just getting more doctors in. At first, you know, there was just a few outpatient doctors, but there's more specialists doing outpatient clinics and coming to outpatient services. So it's making it to where patients don't have to travel out of town. And so the convenience of it is much better for the patient cause they're able to stay close to home to see their doctor and they don't have to travel, which a lot of them are unable to travel or they don't have family around to make it to where they can take them to an out-of-town appointment. So it's really helped that we are getting more doctors that come here.
Joey Wahler (Host): Yeah, because if you're not feeling well or you need to see a particular kind of specialist, let's say, and you know that you're going to have to hop in the car and have a long trip just to get there and back, of course, that's another stressor that can be relieved by coming to you guys, right?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Exactly.
Joey Wahler (Host): So switching gears. COVID-19, Jennifer. Obviously, it's discouraged many people from not seeking the care they need because they're cooped up at home for one reason or another, especially being a rural hospital, what would you tell people like that about the importance of coming to see you guys, even with what's going on around them?
Jennifer Schoenberger: We've tried to encourage him that we wear masks, to have them wear a mask and we're going to keep them protected as best they can with COVID. We have had patients that have skipped their care because they were scared to come in. And we've tried to just encourage them not to do that, that they still need to see their specialists even with COVID. We did see a little halt in some of the patient appointments right when COVID was so rampant, but it is getting better as far as patients coming back in more regularly.
Joey Wahler (Host): And then I guess one thing that's been a little bit overlooked, it seems to me, Jennifer, during the pandemic in terms of care, is there's so much focus on people that have COVID and, of course, rightfully so, but you've got a hospital to run there, to deal with so many other conditions that have nothing to do with COVID and often one gets in the way of the other. So how much of a challenge has that been to offer people what they need that don't have COVID when you're trying to deal with COVID at the same time?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Yeah. That has been difficult too, to have the room and the space, which we've had that problem with the guys that do the outpatient infusions, just having a space for them to use to give their medications and stuff when we were having a lot of inpatients with COVID, because we kind of have to share some of the same rooms. And so we did have some of that, you know, just finding the room and the space when the hospital was full with COVID to be able to do the other patients that we needed to take care of.
Joey Wahler (Host): So in summation here in closing, as someone who's been there long enough as we've discussed that you're familiar with all the different offerings, what would you say to somebody in terms of just a main message that you want them to take away from this conversation in terms of what you want them to keep in mind when deciding whether to come and pay you a visit?
Jennifer Schoenberger: That they can basically get pretty much any of their specialty services that they would need here at Norton County Hospital. And it would save them from having to travel out of town to meet their specialty service needs.
Joey Wahler (Host): Gotcha. Well, there you have it folks. Despite being in a rural area, Norton County Hospital obviously has so much to offer. Jennifer Schoenberger, thanks so much again,
Jennifer Schoenberger: Thank you very much.
Joey Wahler (Host): And thanks for listening to Health in the Heartland. You can learn more about Norton County Hospital online by visiting ntcohosp.com. Thanks again for listening. Take care of yourself and others. Be well. I'm Joey Wahler.
Rural Hospitals Aim to Keep Services Close to Home
Joey Wahler (Host): Well ,ever wonder about the extent of what's offered at a local rural hospital? Many rural hospitals like Norton County Hospital in Northwest Kansas work to provide a variety of services and specialty healthcare locally to reduce travel stressors and offer convenience to patients. So we're discussing Norton County Hospital's lesser known outpatient services.
From the Plains of rural Northwest Kansas to you, this is Health in the Heartland presented by Norton County Hospital, where medical experts aim to empower health at any stage of life. I am Joey Wahler. Our guest Jennifer Schoenberger, a registered nurse and outpatient clinic services manager at Norton County Hospital. Jennifer, thanks for joining us.
Jennifer Schoenberger: Thank you for having me.
Joey Wahler (Host): So let's start with this, what are generally speaking some of the outpatient services offered at Norton County Hospital?
Jennifer Schoenberger: We offer wound care. We offer specialty clinic infusions. I have two registered nurses that are able to insert PICC lines. We can do COVID infusions. We also have our variety of specialty clinic doctors that come in.
Joey Wahler (Host): And when you say specialty clinic doctors, what do they offer?
Jennifer Schoenberger: We have five cardiologists that come in. I have dermatology, I have general surgery. I have a nephrologist, which is a kidney doctor. I have a neuro spine doctor, one OB GYN that comes in, a podiatrist, which is a foot doctor; pulmonology, which is lung, and a urologist.
Joey Wahler (Host): It seems to cover a lot of ground. Now, some of Norton County Hospital Specialists also do onsite surgery. Tell us more about.
Jennifer Schoenberger: Correct. Our podiatrists does onsite surgery, general surgery does, and our OB GYN also does onsite surgery here.
Joey Wahler (Host): So, what are some of the challenges as a rural hospital, including just what this will hopefully help with, Jennifer, getting the word out about what's available?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Some of the challenges would be where we're located and ideally hoping to get more providers here; getting patients here, if they're unable to travel, weather restrictions and stuff like that. We do use telemedicine. We have had to do that a couple of times. With bad weather and providers that weren't able to get here because of that, we've done telemedicine appointments also when they weren't able to travel because of bad weather.
Joey Wahler (Host): Well, you led me into my next question, Jennifer, because you mentioned telehealth. Obviously, that's become much bigger all over it seems because of the pandemic. So being able to offer that to your patients, how much has that helped?
Jennifer Schoenberger: That helps a lot. We use that for oncology, as we do not have oncology that comes here right now. So we have a lot of patients who do telemed oncology appointments. But we are looking into getting an oncologist that is going to be coming in-house in the near future.
Joey Wahler (Host): How about any upcoming or new services you want to highlight?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Besides the oncology, one of our family practice doctors is starting to do vasectomies, which we have not had in-house since our last family practice general surgeon that we had in-house was doing. So now, Dr. Gaede is now doing vasectomy. So that is something new that we are offering to patients.
Joey Wahler (Host): So have you yourself worked in a medical facility other than in a rural area? I'm curious.
Jennifer Schoenberger: No, I have actually worked at Norton County Hospital since 1999.
Joey Wahler (Host): Wow. Okay. So you've got some longevity there to say the least. So what would you say though, just from what you know about being in this industry, what would you say is maybe an advantage or a plus that a hospital in an area like yours offers that may be in a metropolis isn't available or isn't quite the same?
Jennifer Schoenberger: One of the things small towns offer is that we get to know our patients more on a one-on-one basis. You know who patients are, you know their families and you get that one-on-one rapport with them, which you don't get in a big area because in a big hospital, you're more of a number; where here, you're more of a person, kind of you almost take them in as your family, because you get to know them so well. So I feel with a small hospital, you just have a closer bond with your patients than you do in a big hospital.
Joey Wahler (Host): Well, that's great to hear because so many of us that go to a hospital or go to the doctor, even know that oftentimes you feel like you're being rushed almost seems sometimes like several people are being seen at once. Doctors or nurses kind of running back and forth between patients. I guess it's more low key where you are, and that makes people feel more comfortable right?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Yes.
Joey Wahler (Host): How about an emergency room visit? I would imagine that the wait wouldn't be what it would be if you were in a big city or a much larger area, right?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Correct. Yes.
Joey Wahler (Host): And that too, that relieves a lot of stress, doesn't it? Talk about how that really takes a lot of the mental anguish away from a patient, whether they're there for something serious or not, just to know that, you know, they're in a situation where the visit itself isn't going to add to their stress load.
Jennifer Schoenberger: Exactly. Yes. They'll have less stress, because they're getting more one-on-one care, quicker one-on-one care by being at a small
Joey Wahler (Host): How have you seen the outpatient services grow during your 20 some odd years there? How about that?
Jennifer Schoenberger: I would say just getting more doctors in. At first, you know, there was just a few outpatient doctors, but there's more specialists doing outpatient clinics and coming to outpatient services. So it's making it to where patients don't have to travel out of town. And so the convenience of it is much better for the patient cause they're able to stay close to home to see their doctor and they don't have to travel, which a lot of them are unable to travel or they don't have family around to make it to where they can take them to an out-of-town appointment. So it's really helped that we are getting more doctors that come here.
Joey Wahler (Host): Yeah, because if you're not feeling well or you need to see a particular kind of specialist, let's say, and you know that you're going to have to hop in the car and have a long trip just to get there and back, of course, that's another stressor that can be relieved by coming to you guys, right?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Exactly.
Joey Wahler (Host): So switching gears. COVID-19, Jennifer. Obviously, it's discouraged many people from not seeking the care they need because they're cooped up at home for one reason or another, especially being a rural hospital, what would you tell people like that about the importance of coming to see you guys, even with what's going on around them?
Jennifer Schoenberger: We've tried to encourage him that we wear masks, to have them wear a mask and we're going to keep them protected as best they can with COVID. We have had patients that have skipped their care because they were scared to come in. And we've tried to just encourage them not to do that, that they still need to see their specialists even with COVID. We did see a little halt in some of the patient appointments right when COVID was so rampant, but it is getting better as far as patients coming back in more regularly.
Joey Wahler (Host): And then I guess one thing that's been a little bit overlooked, it seems to me, Jennifer, during the pandemic in terms of care, is there's so much focus on people that have COVID and, of course, rightfully so, but you've got a hospital to run there, to deal with so many other conditions that have nothing to do with COVID and often one gets in the way of the other. So how much of a challenge has that been to offer people what they need that don't have COVID when you're trying to deal with COVID at the same time?
Jennifer Schoenberger: Yeah. That has been difficult too, to have the room and the space, which we've had that problem with the guys that do the outpatient infusions, just having a space for them to use to give their medications and stuff when we were having a lot of inpatients with COVID, because we kind of have to share some of the same rooms. And so we did have some of that, you know, just finding the room and the space when the hospital was full with COVID to be able to do the other patients that we needed to take care of.
Joey Wahler (Host): So in summation here in closing, as someone who's been there long enough as we've discussed that you're familiar with all the different offerings, what would you say to somebody in terms of just a main message that you want them to take away from this conversation in terms of what you want them to keep in mind when deciding whether to come and pay you a visit?
Jennifer Schoenberger: That they can basically get pretty much any of their specialty services that they would need here at Norton County Hospital. And it would save them from having to travel out of town to meet their specialty service needs.
Joey Wahler (Host): Gotcha. Well, there you have it folks. Despite being in a rural area, Norton County Hospital obviously has so much to offer. Jennifer Schoenberger, thanks so much again,
Jennifer Schoenberger: Thank you very much.
Joey Wahler (Host): And thanks for listening to Health in the Heartland. You can learn more about Norton County Hospital online by visiting ntcohosp.com. Thanks again for listening. Take care of yourself and others. Be well. I'm Joey Wahler.