By Shelby Danley
Modoc Medical Center Expansion in Progress. Photo Provided by Rylee Pedotti.
Front Entrance to Modoc Medical Center. Photo Provided by Rylee Pedotti.
Modoc Medical Center (MMC) is making significant strides to improve the quality of healthcare available to the community. Alongside the fast-moving construction of a brand new Skilled Nursing Facility, MMC is also expanding its hospital facilities to include a dedicated Infusion Department, aimed at providing a more comfortable environment for its staff and patients.
The new four bay infusion department will provide a designated area for outpatient treatments, a luxury staff didn’t have before. Currently, the infusion nurse must coordinate with other departments (surgery bays, the inpatient physical therapy room, etc.) to find available space to administer infusion therapy. MMC’s Acute Nursing Manager, Susan Sauerheber, shared, “This becomes very challenging on surgery days and when the Acute floor is at full census”. The addition of this dedicated space will allow for a more streamlined process for treating patients and offer more reliable resources for the staff. Some of the infusion treatments that will be offered on an outpatient basis will include IV and injectable antibiotics, blood transfusions and blood components, infusions of medications such as Actemra; Remicade; Rituxan; Ocrevus; Tysabri and other Auto-Immune Disorder medications.
MMC is also expanding its inpatient care facilities by adding two new semi-private rooms, providing four additional beds. “These four beds will expand our overall capacity to serve patients who require skilled care in our inpatient or swing bed programs. Ultimately, this gives MMC a greater ability to offer specialty care and treatment programs to patients while remaining close to home. We understand the tremendous financial, physical, and emotional burdens that extensive travel for fundamental care can place on patients and their loved ones. Our hope is that this addition will help to alleviate these burdens” said MMC’s Marketing Coordinator, Rylee Pedotti.
The Swing Bed Program at MMC, which has been in place for some time, is designed to assist patients transitioning from acute care to home care. The goal of this program is to help patients regain strength and independence after significant medical events, such as cardiac diagnoses, orthopedic surgeries, post-respiratory illnesses, strokes, and other conditions. Patients are provided with a physician-led care team, with services tailored to their unique needs. “MMC provides comprehensive skilled care, from medication management and infusion services, to nutrition plans and physical therapy to improve patients’ physical, emotional, and social abilities to ensure a smooth transition to their home and daily lifestyle” Rylee explained. For information on the Swing Bed Program, contact MMC directly at (530) 708-8800. Improvements like these are not possible without Modocers support, and funding through the annual property tax assessment for Last Frontier Healthcare District residents. “Our facilities are the community’s facilities in every sense” Rylee expressed, “it is our mission to bolster our services in the most fiscally responsible manner, and this expansion is an example of what this community has made possible with their generosity”. With these additions, Modoc Medical Center is not just expanding its facilities — it’s expanding the possibilities for better health and well-being for everyone in the community, delivered close to home.
