MOUNDVIEW SERVES AS A TEACHING FACILITY

Although you may not think of a rural hospital as a teaching facility, Moundview Memorial Hospital & Clinics has served in that capacity for several decades.  Numerous students have completed job shadow experiences, nursing clinical rotations and internships at Moundview including registered nurses, nurse practitioners, physical therapists, laboratory technologists and most recently medical students.

“Moundview has a long standing tradition as a teaching hospital,” said Don Heinz, CEO.  “There are students who completed job shadow and clinical experiences at Moundview 15-20 years ago who are now working at our facility.  We believe in empowering others through education whether it’s offering real world experience to future healthcare workers or providing tuition reimbursement to our current staff.”

Ana David, Raquel Almeida and Taynara Alves, fifth year medical students from the Uni Evangelica Medical School in Brazil, are completing an eight week internal medicine job shadow experience at Moundview through the end of February.  The opportunity was coordinated by John David, MD, internist at Moundview’s Family Clinic, who has a professorship at Uni Evangelica as well as friends who are physicians in Brazil.

“In June 2015 a delegation of university representatives from Brazil came to Moundview to explore the possibility of a learning opportunity for their students at a rural hospital,” said Dr. David.  “They were very impressed with our facility and the community.  They sent two students to Moundview in September as test pilots and sent Ana, Raquel and Daynara this January.  Knowing the university trusts our medical staff to teach their students is a testament to the level of quality care available at Moundview.”

Observing medical care in a rural United States hospital has been an eye opening experience for the Brazil students.  Their university is located in Anapolis, an urban city of about 350,000 people.

“You would never find a hospital like Moundview in a small city in Brazil,” said Taynara.  “The quality, technology and efficiency is better at Moundview than at most hospitals in our country.”

“One of the biggest differences between hospitals in Brazil and the United States is the electronic health record,” said Raquel.  “Providers are able to access all of the patient’s medical records, even test results that were completed at another facility.  This improves patient care.”

“Patient care is more fragmented in Brazil,” added Ana.  “You see one physician for diabetes and another for cardiac care.  There is no

communication between the patient’s physicians.  In the United States, patients have a bond with their primary care physician. They see their primary physician for most of their medical care and only see a specialist as needed.  Their physician knows their entire health history which is beneficial to the patient.”

The students are enjoying their time at Moundview and in the community.  They have learned a lot about local culture and feel residents are polite and friendly.  They are enjoying the cold weather, snow and football, especially the Green Bay Packers.  The students will go home at the end of the month, but are all interested in returning to the United States in the future.

In addition to the Brazil students, Moundview has provided learning opportunities for many other health care students, including nurse practitioners.  Over the past year alone, four nurse practitioner students have completed clinical rotations at Moundview.   Sheryl Obernberger, a family nurse practitioner at Moundview’s Family Clinic, is the preceptor for the students.

“During their clinical rotations, nurse practitioner students provide direct patient care, review and enter notes in the patients’ medical records and research information to diagnose and treat patients,” said Obernberger.  “As their preceptor, I observe or review the medical care they provide patients dependent on their level of experience.  I also consult with the students and evaluate their clinical competency.  Serving as their mentor requires me to keep up to date on new clinical research and procedures so that I am aware of the current best practice for family nurse practitioners.”

Sara May, a family nurse practitioner student at Walden University, is currently completing a clinical rotation at Moundview.

“Moundview is a great learning opportunity for nurse practitioner students,” said May. “I will be completing my fourth clinical at Moundview.  In a rural clinic you have an opportunity to see many different types of illnesses and patient backgrounds which provides a variety of learning experiences.  Completing all of my clinicals at Moundview has also given me an opportunity to establish a rapport with patients and effectively learn the electronic health record system.”

Moundview’s Physical Therapy Department hosts four interns each year from various colleges such as Carroll University, Western Tech, UW Madison and UW La Crosse.

“Having interns in our department requires us to pay close attention to detail so that we do our best to teach the students,” said Kevin Beaver, physical medicine and rehabilitation manager at Moundview.  “It also provides us with opportunities to learn the latest techniques that universities are teaching students.  An added benefit is the ability to recruit new staff.  We hired two of our past interns including Christopher Bongen, physical therapy assistant and Colin Steiner, physical therapist.”

“I was able to experience many different types of physical therapy settings at Moundview since it is a rural facility,” said Jordan Olp, a Carroll University student who completed a therapy internship at the hospital in December.  “The therapists at Moundview are highly skilled.  They exposed me to a variety of cutting edge treatment techniques.”

“Moundview strives for excellence as a health system,” said Heinz.  “Providing educational opportunities to future healthcare workers enhances the quality of our services and personnel.  The students bring new ideas to Moundview and share their classroom knowledge regarding the latest treatments in the medical field.  It has been a mutually beneficial relationship for the students and our staff.”

15.04.2016