By KRISTI MAYFIELD
During a recent welcome reception for the Sound Physicians Medical Group, Oak Valley Hospital District Board President Dan Cummins greeted the crowd with enthusiasm and hope for the future. Cummins noted that in addition to adding Board Certified Emergency Room Physicians through the partnership with Sound Physicians, Oak Valley Hospital is working towards becoming a Level III Trauma Center as well as gaining certification as a Stroke Treatment Center.
“We wouldn’t be able to do this without the support of our community and staff as they help us move forward,” said Cummins.
Oak Valley Hospital is currently performing Bariatric Surgeries and plans on expanding those services to include gastrointestinal treatment services as well as enhanced inpatient coverage.
“This partnership with Sound Physicians is a game changer for Oakdale,” said Matt Heyn, CEO of OVHD. Though Heyn is aware of some of the challenges when trying to integrate systems and new providers, he, along with his Leadership Team, including David Neal, VP Nursing, are confident that this new partnership will be successful.
As the largest employer in Oakdale with more than 550 employees, OVHD wants to invest in its staff and grow the organization and its services and through the partnership with Sound Physicians, Heyn noted, they are looking to accomplish that. Tony Briningstool, MD, CEO, Emergency Medicine, Sound Physicians, added that with the team of Board Certified ER Physicians that will be working in the Emergency Room and Specialists that will be able to offer consultations onsite, OVHD should be able to offer many additional medical services that they are currently unable to offer.
“We are excited about this new partnership and to be successful we need to be the best providers but we also need the community support,” said Briningstool.
Though Briningstool himself will not be treating patients onsite, he oversees the team that will be treating patients and will be present in an advisory capacity as needed.
“You can count on our team to show up every time,” said Briningstool when addressing the accessibility and availability of these new physicians.
With more than 100 people in attendance at the recent reception, from emergency medical responders to community members to hospital employees, the group from Sound Physicians received a warm welcome. For some community members like Fred Smith and his wife Rachel, ensuring that the Emergency Room will remain open and staffed at all times is one of the reasons they attended the reception to begin with. Fred almost lost his life eight years ago when he had a heart attack and Rachel rushed him to the ER at Oak Valley Hospital where they were able to stabilize him so that they could transfer him to another facility to receive life-saving surgery.
“If it wasn’t for Oak Valley ER, I wouldn’t be here,” said Fred as he and Rachel recounted that harrowing sequence of events.
“The ER doctor on duty told us that if we had waited even another 10 seconds to come in, he may not have lived,” said Rachel.
For the Smiths, the promise of quality care is fundamental when deciding where to seek treatment, especially during emergencies.
During the presentation with Sound Physicians, Briningstool’s focus was directed towards onsite treatments but through this partnership, Telemedicine will also be offered in the near future. Specialists will be able to communicate virtually and treat patients in real time via Telemedicine. There will be many physicians that will continue to treat patients onsite at OVHD as well in the following specialties: Orthopedics, Internal Medicine, Gastrointestinal and Emergency Medicine. They will also be able to assist in treatment for patients staying in the Intensive Care Unit once it reopens in October.
With a renewed commitment to the community and the level of care that they provide, Heyn said OVHD and Sound Physicians are focusing on the future and the many opportunities to provide exceptional medical treatment. Sound Physicians Providers will begin treating patients at Oak Valley Hospital on June 2. For more information, visit: oakvalleyhospital.com or call OVHD at 209-847-3011.
