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Expanding tomeet your needs
Growth can be good—think young children, bank accounts and tomatoes on the vine.
Add to that list: a hospital that’s growing to meet community needs.
e expansion of Golden Valley Memorial Hospital (GVMH) is moving ahead on
schedule. Construction is expected to be complete in the spring of
, says Craig
ompson, chief operating o cer at GVMH.
e ,
-square-foot expansion will enhance our ability to care for area residents.
It will house our specialty clinics, as well as infusion services and cardiac rehabilitation,
complete with an indoor walking track. Additional surgical suites and more space for
the imaging and emergency departments are also included in the plans.
Yet another bene t: an additional
parking spaces once construction wraps up.
“ e expansion allows us to support the growth in outpatient services and continue
to meet the needs of the community,” ompson says.
What makes this project especially exciting, he adds, is that it will make it easier for
people to access existing services and will bring new services into the fold.
GVMH Foundation helps bring
you quality, compassionate care
For more than a quarter of a century, the
Golden Valley Memorial Hospital Founda-
tion has channeled the generosity of do-
nors into meaningful help for individuals
and families.
“If walls could talk,” says Deanna
Hendrich, the GVMH Foundation’s direc-
tor, “you would hear life-changing stories
about the ways we have touched individu-
als’ lives.”
For example, Hendrich says, an expect-
ant mother with gestational diabetes burst
into tears when she learned the foundation
would help pay for the insulin she needed.
e determination of patients in cardiac
rehabilitation as they press on toward re-
covery inspires others to keep trying, and
the foundation supports that recovery by
replacing equipment as it becomes worn
or outdated, Hendrich says.
“People don’t think twice when they
hear someone was ‘LifeFlighted’ because
that person needed advanced care,” she
says. “What they might not realize is that
the GVMH Foundation was instrumental
in building the LifeFlight hangar so an air
ambulance service could be o ered.”
e foundation serves as a bridge be-
tween the hospital and the community,
Hendrich says. She notes that during the
past years, more than million has
owed through the foundation to fund
projects at GVMH like LifeFlight Eagle and
cardiac rehab, as well as to help diabetes
and cancer patients and the hospital’s tini-
est patients in the Birthing Center.
“At GVMH, we are committed to pro-
viding quality, compassionate care,” says
Hendrich. “ e foundation supports that
mission and so do donors when they give.”
Many ways to create your legacy
Do-
nors can give in a variety of ways—cash
donations, memorials, bequests through
wills or trusts, or even gi s of stock.
Donors can ask that their gi s be used
where most needed or for a particular
area or project, and the foundation will
honor their wishes.
Donations to the foundation, a
(c)
organization, are tax-deductible, Hendrich
says, and can be made any time—in per-
son, through the mail or online.
For more information, call the foun-
dation office at
-
-
,
send an email to
foundation@
gvmh.org
or visit the foundation’s pages at
www.gvmh.org.
Playing sports can help kids of all ages get physi-
cally and mentally t. From the soccer eld to the
gymnastics mat, getting active can help your child:
Fend off health problems like obesity and
diabetes.
Build social and team skills.
Have an all-around better sense of well-being
and self-esteem.
While the bene ts of
sports abound, so does
the risk of injuries, includ-
ing serious brain injuries.
Fortunately, as a parent,
there are several ways you
can keep injuries on the sidelines and your child
in the game. Here’s how.
Talk with the doc.
Before your child signs up for
an activity, make an appointment for him or her
to have a sports physical and get the go-ahead to
play from a doctor.
Put in the prep work.
Help your child train and
get in shape before the season starts.
Size it up.
Kids of the same age can di er greatly
in size and strength. To minimize the chance of
injury, be sure your child is playing with kids who
are of similar height and weight.
Avoid overuse.
Noncontact sports may still
carry the risk of injuries from repetitive motions
and overuse. Be sure your child has rest days and
tackles training goals gradually.
Sport the right gear.
Helmets, gloves, shin-
guards, mouthguards, body pads—whatever safety
equipment the sport calls for, make sure your child
has it and that it ts properly.
Exercise a few precautions.
Check with coaches
to be sure that practices and games include:
Stretching and warm-ups to start.
A plan to handle hot weather, such as exercising
earlier in the day, having less intense workouts and
taking more frequent water breaks—about every
minutes.
Sources: American Academy of Pediatrics; National Institutes of Health
SCORE !
Safe
play
all the
time
Is it time your
child got a
checkup? Call
660-885-8171.
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