COVID-19 Puts Parkview Expansion On Hold
May 7, 2020 at 12:22 a.m.
COVID-19 Puts Parkview Expansion On Hold
By David [email protected]
With the COVID-19 pandemic and Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb’s executive orders for people to shelter in place, that plan has been delayed, according to Jeffrey Rockett, vice president, outpatient services, Parkview Warsaw.
Rockett was one of the panelists Wednesday at the weekly local COVID-19 press briefings at Warsaw City Hall.
“A number of our projects got put on hold primarily due to the COVID crisis. So Parkview Warsaw’s expansion was one of those, but once we get through this process, then we plan to proceed with the expansion. So it’s been on hold temporarily as we address the crisis,” Rockett said in response to a question about the project.
He said they were hoping to see some movement on it later this summer.
“We may see some movement on the expansion or the extension of Mariners Drive in the interim, but right now we have to keep safety on the front line at first and we’d be remiss to start a nonessential construction project at this time while working on the crisis,” Rockett said.
He also gave his perspective on what Parkview has been doing during the pandemic and how things look moving ahead locally and systemwide for Parkview.
“It’s been an interesting time in healthcare. One we didn’t really anticipate going into and it’s had its challenges, but I think in the end, we’re going to come out of it ahead,” Rockett said. “I think it’s forced us to really look at our processees and how we take care of patients and how we deliver healthcare today and move forward. So I think there’s a lot of good that’s going to come out of this challenging time.”
When Parkview began looking and dealing with the coronavirus about eight weeks ago, he said it gave the health system an opportunity to look at its infrastructure and processes “and things we had started to implement but maybe not to the whole effect.” He said they looked at the equipment they had, like ventilators, and how many.
“Really setting up our system, looking at our primary facilities in Allen County, our local community facilities in Whitley, strategizing how we would take care of our communities and patients,” said Rockett. “So it’s been a very exciting time as we look at that, and it gave us an opportunity to really take our platforms of TeleHealth that we had been working on, and we had used somewhat in the past, but we had the opportunity to really put those into place.”
He said keeping safety for its patients, communities, employees and healthcare workers has always been first in line for Parkview. “So everything that we’ve done, we’ve done with safety first and foremost and the money second,” Rockett said.
It’s unknown how long the pandemic and precautionary measures are going to take, he said. “We don’t know how long the tiers of reopening are going to be as we go through this. The worst thing we could do is open up too quickly, so I think really focusing on this initial Stage 2 – with the groups of 25, opening up of more facilities and services, opening more businesses – I think is really the best strategy and not setting up hard dates on when we transition to the next stage,” Rockett said.
He said the focus has changed from the planning and preparing for what COVID-19 might bring to the healthcare setting to “how do we equip not only our facilities and providers, but our communities for this reopening. How do we stage it in such a way that we begin to provide services so that people who have been isolated and not receiving healthcare can come back and get it before their health diminishes or we have further problems with healthcare in communities.”
Parkview has started reopening surgical services, increased its outpatient services “really, with every step, keeping safety first and foremost,” Rockett said.
He said the community support has been “phenomenal” and “we couldn’t have done this without the community.”
The Make-A-Mask program helped Parkview “so much,” he said, in making sure healthcare workers had the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to take care of patients by providing facemasks to patients and visitors coming into the healthcare setting.
“One of the hardest decisions we had to make was really restricting visitation. We had to go to a zero visitor restriction, and that was very, very difficult for our communities and patients ... but we did it because it was the safest thing to do,” Rockett explained.
Parkview has entered Tier 1 of its reopening program phases, so it screens everyone coming into its buildings. It still has its zero visitor restrictions, but there are patients who will have to have their caregiver with them, he said, but they’re screened as they come into the building.
Everyone gets a mask coming into a building, he said.
“We’ve been holding a series of webinars,” he said. Greater Fort Wayne just finished a series of webinars for businesses on how to reopen up safely.
Parkview has information on its website at parkview.com/businessconnect that allows businesses to learn about how to open up safely. Information is updated regularly.
“It’s not going to look the same tomorrow as it did back in January. It’s just not,” Rockett said. “We all want to get back to normal, but it’s going to be a ‘new’ normal. We don’t know what that’s going to look like.”
He gave a “shout-out” to Parkview’s nursing staff as Wednesday was National Nurses Day. “We couldn’t have survived this crisis without our dedicated nurses. They come in, they’ve been faced with immense challenges,” he said.
Asked later how important are nurses and if there are enough nurses to meet the need, Kosciusko County Public Health Officer Dr. William Remington said, “Nurses are awesome.” He said he has many members of his family who are nurses, and he couldn’t get through a day in his office without his personal nurses. “Kudos to them.” He said the KCHD nurses have been “very critical” to the fight against COVID-19.
Rockett said, “I think they are just vital. We couldn’t get through a day without them. We rely on our infection prevention nurse, our bedside nurses immensely. So vitally important. And to answer the question are there enough of them? No.”
He said he has two daughters who are nurses and a son going through nursing school. “It’s a great profession. There’s just not enough of them. We need more,” Rockett said.
Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer said he has a daughter on the frontlines on a COVID team at a hospital in Phoenix.
“What do you say? That’s a commitment. They’re right there and don’t back off. So proud of them,” he said.
Rockett said, “They truly are giving their all to our patients and communities. We can’t be anything but proud.”
County Commissioner Brad Jackson said, “Way prior to this, I know a nursing home said that was one of their biggest problems was just finding nurses.”
“Nurses, and all the other healthcare workers, they’re all in there together. We certainly probably need more than a day to thank them, but it’s nice to have a day set aside (to recognize them),” Thallemer said.
With the COVID-19 pandemic and Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb’s executive orders for people to shelter in place, that plan has been delayed, according to Jeffrey Rockett, vice president, outpatient services, Parkview Warsaw.
Rockett was one of the panelists Wednesday at the weekly local COVID-19 press briefings at Warsaw City Hall.
“A number of our projects got put on hold primarily due to the COVID crisis. So Parkview Warsaw’s expansion was one of those, but once we get through this process, then we plan to proceed with the expansion. So it’s been on hold temporarily as we address the crisis,” Rockett said in response to a question about the project.
He said they were hoping to see some movement on it later this summer.
“We may see some movement on the expansion or the extension of Mariners Drive in the interim, but right now we have to keep safety on the front line at first and we’d be remiss to start a nonessential construction project at this time while working on the crisis,” Rockett said.
He also gave his perspective on what Parkview has been doing during the pandemic and how things look moving ahead locally and systemwide for Parkview.
“It’s been an interesting time in healthcare. One we didn’t really anticipate going into and it’s had its challenges, but I think in the end, we’re going to come out of it ahead,” Rockett said. “I think it’s forced us to really look at our processees and how we take care of patients and how we deliver healthcare today and move forward. So I think there’s a lot of good that’s going to come out of this challenging time.”
When Parkview began looking and dealing with the coronavirus about eight weeks ago, he said it gave the health system an opportunity to look at its infrastructure and processes “and things we had started to implement but maybe not to the whole effect.” He said they looked at the equipment they had, like ventilators, and how many.
“Really setting up our system, looking at our primary facilities in Allen County, our local community facilities in Whitley, strategizing how we would take care of our communities and patients,” said Rockett. “So it’s been a very exciting time as we look at that, and it gave us an opportunity to really take our platforms of TeleHealth that we had been working on, and we had used somewhat in the past, but we had the opportunity to really put those into place.”
He said keeping safety for its patients, communities, employees and healthcare workers has always been first in line for Parkview. “So everything that we’ve done, we’ve done with safety first and foremost and the money second,” Rockett said.
It’s unknown how long the pandemic and precautionary measures are going to take, he said. “We don’t know how long the tiers of reopening are going to be as we go through this. The worst thing we could do is open up too quickly, so I think really focusing on this initial Stage 2 – with the groups of 25, opening up of more facilities and services, opening more businesses – I think is really the best strategy and not setting up hard dates on when we transition to the next stage,” Rockett said.
He said the focus has changed from the planning and preparing for what COVID-19 might bring to the healthcare setting to “how do we equip not only our facilities and providers, but our communities for this reopening. How do we stage it in such a way that we begin to provide services so that people who have been isolated and not receiving healthcare can come back and get it before their health diminishes or we have further problems with healthcare in communities.”
Parkview has started reopening surgical services, increased its outpatient services “really, with every step, keeping safety first and foremost,” Rockett said.
He said the community support has been “phenomenal” and “we couldn’t have done this without the community.”
The Make-A-Mask program helped Parkview “so much,” he said, in making sure healthcare workers had the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to take care of patients by providing facemasks to patients and visitors coming into the healthcare setting.
“One of the hardest decisions we had to make was really restricting visitation. We had to go to a zero visitor restriction, and that was very, very difficult for our communities and patients ... but we did it because it was the safest thing to do,” Rockett explained.
Parkview has entered Tier 1 of its reopening program phases, so it screens everyone coming into its buildings. It still has its zero visitor restrictions, but there are patients who will have to have their caregiver with them, he said, but they’re screened as they come into the building.
Everyone gets a mask coming into a building, he said.
“We’ve been holding a series of webinars,” he said. Greater Fort Wayne just finished a series of webinars for businesses on how to reopen up safely.
Parkview has information on its website at parkview.com/businessconnect that allows businesses to learn about how to open up safely. Information is updated regularly.
“It’s not going to look the same tomorrow as it did back in January. It’s just not,” Rockett said. “We all want to get back to normal, but it’s going to be a ‘new’ normal. We don’t know what that’s going to look like.”
He gave a “shout-out” to Parkview’s nursing staff as Wednesday was National Nurses Day. “We couldn’t have survived this crisis without our dedicated nurses. They come in, they’ve been faced with immense challenges,” he said.
Asked later how important are nurses and if there are enough nurses to meet the need, Kosciusko County Public Health Officer Dr. William Remington said, “Nurses are awesome.” He said he has many members of his family who are nurses, and he couldn’t get through a day in his office without his personal nurses. “Kudos to them.” He said the KCHD nurses have been “very critical” to the fight against COVID-19.
Rockett said, “I think they are just vital. We couldn’t get through a day without them. We rely on our infection prevention nurse, our bedside nurses immensely. So vitally important. And to answer the question are there enough of them? No.”
He said he has two daughters who are nurses and a son going through nursing school. “It’s a great profession. There’s just not enough of them. We need more,” Rockett said.
Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer said he has a daughter on the frontlines on a COVID team at a hospital in Phoenix.
“What do you say? That’s a commitment. They’re right there and don’t back off. So proud of them,” he said.
Rockett said, “They truly are giving their all to our patients and communities. We can’t be anything but proud.”
County Commissioner Brad Jackson said, “Way prior to this, I know a nursing home said that was one of their biggest problems was just finding nurses.”
“Nurses, and all the other healthcare workers, they’re all in there together. We certainly probably need more than a day to thank them, but it’s nice to have a day set aside (to recognize them),” Thallemer said.
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