Mercy Health Love County - News

Press Release Archive

Extended Clinic Becoming 'Emergency Room Lite'

Monday, December 29th, 2008

Seeing a medical practitioner after hours in the local emergency room will no longer be available as an “extended clinic” visit. As of January 1, Medicare regulators say, all care rendered in the emergency room must be regarded as emergency care.

But the emergency room of Mercy Health/Love County Hospital is adjusting its fees to keep rates for “non-emergency patients” comparable to what they were under the extended clinic.

“We have dropped the “extended clinic” name for services rendered...


Recovery Experts Prep Community For Methamphetamine TV Program

Friday, December 26th, 2008

 
Love County EMS medics Teresa Tow and Justin Cheek  ready the hospital’s portable decontamination shower for an educational panel/demonstration on methamphetamine.
 
 
The subject happened to be methamphetamine but the underlying message from panelists at Mercy Health/Love County Hospital, Clinic and EMS recently was the same: addiction to any drug or alcohol is a terrible thing.
 
The panel was preparing local leaders for what the public will see when all Oklahoma television...

Time To Search for a Different Medicare Part D Plan

Monday, November 10th, 2008

 

Open enrollment for Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plans is from November 15 through December 31.
 
Participants may change plans for 2009. Changes generally cannot be made again until the next open enrollment at the end of 2009.
 
Volunteer enroller Don Sessions, Falconhead, recommends that all participants go through a new plan search every year at this time.
 
The reason: “Certain insurance companies may be charging more for premiums and co-pays and dropping coverage of some...

CT and Bone Density Scans Offered at Hospital

Monday, June 30th, 2008

 There’s a new answer to the old riddle, “What’s black and white and “read” all over?” Not just the newspaper anymore.

Now there are CT and bone density scans. These are high-resolution black and white images of the body that reveal more about what’s going on inside than a simple x-ray.
 
The best news of all: Scans are being taken and read for patients at Mercy Health/Love County Hospital and Clinic.
 
The two scanners, installed over the winter, have broadened the scope of the...

Hospital Pantry Adds Fresh Foods

Monday, June 23rd, 2008

(from left) Charlene Frazier, Ella Toles, Lula Finch, and Rose Jackson gather fresh vegetables from the new walk-in refrigerator at the Mercy Health/Love County food pantry in Marietta.

Fresh fruits, vegetables, and dairy products are being offered for the first time at the emergency food pantry operated by employees of Mercy Health/Love County Hospital and Clinic.

 “This is a God-send. We are thrilled that we now have fresh foods for the families we serve,” said Lula Finch, a longtime...

Love County EMS Offering Paramedic Training

Friday, May 9th, 2008

 

Caption:
 Advanced Life Support: Love County EMS is one of few rural counties to have attained paramedic status and able to provide the most extensive pre-hospital care. Kneeling from left are Richard Barker, Mercy Health/Love County administrator; Tad Hall, PA, EMS manager; Obie Heath, EMT; and James Hicks, paramedic.

 Young people take note: A career path in healthcare has opened in Marietta.

Love County Emergency Medical Service (EMS) and Mercy Health/Love County Hospital now...


Dr. Smith Celebrating 45 Years of Practice in Marietta

Thursday, March 20th, 2008

 

Dr. Vergil Smith

In 1963, a brand-new doctor moved to Marietta and opened a clinic on SW 3 St. It was a risky move as three other physicians were in town already.
 
But Dr. Vergil Smith won instant and enduring acceptance – “ten people the first day and it never stopped. Busy, busy, busy, busy, busy,” he recalled recently.
 
The open and friendly general practitioner will turn age 78 this year and celebrate his 45th year in Marietta. He sees patients Monday-Thursday in the clinic...

Hospital Patients, Staff Tuned In To Dietary Plans

Thursday, February 7th, 2008

 

 
Caption:
Patient Cooking: Dietary Manager Valerie DeFoor pulls a food tray from the new cold/hot serving cart at Mercy Health/Love County Hospital.
 
Hospital patients eat meals prepared from a “dietary plan” appropriate for their illness. But what does the medical staff eat?
 
For the next 17 weeks, at least, many Mercy Health/Love County Hospital and Clinic employees will be preparing their personal meals under Weight Watchers® guidelines. The goal is to shed extra pounds, and...

Medicare Part D Volunteer Finds That Most Switch Plans

Tuesday, January 22nd, 2008

 

Almost three out of four people enrolled in a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan would probably be better off in a different Part D plan, says the volunteer enroller in Love County.
 
Don Sessions arrived at his conclusion based on results for 83 Love County participants during the open enrollment period that ended last December 31.
 
All had sought assistance in comparing their 2007 Part D enrollment with the plan choices available for 2008.
 
Sixty-one of the 83 participants,...

Schools Receive Life-Saving Equipment

Thursday, January 3rd, 2008

 

 
Heart Shocker: Clinic manager Connie Barker and EMS trainer John Gilliam apply AED electrode pads to a training mannikin. An AED uses an electric shock to restart a stopped heart. All Love County schools have been given AEDs through a donation arranged by Mercy Health/Love County Hospital and Clinic.
 
 
 
Life-saving equipment to treat victims of sudden cardiac arrest is being placed in Love County schools this month.
 
The device, an Automated External Defibrillator...