Our Services - Guttenberg Hospital

Community Resource Center Groundbreaking Ceremony

On March 26, 2024 the Guttenberg Economic & Industrial Development Committee held the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the much-anticipated Community Resource Center, a pivotal service hub for the region. The event marked the beginning of a transformative initiative aimed at addressing a diverse array of community needs.

The location of the new Community Resource Center is 516 S. 1st Street, Guttenberg, Iowa 52052 in the empty lot between the Guttenberg Brewing Company and the Municipal Building and will serve as a beacon of hope and support for the region, hosting over a dozen agencies dedicated to meeting multifaceted needs, including the Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics’ Family Resource Center. A wide range of services to be offered include a food pantry, clothing center, infant items, outerwear, backpack snack program for school age kids, school supplies, medical adaptive equipment, household basics, furniture, health insurance, housing assistance, utility/rent assistance, counseling, domestic/sexual violence advocate, mental health, substance abuse, elderly care, and transportation.

This ambitious project has been made possible through the generous support of the State of Iowa, which
awarded the Guttenberg Economic & Industrial Development Committee a significant $2.7 million grant to spearhead the construction of this essential facility. With the project well underway, efforts are in full swing to raise the matching funds required for the three-story facility, anticipated to cost just over $4 million.

The Groundbreaking Ceremony signified a momentous milestone in the journey towards fulfilling the vision of a thriving, supportive community in Guttenberg and its surrounding areas, commemorating this occasion and capturing the spirit of collaboration and progress that defines this initiative. A short presentation followed the Groundbreaking Ceremony at the Guttenberg Brewing Company.

About the Family Resource Center

Throughout life, almost everyone needs help at some point. That help could be judgement free zone, a
box of food, a bed after a fire or help navigating a confusing health care choice. All these caring services
are available for free through the Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics’ Family Resource Center (FRC).
The services at FRC are open to anyone, no matter age, income level, or ethnic background.

Let’s examine a typical day at the FRC which begins early in the morning as volunteers travel to Kwik Star
and Wal Mart to pick up food donations. The food is delivered to the small, unassuming building,
housing the Family Resource Center and an army of volunteers process the food for distribution for
people throughout the region.

But the FRC provides much more than needed food. A young couple from northern Clayton County
arrive at the FRC in need of shoes and their needs are met. Next through the FRC door is a set of
grandparents both employed in slightly above minimum wage jobs. They have recently become
custodians of their four young grandchildren. Dashed are their dreams of retiring at 65 and they need to
restart their lives raising young children. Their immediate needs include clothing, food and car seats and
the FRC can meet their needs.

After the staff assists the grandparents, a domestic abuse victim arrives at the FRC. She needs someone
to listen, offer solutions and provide clothing for her daughter. The proper agencies are connected with
this victim and a bag of clothing is sent for the daughter. The FRC was again able to meet the need.
The next young man who enters the FRC needs to utilize the free fax service offered at FRC. He needs to
fax a restraining order to the Sherriff’s Office and needs some guidance on navigating the judicial system.

Again, the young man’s needs were met.

Following the young man, the next to be served at the FRC is a new mother who is unable to purchase
baby formula for her newborn, which costs over $20 for a 3-4 day supply. Newborn’s are a blessing, but
create an especially financially hard time for young parents. This new mother requested three cans of
baby formula because she is almost out and does not get paid until the end of the month. The FRC
meets the new mother’s needs.

External service agencies use the FRC space to meet and assist regional residents. The SHIIP counselor
(Senior Health Insurance Information Program) and four seniors arrive at the FRC trying to navigate a
confusing healthcare system and are assisted in selecting the best option for them. The FRC met the
seniors’ needs by connecting them to SHIIP.

A local family comes to the FRC with an unimaginable tragedy and their child becomes hospitalized with
a debilitating condition. One parent must care full time for the child and can no longer work. The staff
at the Family Resource Center helps them navigate through the options available to help fill the gap that
was unexpectedly created. The family’s needs are met.

A nutritionally deficient senior living on social security with no family nearby is instructed by their health
care provider to have a diet including more protein and vegetables. However, the limited social security
check does not cover their needs. Again, the Family Resource Center steps in and his needs are met.

As outlined, a typical day at the FRC provides support to so many of our neighbors, friends, relatives, and
even complete strangers from our region. This is made possible through an army of volunteers and
financial supporters to keep the FRC operational five days a week year-round. The current rented FRC
building is much too small to meet the needs of our region, lacks privacy and much needed donated
items must be turned away due to lack of current storage space.

Thankfully, the FRC team found a way to try and climb out and up and continue to serve the growing
demand. The FRC team partnered with the Guttenberg Economic & Industrial Development Committee (GEIDC) and applied for a grant through the State of Iowa. The project was awarded a very generous grant and is well on the way to raising the required matching funds. The current shortfall is nearly $250,000. If you can help, please click the link attached, or contact our volunteer Fund Raising Coordinator Kathy Lansing at lansing@alpinecom.net. Make a donation online.

Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics is upgrading its CT system with innovative AI-assisted technologies of the Canon Aquilion Prime SP. Installation of the new CT system will begin the week of December 11. While the CT room is prepped for installation, a mobile CT unit will be placed outside GMHC’s Imaging Department on November 28 and will remain there until installation is complete.

Upon completion of the installation, GMHC Imaging staff will be trained on the Aquilion Prime SP with tentative removal of the mobile CT unit on December 19.

The improved diagnostic capabilities of the Canon Aquilion Prime SP CT system will allow even challenging cases, from pediatric to bariatric and beyond, to benefit from world-class images reconstructed at high speed with the latest Deep Learning innovation.

The Advanced intelligent Clear-IQ Engine (AiCE) – AiCE is an innovative approach to CT reconstruction that uses Deep Learning technology in the Aquilion Prime SP system that reduces noise, boosts signal to deliver sharp, clear and distinct images across many body regions at the optimized dose for every patient.

The updated CT System will allow the Imaging Department at GMHC to better serve patients, more quickly and quietly, from the youngest to the largest, with confident diagnostic image quality.

We all need care at some point in our lives. For some, the biggest barrier to receiving care is accessing it. Community Paramedicine providers work with your primary care provider to break that barrier and bring care to patients who need it most, where they need it most.

Patients can be evaluated in the comfort of their own homes through a scheduled appointment time. Visits are free and can help avoid a clinic visit, ambulance ride or hospital care.

If you or your loved one could benefit from this service, talk to your Cornerstone Family Practice provider at 563-252-2141.

What do Community Paramedicine providers do?

Community Paramedicine providers can provide the following in-home treatment and assessments:

Monitoring of oxygen levels, blood pressure, blood sugar, heart rate, oxygen saturation, etc.
Monitoring of weight
Blood collection for home-bound patients
Education of medications and assistance with setting up medication packs
Electrocardiograms (ECGs)
Wound assessments and cares
Immunizations for home-bound patients
In-home safety assessments

In addition to in-home assessments, they:

Will provide personalized in-home care
Act as a care bridge after hospitalization
Can answer your questions about your acute or chronic medical condition
Have secure access to health records
Have the necessary equipment to assist your provider in early illness detection
Can provide appropriate care for emergencies

We at Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics look forward to providing this service to you as yet another way we keep YOU at the center of our Patient-Centered Medical Home care model.

It’s that time of year again, Medicare Open Enrollment, the only time that those eligible for Medicare have the opportunity to review and adjust their plans. Open Enrollment takes place from October 15 to December 7, and The Family Resource Center is taking appointments for seniors to meet with SHIIP representatives who offer advice in choosing the best fitting prescription plan and to answer questions. Because drug plans are everchanging, having a guide to help you navigate these changes can be very helpful.

This is Jim Solomon’s fifth year volunteering as a SHIIP counselor. Last year, he met with 176 people, helping them save a total of $156,862. We are pleased to announce that Deb Hogan has completed training and will be joining Jim to serve area seniors in reviewing their plans. Jim will mentor and work directly with Deb and the client when she is first starting. Deb retired from the insurance industry, and wants to give back as a volunteer. “Jim put in long hours last year, and I am happy to partner with him and work together to serve the communities.” Deb replied.

Kari Harbaugh, Family Resource Coordinator, says, “We are very grateful for the dedication and hours of service these volunteers donate to assisting our clients.”

There is no charge for consultation with Jim or Deb. If they don’t have the answer, SHIIP counselors have a direct connection to the state to get the answer. They offer a flexible schedule, and welcome clients from other communities, too.

SHIIP counselors will assist you with these three important things during Medicare Open Enrollmnent:

Review your plan notice. Read any notices from your Medicare plan about changes for next year—especially your “Annual Notice of Change” letter. Review your plan’s information to make sure the prescriptions you use are still covered and your medical providers and pharmacy are still in network.
Think about what matters most to you. Medicare health and drug plans change each year and so can your health needs. Does your current plan best meet your needs?
Shop for the plans that meet your needs and fit your budget. Compare plans even if you’ve been satisfied with your current plan. The coverage and costs for plans can change from year to year.

To make an appointment, call the Family Resource Center at 563-252-3215. SHIIP is a free, confidential service of the State of Iowa. SHIIP counselors review all plans offered and do not promote any particular plan or company. Please bring your Medicare card and your present list of prescription drugs to your appointment.

Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics was recently named one of the top 20 critical access hospitals (CAHs) for Best Practice—Patient Satisfaction in the country.

The top 20 CAHs, including GMHC, scored best among CAHs as determined by the Chartis Center for Rural Health for Patient Satisfaction. The rankings were recently announced by the National Rural Health Association (NRHA). An awards ceremony will be held during NRHA’s Critical Access Hospital Conference in September in Kansas City, MO.

The top 20 CAHs have achieved success in overall performance based on a composite rating from eight indices of strength: inpatient market share, outpatient market share, quality, outcomes, patient perspective, cost, charge and finance. This group was selected from the Chartis Center for Rural Health’s 2022 top 100 CAH list, which was released earlier this year.

The top 20 CAH best practice recipients have achieved success in one of two key areas of performance:

Quality index: A rating of hospital performance based on the percentile rank across rural-relevant process of care measures.

Patient perspective index: A rating of hospital performance based on the percentile rank across all 10 HCAHPS domains.

“GMHC is proud of the efforts of the physicians and staff who have contributed to our hospital achieving this designation,” says Timothy Ahlers, CEO. “We are incredibly proud of our staff. We are blessed to have a team of professionals with high standards who care deeply about each and every patient and our entire community.”

“Our results as a top Best Practice Recipient in Patient Satisfaction means our community can count on us to deliver the services they need now and in the future,” said Ahlers.

About NRHA

NRHA is a nonprofit organization working to improve the health and well-being of rural Americans and provide leadership on rural health issues through advocacy, communications, education and research. NRHA’s membership is made up of diverse individuals and organizations from across the country, all of whom share the common bond of an interest in rural health.

About the Chartis Group

The Chartis Group provides comprehensive advisory services and analytics to the health care industry. With unparalleled depth of expertise in strategic planning, performance excellence, health analytics, informatics and technology, digital and emerging technologies, clinical quality and operations, and strategic communications, Chartis helps leading academic medical centers, integrated delivery networks, children’s hospitals, and health care service organizations achieve transformative results and build a healthier world. For more information, visit www.chartis.com.

We congratulate Physical Therapist Kimberly Franzen, PT, DPT, CLT on her recent certification as a Certified Lymphedema Therapist (CLT).

Kim’s certification included 135 hours total with 75 hours of online work and 60 hours of in-person class and hands-on work. Kim was in Minneapolis for the class from October 13th to the 20th for the in-person class, but all online class work was completed prior to attending. Both a written test and hands-on practical was passed for the certification.

What is Lymphedema? Lymphedema is known as an abnormal accumulation of protein rich fluid that can occur gradually over time with increasing complaints of tightness or heaviness. Lymphedema increases one’s risk of infection or cellulitis. Typically lymphedema affects only one arm or leg, but can affect both as more commonly seen in the legs.

The certification consisted of learning the full CDT (Complete Decongestive Therapy) which includes not only performing manual lymph drainage (MLD) to reduce the amount of fluid accumulation, but performing and teaching/educating the patient on application of compression bandages or garments, exercise, nail & skin care, and other self-cares to assist with overall management of their condition.

Kim is now able to treat our patients who have lymphedema, lipidemia, or lymphedema which can occur due to other medial issues such as obesity, chronic venous insufficiency, lipo-lymphedema, or after a trauma or orthopedic surgery.

“Most people have not heard of or know much about lymphedema until they have been diagnosed with it,” said Kim. “I’m pleased to be able to offer this service to our patients who are diagnosed with this condition.”

Stay close to home, and receive your therapy and rehabilitation services with the experts at GMHC. For more information call 563-252-1121.

Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics is pleased to announce a collaboration with WELL Health Inc. to implement automated appointment reminders through secure two-way, multilingual messaging in the patient’s preferred communications channel: texting or telephone.

If GMHC has your cell phone or home phone in its system, patients will receive automated appointment reminders seven days, two days and one day before their appointments. Patients have an opportunity to respond or to opt-out of this service.

“It is our hopes that this two-way communication will help improve our patient’s experience throughout their care at GMHC,” said Danelle Krapfl, Lab and Imaging Manager.

This new service will begin on October 5, 2021.

Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics is pleased to announce a new partnership with Edgewood-Colesburg School District for Athletic Training services.

Sydney Pirillo, Physical Therapy Assistant and Athletic Trainer at Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics is contracted for athletic training services two hours per week, and at home games as her schedule allows.

“The Edgewood-Colesburg School District has been looking for ways to provide athletic training services to our coaches and athletes for years. One of the challenges has been finding the right partnership to meet the needs of the district. We believe that the partnership with the Guttenberg Municipal Hospitals & Clinics will provide the needed services for students and additional training for coaches. We see this as an opportunity not only to help students recover faster from injuries but also to prevent injuries in the first place.” said Rob Busch, Edgewood-Colesburg CSD Superintendent.

In her role as Athletic Trainer, Sydney works with student athletes to keep them healthy and strong. She typically sees 5 to 10 athletes per week during her time at school, as well as checks in with coaches and parents if additional communication is needed about an athlete’s injury. She recommends strengthening and stretching exercises, wrapping/taping techniques and other conservative techniques to both athletes and their coaches.

“My number one goal is to work with student-athletes and coaches to prevent injuries,” said Sydney. “All athletes are encouraged to report injuries when they occur, big or small, to prevent the injury from worsening in severity and to help resolve the issue in a timely manner. When injuries are not able to be prevented, my goal is to get the athlete back on the playing field as quickly and safely as possible, keep them in school, and reduce the risk of long term affects. I know that dealing with an injury can be stressful and I work to ease this process by advocating for the athlete and collaborating with local physical therapist, chiropractors, and physicians to provide the best care. I am honored to be joining the Edgewood-Colesberg team and can’t wait to help student-athletes achieve their goals on and off the field.”

Commented Alex Hanna, Activities Director, “We have loved having Syd in our building the last few weeks. Her help diagnosing injuries, helping with exercises and treatment for our athletes, and keeping them accountable to their recovery has been invaluable. In a school our size, keeping our student athletes healthy and doing what they love is more important than ever, so having a resource like her each week and at games is amazing for Ed-Co. Syd has been very progressive with her outreach to our coaches and communication to keep them in the loop about what our athletes can and can’t do from week to week. We have great support at Ed-Co from Administration and our Board, so their approval of this agreement should not come as a surprise. We are very thankful that this partnership has been made and we hope that it will continue to grow in the future for the benefit of all of our athletic programs here at Ed-Co.”

On August 11, the Guttenberg Municipal Hospital & Clinics Imaging Department performed its first MRI in the new Seimens MAGNETOM Altea Open Bore system.

“One of our first patients said that the brighter room and the lack of noise was a great improvement over our previous MRI,” said Karen Pressley, Radiologic Technologist.

The new Altea has a wider bore opening and is equipped with Quiet Suite and Turbo Suite to reduce the noise during the scan and enable a reduction in exam times by using advanced accelerated imaging techniques. These new features will help to reduce patient stress, making the exam more comfortable for the patient.

“The images are beautiful,” commented Dr. Joshua McDonald from Radiology Consultants of Iowa. “Allow me to commend GMHC leadership in bringing this great technology to the community of Guttenberg. This is a state of the art MRI unit and will definitely enhance the healthcare for Guttenberg and the surrounding communities. I consider it a great privilege to work with the GMHC Imaging staff and the patients of Guttenberg.”

MRI patients have been very pleased with the updated technology at GMHC.

“We had a patient who tried to have an MRI at another facility, and was told that he wouldn’t fit. When he came here, he fit without any problems,” said Terri Koopmann, Imaging Coordinator. “Other patients are claustrophobic but have no issues with our new MRI. We are pleased to improve our patient’s MRI experience with reduced noise, a wider opening and advanced accelerated imaging techniques.”

The Family Resource Center’s SHIIP Program was selected to receive a Governor’s Volunteer Award for outstanding commitment and service.

A virtual ceremony for the Governor’s Volunteer Award recognition was held on July 14th, and was attended by SHIIP Counselor Jim Solomon and Family Resource Center Coordinator Kari Harbaugh.

The ceremony lasted 45 minutes and included remarks from Governor Kim Reynolds, Lt. Governor Adam Gregg, and service leaders across Iowa. Awards were presented for six regions across the state: Central, Northeast, East-Central, Southeast, Northwest, and Southwest Iowa. The presentation of awards occurred by region, followed by short remarks from regional service leaders.

The dedication of volunteer SHIIP Counselor Jim Solomon made the award possible. Jim was honored for giving the precious gift of his time to meet essential needs of those he serves, and thanked for his dedication and for contributing his talent to enrich Iowa.

Jim Solomon is entering his fourth year volunteering to assist local residents to save money. In Jim’s third year of volunteering he helped 218 clients save a total of $127,448 by comparing Medicare Part D plans.

“We are so grateful for the time and talent that Jim has donated to assisting others,” Family Resource Center Coordinator Kari Harbaugh added. “Jim is a great asset to our community. He made this recognition possible.”

As a SHIIP Counselor, Jim will assist you with these three important things during Medicare open enrollment:

● Review your plan notice. Read any notices from your Medicare plan about changes for next year – especially your “Annual Notice of Change” letter. Review your plan’s information to make sure the prescriptions you use are still covered and your medical providers and pharmacy are still in network.

● Think about what matters most to you. Medicare health and drug plans change each year and so can your health needs. Does your current plan best meet your needs?

● Shop for the plans that meet your needs and fit your budget. Compare plans even if you’ve been satisfied with your current plan. The coverage and costs for plans can change from year to year.

To make an appointment with Jim, call the Family Resource Center 563-252-3215. SHIIP is a free, confidential service of the State of Iowa. SHIIP counselors review all plans offered and do not promote any particular plan or company. Please bring your Medicare card and your present list of prescription drugs to your appointment.

Category: Our Services