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closeOne year down, many on road to recovery
Statistics show St. Anthony Hospital has been busy in variety of ways
Susan Schell
of the Gateway
Have a sip of green beer next week and tip your hat to the saints. St. Anthony Hospital will celebrate its one-year anniversary on St. Patrick’s Day. It doesn’t seem that long ago when the concrete skeleton rose above the treetops and crawled with construction workers in hard hats. It seems like yesterday that laughing staff members in scrubs sprawled on the emergency room floor in front of TV news cameras in the pre-dawn hours of opening day.
But it wasn’t yesterday, and the hospital has had a whirlwind year since last March 17.
The need for a hospital in Gig Harbor was felt from day one.
The emergency room reported 570 patients in the first two weeks, and the hospital accelerated its plans to add new beds.
A new mother, unable to make it across the Narrows bridge to Tacoma, delivered a baby at the hospital, even though St. Anthony doesn’t have a labor and delivery floor.
Within its first year, the St. Anthony emergency department saw 16,487 patients, and 3,459 of them stayed for one night or longer. Surgeons performed 2,967 operations, and the dietary staff served 252,945 meals.
Last month, the hospital won the “Excellence through Insight Award” from HealthStream Research for exceptionally high patient-satisfaction scores in the emergency department.
“It’s wonderful to see how much the community has supported the hospital, and how much they’re turning to it for care,” said Gale Robinette, media relations manager for the Franciscan Health Care System.
What a year, indeed.
Dick Brynestad of Gig Harbor is one patient who knows the ins and outs of the hospital. He underwent knee replacement surgery there last July, and he’s felt like a new man ever since.
Brynestad was introduced to his doctor, John Jiganti, who was working with St. Anthony and chose to have his surgery there.
Brynestad said he was impressed with his experience, from the surgery prep through his follow-up physical therapy.
“I got treated so well by my prep nurse, Paul Dow,” Brynestad said. “He just made me comfortable and warm until it was my turn. The nurses, the physical therapists, they were all such professionals, but they were fun to be with and kid around with.
“I was on a walker with my nurse the same day as my surgery. They pushed me a little further every day, and I think that’s why I got better so fast.”
Brynestad said a few weeks after he graduated from physical therapy and went home, he received a questionnaire in the mail that asked him to grade his experience on a scale from one to 10.
He gave St. Anthony high marks all the way around.
“I filled it out very honestly,” Brynestad said. “Here you’re coming into a brand-new hospital, and everything was No. 10 all the way. How new it was, how it was decorated, the employees, the nurses, everything. They earned every good mark I gave them.”
A year in business
The hospital has several events planned for its birthday week:
Free health talks
From 6 to 7 p.m. March 11 — Pulmonologist Manuel Irequi will provide tips for reducing personal risks for allergies, asthma and other breathing conditions.
From 6 to 7 p.m. March 17 — Orthopedic surgeon Lance Bear will talk about the newest treatment options for tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome and other conditions.
From 6 to 7 p.m. March 18 — David Bucher of Franciscan Hospice will provide information about making difficult end-of-life decisions.
Discounts in cafeteria, gift shop
March 14-20 — Everyone will receive 10 percent off meals at the hospital’s cafeteria. Those 60 and older will receive 20 percent discounts. March 17 — Selected items in the St. Anthony gift shop will be offered at 20 percent discounts.
Gig Harbor Health and Safety Expo
From 9 a.m. to noon March 13 — Physicians and other experts from St. Anthony and the Franciscan Health System will provide health tips and answer questions during the Gig Harbor Health and Safety Expo at Gig Harbor Fire District 5 headquarters, 10222 Bujacich Road NW. Admission is free.