Case Study: In the Nick of Time

Organizations join forces to assist flooded facility

Three months ago, Indiana-based Columbus Regional Hospital experienced an estimated $180 million in damages when massive local flooding filled the hospital basement, inundating part of the first floor. On June 7, local emergency personnel and the National Guard evacuated many patients on gurneys down stairwells as electricity to the facility was cut off and the elevator shafts were flooded.

The inside of Columbus Regional Hospital was a dark, muddy mess. “It’s a scene out of a war movie. It’s just unbelievable the amount of damage that much water can do; it was unrecognizable in the basement,” says Jim Bickel, MBA, hospital CEO. “We know there is a lot of equipment down there that we’re going to have to replace. The hospital and its emergency department are closed.”

A Joint Effort

What happened next shows the true commitment and dedication from those who work to make a difference in the lives of patients. Jeff O’Dell, an account executive with Andover, Mass.-based Philips Healthcare, along with colleague Steve Rauh, regional sales manager, used the Philips ImageBridge program to contact Terry Teynor of Fargo, N.D.-based DMS Health Group’s DMS Imaging to help support the hospital.

ImageBridge is a team collaboration where DMS Imaging fulfills interim solution needs to Philips’ diagnostic imaging customers in times of disaster, renovation, patient backlog, or equipment upgrades. Rauh discussed the availability of CT and MRI mobile availability should the facility require immediate relief, asking, “Do you have any ideas how we can approach this together?”

The ImageBridge team of Philips and DMS Imaging staff put into motion a well-rehearsed drill to assist in determining the immediate needs of the facility and to coordinate with other participants, including Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Through ImageBridge, Teynor has worked with Philips on several natural disasters and was able to lend his firsthand experience to the local Philips team.

Within 24 hours, DMS/Philips ImageBridge responded to Philips and the leaders of Columbus Regional Hospital with a plan, which included a Philips Brilliance 16-slice CT scanner and a 1.5 Tesla Echo MRI machine from Waukesha, Wis.-based GE Healthcare. Both scanners were ready to ship immediately. O’Dell and Rauh also worked with the hospital and local emergency teams to ensure that all of the recovery participants were in sync.

According to Teynor, “Enormous amounts of time were spent onsite with full-time support by [O’Dell and Rauh], along with the Philips field-service engineers. Their personal dedication to their customer and community warrants recognition.” Teynor also points out that “Philips ImageBridge and the interim-solutions division of DMS Imaging is a team effort – not an individual effort. ImageBridge is by definition a collaboration of efforts between Philips and DMS to provide mobile interim modalities to Philips customers in need.”
   
Completing the Task

Project implementation was provided by a number of DMS employees to ensure every last detail, including making certain drivers were identified, the site was ready and able to receive the equipment, and trailers were ready to ship. Spending several extra days onsite working with the hospital, FEMA and Charlotte, N.C.-based Carolinas Med-1 provided assistance anywhere possible and ensured systems were delivered while the team followed well-rehearsed internal processes.

Other DMS team members were able to locate and lease an ancillary building, which required electricity, heating, ventilating, and air conditioning, water, plumbing, and an American Disabilities Act-approved patient ramp, in less than 48 hours. This task required the two most experienced members of the interim solutions team.

By 6:30 a.m., the team had the CT system onsite – just ahead of Carolinas Med-1’s arrival of a mobile emergency department. The mobile MRI followed a few days later and integrated seamlessly into the entire complex, which now includes CT, MRI, a mobile emergency department, and a mobile temporary building for supply storage, physician reading areas, and patient receiving and waiting rooms.

Responding to the valiant efforts of all parties involved, Philips Healthcare Vice President Kelly J. Londy sent the following e-mail: “First, I want to thank you for your prompt response to help us support Columbus Regional Hospital in this time of disaster. Your partnership with us, and ability to provide a mobile in such short notice, has made this situation much better for the customer and the patients in need.”

To Teynor, Londy’s message illustrates his team’s dedication to making a difference in the lives of their customers and patients – certainly a group effort.

— DMS Imaging