Monica Lewis is from Lucky, La. As she grew up in the watermelon fields she was determined to leave but after a few years she returned. She began college at NSU but graduated from La. Tech with a degree in psychology. She got a degree in psychology because she did not have to take speech to earn her degree. However she now has to do some public speaking.
She started in the health care field in home health and then transitioned to the nursing home. She became as nursing home administrator and still has her license for that. She has been at the Winn Parish Medical Center for 2 ½ years. A remodel of the hospital has been taking place including flooring, paint, nurses stations and the emergency room. The hospital depends on community support. They have many outpatient services including radiology and labs. They are very pleased with Winn Wellness Center which has moved into the hospital although it has already outgrown its space. There are 7 exam rooms and they see 70 – 90 patients per day. Because of this the clinic has expanded its hours on Friday through Sunday from 7 AM – 7 PM. Tony Acosta is responsible for the extended weekend hours. Also on staff at the clinic is Dr. Aziz, an internal medicine specialist.
The hospital also offers speciality services-a nephrologist comes twice a month and Dr. Landreneau, a cardiologist comes once a week. Dr. Lee is a general surgeon. They are looking to bring in a podiatrist and a neurologist hoping to prevent people from having to go out of town.
The focus of WPMC is the community and growing employees. They are providing extra training for employees to make them better at their jobs. They ask managers to find out from employees what are obstacles for their job and then they ask them for solutions.
WPMC is owned by Allegiance whose leader has a heart for rural healthcare focusing on Louisiana. There own 11 facilities in Louisiana and are moving into the home healthcare and hospice areas. Financially they are in good shape and are looking to purchase new equipment, particularly a 3D digital mammogram machine.
The cafeteria is open 5 days per week for breakfast 7 AM – 8:30 AM and for lunch from 11 AM – 1 PM. Senior Circle is an organization for people ages 50 and above. It is free and meets on the 4th Tuesday of each month at 10 AM. They have a speaker , refreshments, bingo and looking into crafts. They focus on health and wellness.
Ms Lewis said that she has put a suggestion box for employees so they feel they have a voice in what happens at the hospital.
