Archives for Heidi Prescott-Wieneke

Clinical leaders keep community informed about COVID in recent media interviews

Our clinical leaders are stepping up and speaking out in the media and in our communities to keep the public stay informed on the very latest COVID-19 information from Beacon Health. Here are some recent interviews and public appearances that made the news this week: Dr. Dale Patterson, Memorial's vice president of...

Highest number of COVID patients at Beacon since pandemic started

Beacon Health System updates Today’s 82 COVID-positive patients across Beacon Health System is the highest number we’ve seen to-date.  Community Hospital of Bremen Community Hospital of Bremen is seeing steady numbers, and is currently treating six COVID-positive patients and two persons under investigation (PUIs). Elkhart General Hospital Elkhart General Hospital has 41 COVID-positive patients in-house,...

Uptick in number of COVID-positive patients continues across Beacon

Community Hospital of Bremen Community Hospital of Bremen continues to see an uptick in the number of COVID-positive patients. Drive-through testing rates continue to increase, with 20 to 30 daily tests and a peak number of 47 late last week. Overall, Marshall County has seen approximately 1,300 positive cases to date. Elkhart...

Beacon hospitals reporting large number of COVID patients

Memorial Hospital The hospital went on ambulance diversion to all adult patients on Thursday morning. Both the number of physical beds and the inability to appropriately staff overflow beds led to this action.  The number of COVID-positive patients continues to be at or near a record high in addition to high...

CHA ACO, LLC improves care for Medicare patients, saves Medicare $4.9 million

Operated by Beacon Health System, CHA Accountable Care Organization (ACO), LLC improved care for nearly 14,000 Medicare beneficiaries in Indiana and Southwest Michigan last year, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. In doing so, it also saved Medicare more than $4.9 million in 2019, earning the South...

WSBT “Eye on Health” will feature Beacon’s new respiratory care model

Beacon Health is now partnering with WSBT-TV to provide the community with timely health information on its “Eye on Health” monthly news segment. The first story is scheduled to air tonight during the 5 p.m. newscast. Here’s a sneak peek. Beacon Medical Group patients who are experiencing cold, flu or COVID-19...

Beacon discharges 1,000th COVID-19 patient, a retired Elkhart elementary school teacher

The staff at Elkhart General Hospital lined the hallway, cheering and applauding for a retired elementary school teacher. Bennie Payton, too, threw her arms up in the air after learning she was the 1,000th COVID patient to be discharged from Beacon Health System. “I’m truly blessed,” said Payton, 74, who spent nearly...

Faces masked, prayers raised: Hospital chaplains balance compassion with COVID realities

This original post was written the summer of 2020 and Beacon was experiencing the angst of COVID that had gone on for 6 months.  Now we are experiencing that same angst but it has gone on for 18 months.  And staff is tired, society is tired, and we are all...

Impatient babies no match for these Memorial Hospital nurses

Two expectant moms this summer didn't quite make it into Memorial Hospital before their babies were ready to be born. Luckily, long-time nurses Becky MacDonald and Kristin Roush were on hand for these special deliveries. Becky delivered a baby just outside the Childbirth Unit in Lafayette parking garage. About a month later,...

Sense of purpose, personal connection motivates EVS associate during pandemic

Maggie Alvarez is an Environmental Services associate at Memorial Hospital. When COVID started, it was scary. We were seeing a lot of elderly people dying of it. We wore masks and shields and glasses and were still afraid to breathe. I didn’t want to touch anything, even with gloves on. Or...