Windber writes Rx for future

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September 4, 2007

Hospital’s solo journey looks promising

Anonymous The Tribune-Democrat Tue Sep 04, 2007, 02:12 PM EDT

Hats off to the brain trust of Windber Medical Center.

Less than a month after ending the hospital’s affiliation with Conemaugh Health System, these leaders called a town-hall meeting to share with the public their vision for the facility’s future and to answer questions.

While rallying the community, they sought to help ease any anxieties.

That was very smart.

Windber Medical Center has found a niche, and it’s banking on that niche to help it survive and thrive into the future.

Huge challenges are ahead. Fortunately, the hospital already has in place a strong, dedicated board, community backing and a hardworking president in F. Nicholas Jacobs.

“This center is not a dream,” Jacobs told last week’s gathering. “It is a reality that exists in the Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania.”

We agree.

Its homelike Planetree Hospital philosophy, adopted in 2000, was designed to attract patients from a large area. And it has done just that, offering a holistic approach to medicine – treating both the mind and the body.

Windber also embraces the Dean Ornish program for reversing heart disease, and it has the Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center, which saw more than 50,000 women in 2006; a highly respected and sought-after hospice program; and certainly a great Research Institute, affiliated with the world-class Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

It’s amazing just how far Windber hospital has come since facing near financial ruin in the 1960s.

Our region’s residents have taken notice, too. Not long ago, most drove past the hospital on their way to bigger hospitals in Johnstown. Now, many travel through the city to seek treatment at Windber.

To their credit, Conemaugh Health System officials have promised to continue to work with Windber in many capacities. That can only benefit both Conemaugh and Windber.

With our region’s population aging, our health-care industry will grow even more important in the coming years.

We expect that Windber Medical Center will be a strong player in meeting that challenge.

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