Hillsdale Hospital named one of the top 100 rural U.S. hospitals

Home City News Hillsdale Hospital named one of the top 100 rural U.S. hospitals
Hillsdale Hospital named one of the top 100 rural U.S. hospitals
The emergency and main entrance to the Hillsdale Hospital, which was named a top 100 rural hospital in the U.S. in February. Evan Carter | Collegian

Hillsdale Hospital was named one of the 100 top rural and community hospitals in the U.S. in Becker’s Hospital Review and received a $45,000 incumbent worker training grant from the state this past month.

The Michigan Works Southeast grant will fund training for the Obstetrics unit on a new fetal monitoring system, training to update administrative staff on changes in Medicare and Medicaid billing, and emergency nurse trauma care training. Hillsdale Hospital’s designation as the only trauma hospital in the county also makes this training crucial.

Hillsdale Hospital is not a trauma center, but it seeks to stabilize trauma victims, sending them to another health care facility if surgery by trauma-trained doctors is necessary.

“Where we were once as a small rural hospital, ranked in the lower portion of the nation, we are now what you would call a ‘top box hospital,’” said Hillsdale Hospital’s Director of Organizational and Business Development Jeremiah Hodshire. “We take honors like this as a recognition of the hard work of our staff.”

Hillsdale Hospital is one of seven in Michigan to make the list of 100 top rural and community hospitals in Becker’s. The list was compiled by the National Rural Health Association’s Rural Health Policy Institute, iVantage Health Analytics, and the Chartis Center for Rural Health using the criteria of risk management, staffing quality, patient outcomes, patient satisfaction, and operating cost.

“In a rural community, it’s hard to find that good mix,” Hodshire said. “We offer everything from surgical services, to inpatient psychiatric unit, to oncology services, to home care. We have several off site campuses, so we’re very in tune to the needs of this community.”

According to LeDena Fredette of Michigan Works Southeast, her organization uses state funds to provide grants to companies so they can provide training to their existing employees as a part of Governor Rick Snyder’s initiative to get more Michigan residents working.

“It’s necessary to utilize these grants to keep staff up to date on technology,” Hodshire said.