HEALTHY TOGETHER
DEAR PARTNERS,
As we close the chapter on 2024, I want to recognize and celebrate the unwavering commitment of our clinicians and staff to providing healthcare that’s not only amazing for a community hospital. It’s among the best anywhere.
The past year tested LMH Health in many ways. We navigated challenges with patient access and staffing in our pulmonary and neurology clinics, and adapted to changes brought by the elimination of two Medicare Advantage plans. Through it all, the resilience and compassion of our team remained steadfast.
One of our proudest achievements this year came in June as construction began on the LMH Health Cancer Center expansion, made possible in part by donor support.
Much-needed renovations will enhance the space and greatly expand the square footage of the Center, and I know our physicians and staff look forward to its completion in late spring 2025.
We also made significant strides in patient care. LMH Health earned accreditation from the American College of Cardiology for demonstrating our expertise and commitment in treating patients with heart failure. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas acknowledged the expertise of our orthopedic team, recognizing LMH Health as a Blue Distinction Center+ for Knee and Hip Replacement. We also rolled out a digital consumer platform to improve access and convenience and streamline operations.
—continued
Each day, 2,500 patients receive care from our team and yet we completed the entire year, and in fact are now over 450 days, without a serious safety event.
None of this would be possible without the teams dedicated to ensuring LMH Health is an excellent place to give and receive care, and one that is inclusive and welcoming for everyone who steps through our doors. Thanks to our clinicians, staff and volunteers, and to the continued support of the LMH Board of Trustees and the communities we serve, our future looks bright. We are committed to being your outstanding independent community hospital for years to come.
Russ Johnson LMH Health President & CEO
I am honored to reflect on the past year and share LMH Health’s progress and commitment to providing world-class healthcare to our patients and communities.
Throughout the year, we navigated an ever-evolving healthcare landscape while staying true to Elizabeth Watkins’ charge to provide care to all, stipulating “no person shall be excluded on account of race, or physical, social or financial condition.”
This past year was one of growth, resilience and innovation, all driven by our abiding commitment to provide care. LMH Health expanded services, invested in stateof-the-art technology and continued to enhance care through strategic partnerships.
We are committed to providing exceptional care, making huge strides in that direction in 2024. LMH Health hired or contracted with nearly 40 clinicians to join the Medical Staff, including physicians in rheumatology, GI, primary care and spine surgery, and new members joined the senior leadership team and Board of Trustees. Our commitment to quality and delivery of patient care is evident at our Main Campus, where construction is nearly complete on a multi-million dollar expansion of the LMH Health Cancer Center.
We are grateful for the progress LMH Health has made. Welcoming new members to the Medical Staff has strengthened our ability to provide exceptional care. Renovations and advanced technology have enhanced the patient experience and improved outcomes.
Thank you for being an essential part of our journey this year, and here’s to an even brighter future.
Dr. Shari Quick, Chair LMH Health Board of Trustees
Above: Dr. Shari Quick
Facing page, clockwise from top: Dr. Andrew Meyer; Russ Johnson; Justus McCullough, RN with patient Loren Anderson
On front cover: Dr. Caitlin Elmore with a young participant at The Stuffy Clinic at the Lawrence Public Library
PHOTOS BY EARL RICHARDSON
GIVING GREAT CARE
ROBOTIC KNEE SURGERY GETS PATIENT BACK ON HER FEET
Nearly 30 years ago, Robin Ward was involved in a motorcycle accident. Her right knee hurt and was swollen, but nothing was broken. Over time, her knee began to hurt more and more.
Ward tried cortisone shots in her knee for several years to alleviate the pain but gradually they became less effective. An MRI showed that it was time to take a different approach, as her gait began to change and the left knee began to take the brunt.
“If you’re a patient who lives anywhere near Lawrence, go to OrthoKansas. I always felt like they were taking a personal interest in me and my care.”
—Robin Ward
She wondered if robotic surgery was an option. Ward knew about the MAKO robotic technology available at OrthoKansas.
“That’s what prompted me to make the call. I had been at Sports Pavilion Lawrence walking laps with my friend, Julie Dunlap. We were walking at a brisk pace and my knee gave out,” she said.
“Julie told me to sit down and take a breath. While I was sitting there, I pulled my phone out and made the appointment. I was hoping that I was a candidate for robotic surgery and luckily, I was.”
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At top: Susan Henderson, Linda Morningstar, Gail Vick and Julie Dunlap helped Robin Ward, center, recover after robotic knee replacement surgery
PHOTO BY JEFF BURKHEAD
NAVIGATING LOW-INTERVENTION BIRTH AT LMH HEALTH
When Mary Pawlowski learned she was pregnant in February 2024, she knew that she wanted to have a non-medicated birth experience and turned to Dr. Leslie Underwood at Lawrence OB-GYN Specialists for care. She had her birthing preferences and questions written out and shared them with Dr. Underwood. Both she and nurse practitioner Holly Dunoon were very receptive.
Dr. Underwood understood that Pawlowski would like to have a natural birth with minimal intervention, wanting to be induced only if it was medically necessary. She discussed the birth plan with Pawlowski throughout the pregnancy, sharing that she was also high-risk due to her age and the baby’s large size.
Those factors led Dr. Underwood to recommend induction at 39 weeks. The couple took her recommendations into consideration and chose to continue with the pregnancy. The couple was reassured that although this was her recommendation, it was a shared decision between the provider and the patient.
“Patient autonomy is extremely important in today’s medical environment,” Dr. Underwood said.
Right around her due date, Pawlowski had an appointment with Dr. Underwood and learned that her blood pressure had begun to rise.
The
low-intervention birthing suite at LMH Health provides another option for parents who want to deliver their babies without medication in the safety of a hospital setting.
Dr. Underwood talked with the couple to discuss and decided the best way to proceed was with the induction, opting to do it as slowly as possible.
Pawlowski was also able to labor in the low-intervention birthing suite at LMH Health. The suite allows patients to deliver in a room that feels more like home than a hospital room, all while combined with the safety of a hospital.
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low-intervention
Above: The
birthing suite at LMH Health
PHOTO BY EARL RICHARDSON
At top: Mary Pawlowski and her newborn
PHOTO COURTESY MARY PAWLOWSKI
MAKING HOPE POSSIBLE
EXPANDING CANCER CARE AT LMH HEALTH
The need for cancer care in our community continues to increase year over year. The LMH Health Cancer Center has grown to provide more than 19,000 patient encounters per year, while continuing to operate in the same space where 2,400 patients were seen in 2001.
Much-needed renovations to the LMH Health Cancer Center began in June 2024 to enhance our space and greatly expand square footage. Improvements include:
• More treatment and exam rooms
• Larger waiting room with a respite area for families
• Two laboratory areas
• Patient education and consultation rooms
• Natural lighting for patient and family comfort
With the new design, there will be considerably more space in patient rooms. This will allow for a seamless experience for both staff and patients at the Cancer Center. The new design will allow room for new technology and services to be added such as a full-time dietitian and comprehensive survivorship care.
The LMH Health Foundation has provided more than $7.2 million in philanthropic support from community members and foundations to offset the cost of renovations. Click
At left: Dr. Jodie Barr, Cori Green, RN; Sarah Thompson, RN; Jami Hewins, RN; Jana Scott, MA; and Nichole Weatherwax-Feurt, RN
In background: Jennifer Kelly, RN; and Tenneil Noll, RN
PHOTO BY KADE HAHN
LOCAL LEADER RAISING AWARENESS ABOUT SIGNS MAMMOGRAMS DON’T CATCH
“I’ll always kick myself a little bit because I could have caught it earlier, but I don’t think there’s anything I could have done to prevent it.”
Megan Poindexter had a weird pain in her armpit. She didn’t think it was anything serious, so she ignored it and went on about life. When it was time for her annual well woman check, her primary care physician did a breast exam during the visit. Nothing seemed out of place.
A follow-up ultrasound and mammogram didn’t yield any concerning findings, but Poindexter began having other strange symptoms during the late summer, including pain in her arm and elbow that continued to get worse.
“I grew up as an athlete, so I’m not really phased by aches and pains and I blew it off,” Poindexter said. “But the day after Christmas in 2022, I thought to myself that it was ridiculous that my arm had been hurting for months. I was due for another well woman exam and thought I’d get a physical therapy referral.”
As fate would have it, something changed that night. Poindexter stretched her arm upward and as she moved to pull her bra back down, her thumb hit a lump. She saw her doctor right away who provided a referral for a mammogram at the LMH Health West Campus. Even though both Poindexter and her doctor could feel the lump, it wasn’t visible on the mammogram. She was ushered directly over for an ultrasound but the sonographer wasn’t able to get a clear image, though it did show a suspicious mass. She was immediately scheduled for a biopsy.
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“Being able to get such great care in my community has been amazing. I wouldn’t go anywhere else.
—Megan Poindexter
Above: Megan Poindexter, at right, and Dr. Sherri Soule
At top: The renovated and expanded LMH Health Cancer Center will open in 2025
ALWAYS LEARNING
PERMANENT PET/CT TECHNOLOGY UNVEILED AT LMH HEALTH
Nothing can replace the caring touch of a healthcare worker, nor the expert clinical decision-making of a physician or advanced practice provider. But in today’s healthcare environment, technology is equally essential in providing diagnostic analysis and life-preserving care.
Thanks to gifts by donors and corporate partners, the acquisition of a state-ofthe-art, on-campus Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanner provides transformative healthcare services to the communities we serve.
A PET scan reveals how tissues and/or organs are metabolically functioning. It helps to detect cancerous cells and tumors, and it can also be
used to evaluate the impact of heart damage after a cardiac event, like a heart attack, or the progression of heart disease.
Patients who need to complete a PET scan are injected with a radioactive medication (also known as a tracer) prior to the procedure. An additional medication can also be given to the patient in advance to help with relaxation.
As the patient passes through the large opening of the scanner, the tracer collects in those areas of the body where cells are functioning abnormally, which causes them to appear more prominent on the scanned image to help pinpoint the location of the disease. Indications of
diseases typically show up on a PET scan well before other imaging tests such as CT or MRI.
“Our radiologists are outstanding and read results so timely, sometimes the same day or next day,” said oncologist Dr. Sharon Soule. “A permanent PET scanner expedites evaluation and access to treatment. If we have to send someone to the KC Metro for a PET, results can take several days or up to a week or more.”
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At top: Volunteer Karin Rexroad peers through the opening of the new permanent PET scanner at LMH Health
PHOTO BY EARL RICHARDSON
INNOVATIVE AGREEMENT LEADS TO SUSTAINABLE OPTION
Beginning in August, LMH Health began using a safer, sustainable option for medical waste disposal through a partnership with WasteMedX. LMH Health is leading the country in this commitment as the first community hospital in the United States and one of only five hospitals of any size in the nation with this waste system.
WasteMedX utilizes ozone treatment technology to provide safe, environmentally friendly and more affordable medical waste disposal to healthcare organizations. It sterilizes and shreds biohazards including trace chemotherapy and non-hazardous prescriptions, pathological waste, sharps and documents containing personal health information (PHI), reducing waste volume by up to 90 percent.
“Before implementing WasteMedX, we had vendors at the Main Campus every day to transport our medical waste, traveling as far away as St. Louis,” said environmental services director Bill Churchwell. “Now we’re able to shred the waste in our own facility and use the ozone compound to sterilize the waste and make it completely safe for routine disposal. It is estimated that it could take us six to eight weeks to fill a dumpster before the city picks
“Now we’re able to shred waste in our own facility and use the ozone compound to sterilize it and make it completely safe for routine disposal.”
—Bill Churchwell, LMH Health environmental services director
it up and takes it five miles to the landfill. That dramatically reduces our footprint on the environment.”
In addition to reducing the health system’s carbon footprint, WasteMedX is fiscally sustainable. LMH Health estimates saving $78,000 over five years and $329,000 over the 10-year agreement with this green technology.
“This leading edge innovation is part of our commitment to examine every aspect of our business to ensure we’re operating in a responsible and sustainable manner that ensures long-term, fiscal viability, stewardship of resources and excellent patient care,” said Russ Johnson, LMH Health president & CEO.
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At top left: Rich McKain, Russ Johnson and Bill Churchwell celebrate the WasteMedX partnership At top right: Ozone treatment technology equipment PHOTOS COURTESY BILL CHURCHWELL
ALWAYS FORWARD
At top, from left to right: Dr. Aaron Doonan, Dr. Savannah Ericksen, Dr. Desiree Gleason, Dr. Alka Hudson, Dr. Hemil Maniar, Dr. Cole McGregor, Dr. Tabanor-Gayle, Dr. Alex Winkler and Dr. Ryan Xiao
BY EARL RICHARDSON
Health is rooted in our culture, our lifestyles and the way we care for one another. For a list of active physicians and other care providers who have privileges at LMH Health, click here.
NEW CLINICIANS JOIN LMH HEALTH
People are the heart of our health system. LMH Health hired or contracted with nearly 40 physicians, Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) and other clinicians to join the Medical Staff in 2024, including specialists in gastroenterology, interventional cardiology, primary care, rheumatology and spine care.
Dr. Aaron Doonan joined the team at Cardiovascular Specialists of Lawrence, an addition possible through the strategic clinical relationship between LMH Health and The University of Kansas Health System.
Dr. Doonan began caring for patients in October, the same month that LMH Health welcomed Dr. Alka Hudson to Lawrence GI Consultants.
Within any month, you’ll frequently find more than one doctor who began working at LMH Health, but it’s less common to have multiple doctors join the same clinic in a month’s time. OrthoKansas bucked that trend as Drs. Ryan Xiao and Cole McGregor joined the team in September 2024.
Additional clinicians joining LMH Health in 2024 include:
• Primary care: Savannah Ericksen, DO; Desiree Gleason, DO; Alex Winkler, MD
• Rheumatology: Joy-Ann Tabanor-Gayle, MD
• Spine: Hemil Maniar, MD
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PHOTOS
THE HEALING POWER OF ART
The next time you walk in LMH Health’s West Campus on Rock Chalk Drive in Lawrence, take a moment to soak in the healing power of art.
“When we were preparing to open the West Campus in 2020, we wanted to feature the work of local artists,” said Darren Moore, LMH Health digital content and brand manager. “The art installation on the first and second floors led to very positive comments from the patients, staff and community members. We realized we were on to something and began to feature local art work there and at our Main Campus.”
“We realized we were on to something and began to feature local art work.”
—Darren Moore
At left: Jill Ensley, with her painting titled, “We brought her up, up, up, to live amongst giants. Our hearts broken and flying.” Ingredients 7.1
At top: Community members enjoy artwork at LMH Health during the Healing Arts juried awards presentation
BY EARL RICHARDSON
The Lawrence Arts Center had already proven itself to be the perfect partner as its staff worked to identify the artists whose work is part of the permanent exhibit at the West Campus. Next came the perfect funding opportunity, thanks to a grant from the Kansas Creative Arts Commission that supports the installation of new local art exhibits quarterly at both LMH campuses, resulting in the Healing Arts Collaborative.
The exhibition emphasizes healing, wellness and increased engagement among patients, families, staff and the community by placing art throughout LMH facilities. It gives patrons the opportunity to escape from the reality of being in a hospital.
“Art can be a great vehicle for people to express themselves,” Moore said. “It can also help people recover from certain illnesses, such as a stroke. It can help patients by building their communication and motor skills.”
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PHOTOS
ALWAYS GRATEFUL
LOOKING BACK ON 2024
It was a busy year at LMH Health with the addition of new technology, infrastructure improvements and adding new providers. We are extremely proud of our dedicated team of the best and brightest. Thank you for being an essential part of our journey, and here’s to being Healthy Together.
Click here to learn about our accomplishments and how LMH Health is working to fulfill our purpose of being a partner for lifelong health
At left: Jacob Loucks, PT, works with patient Michael Devlin
At top: Sam Leong, PharmD; Nahirony Sanchez, PharmD; Clayton Galloway, PharmD; Beth Dwyer, PharmD; Cindy McDonnell, PharmD; Erica Hochard, PharmD; and Daniel Pons, PharmD of the LMH Health pharmacy staff
At top, right: Sherrie Munoz, LMH Health environmental services
PHOTOS BY EARL RICHARDSON
2024 LMH HEALTH FINANCIALS
Audited financials will be available pending board approval in April 2025.
