Autumn 2012 - Shodair Children's Hospital

Welcome
from our Administrator
JACK CASEY
As many of you know, construction
is well under way for Shodair Family House. This
project addresses a weakness we identified in our
continuum of care. Currently, many families
experience difficulty traveling to Shodair to visit
their children and receive intensive family therapy.
The lack of family visits and participation lessens
or delays the recovery of our patients and their
successful return to family and community.
Intensive family therapy, as well as parenting
education classes and family visits, are critical to
long-term recovery and community integration.
In the past, distance and lack of accommodations
on our hospital campus have lessened the potential
for meeting this critical goal. Creation of Shodair
Family House provides us with the opportunity to
increase the potential for success in these areas.
In addition, use of the new facility for professional
teaching opportunities will enhance the abilities
of our mental health professionals.
The costs of construction for Shodair Family House
are being covered by generous grants and donations.
However, we still need funds to furnish and equip
this new facility. If you would like to help, contact
our new Foundation Director, Tom Figarelle.
As I write this, we are busy with Christmas
preparations for the children and teens who will be
in our care during the holidays. For many of our
patients, this is the hardest time of the year. Some
of them have never had a joyous Christmas, while
others will have to be away from family and friends.
We have always been able to make Christmas at
Shodair special, thanks to thoughtful support from
generous individuals, State employees, and
businesses here in Helena and from every
corner of Montana.
2012 was a year of change for Shodair as we
prepared to meet the needs of our patients and
their families into our next century. We welcome
every one of you to experience the unveiling of
Shodair Family House when it's complete in
April 2013. While it's easy to see our external
improvements, more changes are occurring within
the hospital to improve patient care. Once again,
Shodair Children's Hospital received the Jeff Martin
Award for Excellence. Our patient outcomes and
satisfaction surveys continue to rate us very high.
And while the data shows we are doing well, we're
always striving to do even better through our
quality improvement program. As we prepare for
changes on the healthcare horizon, we're confident
we'll be positioned to continue providing quality
care to Montana's children and their families.
Thank you for your continued support this year.
We wish you, and your families, a holiday season
filled with many blessings of your own.
Sincerely,
John P. Casey