West River Health Services in Hettinger was recently named one of the Top 20 Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in the country. The top 20 CAHs, including West River Health Services, scored best among CAHs as determined by The Chartis Center for Rural Health. The rankings were recently announced by the National Rural Health Association (NRHA). An awa...

On May 1, all West River Health Services (WRHS) facilities and services will convert to a new Electronic Health Record (EHR) system, called Epic. Epic is an all-inclusive system designed to put all of the necessary information at your clinician's fingertips so that they can spend more time focused on you rather than their computer screen. Today WRH...

Updated 2/24/2022 WRHS Clinics and Hospital Visitation Updates Hospital Visitation – Two (2) visitors at a time. Masks must be worn at all times. End of life visitation based on provider discretion. Labor and Delivery – One (1) support person per delivery; two (2) visitors during recovery. Emergency Room –Two (2) family or support persons allowed i...

West River Health Services in Hettinger was recently named one of the Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals in the United States by The Chartis Center for Rural Health for 2022. "Even though healthcare has gone through tough times in recent years, West River Health Services continues to rise above our peers and our employees and our communities should ...

Updated 1/27/2022 WRHS Clinics and Hospital Visitation Updates Hospital Visitation – No visitation unless a patient is end-of-life. In this instance, one (1) approved visitor at a time over the age of 18.Pediatric patients – one (1) caregiver/guardian.Masks must be worn. Labor and Delivery – One (1) support person per delivery. Emergency Room – One...

For Balances of $500 or less or balances excess of $500 - learn more >> https://www.wrhs.com/patients-visitors/financial-assistance.html

Other common terms for the healthcare directives include "living will," "advanced directives" or "health care power of attorney." Healthcare directive is a written document you can write regarding your wishes about medical treatments given in advance of an incapacitating illness. A healthcare directive then gives direction to your family and physic...

That's right. We need more HEROES. Currently we have 54 job openings for more healthcare heroes at West River Health Services (WRHS) and Western Horizons Living Centers (WHLC). We are as challenged as we've ever been, to have enough staffing, allowing us to offer the top-notch healthcare services our area communities have come to expect. We are wor...

The Certification Board for Diabetes Educators (CBDCE) announces that Linda Nudell, RD, LRD, CDCES, Food and Nutrition Services/Diabetes Care and Education Manager, Long-term Care Consultant, and Adams County WIC Director has renewed her Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist (CDCES) status. This status demonstrates to people with diabete...

Bismarck, ND - The North Dakota Medical Association (NDMA) is pleased to announce that Joshua Ranum, MD, a physician with West River Health Services in Hettinger, officially took the reins to lead the association as its new president. Elected by the membership, the change of leadership took place after NDMA's October 12th annual meeting. Prior to s...

Dear Dr. Toshi, Could you please explain the difference between unsaturated fat, monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, saturated fat, omega-3, and omega-6? Wow, there are so many words related to the subject of fat, even after discussing "trans-fat" last week. And I haven't even talked about cholesterol or the "Lipid Panel" blood test yet! Ther...

Dear Dr. Toshi, Should I be on a low-fat diet? Now the experts say that the type of fat that you eat is far more important than the portion of calories you get from fat. We need good kinds of fat for proper body functions, after all. It's necessary for the absorption of certain vitamins, our energy, hormone production, health of our cells, and many...

Dear Dr. Toshi, I noticed blood in my stool. Does that mean I have a hemorrhoid? Maybe. Maybe not. You may think that blood in stool is from hemorrhoids because you often hear about them, but that's not the only reason you may have blood in your stool. Until you're evaluated by your doctor or provider, no one can say for sure what's causing the blo...

Dear Dr. Toshi, What is the GI tract and what's the difference between the GI tract and the digestive system? You may have heard your doctor or other medical provider use the term "the GI tract," and may have wondered what that exactly means. So, today, we'll talk about your GI tract and also how it's related to your digestive system. "GI" is short...

Dear Dr. Toshi, I heard that the skin renews itself. If that's the case, then why do we get scars when we get an injury or acne? There are two big reasons for scarring. One reason is damage to the deeper layers of the skin and another reason is related to the healing process. The upper layers of the skin that are renewed are called the epidermis, a...

Dear Dr. Toshi, I've had a cough for over three weeks. Could I have pneumonia? Coughing is one of the most common reasons why patients go see their healthcare provider. A cough can be categorized as acute (new) or chronic (going on for a while), and there are many different causes of coughing. So, today, I will discuss some of the most common cause...

Annual Giving - Partners in Health This annual membership giving club helps build a constituency that provides a cornerstone of annual financial support for West River Health Services and Western Horizons Living Centers and promotes meaningful and lasting relationships between our organization and its friends. Partners in Health will produce a reli...

Time July 3, 2021 - 7:30 am Location Mirror Lake Park, Hettinger, ND Schedule Registration at Park: 6:30 a.m. - 7:15 a.m Entry Fees: $15 to June 28; $20 June 29 - July 3 Start Times: 7:30 a.m. - Kids 1K Run (11 & under)3K Run/3K Walk to follow Raffle Drawing: 9:00 a.m. Awards: Kids 1K Run by age: Male & FemaleAges 5 and under, ages 6 - 8, &...

Dear Dr. Toshi, Does eating too much sugar cause diabetes? We talked about diabetes last week and I'd like to continue a little bit more on that topic today. Many people think that if you eat too much sugar, you'll get diabetes, but does eating sugar really cause diabetes? Before getting into details, I'd like to introduce a very important concept ...

Dear Dr. Toshi, What is diabetes? Have you ever wondered what diabetes really is, what insulin is and what glucose is? Today, I'd like to talk a bit about those things. Last week, I talked about the organs in your abdomen. Do you remember that one of the organs is the pancreas and it's located a little below and behind your stomach? It is where you...