Western Wisconsin Health

The Medical Center operates a critical access hospital, including a provider-based, rural Health clinic, a rural Health clinic in a neighboring community, and a fitness Center with a clear and consistent charitable purpose which is to provide Health and wellness services to all residents of the communities served without regard to age, race, gender, creed, national origin, ability to pay, and physical or mental handicap. The dedication of the Medical Center's workforce provides a strong foundation for program development that is based upon community need and in alignment with organizational values of caring, innovation and sustainability.during fiscal year 2022, there were 1319 medical/surgical (acute and observations) admissions, 342 swing bed days, and 274 newborn deliveries. The Medical Center also had 4665 emergency room visits in fiscal year 2022. The Medical Center focusses on Health and wellness and integrative Health services that includes holistic services provided by traditional Medical practitioners, specialists, integrative Health care providers, Health coaches, dieticians, behavioral Health specialists, therapists and fitness experts. The Medical Center has developed specific services in the Area of emotional resiliency training (i.e. A collection of services aimed at teaching people to manage their own physical and emotional wellbeing). In addition, the Medical Center provides a full spectrum of geriatric services on site and within Area nursing homes and assisted living facilities. This includes 24/7 call and the regular provision of on-site care to over 200 patients. This service is not well reimbursed and thus, requires a significant in-kind investment from the Medical center.in addition, the Medical Center operates a simple Health and a functional medicine program. These programs are aimed at improving patients' Health and wellness, at the preventive level. This type of program keeps patient healthcare costs low, by starting at a foundational level of diet and exercise. Both programs have documented outcomes of lowering unnecessary emergency department visits and reducing hospital re-admissions. The challenge is in a fee for service environment, there is not comprehensive reimbursement for innovative programming, such as offered through these services. As a result, wwh makes significant investment to ensure these services continue to be available to wwh patients and our community.medical Center representatives provide a variety of volunteer services to enhance the community by participating in collaborative efforts related to the community Health needs assessment, relay for life, local school education programs for students regarding career choices and mental Health support, and many other initiatives. The Medical Center offers scholarship funds to select Area high school seniors looking to pursue a career in healthcare and grant program dollars to employees looking to enhance their professional skills in a health-related education field. The Medical Center further serves the community by providing outreach programs and services that are intended to enhance the Health and well-being of the people in the community. Some of these services and/or support groups include the following: community-wide Health and wellness programs; school based mental Health services and school athletic training; cardiac, diabetes, mental Health and depression support groups; diabetes self-management classes; nutrition and lifestyle consultation and programs; expectant parent classes and breastfeeding education; and community wide covid-19 vaccination clinics for eligible participants.uncompensated care:the most significant expression of charitable service is the provision of uncompensated healthcare services.a. Charity carethe Medical Center provides healthcare services to all people, regardless of their ability to pay. For those individuals with verified income that is at or below 100% of the federal poverty guidelines, services are provided without any expectation of payment. For individuals that have verified income at or below 300% of the federal poverty guideline, care is available on a discounted sliding scale. The Medical Center screens potential charity care program participants and makes patient information readily available on the charity care program. Procedures are in place that actively seek to identify patients who may qualify for charity care. See additional information on the cost of this community benefit in the schedule h of the form 990.b. Provision for bad debt -uncollectable accountsthe Medical Center established a provision for bad debt expense (valued at the usual and customary charge) that represents those healthcare services which were provided to patients that were unable or unwilling to pay. See additional information on the cost of this community benefit in the schedule h of the form 990.government programs such as medicare and medicaid provide payment for services often at rates that are substantially below the usual and customary charge. See additional information on the cost of these community benefits provided in schedule h of the form 990.

Western Wisconsin Health has a fitness Center that is open to all employees, patients, and the general public. The Center has an average of approximately 560 members with over 31,000 annual visits. For part of the fiscal year 2022, the Medical Center offered free fitness Center memberships to community members and patients.

Western Wisconsin Health also provides outpatient healthcare services at two clinics that it operates. During fiscal year 2022, total outpatient encounters at these clinics were 50,244. Both clinics are designated as rural Health clinics.in addition, the two clinics provided charity care and bad debt expense for fiscal year 2022 in the amount of $905,673.

Western Wisconsin Health is expanding services to businesses in the communities served. These services included Health screening, education, occupational Health services, pre-employment screening and workplace evaluation. During the covid-19 pandemic, wwhealth has supported businesses with education, testing and vaccinations. The Medical Center is developing specialty services in many areas, including expansion of behavioral Health services, in particular telehealth behavioral and substance use disorder services in early 2023.