Sky Lakes Medical Center (formerly Merle West Medical Center) is a 176-bed hospital located in

Klamath Falls, Oregon Klamath Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The city was originally called ''Linkville'' when George Nurse founded the town in 1867. It was named after the Link River, on whose falls the city was ...

, United States. Sky Lakes is also a

teaching hospital A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...

affiliated with

Oregon Health & Science University Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) is a public research university focusing primarily on health sciences with a main campus, including two hospitals, in Portland, Oregon. The institution was founded in 1887 as the University of Oregon Medi ...

Medical School through the Cascades East Rural Family Medicine Residency Program. It is a community-owned medical center that serves the healthcare needs of an area of approximately in

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

and northern

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. The hospital was founded in 1965 and incorporated in 1968. Sky Lakes Medical Center provides a birthing center, Blood Bank, Cardiac Catherization Lab, General - Acute Care, Intensive Care Unit, Computerized Tomography Scan, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Mammography & Radiology/Diagnostic-Imaging/MRI/X-Ray, Nuclear Medicine, Occupational Therapy, Orthopedics, Outpatient Services,

Radiation Therapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy, often abbreviated RT, RTx, or XRT, is a therapy using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells and normally delivered by a linear accelerator. Radia ...

, Wellness/Health&Fitness Center. The hospital is equipped with a FAA LID: 9OR3 Heliport on its campus. Besides patient care, Sky Lakes also carries out medical research and offers practicum positions for family medicine residents and nursing students through its affiliation with the

Location

Sky Lakes Medical Center is located adjacent to the Oregon Institute of Technology in the northwest part of Klamath Falls. The hill lies on the southeast shore of the Upper Klamath Lake, accessed through

U.S. Route 97 U.S. Route 97 (US 97) is a major north–south route of the United States Numbered Highway System in the Pacific Northwest region. It runs for approximately through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, primarily serving in ...

. The hospital has a parking structure and three parking lots, the main lot being served by a shuttle service that ferries patients and visitors between their vehicles and the medical center. The hospital is served by two Basin Transit Service bus routes. It also has an ambulance bay and a

helicopter landing pad A helipad is a landing area or platform for helicopters and powered lift aircraft. While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard s ...

History

In the late 1950s, a citizen task force in Klamath County outlined the future healthcare needs of the region, and with a successful fund-drive constructed what is now Sky Lakes Medical Center, which opened in October 1965. In 1968, the hospital became a member of the American Hospital Association. It wasn't until the 1970s that the name was changed to Merle West Medical Center. The name of the hospital was changed to Sky Lakes Medical Center in May 2007.

Services

The Emergency Department has 23 beds. Patients are usually referred to the hospital by their doctors or clinics for specialized care, but may also be admitted through the emergency department. Sky Lakes Medical Center reported 6,112 acute admissions in 2010 for a total of 20,738 patient days and a 3.39 average

length of stay Length of stay (LOS) is the duration of a single episode of hospitalization. patient, Inpatient days are calculated by subtracting day of admission from day of :wikt:discharge, discharge. Analysis A common statistic associated with length of stay ...

. That same year the hospital reported 6,741 surgical procedures and 23,248 emergency room visits. Sky Lakes medical laboratory reported 395,941 laboratory tests and assays in 2010, while the

medical imaging Medical imaging is the technique and process of imaging the interior of a body for clinical analysis and medical intervention, as well as visual representation of the function of some organs or tissues (physiology). Medical imaging seeks to rev ...

department reported 28,429 X-ray exams, 8,872

ultrasound Ultrasound is sound waves with frequency, frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing range, hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hea ...

s and 16,507 MRI and CT scans.

Physical therapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is one of the allied health professions. It is provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through physical examination, diagnosis, management, prognosis, patient ...

reported 11,382 procedures in 2010 and the home health nursing program reported 814 nursing episodes. Sky Lakes Medical Center sponsors several annual community health-related activities, including the "Living Well" community health fair with more than 50 exhibitors providing information and resources for the community, providing free eye, ear, blood glucose and cholesterol screenings, as well as blood pressure checks, body mass index readings and lung-function tests. The event usually provides car seat checks and medication evaluations also.

Funding

Sky Lakes Medical Center is partially funded by the Sky Lakes Medical Center Foundation, a not-for-profit corporation founded in 1985 that adheres to the Association of Healthcare Philanthropy standards of professional ethics. The Sky Lakes Medical Center Foundation is the primary fundraising organization for the hospital, which receives donations by benefactors including former patients, other foundations and local business leaders.

Education

Sky Lakes Medical Center is affiliated with the

(OHSU) education and research branches, providing internship and practicum positions for over 20 resident physicians in pursuit of their family medicine specialty. Sky Lakes produces a continuing investment in Cascades East Family Medicine residents' program. The hospital also works with OHSU, Oregon Institute of Technology and

Klamath Community College Klamath Community College (KCC) is a public community college in Klamath Falls, Oregon. KCC's primary service area is Klamath County and Lake County in South Central Oregon. The majority of Klamath County is its official service area, while KC ...

faculties, supplementing their nursing programs with hands-on clinical exposure.

References

External links

* Sky Lakes Medical Cente
Cancer Program 2010 Annual Report

Official site
{{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1965 Hospitals in Oregon Buildings and structures in Klamath Falls, Oregon Hospitals established in 1968 1968 establishments in Oregon