Kearney, NE - 2003 Community Profile

More than 130 medical doctors practice specialties ranging from anesthesiology, oncology and cardiology to podiatry and urology. The large family of medical professionals includes more than 300 registered nurses and many other specialists such as oral surgeons, orthodontists and veterinarians.

Good Samaritan Health Systems is a regional, non-profit healthcare provider serving more than 311,000 people. Its service area covers more than 44,886 square miles in central and western Nebraska and northern Kansas. The Kearney-based health system is a member of the Catholic Health Initiatives of Denver, Colorado. Good Samaritan Health Systems is governed by a local board of directors.

Good Samaritan Hospital, a 287-bed acute-care facility, offers a complete range of services and strives to provide care to all in need, regardless of ability to pay. Rehabilitation services are enhanced through an inpatient rehabilitation unit and an
industrial rehabilitation unit known as Company Care. Comprehensive diagnostic and treatment services support the inpatient care program. These services include pathology, clinical laboratory, blood bank, histopathology, EEG, EKG, MRI, respiratory therapy, pharmacy, physical therapy, radiology, CT scanner, nuclear medicine, renal dialysis, ultrasound, echocardiography, angiography, diagnostic cardiac catheterization, home health care, pulmonary function laboratory and radiation therapy unit. Open-heart surgery has been performed at Good Samaritan Hospital since 1995.

Good Samaritan care providers are held to the highest standards. They make quality care and personal attention part of their daily schedule. The Mid-Nebraska Telemedicine Network allows healthcare specialists to consult, advise and assist with medical procedures from a distance, while allowing patients to remain close to home.

Emergency medical services are supplied by Good Samaritan Hospital — a Level II Trauma Center — with three emergency medical service ambulances and three long-distance ambulances; 24-hour emergency room coverage by a full staff of highly trained emergency room/trauma physicians; and a full staff of skilled emergency medical technicians/paramedics on duty 24 hours per day. Helicopter air-ambulance service is provided by Good Samaritan Hospital through its AirCare program. Fixed-wing medical transport is also available through the hospital.

Richard H. Young Hospital (RYH) is an 80-bed psychiatric and chemical-dependency facility offering inpatient and outpatient treatments as well as addictive-behavior care for adults, adolescents and children.

Kearney offers four skilled-nursing facilities with numerous luxurious assisted- living accommodations. Services are overseen at these state- and federal-accredited facilities by a skilled nursing staff, licensed physicians and medical directors.

Buffalo County Health Partners has defined its mission as involving and informing members of the Chamber of Commerce in the attainment of goals for a healthier Buffalo County by 2006.