Critical Care Unit
At HCMC’s Critical Care Unit, our goal is to provide your loved ones with the best possible care during their stay in our department. The Critical Care Team understands that having a loved one in a Critical Care Unit can be a very stressful and emotional experience for family and friends. As members of the Critical Care Team, we want to assure you that experienced and compassionate professionals are caring for your loved one in a state-of-the-art facility. Our number one priority is to serve your loved ones during their journey to wellness. We also care about you.
The Critical Care Unit staff believes that family involvement in your loved one’s care benefits his or her well-being. With this in mind, guidelines have been established to allow patient support in CCU and at the same time maintaining an optimal patient care environment.
Visitation
Visitation may have changed due to COVID-19. Please reference our COVID-19 information page for the most current visitation policies and changes.
Visitation is open to direct family members, significant others, and clergy. The support person should be designated upon patient admission to CCU. The designated person will be the point of contact person for other friends and family members to contact for patient information. No medical information will be given over the phone without a pass-code.
Visiting Hours:
10:00 am – 11:00 am
5:30 pm – 6:30 pm
8:00 pm – 9:00 pm
A maximum of 2 visitors are allowed at a time. Additional visitors should wait in the waiting room. For the safety of our patients, as well as their own safety, no visitors under the age of 12 are allowed, subject to the nurse’s’ discretion. Persons who are sick should not visit.
The CCU waiting room will be cleaned daily between 8:30 am and 9:30 am. We ask that visitors to the unit relocate either to the cafeteria, the patient room (if allowed) or to one of the other waiting areas in the facility. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
Because the patient may be on a special diet or not allowed to eat, no food should be brought to the patient without checking with the CCU nurse. To reduce the noise level and prevent any possible interference with the functioning equipment, we ask that you limit cell phone usage to the CCU waiting room unless it has been approved by a nurse.
Visitors should use the elevators located at the main entrance of the hospital to access the CCU. Before entering the CCU, we request you call the unit using the phone located outside the unit doors. The nurse will let you know if the patient is able to receive visitors at that time. For patient safety, we ask that you wash your hands thoroughly upon entering and exiting the patient rooms.
For patient privacy and confidentiality, please be advised that you may be asked to wait in the waiting room while care is provided or procedures are performed. Please, no lingering in the hallway. In the event of an emergency, visitors may be asked to step out of the patient’s room and wait in the waiting room. If this occurs, the patient and family will receive an explanation. We ask that you partner with us to help make patient care and safety our first priority.
The Critical Care Unit is located on 2nd Floor West. Take the elevator to the second floor. Exit the elevator and turn left. Walk through 2nd East, bearing left and turn left onto the CCU hall way. You will see the CCU waiting area on your right.
Hospital Rehabilitation Services
Acute Care Physical Therapy
Acute care physical therapists and physical therapist assistants are vital to patients who find themselves recovering from a surgery, stroke, a fall, a fracture resulting in needing to learn how to walk with an assistive device before going home and for those patients who just become weakened from an episode of pneumonia or another serious illness. Acute care physical therapists use their vast knowledge of the body and how it heals to set goals and the appropriate treatment plan to allow inpatients to become as independent and functional as possible prior to their discharge.
Our acute care inpatient physical therapists are also part of the Center for Orthopedic Wellness team of therapists that work with all the Total Joint Replacement patients. They follow the protocols as determined by Evidence Based Medicine as determined with the Center for Orthopedic Wellness.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy is ordered when the patient is having problems with the use of their upper extremities, self care skills such as feeding, dressing, bathing, or difficulty with problem solving and basic functional skills. Our occupational therapist teaches the patient techniques to use to regain the use of their arms and restore their previous level of function. Assistive devices are often needed for the patient to be independent in their activities of daily living (ADL) skills.
Speech Therapy
Speech therapy is ordered when a patient has difficulty with eating, swallowing or speaking. A modified barium swallow study called a videofluoroscopy is performed in the Imaging department with the speech therapist feeding the patient different textures of food while an x-ray is made. This test will show if there are any problems with the muscles and other structures in the throat that a patient needs to safely swallow food and not aspirate (swallow foods and liquids into the lungs which can cause pneumonia).
A technique using muscle stimulation to assist with swallowing disorders is called VitalStim. VitalStim requires special certification and our speech therapist, Suzanne Jackson is certified in the technique and uses it regularly with our patients.
Nutrition Services In partnership with Dietitian Associates, Inc.
Accepting Telehealth Referrals Now! Services available for all individuals regardless of insurance coverage. Adult and pediatric patients welcomed.
What is the GrowWell Telehealth Network?
The GrowWell Telehealth Network was formed through HRSA funding from a Rural Health Network Development grant in 2020 for the Paris and Henry County Healthcare Foundation, Inc.. Its goal is to increase access to quality, affordable healthcare and specialty services via telehealth throughout West Tennessee.
Partners Include:
- Henry County Medical Center
- Hardeman County Community Health Center
- Lifespan, Inc.
- Uniti Health
- Dietitian Associates, Inc.
- Le Bonheur Community Health and Well-Being
Referrals are simple and straightforward, allowing you to provide access to additional services for your patients through telehealth. Interested in partnering to provide telehealth services within your clinic? Contact us at telehealthsupport@hcmc-tn.org or at (731) 644-8300.
Who are Dietitian Associates, Inc.?
Dietitian Associates, Inc. was founded in 1995 by Dee Pratt and Linda Pennington, both Registered Licensed Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs). Their staff of RDNs provides nutrition counseling to individual patients with most nutrition related diseases including children, adolescents, and adults of all ages. They are nationally recognized for their work in reimbursement for nutrition services and Tele-Nutrition using HIPAA approved encrypted technology. For more information, you can visit their website at www.dietitianassociates.com.
What are some Telehealth Nutrition Therapy achievements?
