Services Continue to Reopen at Aspirus Riverview

By Chris Stines, President-Aspirus Riverview Hospital & Clinics

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “The first wealth is health.”

At Aspirus Riverview Hospital & Clinics, we believe there is no greater honor than to care for the health of our patients and community. So on behalf of everyone at Aspirus Riverview, thank you for your support over the past few months and for entrusting us with your precious health.

Collaboration is one of our core values at Aspirus, and it has certainly been put to the test with the arrival of COVID-19. Aspirus is collaborating on the local, state and federal level to keep our patients and communities safe throughout this pandemic. Locally, we screen everyone who enters our facilities, require patients, visitors and staff to wear masks, enforce social distancing, offer tele-health options for patients who need care but are not comfortable with an in-person visit, and have implemented visitor guidelines to keep our patients, visitors and staff safe. In addition, all our patients who are scheduled for surgeries and outpatient procedures are tested in advance for COVID-19. We also have a drive-up lab draw and COVID-19 testing site at Aspirus Doctors Clinic that is open to everyone by appointment, regardless of where you usually receive medical care.

The pandemic made it necessary to temporarily suspend many of our services – and even close some of our facilities to help us prevent the virus’ spread. I am happy to report that most of our services are back. Appointments, surgeries, and other procedures – both essential and elective – resumed in May, with safety precautions that are proving to be effective. We reopened our Adams clinic in early July and are preparing to reopen our Nekoosa clinic soon, with the exact reopening date yet to be determined. Our Wisconsin Rapids clinic that is located within the hospital and Aspirus Doctors Clinic have remained safely open throughout the pandemic, as have our emergency room and the Aspirus Doctors Clinic walk-in clinic.

Riverview has been part of our community since being founded by a group of area citizens in 1912. In our 108 years, Aspirus Riverview Hospital & Clinics has grown to more than 850 people. We provide an extensive array of health care services and were recently recognized for being in the top 10 percent of hospitals in the nation for patient safety. The entire Aspirus system has grown to 10 hospitals – six in Wisconsin and four in the Upper Peninsula. Aspirus has been recognized for the past three years as a Top 15 Health System in the nation by IBM Watson Health.

Many in health care have a special calling: To care for people in their time of need. To see our Aspirus team dedicate themselves to finding ways to manage this pandemic has been inspiring. Patients come to us worried, hurt, and sometimes in crisis. We have the privilege to care for them and help them heal. It is a calling our Aspirus Riverview team has lived up to for more than a century and that we look forward to continuing for generations to come.

To learn more about the services available at Aspirus Riverview Hospital & Clinics, please visit aspirus.org/riverview

We welcome your stories! Contact us at [email protected]!