__FITNESS PLUS TO OPEN IN DEXTER__

DEXTER, Mo. — Saint Francis Healthcare System’s Fitness Plus is coming to Dexter in July. The facility will be inside the Saint Francis Health Center and will be managed by credentialed health and fitness professionals, according to a news release. The facility will offer individualized assessments and workout plans for members, aquatic programs and swim lessons, live group and video exercise classes, recreation programs for adults and kids, individual and small-group personal training and more. It also will feature a lap pool, indoor track, a gymnasium, physical therapy and massage services, locker rooms, a steam room and whirlpool and three different fitness areas. Herman Louw was hired as manager at Fitness Plus Dexter. He will assist with hiring, training, developing and generally managing the fitness center staff. He earned his master’s degree in exercise science from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 2007. He previously worked as an exercise physiologist at Carbondale Memorial Hospital.

__PARKLAND BREAKS GROUND ON ER EXPANSION__

FARMINGTON, Mo. — Parkland Health Center broke ground May 5 on an expansion of its emergency department at 1101 W. Liberty St. in Farmington, the Park Hills Daily Journal reported. The opening of the expanded facility is scheduled for spring 2017. The emergency department will continue to operate during construction. The expansion will add 6,300 square feet to the existing emergency department, including 11 additional patient treatment rooms, waiting room space and an enclosed walkway connecting the main hospital entrance to the emergency department waiting area. In addition, 2,950 square feet of existing space will be modified as part of the expansion.

__PREMIER PHYSICAL THERAPY OPENS IN ADVANCE__

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ADVANCE, Mo. — Premier Physical Therapy, with offices in Cape Girardeau and Jackson, recently opened a new location at 33501 Highway 25 in Advance.

__BIRD NAMED MEDICAL DIRECTOR AT SERENITY HOSPICE__

PARK HILLS, Mo. — Dr. Jonathon Bird was appointed medical director at Serenity HospiceCare. He joined Serenity as assistant medical director in May 2013 and began his new role as director on May 1, according to the Park Hills Daily Journal. He is board certified in family medicine, graduating from the University of Missouri in 1983. He completed his residency in family practice at Baptist Medical Center in Kansas City, Missouri. He currently works at Bloomsdale Medical Centre, a sister partner of Ste. Genevieve County Memorial Hospital.

__HEARING SPECIALISTS RECEIVE AWARDS__

Cynthia Bradley and Katie Isgriggs, hearing instrument specialists at Miracle-Ear, received Gold Awards for Outstanding Educational Achievement. They each completed 25.5 hours of continuing education to receive the Gold Award from the Missouri Hearing Society. Additionally, Jorgen (Yon) Wibskov, a hearing instrument specialist at Yon Hearing Instruments in Farmington, Missouri, received the Platinum Award for Outstanding Educational Achievement. He completed 37.5 hours of continuing education.

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__SOUTHEAST HOSPICE HONORED__

SoutheastHEALTH’s hospice service was named a 2016 Hospice Honors recipient by Deyta Analytics. The Hospice Honors program recognizes hospices providing the highest level of care as measured from the caregiver’s point of view. Award recipients were identified by evaluating the facilities’ performance based on 25 quality-indicator measures.

__PJURA INDUCTED AS RADIOLOGY FELLOW__

Dr. George A. Pjura Jr., a radiologist at Cape Radiology Group in Cape Girardeau, was inducted as a fellow in the American College of Radiology. The induction took place at a formal convocation ceremony during the ACR’s “Crossroads of Radiology” meeting May 15 in Washington, D.C. Pjura received his medical degree from the University of Connecticut in Farmington Hills.

__JONES JOINS COUNSELING CENTER__

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Gerald Jones joined the Community Counseling Center in Cape Girardeau as coordinator of housing services. Jones is a graduate of Caruthersville High School, University of Memphis (pre-med study) and the University of Tennessee — Memphis School of Radiologic Technique. He previously worked as executive director of Caruthersville Housing, deputy executive director of the Memphis Housing Authority, vice president of housing at Alco Properties and vice president of marketing and development at Tesco Properties. In 1994, he purchased the Pyramid Group and moved the health-related services company to Cape Girardeau.

__WIDEMAN GETS PARKLAND HEALTH HONOR__

FARMINGTON, Mo. — Ladonna Wideman, lead call center representative at Parkland Health Center, was Star Service Team Member for April. She has worked at Parkland since 2010.

__SOUTHEAST STAFF GRADUATE FROM LEADERSHIP SERIES__

The Missouri Hospital Association Center for Education’s Health Care Leadership Series recently concluded, with 63 hospital staff members from throughout the state graduating from the program. Graduating from SoutheastHEALTH were Jennifer Deschenes, digestive health nurse manager, and Tonya Wooden, nurse manager in the psychiatric unit. The seven-month program included training sessions on building and retaining customer relationships, producing a high-performance workforce, designing and revising processes to ensure quality performance and understanding hospitals’ budgets and finances, according to a news release from Southeast.

__RHODES JOINS SOUTHEAST HEALTH__

Noel R. Rhodes joined SoutheastHEALTH as imaging director on May 16. He most recently served as interim director in imaging services at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. Rhodes has a Bachelor of Science degree in radiologic technology from the University of Arkansas Medical Services — Little Rock. He is a certified radiology administrator.

__SOUTHEAST NAMES NEW CFO__

SoutheastHEALTH announced the appointment of Steven J. Haas as chief financial officer, effective May 23. Haas, a Fellow of the Healthcare Financial Management Association, has a background in health-care financial services, including operations and project management. He specializes in capital financing, financial planning and reporting, revenue cycle management, strategic information technology planning and implementation of integrated systems and development of new business partners, according to a news release from Southeast. Haas previously served as vice president of finance and later as chief financial officer at HealthAlliance of the Hudson Valley, a regional health-care system based in Kingston, New York.