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Two Penn Highlands Healthcare Hospitals Earn National Recognition

Posted on by Jeannine Lozier

Penn Highlands Elk and Penn Highlands Huntingdon have earned five stars from Becker’s Hospital Review for outstanding staff responsiveness. The two hospitals are among 530 in the United States and only 17 in Pennsylvania to earn this distinction.

The Becker’s star rating is based on data collected from hospital patients using Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). 

“Superior staff responsiveness creates a safer environment, higher patient satisfaction scores and more positive outcomes,” explained Rhonda Halstead, Penn Highlands Healthcare Regional Market President – Central Region, which includes Huntingdon, Blair and Centre counties. “This recognition indicates to our communities that our staff is dedicated to meeting their needs when they come to our hospitals for care.”

Brad Chapman, President of Penn Highlands Elk, shares Mrs. Halstead’s view. “The men and women who provide care at our hospitals are some of the most skilled, caring and compassionate people in this region. “The five-star rating is the stamp of approval that shows our commitment to high-quality care.”

 

Boost Your Productivity with These Practical Habits

Posted on by Jeannine Lozier

SUMMARY

  • Batching tasks allows you to group similar tasks together and focus on them for a specific period of time, improving concentration and allowing you to monotask rather than multitask.
  • “Eating the frog” is a productivity hack that prioritizes the most difficult task first, leading to feelings of accomplishment that can carry over into the rest of the day/week.
  • Automating your attention by turning off notifications, putting your phone on silent, and using online scheduling helps avoid distractions.
  • Power napping for 10-20 minutes before 2pm (or 5pm for night owls) can improve cognitive function and boost creativity.
  • Incorporating these habits can help increase productivity and make you more efficient – practice proactively to see real results 

~ 593 words / 3 minute read 

Although productivity is an essential component to work and life, it’s not a subject most people learn in school. At first glance, the ability to stay focused, get organized, and finish tasks on time seems to be a talent bestowed at birth on the lucky. Thankful productivity experts have another view. Your productivity does not manifest from your genes but from your habits. The following productivity hacks will help you take control of your time and transform the way you work.  

Batch Your Time

Time batching is a technique where you set aside specific timeframes for certain tasks. Instead of jumping from one task to another, time batching allows you to group similar tasks together and focus only on them for a specific period. For example, instead of reading emails throughout the day, you schedule a specific time to read and respond. Likewise, you might set aside specific times each day for returning calls or scheduling appointments. Time batching improves concentration and allows you to monotask rather than multitask, which research has shown to be ineffective. We all wish there was more time in a day. By batching your tasks, you’ll be able to work more efficiently, save time, and minimize distractions.

Eat the Frog

American humorist Mark Twain once wrote, “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And If it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.” Productivity experts have latched onto Twain’s metaphor to address the way many people avoid hard tasks. Unfortunately, that avoidance has a cost. Stress, anxiety, and low-energy happen when we put off important work. Much like ripping off a band-aid, ‘eating the frog’ means prioritizing difficult work. Once you’ve conquered a challenging task, your feeling of accomplishment will carry over into the rest of your day, even your week.

Avoiding Distractions

Distractions can significantly affect productivity. Edward G. Brown, an efficiency and workflow consultant, argues that our biggest time bandits come from momentum loss, starting over, and do-overs because of errors. Nir Ayal, author of Indistracible: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life, recommends using technology to automate your attention. Simple habits like turning off notifications during work hours, putting your phone on silent, and having clients book appointments through an online scheduler keeps your attention on your most important work and saves you time throughout your day.  

Power Naps

Can sleeping in the daytime really make you more productive? Just ask some of the world’s most successful basketball players like Lebron James or Derrick Rose, who have relied on naps to boost performance. Research shows that it’s not just athletes who benefit from napping. Power naps, defined as a 10-20 minute daytime sleep burst, can help recharge your energy, improve cognitive function, boost your creativity, and improve your work performance. When’s the best time to power nap? Sleep experts recommend before 2pm for most people or as late as 5pm for night owls. When you find yourself reaching for afternoon caffeine, you’ll know it’s time for a quick nap.  

The Takeaway 

Incorporating productivity habits like time batching, prioritizing hard tasks, avoiding distractions, and power naps are practical ways to increase productivity and become more efficient. By adopting these habits, you’ll be able to work smarter, not harder. Start by trying one or two habits for a few weeks and track how your productivity improves. Remember, productivity is like a muscle you develop, so practice everyday to get stronger.

Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak Opens New Office in Wilkes-Barre; Welcomes Attorney Stacey Acri

Posted on by Jeannine Lozier

Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak, an elder law firm with current locations in State College, Williamsport, Wyalusing and Wysox, Pa., is pleased to announce the opening of its fifth office, located at 273 East Northampton St. in Wilkes-Barre. Additionally, SGY welcomes Attorney Stacey Acri to its staff as an associate attorney. Attorney Acri comes to SGY from the Acri Law Firm in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. and has been practicing law for 25 years, including the last 16 in Pennsylvania. The new office will open and Attorney Acri will begin seeing clients on September 11, 2023. The Wilkes-Barre office can be reached at 570-266-7034.

“We are thrilled to be growing our firm into Wilkes-Barre and Luzerne County, where we look forward to providing the same high-quality service that our clients in Williamsport, State College and Bradford County have come to expect over the last two decades, as we help them plan for their second half of life,” said Attorney Landon Hodges, a partner at the firm. “We’re also very excited to have Stacey join our firm and focus her entire practice on elder law, while also maintaining her presence in her community where she will be able to continue serving her friends and neighbors.”
SGY was founded 21 years ago by Attorney Julie Steinbacher and for over the last two decades, has assisted thousands of clients with their legal planning needs for their second half of life. The firm’s mission is to provide protection in times of prosperity, security in times of uncertainty and comfort in times of crisis. It focuses solely on elder law, which enables it to provide a full suite of services relates to estate planning, both basic and advanced. SGY’s services include, but aren’t limited to wills, powers of attorney, special needs planning, estate administration, will disputes, guardianships, long-term care planning, nursing home Medicaid planning, wealth protection and tax planning, business succession planning, veterans’ benefits planning, elder care navigation, and Alzheimer’s and dementia planning.

Since 2007, Attorney Acri has been a part of the Acri Law Firm, which was founded by her mother, Jane Acri. Stacey has worked primarily in both family and elder law, but will be solely focusing on elder law at SGY. Elder law related items that she has worked on include but aren’t limited to general estate planning, including wills and Powers of Attorney, probate and guardianships. She also worked on non-elder law areas including family law issues such as child custody, domestic violence, adoptions and divorce and alimony. Prior to her time at the Acri Law Firm, Attorney Acri served her country for over nine years in the Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps of the United States Navy, where she provided military personnel and their families with various and wide-ranging legal services in both criminal and civil matters, including those pertaining to estate planning. A native of Mountain Top, Pa., Attorney Acri is a graduate of King’s College and Penn State Dickinson Law.

Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak is an elder care and special needs law firm offering quality representation to clients throughout Pennsylvania. It now has five locations in State College, Wilkes-Barre, Williamsport, Wyalusing and Wysox. Since its beginning in 2002, the firm has dedicated itself to practicing law with extraordinary standards of ethics and values. The vision of the firm has been to provide individuals and their families with a unique plan to protect their assets for their spouses and future generations, while providing for their immediate and long-term needs. More information, including resources and seminar information, can be found at PAElderCounsel.com To schedule your appointment at any of its offices, call 1-800-351-8334.

Mount Nittany Medical Center receives national recognition

Posted on by Jeannine Lozier

Mount Nittany Health is pleased to share yet another national recognition, with Mount Nittany Medical Center acknowledged by U.S. News & World Report as a High Performing Hospital in six procedures/conditions: Heart Attack, Heart Failure, Kidney Failure, Stroke, Knee Replacement, and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).


Notably, Ryan Burton, DO, and the Emergency Department at Mount Nittany Medical Center were just recognized for setting a new paradigm in stroke care. Their ability to diagnose stroke symptoms, initiate appropriate protocols, and administer thrombolytic treatment within a short timeframe ensures the best possible outcomes for our patients.

“At Mount Nittany Health we pride ourselves on our commitment to outstanding clinical, patient-centered care,” said Kathleen Rhine, President and CEO of Mount Nittany Health. “This national recognition is a testament to our team who consistently goes above and beyond to provide exceptional care to our patients.”

According to U.S. News & World Report, the Best Hospitals 2023-2024 procedures and conditions ratings evaluate almost every hospital in the U.S. that admits patients in 21 of the most common procedures and conditions. U.S. News evaluated more than 4,300 hospitals to generate procedure and condition ratings.

“For 34 years, U.S. News has provided data-informed rankings to help patients and their doctors find the best hospital to treat their illness or condition,” said Ben Harder, chief of health analysis and managing editor at U.S. News. “Fewer than half of evaluated hospitals earned any High Performing rating. Hospitals that are High Performing have excelled in providing high-quality care in specific procedures and/or conditions.”

Mount Nittany Medical Center recently received a Five-Star Quality Rating by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for the fifth consecutive reporting period, and was also recently named a “World’s Best Hospital 2023” and “America’s Best Maternity Hospitals” by Newsweek and has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of ApprovalTM for quality care and patient safety. In addition, the American Heart Association has honored Mount Nittany Medical Center with the 2023 Get with the Guidelines Gold Plus Award.

Intrada Technologies Announces Hiring of Cybersecurity Technician

Posted on by Jeannine Lozier

Intrada Technologies is proud to announce the recent hire of Caleb Hill. Hill recently joined Intrada full-time, as a Cybersecurity Technician, after working for over a year on a part-time basis. During that time, he was working on finishing his bachelor’s degree in information assurance & cyber security from the Pennsylvania College of Technology. He graduated and received his degree in May 2023. Hill will be responsible for safeguarding client computer systems, networks, and data from unauthorized access, theft, and damage.

His background in linguistics and poetry and his distinct Luddite streak (he got his first cell phone when he started with Intrada) make Caleb’s road to IT proficiency an unlikely one. His only previous experience with classic tech topics involved a summer fling with Python that ended in technical difficulties and a brief fascination with binary math. However, after two years of Penn Tech’s cyber security program, Caleb discovered Intrada Technologies at a job fair and was thrown into the fast-paced MSP environment.

Through a year of part-time work, his knowledge and understanding of IT soared to new heights. This experience gave him invaluable insights and practical skills that transformed his understanding of the field. He now enjoys working on the Intrada team, using his newfound IT knowledge to help others while working with the security operations team to design and implement cybersecurity services. He has recently completed the MS-900 Security Fundamentals certification from Microsoft and researches and writes about security topics.

David Steele, co-founder of Intrada Technologies, said, “Caleb has been an amazing addition to the Intrada team. He is very dedicated, pays attention to details, is loved by customers, supports other staff without being asked and continues to advance his knowledge to benefit the services we offer. Caleb is also very competitive and that was evident while watching him play for Intrada’s intramural soccer team.”
Intrada Technologies

Intrada Technologies
Intrada Technologies is a full-service web development and network management company focusing on creating ongoing, trusted partnerships with each of our clients. We ensure our clients have what they require to run their businesses with maximum efficiency and reliability, as many of their needs are mission-critical. Our unique, collaborative partnerships allow us to assure our clients that we will be there when they need us.