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Media center
Welcome to Verde Valley Medical
Center’s media center page. Through the media center, the Marketing and
Customer Relations staff at VVMC will keep you up-to-date on a variety
of ongoing events, new technologies at VVMC, and other information
including updates as they become available during a disaster or crisis
situation at VVMC.
Covering a story at VVMC
If you are covering a story that involves VVMC, please remember that
this hospital is a private institution. We do have a media room
available for situations that require its use. We will inform you of its
location when you arrive at our campus. If you do not choose to stay
there, please be advised that we require media to stay off campus,
unless accompanied by a member of the VVMC Marketing and Customer
Relations staff. This is for the protection of our patients, to preserve
their confidentiality, and for your protection. It also frees up our
staff so that we can be inside getting the information you need.
If you are a member of the broadcast media and have a satellite truck
with you, we ask you to please call the Marketing and Customer Relations
department at 928 639-6096. VVMC currently is undergoing
construction, and parking spaces are in high demand. We do not have room
to accommodate large vehicles, especially when they take up patient
parking spaces. Remember, patients are our number one priority.
Should you require a telephone, restroom, or other service, please check
with a member of Marketing and Customer Relations or hospital Security
staff so that we may escort you. We reserve the right to ask members of
the media to leave campus if they do not observe hospital policies.
Release of patient information policy
Protecting the privacy and confidentiality of patients and information
related to their cases is becoming an increasingly important
responsibility of hospitals and healthcare facilities. Recently, the
Department of Health and Human Services issued its final ruling on
medical privacy pursuant to the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). In this ruling, specifics about what
may and may not be released without written patient consent are
outlined. Please be aware that healthcare facilities also must comply
with state laws regarding patient privacy and confidentiality.
What can be released
Only certain information can be released to media by a member of
Marketing and Customer Relations staff without a patient’s permission.
Any public or non-confidential information falls into this category.
Cases of public record are those cases reportable by law to public
authorities (police, coroner, public health officer). Any additional
information, including requests for interviews, can only be released
with written consent from the patient (or a legal guardian if the
patient is a minor), as well as approval from the patient’s physician.
Questions about patients who are prisoners will be referred to the
custodial agency.
All media calls for patient information must be dealt with through the
hospital’s Marketing and Customer Relations office during business
hours, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday. During non-business hours, please
call the operator at 634-2251 and request the Associate Director of
Nursing. Additionally, any media on campus at VVMC and its properties
must always be accompanied by a member of Marketing and Customer
Relations staff. When you arrive at VVMC, please go to the Information
Desk in the Outpatient lobby on Candy Lane and ask to have a Marketing
and Customer Relations staff member called. Whenever possible, please
provide us with advance notice of your arrival to help us reach you in a
timely manner. All media inquiries regarding patient condition must
contain the patient’s full name. Law enforcement agencies, not the
hospital, release names.
Provided you have the patient's full name, the following is
information we can release without consent of the patient:
• Confirmation that the patient is or was hospitalized
• Admission and discharge dates
• Verification of name
• Sex
• City
No specifics will be given about the nature of a patient’s injuries or
condition. No prognosis will be given by a Marketing and Customer
Relations representative. We will, however, provide a one-word condition
report based upon the categories listed below:
• Unavailable: Patient is awaiting
physician assessment.
• Good: Vital signs are stable and
within normal limits. Patient is conscious and comfortable. Indicators
are excellent.
• Fair: Vital signs are stable and
within normal limits. Patient is conscious, but may be uncomfortable.
Indicators are favorable.
• Serious: Vital signs may be
unstable and not within normal limits. Patient is acutely ill.
Indicators are questionable.
• Critical: Vital signs are
unstable and not within normal limits. Patient may be unconscious.
Indicators are unfavorable.
• Unconscious: The hospital may
release information that the patient was unconscious when brought to the
hospital.
• Dead: The death of a patient is
presumed to be a matter of public record and may be reported by the
hospital after the next-of-kin has been notified or after a reasonable
time has passed. Information regarding the cause of death must come from
a patient’s physician and its release must be approved by a member of
the immediate family (when available).
We do not report stable as a
condition, and it should not be used in combination with the above
condition reports. By definition, the conditions above indicate the
stability of a patient.
Please be aware that a patient may “opt out” of information release
altogether – including confirmation of his or her presence in the
facility.
Any additional information, such as specifics about an accident or cause
of injury, will be referred to the appropriate law enforcement agency.
Any inquiries on patient cases not reportable by law will not commented
on, unless the patient gives consent.
Occasionally, we will release general information to help calm public
anxiety. In disasters or other highly charged situations, we might give
general information such as number of patients being treated or
conditions they are in. No identifying information will be released.
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Northern Arizona Healthcare - 1200 N. Beaver St., Flagstaff, Ariz.
86001 - 928 779-3366
Flagstaff Medical Center - 1200 N. Beaver St., Flagstaff, Ariz.
86001 - 928 779-3366
Verde Valley Medical Center - 269 S. Candy Lane, Cottonwood, Ariz. 86326 - 928
639-6000
VVMC - Sedona Campus - 3700 W. Highway 89A, Sedona, Ariz., 86336 - 928 204-3000
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