Nestled under the wide Midwestern sky, Clarinda Regional Health Center (CRHC) has been a cornerstone of care in Clarinda, Iowa, since opening its doors in 1939 as Clarinda Municipal Hospital with just 47 licensed beds. Today, the organization's reach extends across a 30-mile footprint with multiple clinics, continuing its long-standing mission to deliver exceptional, accessible healthcare to the rural communities it proudly serves.

Commitment to Rural Care and Community

"We're a small critical access hospital in southwest Iowa, serving about 15,000 lives here," explains Chief Medical Officer Bryon Schaeffer, MD. "One of the challenges we face is our geographic isolation, so the more we can do here, the better it is for our patients."

Surrounded by two-lane roads that wind past expansive farm fields, Clarinda is a small and close-knit community that many proudly call home. As the town continued to grow, so did its healthcare needs, prompting Clarinda to evolve and more accurately reflect the expanded role of its medical center and the communities it serves. 

"I enjoy the small-town atmosphere — this rural community gives you that genuine, down-to-earth, hometown feeling," states Dave Fast, Director of Ancillary Services. 

Advanced Imaging Close to Home

Clarinda's hospital carries a federal designation with an essential purpose to keep high-quality care within reach for rural communities; advanced healthcare made accessible, locally. In alignment with that goal, CRHC partnered with United Imaging to bring advanced imaging capabilities directly to its campus. The installation of MR, CT, PET/CT, and portable DR systems ensures streamlined workflows and high-quality diagnostic care close to home.

In practice, that means choosing tools designed for real-world needs. "The uCT^® ATLAS is our dependable workhorse — it handles the daily load and still leaves room to develop more advanced cardiac work when needed," reports Fast. "For MR, safety and quality care during tense moments were our top priorities. The uMR^® 680, with its detachable table, gives us the ability to provide a safer environment not only for our staff and first responders but also for our patients. This feature is particularly valuable to allow for smoother and faster patient transfers, which is essential for emergency room patients. The uDR^® 380i Pro - it is just a great unit to have not only for the imaging that it takes, but for the adaptability in rooms and situations with stressful STAT and ER cases."

Impact on Patients and Families

Oncology shows what advanced care at home feels like to families; Sarah Lochman, Physician Assistant in Hematology and Oncology, says, "Having the PET scanner in-house here has been an amazing blessing. We get high quality images and get them back with the results within 24 hours. It also elevated the way that patients view Clarinda Regional Health Center. They now associate us with higher quality care."

Patients feel the change in the rhythm of a visit. "The patients are much more excited because everything feels quicker — exams are easier; scheduling is smoother, and the entire process is more efficient," notes Chuck Nordyke, Chief Executive Officer. "So, they're thrilled that we have the best equipment that's out there."

In a town like Clarinda, access to care is also about generations. Fast sees it every day: "We see families whose grandparents were treated here, whose children bring them in now, and who bring their own kids here, too." At the end of the day, that continuity is what matters most to him. "It really lets me go home at night knowing we"re doing the best we can for the people we serve."