MU Health Care named one of America’s ‘Most Wired’ hospitals

For the third consecutive year, University of Missouri Health Care has been selected as one of the nation’s “most wired” hospitals by the American Hospital Association’s Hospitals and Health Networks magazine. The honor is given annually to hospitals that are making continuous progress in expanding the use of information technology in both clinical and administrative sectors.

Already, 2013 has been a productive year for MU Health in terms of integrating technology into its operations. In March, the system opened 90 “smart rooms” in its new patient tower. The smart rooms’ systems sync directly with a patient’s electronic medical records and can upload patient data in real time. Additionally, a new system integrated into intensive care units allows doctors and nurses to see the patient’s vital signs for the past 30 hours on a flat-screen monitor above the bed.

“Our aim is to create a high-tech, high-touch environment,” says Bryan Bliven, interim chief information officer at MU Health Care and executive director of the Tiger Institute. “By integrating technology into health care, we can free clinicians to spend more time at the bedside caring for their patients and less time writing notes and flipping through patient charts.”

Caledon Virtual expands into public relations and event services

The addition of new partner Sean Spence has allowed Columbia-based marketing firm Caledon Virtual to expand its operations into public relations and event planning and creation services. Spence has created and run both PR and event businesses in the past and brings that experience to bear as he helps Caledon move into these new fields.

“Caledon Virtual has been growing and evolving from the day we opened our doors five years ago,” Executive Director Nelly Roach says. “Sean has built and run PR programs on a local, national and global level. He has created thousands of events. With our staff to provide support, we are now able to serve clients in incredible new ways.

The Bank of Missouri flexes its social media muscles

The Independent Community Bankers of America, a trade organization representing almost 7,000 banks across the country, has named The Bank of Missouri to its first list of the top 50 community bank leaders in social media and also to its list of top 20 community bank influencers on Twitter. To make the list, ICBA’s member banks were evaluated on number of followers, number of regular updates and engagement with followers, among other metrics.

MU School of Nursing receives grant to support studies of second-career nurses

MU’s Sinclair School of Nursing has again received the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s New Careers in Nursing Grant. The $100,000 grant provides scholarships and helps fund programs for students in the school’s accelerated degree program who are seeking a second career in nursing and come from groups underrepresented in the profession or economically. This is the school’s fourth straight year winning the grant.

“NCIN is strengthening nursing education and creating a culture of change at schools of nursing across the country,” says American Association of Colleges of Nursing President Jane Kirschling. “Our grantee schools are committed to enrolling students traditionally underrepresented in nursing, and students are benefiting from the emphasis on mentoring and leadership development that are hallmarks of the NCIN program.”

The Sinclair School’s accelerated degree program allows students who already have earned bachelor’s degrees to take all required classes and pass licensure exams in just 15 months. For students in this challenging program, the grant provides scholarships as well as leadership and mentoring programs to help them accommodate the demands of the accelerated program.

Columbia financial planner speaks at national event

Carroll Wilkerson, certified financial planner, was honored and spoke at the 2013 Circle of Champions event in Orlando. The event is held each summer by Waddell & Reed, a national asset management and financial planning firm with a network of more than 1,800 financial advisers. Only about 500 of those advisers even qualify for the event.

Mexico students receive honors in national skills competition

Alex Shaw, Trent Johnson and Connor Templeton from Davis H. Hart Technical Center in Mexico, Mo., were recognized for their superior skills in engineering technology and design at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference held in Kansas City at the start of July. The team received a Skill Point Certificate after being judged by leaders from the industry using professional standards. SkillsUSA is national organization that focuses on promoting career and technical education to improve the country’s workforce.

New CVS Pharmacy may be built at Providence and Broadway

The City of Columbia’s Planning and Zoning Commission will vote at its Sept. 3 meeting on whether to approve a rezoning request that would allow a CVS Pharmacy to be built at the southeast corner of Broadway and Providence Road, directly across Providence from the current Walgreens location.

Stephens College campus buildings undergoing major renovations

Dudley Hall, the Pillsbury Science Center and Hickman Hall on the women’s college’s historic campus are having their interiors renovated to improve learning environments. Two recently reacquired buildings, Columbia and Wood halls, are also undergoing similar updates. The college has also contracted an architecture firm to aid in campus planning and help set priorities for facilities and infrastructure work.

– Joe Machens Dealerships hosted the Raminator, a Dodge Ram-based monster truck, at the grand opening of its new Chrysler Dodge Ram Jeep dealership on Vandiver Road in late July.