To anyone who will stop long enough to read this

The storm expected to meet or exceed previous records had already launched its first wave sometime during the early hours of Feb. 3 and by first light of that same day, I was admitted to Cabinet Peaks Medical Center. I watched for the next six nights and seven days as the unrelenting snows obliterated the grids which had defined streets from sidewalks and rooftops from landscapes. Then came the winds and the ice and collapsed roofs and fallen trees and power outages.

But this is not about the snow storms of 2017. I was gravely ill during my stay in Cabinet Peaks. What I feel the need to share with every person living within our Libby/Troy greater community resulted from my vantage point, the parallax view I had from within the hospital. During my seven days in that hospital I learned far more than I could ever have anticipated. I finally understood the tremendous amount of team effort that is given to each patient’s care. The phrase “COMMITTED TO QUALITY, COMPASSIONATE CARE” is more than just a slogan on a water tumbler, for sure.

From the time I entered the facility until the moment of my discharge, the singular focus of every staff member was providing each and every patient, myself included, with optimum care and comfort.

I watched as each shift was relieved by the next one. The nurses charged with my care during my days in ICU, the Charge Nurses, RNs, the Respiratory Therapists, Lab and Imaging Techs, CNAs, everyone involved in any capacity and at all levels would brief the next shift with the details of what had occurred before their arrival. The cohesive performance of these individuals as a unified team was like watching an exquisitely choreographed relay race in which each runner settled for nothing less than their personal best when passing the baton to the next awaiting team member.

As the snowstorm continued to close schools, cancel meetings and grind businesses to a halt, not one person involved in my patient care failed to report on time for their shift. Though some faced the challenges of cars buried under walls of snow, or ditched due to slide offs, one way or another, they made it in.

Now I have heard and must confess to having believed some of the stories complaining about Cabinet Peaks Medical Center’s treatment of patients. But I am also unafraid of admitting when I have been wrong; and I was. The expression about never letting the truth stand in the way of a good story might well describe the unfair assessment Cabinet Peaks has been given. I can now say from personal experience and prolonged, close observation that such harsh criticism was not deserved.

We who live in this community might want to spend more time being grateful that we have access to a facility so committed to doing their job and doing it so well.

To every employee at every level within the Cabinet Peaks Medical Center complex I offer my sincere thanks and appreciation

Oh, yeah, the food is good, too. No, I really mean it — it’s GOOD!

Geraldine (Gerri) Fink

Libby, MT