To the editor:

On Tuesday, July 23, our mother at the age of 92 fell and unfortunately broke her hip. She was transported to UnityPoint by ambulance and assessed in the Emergency Department. After X-rays confirmed what she knew and we suspected was a broken hip, the discussion began as to whether she could withstand surgery and if so, where would be the best place to have it done. We have a large and opinionated group of siblings and have heard the complaints over the years about the medical care here in Fort Dodge.

Because we feel it is extremely important that Fort Dodge maintain a viable hospital and to send mom out of town would send a wrong message, we decided to trust the care of this very special person to our local providers. We met with Dr. Prashanth Anand, the surgeon from CNOS, who explained in detail the surgery itself and further that he was confident mom could handle it and he could repair the break. Surgery was scheduled for the next day. After the surgery the doctor again met with all of us siblings, taking the time to answer all of our questions. Mom was then transferred to the third floor where she was cared for by the most caring and competent staff who went out of their way to make mom comfortable. The fact that she was here made it much easier on her family as well as her as she knew so many of the people caring for her. We want to thank the entire Emergency Department staff, the surgical staff, Dr. Anand and the folks at CNOS, the staff of the third floor and Dawn Miller for the incredible care given to our mother. After having a rod and screws inserted into her 92-year-old femur on Wednesday we are happy to report that five days later she was back at the Marian Home participating in choir practice preparing for their next program. Sometimes it is important to let people know that what they hear isn’t always 100% accurate.

The children of Genevieve Crimmins

Fort Dodge