DW JOURNAL
July 2015
“Respecting the path of life.”
Dear Family and Friends:
As I stated in the May newsletter, I was diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer after a routine annual mammogram and chose to
have a bilateral mastectomy for peace of mind. I expected my healing to be around 6 weeks and it was to be a fairly simple procedure in the scope of what it was. A month after my April 27th surgery, I went septic and required another hospitalization for nearly
a week and another surgery. During this surgery, I had to have the infection on one side cleaned; an infected expander which was
placed under the muscle removed, and returned home the beginning of June with wound care. I suspect I will need this wound
care for another three months.
Two days later I was re-hospitalized for a suspected blood clot in my calf. After a long process, the diagnosis was made and I do
have a blood clot in my lower right calf which requires daily injections until my Coumadin levels are in the range they need to be.
Coumadin is a blood thinning medication, and if after an ultrasound in three months the clot is gone, I will be off Coumadin. However, if the blood clot is still in my right leg vein, they will continue Coumadin for a maximum of 3 more months. So by the first of
the New Year 2016, I will be off Coumadin either way.
The good news is I am alive, and I will recover. I have seen Mayo Clinic physicians in the past few weeks and I will likely not have
the next reconstructive surgery until April-May of 2016. After being in a hospital bed for several days on several various admissions, you have a new perspective, and a reflective perspective.
My new perspective is very clear…..life is a gift every day and to never assume that I will automatically be lucky enough be given
the gift of 90+ birthdays as those I have served the past 32 years.
My new perspective reminded me that bad things happen to good people all the time, and although no one in my family has had
breast cancer, everything happens for a reason.
My new perspective was reinforced when I sat next to a Korean War veteran at Mayo in Rochester. My new perspective came
from this veteran who was hooked up to oxygen, in a wheelchair and 85 years old, and he reminded me, “You need to accept the
many downsides that come with aging.” The downsides may be oxygen, memory loss, falls with cuts/stitches/bruising, help with all
care needs, wheelchair etc. As this veteran stated, “I had the gift of 85 birthdays, some died at 18, 30, 40, 70……and I didn’t.” I
am the lucky one. It is all in one’s perspective. Naturally, when I told him my youngest son is leaving for the Army on August 10th,
we both had tears in our eyes, when he looked me in the eye and said “Tell him thank you and I feel peace knowing all I fought for
was worth it.”
My new reflective perspective is that we are blessed with amazing staff across the state and we have amazing systems set up.
Health care changes all the time, but we have continuously been adding and modifying to adjust to new programs and ideas.
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Through all of this, I have read daily shift reports from all sites across the state on my cell phone. Sometimes the cell phone
was tucked in my sheets in a hospital bed, but I can assure you I quickly caught up to those I missed while in surgery. For
years I have had shift report daily on all properties, to alert myself and other leaders if there is any change of conditions for residents including falls, or any staff/family issues/concerns. So with technology, I can see and direct things from behind the
scenes even from a hospital bed. However, as the CEO, my role is governing and system development. I can assure you we
have an amazing leadership team. Truly one of the best I have had the pleasure of having in twenty plus years of being a Nursing Home Administrator or CEO. Our sites have full time RN directors plus a full time LPN. In addition, we have two RN’s who
travel to sites for audits, education, etc. that are Regional Directors.
Some have asked about staff turnover. I can tell you that our turnover is well below industry averages; however, after being an
aide myself for years and now a CEO I will explain a few things that happen annually:
Every summer and every fall, we have many college students who either want to return to their parents home for the summer or
change their shift/number of days worked etc. to fit their life and adjustments occur.
Every year we have aides that have worked for us graduate from their college program and move on to their next phase of life,
just like I did.
Every year we have some great aides who have been terminated because they refuse to follow our “no cell phone policy” while
at work and not on break. That means that after being warned and receiving a last chance agreement, they have chosen to
continue to carry their phone with them while doing cares. I have zero tolerance for this as I believe when you are at work, you
work for the residents, which does not include being distracted texting friends, Snap-chatting, surfing the web, Twitter or Facebook. I am not always popular with this, but call me old-fashioned…… I believe you work while you are at your job. There are
laws protecting employee privacy, so I can’t tell family members in these situations why someone is no longer working for us.
Every year we have hired a few aides who are great care givers, however, they are not great at getting along with co-workers.
They may be mean, disrespectful, condescending, and rude to other co-workers. If this occurs and the employee chooses to
not respond to coaching and feedback, they may decide to resign or we may choose to terminate the employment relationship.
Once again, my responsibility is to create a culture where all employees work together and I do not have a tolerance for gossip
or bullying towards other adults. If this were to occur I would not share details with family members as there are laws that require confidentiality and professionalism.
Every year we have a few aides who choose to call in every weekend that they are scheduled, or when the sun shines, or when
something better comes up. In these rare cases, it means they usually do not last long as an employee ,as their lack of responsibility means someone else has to cover their shift and have their own plans altered. Once again, I expect adults to act like
adults and show up for work. We have really been blessed with an amazing work force, because most of our employees would
never fit this description.
Every year all aides have mandatory continued education hours, and we continue to train new hires with video training, on-thefloor shadowing, and return demonstration of competency by the RN, before they start working. This is great because even with
turnover, our residents have fresh employees who are not burned out and they want to be there. That is the most important
part. Trained staff and staff that are passionate about seniors.
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I will be adding hours in the office in Duluth each week until I am back 100%, I will work from home until my wound care and
Coumadin levels are settled. I may not be doing site visits until the fall, however the Regional Directors will be, and that is typically how it is done in most health care models. I will look forward to rounding the state ASAP.
Thanks for your concern and prayers. I have been blessed with an amazing team across the state and it is exciting to see all the
wonderful things occurring each day. I hope you all have a wonderful summer with your family and friends.
Sincerely,
Natalie Zeleznikar, CEO
Summer Activities for those with Memory Loss
(Excerpt from Through the Seasons—Written by Cynthia R. Green, PH.D., and Joan Beloff, ACC, ALA)
Let’s Talk About . . .
Let’s Try . . .
What did you like to play outside when you were small?
Rolling a ball outside to each other.
What sounds do children make when they play?
Having a bean bag toss.
How do you feel when you hear children laughing?
Make a games memory box: Put familiar outdoor game
What other sounds do you hear outside in the summer?
Objects such as balls, jacks, sidewalk chalk, and marbles in
a shoe box. Look at the objects in the box and talk about
childhood memories. Decorate the box using wrapping paper or
magazine photos with game playing themes.
July Picnic Schedule
Baxter
July 18, 2015
11:00-1:00pm
Lester Park
July 25, 2015
12:00-2:00pm
Little Falls
July 11, 2015
11:00-2:00pm
Park Rapids
July 18, 2015
12:00-2:00pm
4th of July Sugar Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup cream cheese, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Decorating icing and/or colored sugars
Directions:

In a large bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and extracts. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt;
gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or until easy to handle.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with floured 2- to 3-in. cookie cutters. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets.
Sprinkle with colored sugars as desired.

Bake at 350° for 9-11 minutes or until set. Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. Decorate with icing and additional sugars if desired. Yield: 10 dozen.
Make a Refreshing Red, White & Blue Spritzer
Make a Red, White and Blue Spritzer Fill a glass with frozen blueberries and strawberries, and top with Sprite or 7UP. This refreshing, patriotic treat encompasses the colors of the flag -- and cools you off for summer! You could also freeze red and blue
Kool-Aid in ice cube trays, and add the colorful cubes in place of the frozen fruit. Both are simple and rejuvenating.
Grand Rapids—Italian Bistro Party
Meet The Chefs!
Park Rapids
Mtn. Iron
Cloquet
Campus Listing
Diamond Willow Alexandria
Lake Agnes Suite
Lake Henry Suite
803 Victor Street
803 1/2 Victor Street
Alexandria, MN 56308
Alexandria, MN 56308
320-762-1448
320-762-2067
RN: Robin Loeks
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Baxter
Scandia Suite
Fjord Suite
14396 Grand Oaks Dr.
14398 Grand Oaks Dr.
Baxter, MN 56425
Baxter, MN 56425
218-825-7034
218-825-7162
RN: Rebecca Miller
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Cloquet
Stillwell Suite
Trygg Suite
130 W. North Rd
132 W. North Rd
Cloquet, MN 55720
Cloquet, MN 55720
218-878-1972
218-878-1974
RN: Kendra St. Germaine
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Detroit Lakes
Burlington Suite
Soo Line Suite
1558 Randolph Rd
1564 Randolph Rd
Detroit Lakes, MN 56501 Detroit Lakes, MN 56501
218-846-0825
218-846-0147
RN: Jessica Chenze
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Grand Rapids
Eagle Pine Suite
Mississippi Suite
949 SW 11th Ave
949 1/2 SW 11th Ave
Grand Rapids, MN 55744 Grand Rapids, MN 55744
218-327-9463
218-327-9460 or 327-9461
RN: Bethany Hagman
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Lester Park
Lester River Suite
Gitchi Gammi Suite
6353 E. Superior St
6355 E. Superior St
Duluth, MN 55804
Duluth, MN 55804
218-525-8093
218-525-8177
RN: Anneka Benson-Kastelic
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Little Falls
Staurolite Suite
Lindbergh Suite
1401 5th Ave NE
1405 5th Ave NE
Little Falls, MN 56345
Little Falls, MN 56345
320-616-2845
320-616-2848
RN: Derek Peterson
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Mountain Iron
Wacoutah Suite
Leonidas Suite
8583 Unity Dr.
8585 Unity Dr.
Mtn. Iron, MN 55768
Mtn. Iron, MN 55768
218-741-1413
218-741-1450
RN: Maureen Typpo
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Diamond Willow Park Rapids
Birch Park Suite
Evergreen Suite
911 Crocus Hill St
909 Crocus Hill St
Park Rapids, MN 56470 Park Rapids, MN 56470
218-732-1674
218-732-1671
RN: Sandy Sullinger
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541
Important Dates in July
July 1—International Joke Day
July 4—Independence Day
July 12—Pecan Pie Day
July 20—National Lollipop Day
July 29—National Lasagna Day
Diamond Willow Proctor
Arbor Rose Suite
Misty Ivy Suite
913 Old Highway 2
915 Old Highway 2
Proctor, MN 55810
Proctor, MN 55810
218-624-9771
218-628-3535
RN (Suites): Mindy Murtley
World Traveler Cottage
919 Old Highway 2
Proctor, MN 55810
218-624-5102
Traditions Cottage
921 Old Highway 2
Proctor, MN 55810
218-624-5034
Lake Superior Cottage
923 Old Highway 2
Proctor, MN 55810
218-624-0363
RN (Cottages): Debra Behselich
Director of Operations:
Sara Kleinschmidt
218-591-7541