A pair of staff committees met this past month at Wrangell Medical Center, formed to improve response to patient falls on site and improve emergency preparedness.

At the monthly meeting of its board of trustees on Nov. 19, hospital head Marla Sanger reported the falls committee was formed with representatives of the nursing, physical therapy, quality, and maintenance departments, as well as a community patient advisor.

She said a federal follow-up visit the previous week confirmed WMC has dealt with a problem with its patient wheelchairs. The seatbelts had been found to be inadequate at an...