Calumet Medical Center partners with ART Attack! to support youth in arts
10 / 25 / 2010
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Maria Nelson, Media Relations
Affinity Health System
(920) 720-1752
(920) 554-0686 (pager)
CHILTON, Wis.- Calumet Medical Center is partnering with ART Attack!, an extra-curricular art organization, to support art in local schools. Students participating in ART Attack! created art projects to display in the hospital’s emergency department and Calumet Medical Center presented ART Attack! with a $500 donation to support their program.
ART Attack! is a program for children in grades 1-8, which aims to create interest in and support of the arts in Calumet County communities. The group meets twice monthly after school and is facilitated by artists who expand on the regular arts curriculum by working on wide-ranging projects with a variety of art supplies.
Calumet Medical Center completed renovation of their emergency department a few years ago and this provided an opportunity to display artwork in the department. Barbara Ott, manager of Emergency Services at Calumet Medical Center, started reaching out to schools and artists in the local community.
“I thought it would be a nice addition to have artwork on the walls in the emergency department,” said Ott. “We are always trying to find new ways to provide personalized care to our patients, and artwork can provide a more personalized and inviting environment for patients.”
After reaching out to people in the community, Ott was referred to Geri Justinger of ART Attack!. The two worked together, along with other ART Attack! staff, to put a plan into place. The exhibit, which was designed to look like an art gallery, started last month with seven framed artwork pieces created by children in grades 1-3 from Jo Woodcock’s class at Chilton Elementary. There are plans to update the artwork every 3-4 months to provide more children opportunities to have their projects displayed. 
Art Attack! participants
Art Attack! artwork at Calumet Medical Center
Check given to ART Attack! from Calumet Medical Center. Pictured (from left to right): Geri Justinger (ART Attack!), Melissa Sosa (ART Attack!), Flossie McKeown (ART Attack!), Jo Woodcock (ART Attack!), Jill Bailey (ART Attack!), Barb Ott (CMC), Tom Sell (ART Attack!)
Art Attack! artwork hanging at Calumet Medical Center
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For the Editor:
Affinity Health System, a faith-based regional health care network, is the Fox Valley’s second-largest employer, according to the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce & Industry. For the fourth consecutive year, Affinity has been named one of the nation’s top 64 health systems based on clinical performance according to Thomson Reuters, a leading provider of information and solutions to improve the cost and quality of health care. For ten consecutive years, Affinity Health System has been named to the SDI (formerly Verispan) Integrated Health Network Top 100, an annual assessment of the 100 most highly integrated health care networks in the nation. Both St. Elizabeth Hospital in Appleton and Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh rank among the top 1 percent of hospitals nationwide in terms of quality and efficiency, as determined by the 2007 Premier | CareScience Select practice National Quality Award. Members of Affinity include Mercy Medical Center and Mercy Health Foundation, Oshkosh; St. Elizabeth Hospital and the St. Elizabeth Hospital Foundation, Appleton; Affinity Medical Group, a regional network of 25 family practice and specialty clinics – 22 of which are recognized as NCQA Level III medical homes, the highest level of recognition – in 14 communities; Calumet Medical Center, Chilton; and Affinity Occupational Health.