Dear Editor:

Everyone knows that hospitals are always here for people - to help them and fix them when they are sick or injured.But what happens when a hospital needs to be helped or fixed?At St. Luke's Miners Memorial Hospital, we found out first hand what happens and how a community will come together to help a member in need.On Wednesday, November 2nd a water main break at the hospital sent water rushing across the ground floor of our building. While our hospital holds emergency preparedness drills, we hope to never implement what we practice. We did. Having the right people and procedures in place, with the support of our network, was crucial to getting us back on our feet. Fortunately nobody was injured. Unfortunately, the water resulted in a disruption of patient services including laboratory, physical therapy and radiology.The value and importance of our community partnerships were made clear, now more than ever. Our hospital is essential to our community and our community is essential to our hospital. With the help of our St. Luke's Miners staff, St. Luke's Hospital & Health Network team, Lansford/Coaldale Joint Water Authority, Coaldale Fire Company, Coaldale Police Department and many others who worked diligently and tirelessly, we were able to restore services in a matter of mere days, some in mere hours. It is with great pride that I say we are fortunate to be a part of this community.I want to thank our patients for their support, loyalty and patience during our recovery. And I thank them for their continued patience as we move forward with improvements at our hospital.We have always been, and continue to be, committed to providing an environment with high quality of care and safety for our patients and staff.Sincerely,William MoyerPresidentSt. Luke's Miners Memorial Hospital