2015 Health Care Champions Long-term Care Provider: Tammie Martin

Tammie Martin helps seniors live life to the fullest.

As administrator at Citizens Memorial Healthcare’s Butterfield Residential Care Center in Bolivar, Martin strives not only to provide excellent medical service to senior adults, but also help them connect with their community.

In 1996, Martin began developing programs to help seniors stay engaged, such as the Golden Age Games for southwest Missouri seniors in long-term care. Martin says the games are a type of senior Olympics and provide opportunities for completion, feelings of success and fun.

Coordinating the games for 13 years until 2009, Martin worked with sponsors to secure more than $10,000 in donations annually and the games have grown to three locations: Bolivar, Monett and Cabool.

As an instructor for the Missouri Health Care Association Activity Director Workshop, Martin isn’t only helping seniors in southwest Missouri, she trains activity directors across the state.

To gauge her success, Martin uses a simple metric: her grandmother.

“Although my grandmother did not need to spend time in a long-term care facility before she passed, she has always been my measuring stick of what the standard of excellence should be,” she says. “If I can provide a service that is worthy of my grandmother, then I feel like I am providing excellent service.”

Assuring satisfied customer service, Butterfield uses MyInnerView National Research Corp. surveys to evaluate its service.

“Under my leadership, Butterfield Residential Care Center has received the Excellence in Action award for scoring in the top 10 percent in the nation for resident satisfaction in 2012-13,” Martin says, noting the group anticipates the same score for 2014-15. “At the end of the day, I want to know I did my best for my resident staff and families.”

Martin has led Butterfield to be deficiency free each year since 2012, according to separate surveys from the Missouri Division of Fire Safety and the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. With Martin at the helm, Butterfield has received the  Voluntary Protection Program Star since 2000 and Missouri Quality Award in 2010 and 2014. Under her direction, Butterfield also has implemented electronic medical records and bedside medication verifications to ensure the safest medication administration process.

“I not only aspire to be a provider of residential care services in our community, but to be a resource to them,” Martin says, noting she is a State Health Insurance Assistance Program volunteer counselor for such support.

Martin’s service is backed by her extensive training. She has a bachelor’s in health, physical education and recreation from Missouri State University and master’s of health service administration from Southwest Baptist University. She also is a licensed nursing home administrator, Missouri board of nursing home administrator and a certified therapeutic recreation specialist through the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation.

In the community, Martin is part of the 2015 Leadership Bolivar class and serves on the Bolivar Education Advancement Board. She also has served as a board member for the Bolivar R-1 District, the school’s parent advisory board and as president of the parent teacher organization.