2025 Year in Review: Growth, Innovation, and Community Commitment

As we wrap up 2025, I’m proud to reflect on a year filled with remarkable achievements, continued growth, and unwavering dedication to the communities we serve. Despite challenges in the healthcare industry, Perham Health remains strong, innovative, and focused on delivering exceptional care close to home.

Celebrating Excellence in Care

This year, Perham Health received numerous awards and recognition for quality care, patient satisfaction, and patient safety. These honors are a direct result of our incredible team—700 highly trained, compassionate professionals who live out our mission every day. Their commitment to our unique patient, resident, and family-centered model of care sets us apart and drives our success. I am deeply grateful for their hard work and dedication.

20 Years of Person-First Care

2025 marks 20 years since we introduced our Person-First model of care in our nursing home—a model that has earned state, national, and even international recognition. What began as a bold vision two decades ago has transformed the way people live in nursing homes. The Perham Living team has sustained this model with excellence, and I couldn’t be prouder.

Building on that legacy, our Elevate program continues to innovate by providing community-based services that help people stay active and independent, delaying or preventing the need for long-term care. This forward-thinking approach is as transformative today as Person-First was when we launched it.

Planning for the Future

Our growth since moving into our current hospital 14 years ago has exceeded all expectations. We’ve creatively repurposed countless spaces to meet demand, but we’ve reached our limit. To continue serving our community, we need more space.

That’s why we’ve begun designing a major expansion, with groundbreaking possible as early as fall 2026. This addition will include expanded areas for surgery, emergency care, birth center, pain management, infusion therapy, radiology, cardiac rehab, pharmacy, and therapy services—departments experiencing the highest growth. We look forward to sharing architectural plans with you this spring.

Navigating Financial Challenges

While 2025 brought incredible progress, it also presented financial challenges—some of the most difficult in my 28 years at Perham Health. Rural healthcare nationwide faces mounting pressures: reduced reimbursements, rising costs for drugs and supplies, wage increases, and caring for sicker patients for longer periods without additional reimbursement.

Thanks to years of fiscal responsibility and strong investments, Perham Health remains financially sound. However, these challenges underscore the need for systemic solutions at the state and national levels. Growth is essential—not only to meet community demand but also to strengthen our financial position for the future.

Gratitude and Looking Ahead

None of this would be possible without you—our patients, residents, families, and community. Your trust and support allow us to deliver award-winning care close to home. As we look toward 2026, we remain committed to innovation, excellence, and the health of our community.

Thank you for choosing Perham Health. Wishing you a blessed and Happy New Year!