real life, real health in ventura county

Transcription

SUMMER 2012
R EAL LI F E, R EAL H EALTH I N V E NTU R A C O U NTY
“I had no
feeling of
panic, I
didn’t think
it was a
life-threatening
situation.”
– Jurgen Gramckow
8
12
15
18
20
25
26
contents
4
No Panic Just Expert Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
CMH’s Telemetry/Progressive Care Unit is
Named a National Best Nursing Team . . . . . . . 7
The Bovas – It Takes a Community . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Defying Sudden Cardiac Death . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Michael Ellingson – Vice President of Marketing and Development
Mary McCormick – Editor
Woody Woodburn, Dan Wolowicz,
Margie Stites, ZestNet – Writers
Sunwest Studios – Photographer
ZestNet – Art Direction/Design
The Kids Call Him MACGYVER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Community Memorial Health System
2012 Board of Trustees
CMH Auxiliary Celebrates 50 Years . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Martin A. Pops, M.D., Chair
Gregory H. Smith, Vice Chair
Trudy Arriaga, Ed.D., Secretary
Jeffrey D. Paul, Treasurer
Art Matters in Ojai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Ventura County’s Lifeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Caring for Maricela – Palliative Care Services . . . . 20
Touching Lives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Investing in Our Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
From Alice Ragland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Meister Family Foundation Announces
2012 Nursing Scholarship Awardees . . . . . . . 26
Marc A. Beaghler, M.D.
Chief of Staff,
Community Memorial Hospital
Mary E. Dial, M.D.
Chief of Staff,
Ojai Valley Community Hospital
Michael D. Bradbury
Philip C. Drescher
Timothy J. Gallagher
Thomas F. Golden, M.D.
John J. Hammer
William L. Hart, M.D.
John V. Hill, M.D.
Fritz R. Huntsinger
Harry L. Maynard
Judy Miller
F. Ted Muegenburg, Jr.
Richard Rush, Ph.D.
John W. Russell
Samuel D. Small, D.O.
Gary L. Wolfe
Kay Woodburn
EMERITUS MEMBERS OF
THE BOARD
Ralph R. Bennett
Robert J. Lagomarsino
Leonard Ortiz
Janice P. Willis
Foundation Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
BUILDING A BETTER Health System . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Community @ Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
2
CARING | COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HEALTH SYSTEM
A not-for-profit organization.
147 N. Brent St., Ventura, CA 93003
©2011 Community Memorial Health System
For permission to reprint any portion of this magazine please call 805/652-5492.
On a daily basis individuals are
inundated with healthcare reports on
the quality of physicians and hospitals.
As consumers it is often difficult to know
which agency or organization we should
listen to as we decide on the “best
course” for our healthcare needs.
Ensuring that patients receive the highest
quality of care is paramount to all of us in the
Community Memorial Health System family.
That’s why we regularly participate in a number
of high-quality surveys considered the “gold”
standards in healthcare. In addition to mandatory
reporting to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services, California Department of Public Health,
and the Office of Statewide Health Planning and
Development; we also participate with numerous
others including:
• Collaborative Alliance for Nursing
Outcomes (CALNOC);
• Society of Thoracic Surgeons –
Cardiovascular Surgery Outcomes;
• American College of Cardiologists – Interventional Cardiology Outcomes;
• Southern California Patient Safety
Collaborative;
• CHART – California Hospital Assessment
Reporting Taskforce.
I am extremely proud of the quality
markers we routinely attain. Moreover, we
believe in full transparency and regularly share
this information with the public. Shortly, quality
data analysis surveys and reporting results will be
available on our website so the community can
easily obtain all of our information.
Gary K. Wilde
President & CEO
One commendable example of our ongoing
efforts to continually improve the quality of patient
care is CMH’s 4th Floor Telemetry/Progressive Care
Unit. In this issue of Caring we’ve highlighted the
unit which was recently named one of ten National
Best Nursing Teams by the publication, Advances for
Nurses. We want to congratulate the entire staff who
worked together to significantly reduce falls and
provide a safer environment for our patients.
THOUGHTS
wilde
O
Also, this issue’s cover story features Jurgen
Gramckow, an Ojai resident, whose story underscores
that there’s a lower threshold for a heart attack
than most of us realize. The owner of Southland Sod
Farms, Jurgen was unaware of how dire his situation
was, but says he “can’t say enough about CMH and
the excellent care I received.” I want to thank Jurgen
for sharing his personal story and for reminding all of
us how important it is to know the subtle signs of a
heart attack.
In 2001, CMH played a critical role in delivering
Ventura County’s only quintuplets. Now, over a
decade later, we re-visit the Bova family. I’m sure
you’ll find Joe and Lynn’s story both heartwarming
and – despite having a 12 year-old and five children
all the same age – remarkably normal.
On the philanthropic front, our institution
couldn’t function without the efforts of many
community members. One of those benefactors is
Barbara Meister. In addition to volunteering her time
and talents to the Community Memorial Healthcare
Foundation board, where she’s been a member
since its inception in 1984, Barbara saw another
need and established the Meister Family Foundation
Nursing Scholarship in 2007. The 2012 scholarships
were recently awarded and the recipients are
featured in this issue. We couldn’t be more proud of
the awardees, or more grateful to Barbara for her
continued benevolence.
And finally, in August, we celebrate the first
anniversary of the building project for the new
Community Memorial Hospital. Slated to open in
2015, we are proud to partner with our community
in ensuring that the healthcare needs of so many will
be met into the foreseeable future.
Gary K. Wilde
President & CEO, Community Memorial Health System
COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HEALTH SYSTEM | CARING
3
CMH is the life-saving
parachute for Ojai’s
Jurgen Gramckow
after he suffered a
heart attack
just expert care
J
Jurgen Gramckow, co-founder and president of Southland Sod Farms in Oxnard, was
referring to the challenging economic climate
that has sent the demand for wholesale sod into
freefall in recent years, but his words also aptly
describe the health peril that befell him shortly
after this past Thanksgiving.
With the holiday over, Jurgen was alone in
the family’s Rancho Matilija home. Gerry, his
wife of 37 years, was in San Francisco with the
couple’s oldest daughter, Monika, while their
other two children, Kurt and Karin, had both
returned to Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
Having taken more than a week off from
his regular workout routine, Jurgen got on his
treadmill in the early evening.
4
“I was feeling fat and sluggish,” recalls Jurgen, who in truth looks fit and trim at age 63.
“It seemed a little harder than usual. I thought
it was just the result of taking about ten days off
from exercising. I normally do 45 minutes, but
30 minutes into it I was breathing pretty hard
and sweating more than normal. I stopped for a
moment and thought, ‘Should I just quit?’ But I
was stubborn and finished it out.”
Unaware, Jurgen had already jumped out
of the airplane and was free-falling toward the
ground. Indeed, he would later learn that labored
breathing and profuse sweating are warning
signs of a possible heart attack, even if they are
not accompanied by chest discomfort, pressure
or pain; and/or pain in the jaw, neck or arms.
“After I stopped, I was still having a hard
time breathing and I was dripping sweat,” Jurgen
retells. “I went to the den and sat down on the
couch.”
Feeling weaker rather than better, he reclined for a minute but still felt no relief. In fact,
things were turning worse.
“My vision was getting blurred,” he notes. “I
was getting light-headed and the sweat was now
running off me.”
However, with “no chest discomfort at all,”
Jurgen says the possibility he might be having
a heart attack never crossed his mind. Rather,
he thought it was a recurrence of the episode
a couple years prior when he had overdone his
treadmill workout and suffered terrible cramps
due to dehydration.
Deciding he should call his brother, Martin,
who lives nearby in Ojai, Jurgen made his way
from the den to the kitchen. Feeling as though
he might faint, he steadied himself against the
walls and eventually reached the phone. But
then the situation turned even more dire.
“Suddenly my vision was so blurry I couldn’t
see the numbers on the pad!” he recalls. Keeping
his calm, Jurgen counted out the numbers as
though reading Braille.
“I figured out the six and then the four, but
then I thought: ‘Where’s the zero? Hmmm, I
think it’s in the middle of the bottom row.’”
He was right, yet frustratingly notes: “The
first time I dialed a wrong number.”
With his health situation deteriorating by
the moment, the misdial was like pulling the
ripcord on a parachute and not having it open.
Jurgen pulled the safety cord, so to speak, by
blindly – but carefully – dialing the seven digits
again.
This time Martin answered and Jurgen
asked him to call their friend, family practitioner
Dr. Robert Feiss, to see if he could come make
an urgent house call. Within 15 minutes Martin
and Dr. Feiss arrived.
Using a portable electrocardiogram, Dr.
Feiss quickly knew that Jurgen was suffering a
myocardial infarction – a heart attack. He immediately called paramedics and also made the
decision that Jurgen should go directly to Community Memorial Hospital rather than initially
to Ojai Valley Community Hospital which would
certainly transfer him to CMH’s state-of-the-art
Cath Lab.
Additionally, Dr. Feiss phoned Dr. Alejandro Garcia of Ventura Cardiology Consultants
Medical Group. When the ambulance arrived
at CMH and Jurgen was brought by gurney
through the Emergency Department doors
at 11:00 p.m., Dr. Garcia was waiting, along with
the expert E.D. team, ready to move into lifesaving action.
Jurgen’s parachute had opened in time.
•••••••••••
Jurgen Gramckow’s office contains rolled
up maps and blueprints as well photographs of
Gerry, Monika, Kurt and Karin. Outside the window across East Hueneme Road is his family’s
1,000-acre Southland Sod Farms.
Figuratively, the view represents the roots
that Jurgen’s late father, Werner, planted in 1950
when he immigrated to America from Hamburg,
Germany in search of a better life for himself,
his wife Gertrud, and two-year-old son Jurgen.
(Martin and Heidi, who also live in Ojai, would
be born in California.)
“My uncle had immigrated here ten years
prior,” Jurgen explains, “so my dad had a connection here in Ventura. At the end of the war,
Germany was pretty much destroyed so my dad
felt he could make a better life here.”
Arriving near penniless, Werner studied
accounting at UCLA. He then landed a job as
a bookkeeper for Ventura Pacific Company and
later left the lemon-packing business to work for
Camarillo’s Cal-Turf that was among the sodgrowing pioneers in California.
Beginning at age 9, Jurgen worked in the
sod farm fields every summer and eventually
found himself on “The Farm” as the Stanford
University campus is famously nicknamed. He
earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering, but
unfortunately entered the job market right as the
Space Race was ending.
“Experienced engineers were all being laid
off,” Jurgen explains, “so new engineers had a
real hard time finding work.”
The bad timing worked out wonderfully.
“My dad and I struck out on our own,” Jurgen
continues. “He knew the financial side of the
business and I knew the operational side.”
With the backing of a few investors, father
and son rented some land in the Oxnard plain
and started Pacific Sod Farm in 1970. In 1976 they
sold their interests and struck out again, this time
fully on their own, creating Southland Sod Farms
that has grown from a modest 50 acres to become
Southern California’s largest producer of sod.
•••••••••••
“Sometimes you
wonder if the
parachute is going
to open in time.”
Werner Gramckow immigrated to America
to build a better life; now in America his eldest
son was fighting for his life. Meanwhile, Martin,
who is vice president of Southland Sod Farms,
phoned the loved ones in the photographs in
Jurgen’s office.
“My wife and daughter (Monika) wanted to
jump in the car at 11:00 at night and drive down
here from San Francisco,” Jurgen shares. “I said,
‘Don’t bother: it’s over. What are you going to
do?’ I convinced them to come down first thing
in the morning.”
There was no need to rush because everything had gone perfectly in the E.D. and Cath
Lab. Indeed, slightly sedated but still conscious,
Jurgen remembers the precise instant when
Dr. Garcia expertly guided a stent into his
right coronary artery that had been blocked
Continued on next page.
5
“There was no panic,
just expert care....
I cant say enough
about CMH and
the excellent care
I received.”
Continued from previous page.
by a blood clot (apparently the result from
ruptured plaque).
“I was having trouble breathing and then
he set the stent in the right spot and – Wow! –it
was like the lights went back on!” Jurgen says.
“In less than a minute I was fully coherent and
felt great.”
Remarkably, Jurgen says he didn’t fully
realize how serious his condition was until
after his recovery when Martin said: “Do you
realize how close you came to dying? I was
trying to keep you awake on the couch asking
you questions and you were giving me the
wildest answers!”
“I had no feeling of panic,” Jurgen shares.
“I didn’t think it was a life-threatening situation.
I thought it must be fixable because I did not
feel like I was dying. Maybe if someone had
6
shown panic, but Rob (Dr. Feiss) and Martin
didn’t show any panic; the EMTs and doctors
and nurses didn’t show any panic. There was no
panic, just expert care.
“The nurses in the Cardiac Care Unit were
wonderful,” continues Jurgen, who spent two
days in CMH. “They are really on their game.
Everyone who took care of me was on their
game. I can’t say enough about CMH and the
excellent care I received.”
While he has no family history of heart
disease, and no personal history of elevated cholesterol, looking back Jurgen realizes he almost
made a fatal mistake by ignoring his symptoms.
“While I had no chest discomfort, I have
learned that not being able to breathe normally
and excess perspiration are also serious warning
signs,” Jurgen explains. “There’s a lower thresh-
old for a heart attack than most people realize.
I was on the cusp of deciding to sleep it off
instead of calling my brother. I might have gone
to sleep and never woken up.”
He pauses and shifts from thinking about
what could have been to talking about his reality
today: “I’ve been told everything is 100 percent
and to go back to my normal life.”
So Jurgen is back on the treadmill, back
going for long walks with Gerry on their beautiful ranch, back at work keeping the family roots
growing deeper.
“I was very fortunate,” Jurgen says, adding
with a smile: “I guess I should get to work on my
bucket list.”
No need to put skydiving on it – Jurgen
Gramckow has already experienced having his
parachute open just in time.
TELEMETRY/PROGRESSIVE CARE UNIT AT CMH IS NAMED A
National Best Nursing Team
THANKS TO THEIR DEDICATION TO PATIENT SAFETY & PREVENTING PATIENT FALLS
R
Recently the 4th Floor Telemetry/Progressive Care Unit at CMH was named a National
Best Nursing Team by the publication Advances
for Nurses.
Patient falls on the busy 44-bed telemetry/
progressive care unit of Community Memorial
Hospital were occurring despite using fall prevention interventions commonly used in many
hospitals. It was decided that a fresh new approach
was needed to address patient falls.
At the end of December 2010, the unit’s
average call light response time was identified at
2 minutes 40 seconds. As a unit, the feeling was
there was a direct correlation between the call light
response time and patient fall rates. In response,
the unit came up with what proved to be a most effective strategy in fall reduction – the Call Bell Tech
program. This unique program assigns one nurse
tech per shift to answer call lights and to provide
anticipatory rounding to reduce call bell response
times. After full implementation of the program,
the average call bell response time has decreased
to 30 seconds.
In April 2011, a second component was
added to the program, called the Hot List, which
identifies patients considered to be at the highest risk for falls. The Hot List is updated on a
continuous basis and distributed to staff
members at the beginning of each shift. The list
enhances hands-off communication and allows the
entire floor to work together to prevent falls in a
high-risk population. In May 2011, to investigate
the details surrounding each fall, case studies were
introduced.
The use of case studies fosters critical thinking and problem solving among staff. Employees
are asked to review the circumstances unique to
each fall, and present their own ideas about how
to avoid similar falls in the future.
For example, analysis of the fall data during
case studies revealed that approximately 62 percent of patient falls were related to toileting needs.
As a result, em-ployees suggested that Hot List
patients should not be left alone in the bathroom
or on the commode. Once implemented, this
suggestion proved very successful in eliminating
toileting-related falls.
The unit also discovered that many patients
were simply removing
the tab alarms. Therefore, it was decided to
use bed pad alarms in
addition to bed and tab
alarms which signals
when a patient rises.
Using bed pad alarms simultaneously with bed and tab alarms considerably
reduced the risk of alarm failure and, consequently,
the number of falls.
In July 2011, video surveillance was implemented, which allows high-risk fall patients to
be monitored remotely by the telemetry monitor
technician. This option has contributed to reduced
patient falls and decreased the costs associated
with sitter use. The video monitor was placed
adjacent to telemetry monitors and the telemetry
technician observes both screens. Throughout the
year, as a result of implementing these fall reduction strategies, falls have decreased by 70 percent.
The fall prevention program implemented at the
Telemetry/Progressive Care Unit at CMH has
demonstrated the staff ’s ability to create a culture
of safety. The program is cost-effective and is
equally supported by staff and management.
Bobbie McCaffrey, Vice President & Chief
Nursing Officer stated about the accomplishment
“This achievement demonstrates shared decisionmaking and collaboration of the 4th Floor healthcare team to provide leadership and high quality
care at the bedside. Employee empowerment
and engagement are key
facets to quality care
and positive patient outcomes.” Acknowledging
staff and celebrating
their successes increases
their motivation and job satisfaction. It also gives
the staff a shared goal, supporting group cohesion
and promoting team work. Most importantly,
patient fall rates have decreased and patients are
safer while under care. Congratulations to CMH’s
Telemetry/Progressive Care Unit.
PROVIDING A SAFER
ENVIRONMENT FOR
OUR PATIENTS.
7
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The
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11 years later.
The Bova Bunch
2012
.
n next page
o
Continued
9
This
happy story began with
heartbreak
THE BOVAS
Three times during their first five years of
marriage, Lynn suffered a miscarriage.
When the Bovas, who celebrated their 18th
wedding anniversary in July, ultimately decided
to pursue adoption they were told the process
would likely take more than a year. Thanks to
a blessed turn of events, however, they brought
Wishing for at least one more child, Lynn
again underwent fertility treatment and was
rewarded five times over. However, a quintuplet
pregnancy is high-risk with an average gestation
of 29 weeks, as opposed to 39 weeks for a fullterm baby, and an average birth weight of about
2 pounds, 12 ounces.
“The staff at CMH lifted her spirits.”
newborn Ryan home 20 days later on Sept. 22,
1999.
“We had talked for years if we had a boy
we’d name him Ryan,” Joe shares with Lynn adding: “It’s pretty amazing that that was his name.
We saved him, but he also saved us.”
10
Such a pregnancy demands highly specialized medical care and Lynn marvels at that
which she received, including 11 weeks of
bed rest in Community Memorial Hospital to
minimize complications and delay birth as long
as possible. Her CMH doctors further consulted
with experts of multiple-births from across the
nation to ensure the most up-to-date care possible. Meanwhile, a special team of about 40
physicians, nurses and technicians was assembled
and on-call for the C-section delivery.
“The hospital was so well organized and
prepared for the birth it was amazing,” Joe marvels. “Everything was extremely coordinated. It
gave us as much peace of mind as was possible.”
Indeed, as mentioned, there was the added
stress of Lynn’s previous heartbreaks.
“I had this overwhelming feeling,” she shares,
her eyes growing moist at the memory. “I had
three pregnancies before that ended in miscarriages – how am I now supposed to carry five babies
and be successful? But as we moved forward, my
faith and the great care I got helped ease my fears.”
Every extra day of gestation is important
for preemies and the expertly managed bed rest
resulted in the Bova quintuplets being only seven
weeks premature, instead of the 10-week average
for most quints. Furthermore, Abigail, Kathryn,
Emiline, Samuel and Nathaniel came into the
world weighing 3 pounds, 15 ounces for the
smallest to 4 pounds, 10 ounces for the largest,
again far exceeding quint averages.
“We had the names all picked out,” says Joe,
with Lynn adding: “It’s actually kind of easier
to pick more names because you don’t have to
single down names you like to just one.”
“We don’t think of them as quintuplets,” Joe
points out. “We see them as individuals.”
“It doesn’t define who we are,” Lynn rejoins.
“I am not ‘the mother of quintuplets’ – I am the
mom of Abby, Emily, Katie, Samuel, Nathan,
and Ryan.”
n n n n n n
“Mom” went home after five days while her
newborn babies remained in Community Memorial Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Lynn laughs before adding: “I’m thankful
to say our kids get themselves dressed in the
morning.”
Still, what is it like getting six children out
the door?
“They all know the drill,” Lynn answers.
“Of course, some are more organized than others – that’s just their personalities.”
“I’m so fortunate to have six kids – and
three girls and three boys is even more perfect,”
beams Joe, who has made time to coach the kids’
basketball, soccer and baseball teams. “Their
personalities are all different. It can be stressful,
but mostly it’s fun.”
The three girls are currently playing youth
basketball and running track. Ryan is also involved with youth track while the two younger
boys are focusing on club basketball and baseball.
“When they were younger they all did the
same thing but now our schedule is crazier than
ever before,” says Lynn, who finds happiness in
the busyness. “People say I am so calm. No I’m
not! I just have faith not to worry about tomorrow – to live today and tomorrow will take care
of itself.”
“The hospital was so well organized and
prepared for the birth it was amazing.”
“I was feeling a lot of sadness at first,” Lynn
shares. “I was anxious to get home to Ryan, but
at the same time I’d been away from home so
long that CMH had become my home.”
Once again, the staff at CMH lifted her
spirits.
“I’d come back to the NICU and I felt unsure of myself as a mother,” Lynn confides. “The
nurses were wonderful and took such good care
of the babies – and of me. They encouraged me
to come in and feed them and touch them.”
Abby was the first of the quints to leave the
hospital, coming home three weeks after birth.
Her siblings followed almost daily, with Katie the
last to relocate in a living room-turned-nursery a
week later.
“We are really blessed in that they had
no physical problems after leaving CMH,” Joe
shares.
Lynn was worried about the logistical
problems that lay ahead, however, specifically
recalling an Internet conversation she had with
another mother of quintuplets: “Her tip to me
was that she gets her kids dressed the night
before so she only has to put their shoes on in
the morning. I was horrified! Is that how difficult
our life was going to be?”
The couple knows the days pass too quickly
as it is.
“Children are children for such a short time,”
continues Lynn, explaining that she and Joe have
not taken a vacation by themselves since they
became parents. “The kids are our focus. We’re
trying to make the most of this time together as
a family. Joe and I can travel on our own later.”
While travel with six kids might seem as
complicated as a moonshot, ever since Ryan was
4 and his siblings were 2 the Bovas have annually
driven to Montana for vacation. They have also
visited Hawaii, Baltimore, Boston, Taiwan, and
Mexico twice to work at an orphanage.
n n n n n n
The six Bova children were on hand, with
shovels in hand, last September 14 for the
groundbreaking ceremony of the new stateof-the-art Community Memorial Hospital.
Earlier that very day, Abby, a decade after
being cared for in the NICU, was treated in
CMH’s Emergency Department with a mild
concussion suffered in a soccer game.
“This hospital is so important to us, “Lynn
shares, thinking of the old and the new. “I’m not
attached to the walls of the building – it’s the
special people inside whom I’m attached to. Even
the housekeeping staff was so sweet and caring
to me.
“Community Memorial Hospital was my
home for three months and the home of my
babies for a month. They took such great care
of me – and of Ryan; the nurses would bring him
hot chocolate and push him in wheelchair rides.
I was scared and they made me feel better.”
Lynn Bova tears up once more, pauses to
regain her composure with husband Joe by her
side, and resumes: “They were all rooting for us
and took extra good care of us – the same as they
do for all their patients.”
www.facebook.com/cmhshealth
Keep up to date with:
• CMHS construction projects
• CMHS Seminar Series
• Community Healthcare Information
11
An amazing story of
extraordinary coincidence,
heroic efforts and
miraculous outcomes.
g
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The Miracle Men: Frank Martinez (left) and Francisco Martinez
12
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Dr. Jeffrey Brackett, a cardiologist at
Community Memorial Hospital, has called
each Martinez individually a “Miracle Man.”
Together, their sudden-death-defying
stories are “beyond remarkable.”
F
Frank Martinez feels divine intervention was at
work last June 10. So does Francisco Martinez,
a fellow Ventura resident known as “Frank” to
many friends and co-workers.
Dr. Jeffrey Brackett, a cardiologist at Community Memorial Hospital, has called each
Martinez individually a “Miracle Man.” Together,
their sudden-death-defying stories are “beyond
remarkable.”
The coincidences are indeed extraordinary.
The two Martinezes (no relation) share not only
the same name, but the same fate. On the same
day, within a couple hours and a few blocks of
one another, both men in their 60s collapsed
after their hearts stopped beating.
Furthermore, both were discovered quickly
by passersby; both were rushed by the very
same paramedic crew to the Ventura Countydesignated STEMI cardiac response team
at Community Memorial Hospital; and both
“Code White” patients – that being the term of
supreme urgency for a person who arrives in
the E.D. having suffered a cardiac arrest – then
had their lives saved in part by a new stateof-the-art Therapeutic Hypothermia treatment
offered at CMH.
Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the largest
cause of natural death in the U.S., resulting in
about 325,000 adult fatalities annually. SCD is
caused by erratic, disorganized heart rhythms
called arrhythmias.
“Sudden cardiac death in any setting
carries a poor prognosis, but to suffer an unwitnessed out-of-hospital SCD is the worstcase scenario,” says Dr. Brackett, who was
on-call in CMH’s Emergency Department
that fateful day.
Frank’s Story
Frank Martinez, 65, had walked a few
blocks to Ventura’s Wake Forrest branch
Post Office to mail a package for Jan, his
wife. Returning home he took a longer
route for some extra exercise.
“If I’d gone straight home I would
have died,” Frank says, noting he would
have collapsed inside alone with no one
to call paramedics; Jan was still at work.
Instead, the medical catastrophe
occurred outside in open
view where Cindy Zahner
discovered him lying in
her son’s driveway. His lips
were already turning blue.
“Thank God she came
over to borrow a bicycle
when she did,” Frank says.
More blessed fortune: a fire station is mere
blocks away at the corner of Victoria Avenue
and Telegraph Road. Zahner called 911 and the
paramedics arrived within 90 seconds, vitally
important since “minutes mean muscle” when
the heart is not beating.
At the time Frank was six-months retired
from the Southern California Gas Company.
As a worker in the field, his duties entailed a lot
of walking, and he had remained active and fit
by working out on a treadmill and home gym
machine.
Frank had a recent history of atrial
fibrillation (rapid heartbeat) that was initially
controlled with medication. After four years,
and three incidents when electrical shock was
required to return his heartbeat to normal, he
underwent leading-edge Radiofrequency Ablation performed at CMH by specialist Dr. Ishu
Rao. The procedure was successful.
“I don’t remember walking to
Frank rejoins, piecing
the post office,”
together what happened. “The next memory I
have is waking up two days later in the hospital.
I had a breathing tube
in so I couldn’t talk – I
communicated by writing,
which was a great sign
that I didn’t have any brain
damage.”
Nor, remarkably, did
Frank suffer any heart damage as Cath Lab tests found
no coronary disease.
That Frank, and also
Francisco,
suffered
no
neurological deficit is in part
attributable to the high-tech
Therapeutic
Hypothermia
treatment they both received.
“All the stars aligned
for me,” Frank says. “If I had
walked straight home, I would
not be here. If Cindy hadn’t
pulled up, I wouldn’t be here. If
the fire station wasn’t so close, I
wouldn’t be here. And if CMH
didn’t have all these amazing
nurses and doctors and this new
cooling treatment, I wouldn’t be
here. Their skill and dedication is amazing.”
When Frank’s breathing tube was removed
four hours after he awoke, he quickly helped
alleviate fears of neurological damage by reciting an entire passage from his role as Saint Paul
in a recent church play of “Roman Through
Romans.”
“This whole incident confirmed the faith
that I already had,” shares Frank, who had a
defibrillator surgically implanted before being
discharged from CMH one week later. The
defibrillator has gone off once, just after he
returned from Arizona to attend the funeral of
his 70-year-old brother-in-law.
“He came to visit me in the hospital thinking he’d go to my funeral and I end up going to
his,” Frank sadly notes.
Francisco’s Story
Francisco Martinez was taking a five-mile
walk from his east Ventura home to midtown
to pick up the car of Judith Weigand, his significant other.
The long trek was not out of the ordinary.
Francisco, who completed the last of his dozen
marathons two decades ago, has remained
physically active, including walking his two dogs
about three miles daily.
On June 9, after finishing his shift as a security guard, Francisco left home on his pedestrian
errand around 5:00 p.m.
Continued on next page.
Jeffrey Brackett, M.D.
Cardiologist
13
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“Therapeutic Hypothermia is a relatively new treatment,” Dr. Jeffrey Brackett says,
explaining that for decades physicians have
noted that people who drown in extremely
cold water are able to recover despite prolonged periods without circulation.
“This observation led researchers to
postulate that cooling may be beneficial
to recovery no matter the cause of cardiac
arrest,” he continued. “And, indeed, studies
have shown that by using technology to
safely cool a patient we can provide a benefit to survival and neurological outcome.”
Joining this vanguard, Community
Memorial Hospital invested in a high-tech
cooling blanket. This technology, in combination with infusing cold saline through
an IV, allows the medical team to gradually
cool the patient’s body temperature to the
desired range of 32 to 34 degrees Celsius
(89.6 to 93.2 Fahrenheit).
Patients are then kept cool for 24 hours
before being gradually warmed again. During this time, they are kept on a respirator
and medically paralyzed to prevent the body
from naturally shivering in an attempt to
warm itself.
As mentioned, both Martinezes benefitted from this high-tech equipment and
expertly performed protocol.
14
“I never made it,” he says.
About halfway into his journey, at the
corner of Woodland and Victoria Avenue
near Buena High School and Ventura City
Fire Department Station 3, he collapsed.
“I remember walking but I don’t
remember anything after that,” Francisco
continues, adding in speculation: “I must
have fallen on my face because it was
bruised and my nose was scraped.”
The saving grace was that he lay
sprawled in plain sight on the sidewalk and
a UPS driver saw him.
“If I’d been on a cul-de-sac I’m sure I
would not be here today,” Francisco says.
“I call it divine providence. I’m very spiritual.
I know God’s in my life all the time – this was
one of those times He saved my life.”
Too, Francisco credits the UPS driver,
the paramedics, and the medical staff at
Community Memorial Hospital.
“In my special way I’m
thankful
for everyone
involved,”he says. “The doctors
and
nurses were all wonderful.”
As with Frank Martinez, Therapeutic Hypothermia played a crucial role in Francisco’s
life being saved – and with no neurological
deficits when he awoke two days later.
However, Cath Lab studies revealed three
major arterial blockages. On June 15, Dr. Lamar
Bushnell and CMH’s renowned “Heart Team”
performed successful triple-bypass surgery with
a single valve replacement.
It was actually the second open-heart
operation for Francisco. Despite being born
with an abnormally narrow aortic valve, his New
York City childhood was filled with playing
baseball, running track, and wrestling. But in 1962
at age 18, after failing a physical while applying for
a machinist job, he finally had corrective surgery.
“In my entire
career I’ve seen
just a handful
of survivors
who were alone
when they
suffered sudden
cardiac death”
“The doctor said I wouldn’t live to be 30,”
shares Francisco, now 67 and recently retired.
“I’m walking again but I have some leg numbness. But I’m not complaining – I’m still here!”
“In my entire career I’ve seen just a handful
of survivors who were alone when they suffered
sudden cardiac death,” Dr. Jeffrey Brackett says.
“So to have two in one day, much less with the
same name, that was a very special day.”
Both “Miracle Men” shake their heads at the
amazing coincidences in their stories, and both
laugh at one result.
“They kept mixing up the visitors,” Frank
Martinez says. “Mine went in and saw him, and
his came to see me.”
Adds Francisco Martinez: “My birth certificate and driver’s license say ‘Francisco’ so that’s
the name I use, but some people call me Frank
so it was a little confusing. It’s a pretty strange
coincidence.”
“Pretty strange indeed,” Frank echoes. “Two
of us with the same name, the same problem,
the same day, the same neighborhood. Even the
same paramedics, the same hospital and the same
cardiologist.”
And best of all, the same happy ending.
Honoring Richard Arth, Director of
Engineering, for 50 years of service.
the kids call him
T
The kids in Richard Arth’s neighborhood
call him MacGyver.
The nickname made famous by the television
show about an undercover agent who uses everyday objects to fight crime is fitting for Rick, well
known for his ability to fix just about anything
that comes across his work bench.
“I pride myself on being able to troubleshoot
and find ways to fix things,” said Rick, who resides
in Ventura with his wife of more than 30 years,
Linda.
Rick’s ingenuity when it comes to repair
work didn’t just earn him a clever nickname, it
has led to a 50-year career at CMH, where he is
responsible for ensuring the facility runs smoothly.
From plumbing to electrical and everything
in between, Rick and his team of more than 15
technicians handle the hundreds of day-to-day
repairs needed at a busy hospital and at the eleven
Centers for Family Health.
“My technicians are part of my family, and
they have been for a lot of years. I respect them,
and they do an absolutely outstanding job,” said
Rick, who was honored for his half-century of service to the hospital during the annual Employee
Recognition dinner in Ventura on June 15.
Rick also oversees the hospital’s environmental services department, the crews tasked with the
extremely important job of keeping the hospital
clean.
And although he may be a supervisor responsible for more than 60 employees, there aren’t any
jobs his team has handled that Rick hadn’t already
done many times before during his five decades at
the hospital.
His career at CMH began before it was even
built.
It was 1961 and Rick was an 18-year-old
college student who needed to make a few extra
dollars.
His mom was the medical records manager
for what was then Foster Memorial Hospital. She
helped her son land a part-time job buffing and
waxing floors in the hospital that would soon be
phased out by Community Memorial that was
under construction at the time.
It didn’t take long, however, before those he
worked with at Foster Memorial recognized Rick
had a real talent as repairman and asked him to
trade in his buffer for a toolbox.
“So from that point on I did nothing more
than plumbing and electrical repair . . . any type of
maintenance the facility needed,” he said.
Those at Foster Memorial saw Rick’s potential and asked him to spend time at the CMH
construction site. They wanted the young man to
understand how the new hospital’s infrastructure
was put together.
“I watched them put in the plumbing and
electrical because they wanted me to know what
was going on above the ceilings and in the walls of
the place,” he said.
Rick’s talents with a toolbox and his understanding of the hospital’s inner workings led to a
full-time job maintaining the new CMH.
Despite attempts by the hospital’s administration to keep Rick out of Vietnam, he was eventually
drafted into the Army in the late 1960s and served
with the U.S. Army Ninth Infantry Division in its
5th of 60th battalion.
While serving in the Mekong Delta in 1968,
Rick was injured when he left the safety of his
bunker to repair a downed antenna in the midst
of a mortar attack. His fellow soldiers needed Rick
to fix the antenna in order to call in artillery fire
to fend off the assault. As always, Rick made the
repair.
In addition to the Purple Heart, Rick was
awarded the Commendation Medal by the Army
with the V Device for valor in recognition of his
heroism for repairing the antenna while injured
and under fire.
Rick returned to CMH in 1970 and climbed
the ranks to become the Director of Engineering.
Rick said he will never forget the day he came
to the hospital not as an employee, but as a patient.
It was 1996 and he’d been experiencing chest pain.
He was checked into the emergency room and
was soon prepped for surgery.
He’d had a heart attack.
“Not only do I owe CMH for a wonderful
career, but I also feel I owe CMH for my life,” said
Rick, tears of gratitude welling in his eyes.
Dr. Dominic Tedesco performed open-heart
surgery – repairing the very man who for so many
years had maintained the hospital.
“I feel Dr. Tedesco, along with CMH, saved
my life, and for that, I’m very grateful,” Rick said.
“Of course, I think it was a challenging surgery
for Dr. Tedesco because I have complete situs
inversus.”
The extremely rare – but non-life threatening
– condition means Rick’s organs are reversed in his
body.
He eventually returned to work and has continued to make a long career at CMH.
The 68-year-old father of three grown sons
and a grandfather of five said he is often asked by
those he knows how he can continue working at
the hospital after five decades and at an age when
many think of retirement.
“You know, if you’re happy doing what you
do, it makes a big difference. It’s hard to give
that up,” said Rick, who enjoys to fish, hunt and
spend time outdoors at his Huntington Lake cabin
in Central California. “I wake up in the morning
thinking how I’m going to solve this problem and
that problem. It’s good, and I think it’s healthy.”
View a video of Rick’s story at:
www.cmhshealth.org/rick
15
CMH Auxiliary circa 1961.
50years
cmh
Auxiliary
celebrates
of service
It was 1961 and a
small group of Ventura
women recognized
the need for volunteers
at their local hospital.
The nine friends set about enlisting the
help of other like-minded women to form the
women’s auxiliary for what was then E.P. Foster
Memorial Hospital.
The Ventura hospital’s volunteer corps was
chartered in 1962—the same year E.P. Foster
Memorial Hospital changed its name to Community Memorial Hospital.
Over the next 50 years, the volunteer
auxiliary grew from its 60 founding members
to include over 200 volunteers, both men and
women, and another 400 supportive members
who fill a myriad of roles at CMH in Ventura.
The auxiliary came together February 10 for
a luncheon at the Four Points Sheraton hotel in
Ventura to celebrate its 50th anniversary, honor
longtime members and introduce its new board
of directors. The afternoon event included live
entertainment and a brief history of the auxiliary by Dr. William Hart, Ventura County’s first
cardiologist and a member of CMH’s staff for
30 years.
The auxiliary also presented a check to
Community Memorial Health System for
$105,000 – money raised through the hospital’s
gift shop, where auxiliary volunteer their time. 16
The donation will be used for the new Community Memorial Hospital now under construction.
“In this economy, I think it’s a miracle,” said
Katie Weldon, a volunteer for nearly 20 years
and the auxiliary’s treasurer. “The donation feels
good because it’s for the new hospital. You feel
like you’re investing in the future.”
The volunteers perform numerous tasks
throughout the hospital in almost every department. They act as greeters, provide assistance
in the gift shop, and in the labor and delivery
department, cuddle babies in the NICU, run
errands for the nurses and doctors and also sew
handmade gifts for patients.
“To me, I feel it gives the nurses and doctors
more time to do what they have to do,” said
Clara Alviana, a volunteer for 23 years and the
lead organizer of the awards luncheon. “The
doctors and the nurses do a terrific job of being there for the patients. We’re like another
set of hands to them, and they can ask us to do
anything—fix an ice pack, pick up medicines or
whatever errands they can’t do, we do.”
Last year alone, the volunteers logged over
40,000 hours.
Judy Miller, the auxiliary’s president and a
member for over 30 years, said a recent study
valued that time at about $24 an hour, which
equates to nearly a $1 million in annual payroll
savings for the hospital.
Gary Wilde, Community Memorial Health
System’s president and CEO, said those volunteer hours are invaluable to the not-for-profit
hospital.
“We feel so important about the auxiliary
that the president of the auxiliary is a voting
member of our board of trustees,” Wilde said
“They are an integral part of our organization.
We value their opinions, we value their service
and they really are a part of the whole operation.”
Miller said the best part of being a hospital
volunteer is the camaraderie between the men
and women in the auxiliary.
“It’s like family,” Miller said. “Of course, the
administration and staff are excellent to work
with. They are very supportive in everything
we do.”
Miller stressed the fact that volunteer opportunities at the hospital are available to high
school students as well.
Started in 1966, the junior volunteer program offers high school students from 14 to 18
years old the opportunity to work in the hospital
in a wide variety of departments.
“Many of these students are interested in
working in the field of medicine, and this gives
them the chance to experience what goes on
in a hospital. They observe what the doctors
do, what the nurses do, and what the techs
do,” said Edie Marshall, chair of the junior volunteer program.
Marshall said the program attracts teens
from across Ventura County because it gives the
young volunteers an opportunity to observe a
surgery and childbirth.
“If they’ve observed a surgery and say, ‘No,
that’s not for me,’ then it’s good they found out
in high school rather than when they’re halfway
through college,” Marshall said.
What’s more, the auxiliary gives as much as
$10,000 annually in college scholarships to teen
volunteers studying a healthcare-related field.
The scholarships are typically between $500 to
$2,500, depending on the years and total hours
served by the teen volunteers.
“I really feel the kids who volunteer are the
cream of the crop,” Marshall said.
Miller, who is serving her third term as the
group’s president, said volunteer work is fulfilling
because of how appreciative patients are of the
services provided by the auxiliary’s members.
“If you want to give something of yourself,
but yet at the same time receive more than
you are giving, then the hospital is the place to
come,” Miller said.
Alviana agreed.
“It sure makes life a lot more interesting,”
Alviana said with a chuckle.
Arattters
M
in Ojai
E
Each month, a local artist visits Ojai Valley
Community Hospital’s Continuing Care Center
(CCC) to work with patients as a part of Art
Matters, a program that was originally an element of the 2010 Artist in the Community Grant
given to Richard Amend by the Ventura County
Arts Council.
In February, Ojai artist Leslie Marcus presented the patients with an interactive “art class,”
giving each of the 15 attendees the opportunity
to participate in creating their own works of art.
Each was given paper and pastels to create their
own rendition of an enlarged flower photograph.
According to Dottie Combs, co-chair of the Art
Matters program and president-elect of the Ojai
Valley Community Hospital Foundation Guild,
the results of the class were “amazing.”
“It’s so incredible to see the impact
the artists have on the CCC residents”
“It’s so incredible to see the impact the
artists have on the CCC residents,” Combs said.
“They are transformed into smiling, energized
participants with the artists, and their art is really
quite good.”
Art Matters is part of the Operation Picasso
program which has been active at the hospital
since 2005. The Operation Picasso program allows local artists to showcase their art within the
hospital, while providing a soothing distraction
for the patients.
The original Artist in the Community Grant
was designed to identify fresh ways that the
arts can transform the everyday lives of county
residents by helping to provide them with a
greater sense of self, family, and community.
When the grant concluded, Combs and Barbara
Hirsch, co-chair of Art Matters and a founder of
Operation Picasso, took it over on a volunteer
basis, since the value of the art experience in the
healing process was undeniable. Their program
has helped to enrich the lives of patients who
spend weeks or even years being cared for at the
Continuing Care Center.
A Special Kind of Caring
Auxiliary
Volunteers
Pick up an application at the front desk, or request
one be mailed by calling:
Community Memorial Hospital: 805/652-5043
Ojai Valley Community Hospital: 805/646-1401
or go to www.cmhshealth.org/volunteer
17
“We’re bringing an emergency room on wheels to your home.”
Ventura
County’s
LifeLine
It’s Sunday evening, and you’ve
spent much of the day out in your backyard,
planting flowers, trimming the hedges, mowing
the lawn and pruning that overgrown avocado
tree you’ve been meaning to trim back all year.
With all the hard work done, you’re enjoying a cold drink in your favorite armchair and
suddenly your chest begins to feel tight and it’s
difficult to catch your breath. Perhaps, you think,
it might just be a chest muscle you pulled while
working in the yard or dehydration from time
out in the sun. You give it a few minutes and
realize it feels like an elephant is sitting on your
chest and it may be something more serious,
such as a heart attack.
What Now?
While most people would say it’s best to
call an ambulance, the truth is there are still
many that would opt instead to have a family
member or friend drive them to the hospital and
forgo a call to 911.
That’s a decision, says Stephen Frank,
president and CEO of Ventura-based LifeLine
Medical Transport, which could mean the difference between life and death. “Sometimes it’s okay,” Frank says. “The
problem is you don’t know when that sometimes
is, and in a lot of ways, it’s really a roll of the dice.
18
You don’t know if it’s gas or if you’re having a
heart attack. That’s what we get paid to do.”
Emergency Room on Wheels
Many people have the misconception that
driving themselves to the hospital saves time.
Not true, says Frank.
“There’s a lot more to it than just going
for a ride,” says the 54-year-old president and
CEO of the eight-ambulance company that services Ventura County and its 850,000 residents.
“We’re bringing an emergency room on wheels
to your home.”
LifeLine Medical Transport, in 98 percent
of its calls, meets or exceeds the 8-minute
response time required for emergency response
by the Ventura County Emergency Medical
Services, the county agency which regulates
ambulance providers.
Frank says the paramedics’ ability to diagnose and treat patients in the field is not only
life-saving, but can truly impact a patient’s future
quality of life.
“When we talk about strokes, or when we
talk about heart attacks, we always use the term
that ‘time is muscle’ or ‘time is brain,’ and that’s
what we’re trying to save,” says Frank.
Frank says his teams of paramedics don’t
take a one-size-fits-all approach with the patients
they transport.
“With us, you are going to get tailored
service for your particular situation,” Frank said.
Communication is Key
Once in the ambulance, paramedics can
contact a hospital and alert the doctors and
nurses to an incoming patient. This communication allows the hospital to prepare for the
patient, set up the needed equipment and ensure
the best medical staff is on hand and ready to
give treatment.
This ability to prepare by the hospital
staff greatly outweighs the few minutes saved
by driving to the hospital yourself and simply
showing up to what may be a very crowded
emergency room.
Where To?
What’s more, Frank says paramedics know
which hospitals are best at handling particular
types of medical emergencies. Sometimes that’s
not always the closest one.
Take for example someone who is suffering
from a heart attack. “We can take you to the best
hospital that is going to get you into a (heart
catheter) lab, such as CMH, and get you into
that room and get those clogged arteries opened
up,” Frank says.
• Take a deep breath, stay as calm as possible.
• Speak clearly.
A Dangerous Drive
In addition, Frank says driving
yourself to the hospital or having a
loved one drive you can be unsafe.
The patient’s stress and reaction to a medical problem can be distracting and stressful for
the driver—especially a senior citizen—who is
rushing to the emergency room.
Frank says LifeLine paramedics have
responded to accidents in which drivers have
crashed trying to take someone to the hospital.
“You are putting other people at risk,” Frank
says. “Worst-case scenario is if something goes
wrong with your spouse while you are in route
to the hospital with your loved one there is nothing anybody is going to be able to do.”
No Harm, No Foul
Frank agrees there are times when calling an
ambulance is unnecessary, such as a cut finger or
a slight burn.
Yet when it comes to the situations when
you’re just not sure what to do, Frank says it’s
always best to call in the pros.
“At the end of the day, if you don’t want to
go with us and we agree with you, then fine,”
says Frank. “No harm, no foul. But at least you’ve
had that decision-making process.”
G
N
I
L
L
A
C
911
Calling an ambulance
in a medical emergency is
stressful. For most people,
it’s the first time they’ve
had to dial 911. Here are
a few simple tips to keep
in mind when speaking
to a 911 operator:
• Be sure to give your name, address, phone
number and the exact location of the person
hurt. It’s important to give specific details
on the room in the house or place in the
building where paramedics need to go.
• Take into account that cell phones don’t
give 911 operators an address.
• Tell the 911 operator what the problem is
with as much detail as possible.
• Listen carefully to what the 911 operator
is saying and the questions they are asking.
• Remain on the phone until the 911 operator
tells you to hang up. Keep in mind that the
operator may need additional information.
• Follow all directions.
• If the emergency is outside or along a
roadway, give responders a nearby highway
marker to better indicate the location.
Also list in which lane – and direction of the
freeway – you are.
• Teach your children how to call 911 in case
you are unable to do so.
19
Palliative Care Service
Caring for
“If not for CMH, she wouldn’t
have survived,” said Maria Ruiz, as she lightly
touched her 47-year-old sister, Maricela Escalante,
the two sitting side by side on the couch in the
living room of their Oxnard home.
Her eyes filled with tears as she described
how her sister was diagnosed with lupus three
years ago after suffering a stroke. Maricela, a
mother of four, had spent more than two years
bouncing from hospital to hospital as she battled
a myriad of painful health-related issues caused by
a disorder that has ravaged her immune system
and been worsened by a second stroke.
previous hospitalizations were short lived, leading to readmission.”
The palliative care team sat down with
the Maricela and her family to learn what was
important to her in order to make a healthcare
plan that worked best for her.
As with the hundreds of patients seen by
palliative care service, helping this mother of four
required each of their expertise and background.
In his role as team physician, Dr. Charles
Pankratz, Medical Director of Palliative Care
Services, provides the clinical background of
disease and symptom management. Knowledge
of the clinical issues helps the team address the
impact on social, spiritual and financial problems commonly faced
by patients and their families.
What’s more, Jaquez used
her ten years of experience as a
nurse to simplify complicated medical jargon so
Maricela and her family felt comfortable asking
questions and understood what was being said
to them.
It took the faith-related background of
Chaplain Megan Delahanty who is also pastor of
a Pasadena church to ensure Maricela’s spiritual
beliefs were respected.
And finally, caring for Maricela called for the
knowledge brought to the team by Janine Coronado, a social worker, whose focus is to assess the
social situation of the family, provide resources
and give emotional support.
So committed to Maricela’s care, the team
went above and beyond working with the Mexican Embassy to help arrange a temporary visa
“The biggest thing you can do
is to be present for someone.”
“You don’t know how many nights and days
we spent in the hospital,” Maria said.
Maricela eventually came to Community
Memorial Hospital a year ago and was admitted
to the intensive care unit. Exhausted from the
pain of her progressing illness, she was seen by
the team members who make up Community
Memorial Hospital’s Palliative Care Service.
The doctor, nurse, chaplain and social worker
used a comprehensive team approach to address
her illness and develop a plan to best ease her pain
and suffering.
“She had many admissions over the past
year,” explained Diana Jaquez, a nurse and clinical
coordinator of CMH’s Palliative Care Services.
“We needed to find out why the benefits of her
20
so that her oldest son, an officer in the Mexican
military, could be at her bedside when doctors
thought she might die.
“When you’re talking about all the decisions
that a patient and family faces, you have to do it as
a team, collectively,” Pankratz said.
The palliative care team created a healthcare
plan that afforded Maricela in-home nurse visits
and additional doctor appointments to reduce her
need for unnecessary hospital visits and to make
sure she was living comfortably.
What’s more, the team worked with the
family to make certain they recognized what was
important to her so that when difficult medical
decisions needed to be made in stressful situations,
everyone involved would be on the same page.
“We’re very family and patient-centered,”
Pankratz said. “We don’t look at the two entities
separately. In order for the efforts of this team
to improve quality of life and survival, both
patient and family concerns must be addressed
thoroughly.”
In the year that followed, Maricela has lived
more pain-free and spent fewer nights in a hospital
bed. Despite the fact that her body continues to be
battered by her disease, her sister said her quality
of life has improved dramatically thanks to the
healthcare plan provided by the palliative care
services team.
“She’s doing well now,” said Maricela’s sister.
“She’s happy. I’m very, very happy.”
What is Palliative Care?
Over the past decade, palliative care has
emerged as a way to provide patients facing seri-
Maricela Escalante pictured with her sister and son.
ous or chronic illnesses, such as heart or kidney
failure, cancer, Alzheimer’s and HIV/AIDS, with a
healthcare plan that helps with pain management,
in-home care and end-of-life issues.
In 2007, Community Memorial Hospital recognized the benefits of palliative care and began
assembling a team of experts to best care for patients facing life’s most difficult medical decisions.
The palliative care team’s purpose is to not
only help patients and their families align their
goals with their doctor’s treatment plan but to also
take into consideration how those choices impact
them socially, economically and spiritually.
“We try to have them put the proverbial oar in
“Working as a team has made me appreciate
the absence of complete autonomy,” Pankratz
said. “It is nice to know that the investment in
time and discussion about the patient’s medical
treatment can be divided amongst the expertise
of our four team members.”
Pankratz said palliative care is realizing “the
patient is more than the disease.”
Ministering to All Faiths
Delahanty, a non-denominational Christian
pastor, said despite what many people may
perceive as a spiritually draining job, her ministry
work with terminally and seriously ill patients
brings her closer to God.
“I find at the end of the
day I go home not drained,
but filled up,” said Delahanty,
who said she sits bedside
with patients of all faiths.
For many patients, she
said, her ministry work is simply to be a friendly
face, a person willing to listen or a hand to hold.
“It really is a privilege to be with someone
during their last hours, their last days,” said the
pastor. “The biggest thing you can do is to be
present for someone.”
“The Palliative Care Services
team provides emotional support
for patients and their families.”
the water and have them move in a direction they
think is in their best interest,” Pankratz said.
To be seen by the palliative care team, a
patient or a family member simply has to request
an order from the patient’s hospital doctor. Most
times the doctor identifies the potential benefits of
meeting with the palliative care services team and
presents it as an option to the patients and their
families.
More Than the Disease
Pankratz, who specializes in hospice care
and internal medicine, said it’s the whole-team
approach that makes palliative care so successful.
The Cornerstone of Palliative Care
Jaquez came to CMH from Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla in San Diego, where she
worked as an advanced practice nurse in the
cancer center. She said palliative care is about
meeting with patients and their families to help
them understand all that is happening to them.
“The cornerstone of our service is that every
family we serve will have the opportunity to sit
down with the whole team to talk at one time,”
she said.
Asking a patient and their family about their
goals and priorities, Jaquez said, has the most
impact on their experience.
“We allow the patient and their family to
evolve in their thought process,” said the nurse
who counted listening as one of the keys to effective palliative care.
An Extra Layer of Support
Coronado, a social worker in hospitals for
the past 15 years, said her job as a member of
the palliative care services team is to provide
emotional support for patients and their
families.
Coronado, hired in 2008 by CMH as the
palliative care team’s first social worker, said
the most rewarding part of her job is supporting families during some of life’s most difficult
experiences, helping them with the struggles
involved with serious illnesses and end of life
issues.
As a social worker, Coronado—who shares
the job with Melissa Barnes—extends palliative
care services outside the hospital, assisting
patients and their families to access community
resources that will provide economical, social or
emotional support. She also offers bereavement
services for families who’ve lost a loved one.
“There is no way one person could do what
we do,” Coronado said. “Palliative care takes a
team. It takes all of us working together.”
21
TOUCHING
LIVES
W
What began as a small, private hospital in 1902 has become the largest private healthcare
system in the county today, touching the lives of individuals throughout Ventura County,
California and beyond. Community Memorial Health System still continues its growth,
with the inclusion of the tenth and eleventh Centers for Family Health in Ojai and Port
Hueneme, as well as the expansion of the Keeler Center for Headache & Orofacial Pain.
22
The Keeler Center for
Headache & Orofacial Pain
The Keeler Center for Headache & Orofacial Pain introduced
their new doctor, Brigitte Lovell, D.M.D., a dentist providing
treatment to patients with headaches, sleep-related breathing
disorders, and orofacial pain (face, mouth, nose, ears, eyes, neck,
and head). Dr. Lovell’s focus is on treating and managing all aspects of chronic refractory headache disorders such as migraine,
tension-type headache, cluster headache, post-traumatic headache, and occipital neuralgia. In addition, she treats patients with
orofacial pain conditions including musculoskeletal pain (TMD/
TMJ), atypical tooth pain, trigeminal neuralgia, neurovascular
and neuropathic pain. She fabricates dental sleep appliances for
obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and snoring. She is experienced in
intra-articular injections, trigger point injections, and nerve blocks
in the head.
Port Hueneme
Center for Family Health
The Port Hueneme Center for Family Health offers complete
family and obstetrics/gynecology care, as well as a comprehensive referral network of doctors and specialists and access
to state-of-the-art healthcare technologies at CMH. Physicians
on site are Family Practitioner Katharine Wilhelm, M.D., and
Obstetrician and Gynecologist David Crownover, M.D. Both
physicians are board-certified and members of the CMH medical staff. Other services include: pediatric and women’s health,
minimally-invasive gynecological surgery, free pregnancy testing,
delivery at CMH by a Board Certified OB/GYN, C.P.S.P. for
pregnant women, high risk pregnancy, bladder repair, well infant
care, well family medicine, wellness services, infertility, and the
Industrial Health Program.
Ojai
Center for Family Health
The Ojai Center for Family Health brings specialty healthcare
to residents of the Ojai Valley. Board-certified physicians practicing at the new Ojai CFH are: Viktoriya Nelson, M.D., internal
medicine; Marc Beaghler, M.D., urology; Tammy Cheng, M.D.,
rheumatology; and Chuck Menz, M.D., gastroenterology. The
office also offers a comprehensive referral network of doctors and
specialists and access to state-of-the-art healthcare technologies
at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura. Other services
available include: family practice, pediatric and women’s health,
obstetrics/gynecology, free pregnancy testing, delivery at CMH
by a board-certified OB/GYN, infertility, laboratory, Industrial
Health Program, as well as bilingual doctors and staff.
23
Investing
in our
Ventura
Community
Jeff Paul
Building
Stronger,
Healthier,
Better-Educated
Communities
is Good Business
F
Farmers have long understood the importance of planning for the future. Each new crop
requires the careful tilling of the soil, the meticulous planting of the seeds and the continual care
agricultural roots and recognizes the importance
of investing in the future and the communities
it serves. From its humble beginnings as a rural
cooperative bank lending to Dutch farmers, to
a widely respected financial
institution with branches
in over 48 countries, Rabobank has maintained its
century-long commitment
to focus beyond short term
cycles to ensure the lasting
betterment of its clients and
their businesses.
Since its purchase of Valley Independent
Bank in El Centro, CA, in 2002, Rabobank has
grown to include 120 branches throughout
California, meeting the retail and commercial
“Better healthcare, provides
a higher quality of life for
Ventura County residents.”
of the growing harvest. A bountiful crop is the
result of hard work, patience and forethought.
Rabobank, the Netherland-based international bank founded in 1898, has taken to heart its
24
banking needs over 240,000 clients. Over the
past decade, Rabobank and its employees have
earned a reputation in California for community
involvement and for philanthropic giving.
The same is true for Rabobank’s South Central Coast Region made up of 19 branches and
3 commercial banking centers covering Santa
Barbara County, Ventura County and the east
side of the San Fernando Valley.
Jeff Paul, the region’s president, recently announced a $100,000 donation Rabobank made
to Community Memorial Health System for the
construction of its new hospital in Ventura to be
completed by 2015.
The 250-room facility with 10 surgical
theaters and the most up-to-date medical technology will meet California’s seismic demands,
feature “green” technology and will have a larger
emergency room and greater imaging capability
than the present hospital.
The Ventura native said Rabobank’s donation to CMH is an investment in the overall
health and well being of those who call the
seaside city home.
“Building stronger, healthier, bettereducated communities is good business,” said
Paul from his office on South Mills Road, less
than a mile from where the new hospital will
be built. “Besides being the right thing to do,
we are only as strong as the customers and the
communities we serve.”
Paul said that not only does Rabobank view
CMHS as a valued customer, but it recognizes
the significant financial benefits the new hospital
will bring to the revitalization of Midtown Ventura and the surrounding businesses.
Indeed, the hospital is expected to provide
jobs for as many as 400 during its construction.
Paul said the hospital’s construction ensures
nearby businesses – from restaurants to retail
shops – will continue to enjoy a customer base
made up of doctors, nurses and hospital staff.
“This is a once in a lifetime event,” said Paul,
who sits on the hospital’s board of trustees and
chairs its finance committee. “But this will serve
the community for a number of years to come
and in a lot of different ways.”
Paul said a state-of-the-art community
hospital will attract the best in doctors, nurses
and medical professionals. Better healthcare, he
said, provides a higher quality of life for Ventura
County residents, which, in turns, attracts businesses to the area and bolsters the local economy.
“That’s good for the bank and the community,” Paul said.
It’s that win-win investment strategy that
has made Rabobank the success it is today
and what has seeded its financial stability for
the future.
Investing
in our
Ojai
Community
From
Alice
Ragland,
a letter to Ojai Valley Community Hospital
“In the last two years, I have spent 14 months in your wonderful hospital – so you know where my money has gone. I’m 94
years old, but you may know my name on your mailing list,
and I hope I can do something more later on.”
Alice
Ragland’s handwritten letter on
blue notepaper decorated with seashells caught
the attention of the staff at Ojai Valley Community Hospital for both its sincerity and its hopeful
promise of a future donation.
Alice sent the note in response to the
Ojai Valley Community Hospital Foundation’s
Spring Appeal, a twice-a-year mailer sent out to
the community to participate in donating to the
nonprofit hospital.
The note’s two sentences capture Alice’s
character as a funny, smart and no-nonsense
Midwesterner who believes in the importance of
volunteer service and the need to give back to
the community.
Indeed, the 94-year-old mother of two sent
the note recently while still recovering from
three surgeries.
“I’ve always sent money in, but I thought,
‘Oh, the bills, the bills, the bills. Right now the
hospital can wait,” said Alice, who added that
donating to community institutions such as
the hospital is vital to maintaining Ojai’s quality
of life.
In September 2010, Alice broke her hip
in a fall and spent six weeks recovering at
OVCH. Just seven months later,
she was back in the hospital for
another four-week stay when
doctors discovered her other hip
had subsequently broken. She
returned to OVCH yet again
seven months later after she had
suffered two spinal fractures.
Today, Alice undergoes
physical therapy regularly and is
on the road to recovery.
“I’m real healthy, it’s just my
bones are weak,” said Alice, who calls her walker
a “chariot” and speaks with an easy clarity that
belies her age.
Alice, an Ohio native, came to Southern
California in 1952 alongside her husband, Earl,
who worked in the aerospace industry for 30
years before the couple retired to the Ojai Valley
in 1983.
A homemaker and grandmother of two,
Alice volunteered for many years in Ojai. She
worked for Meals on Wheels, a nonprofit which
delivers meals to homebound seniors, as well
as a volunteer with the American Red Cross of
Ventura County.
“Isn’t that what we’re here for, to help other
people?” Alice said when asked why she volunteered for 15 years with both organizations.
She is also a longtime member of the Ojai Valley
Methodist Church.
Alice’s husband died in 2010, succumbing
to Alzheimer’s disease, and it was Alice who
cared for him in the final three years of his life.
Alice, who lives less than a quarter mile
from Ojai Valley Community Hospital, said having the hospital so close to her home “gives me
peace of mind.”
To be sure, in late 2010 Alice’s foot became
red and tender. She was diagnosed with blood
poisoning, which required frequent trips between
the hospital and her home.
Alice said that time in her life was especially
difficult, as her husband was in the final stages
of Alzheimer’s. The short drive to the hospital
made it possible for her to seek care for herself
while ensuring her husband was cared for in the
final months of his life.
“If the hospital wasn’t there, I’d have been
in a real pickle,” said Alice, who recovered from
the blood poisoning and was grateful she didn’t
have to travel to Santa Barbara or Ventura for
treatment or diagnosis.
Alice’s story is not uncommon for those
who live in the Ojai Valley. The availability of
state-of-the-art medical care at Ojai Valley Community Hospital not only improves the quality
of life in the Ojai Valley, but is truly a life-saving
asset for the community.
Hospitals such as OVCH are
only possible due to the generous donations—both large and
small – from those in the Ojai Valley. It’s for that very reason Alice
has made small but meaningful
donations over the years and why
she looks forward to again being
able to give to the hospital that has
cared for her so well and improved
her quality of life.
When asked why it’s important to give to the hospital, Alice’s response
captured her down-to-earth take on life: “Well,
if you’re going to use it, you better help pay for
it.”
“Isn’t that
what we’re
here for, to
help other
people?”
25
2012
Nursing
Scholarship
Meister Family
Foundation
s
e
e
d
r
a
Aw
C
Community Memorial Health System
is pleased to present this years recipients
of the Meister Family Foundation Nursing
Scholarships.
Through the generosity of Barbara Meister, local philanthropist and Chief
Executive Officer of Ventura’s Barber Automotive Group, these scholarships
were established to support individuals pursuing a nursing career.
Barbara Meister
26
2012 Awardees & Winning Essays
Courtney Hultgen
J
Just as the three generations
before me, I have lived the majority
of my life in Ventura. For this reason,
among others, I feel a deep connection to this community. I contribute
to this community on both personal
and professional levels. I help my
community by being a friendly neighbor and a good Samaritan whenever
possible. I also volunteer, join committees and work with the public. This
community has given me countless gifts
and opportunities, which is why I am
committed to giving back.
Before I returned to school full time
I was an employee of the Ventura Unified
School District. I worked with special
needs children in regular education classrooms. I was a mentor and spent much of
my time teaching life skills and tolerance to children. I am a faithful wife
and a loving parent. I hope the love and guidance I give my son will help
the next generation of this community.
I have a long history in student government. I am currently the
President of the Student Nurses Association at Ventura College. In 2010
“I believe the time
I have invested in
this community
has helped make
it a better place.”
I finished an unpaid 350 hour internship at St. John’s Regional Medical
Center called the Clinical Care Extender Program. While interning I assisted the medical staff in caring for patients in several departments within
the hospital. It was both a fascinating and deeply rewarding experience.
My educational and career plans are more like a free flowing river
than a path set in stone. I aspire to work as a nurse for at least 30 years,
during which time I would like to participate in many types of nursing.
Being a lifelong learner both inside the classroom and out is my goal. I
will finish my bachelor’s degree in Nursing Science in 2013. The next
goal will be obtaining a formal education in speaking and writing Spanish with an emphasis on medical terminology in order to effectively and
therapeutically communicate with Spanish speaking clients. I plan to get
my master’s degree and potentially a doctorate degree if my career path
leads me in that direction.
A solid foundation of experience on an inpatient medical-surgical
unit for the first few years of my career would be ideal. At school, I have
been exposed to many specialties, and have enjoyed them all. I will see
what opportunities arise, but I am currently interested in working in the
Intensive Care Unit, Public Health, Palliative Care, or Hospice during my
career.
I believe the time I have invested in this community has helped make
it a better place. I plan to continue contributing to the community of
Ventura so that subsequent generations can enjoy a safe, prosperous and
healthy future in this place I am proud to call home.
Sarah Gorman
I
I am currently enrolled in the nursing program at Ventura College. I am being exposed to many different avenues
of nursing and I am realizing that there
are numerous paths that I could specialize in. I am excited to learn as much as
I can while studying at Ventura College
in order to help me choose the best
path where I could be the greatest
help to others as a nurse. My plan after
Ventura College is to start working as
a registered nurse in order to gain some
work experience and to continue to learn
and fine tune my decision of which area
of nursing to specialize in. I then plan to
apply to Channel Islands College within a
year or two and obtain my bachelor’s degree in nursing.
I believe that having a supportive family and a network of supportive
friends in my life has helped me greatly in achieving what I have thus far.
I continue to look to them to encourage my efforts and help me to stay
strong in the pursuit of my goals.
I find the sense of community to be extremely important and feel
that it all starts within your own family. My decision to move back to Ojai
“I believe giving
to others brings
balance to life.”
two years ago was greatly based on the fact that my twin sister would
also be moving here as well. She has a four, a two, and a one year old.
Sharing the experience of helping her and her husband raise those boys
has brought so much joy into my life.
My sister is an acupuncturist and working on getting her practice up
and running. I participate on a daily basis to help watch her children and
help give her the opportunity of treating those in need of her help. The
time devoted to helping my sister along with all my school work is the
main reason I have chosen to not work at the moment. My studies are
very important to me as well as my family duties, and I hope to find other
avenues of support so I can continue doing both of these to the fullest
extent possible.
I have chosen the life of sobriety for myself and have been doing so
for the past 8 years. I spend a few days a week meeting with other women
who would like to make more out of their lives, and I do everything in
my power to help teach them the tools necessary to do just that. I find
watching others flourish extremely rewarding and hope to continue to
have the time to offer my hand to help as I do now.
I have found that I thrive when helping others, which is the main
reason I am choosing nursing. I believe giving to others brings balance to
life. I am best when helping another achieve their goals towards healthy,
productive living. This motivates me every day of my life and only fuels
the feeling that I am on the right path.
27
COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION
Two Great Events,
One Great Weekend
COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION
Join us for a day of golf
Friday, September 28, 2012
Ojai Valley Inn & Spa, Ojai
9:00 a.m. Registration
10:00 a.m. Tee Time
Proceeds GO TOWARDS THE
PURCHASE OF A BIRTHING SIMULATOR
For more information contact the Foundation office
at 805/667-2881 or visit www.nicugolf.org.
28
Saturday, September 29, 2012
5:30 p.m.
Ojai Valley inn & spa, ojai
Proceeds go towards the purchase of a
CT Scanner in the Emergency Department
of the new Community Memorial Hospital
at 805/667-2881 or visit www.benefactorsball.org.
Join Us for These
Upcoming Events
save the date
SATURDAY
DECMBER 1, 2012
6:00 p.m.
5k & 10k
Ojai Valley Inn & Spa
Nordhoff High School, Ojai
Saturday, October 6, 2012
7:15 a.m.
Proceeds will benefit
The Ojai Valley Community Hospital
and its Continuing Care Center
Run, Walk & Wheel Events
Proceeds will benefit The Ojai Valley Community Hospital
and its Continuing Care Center
Presented by Ojai Valley Community Hospital Foundation Guild
at 805/640-2317 or visit www.octoberclassic.org.
at 805/640-2317 or visit www.nightingaleball.org.
29
Thank You For
SATURDAY, MAY 12, 2012
SERRA CENTER, CAMARILLO
30
or Your Support
SATURDAY, MAY 19, 2012
St. Joseph’s retreat, OJAI
31
updat
projects
The New Community Memorial
Highlights of the First Year
The month of August will mark the one-year
anniversary of the construction of the new
Community Memorial Hospital. The work during
the first year centered around the excavation of
the site, relocation of the utility lines that will
support the new hospital, and the strengthening
of the soil underneath the facility to ensure that
seismic mandates are met.
Groundbreaking Ceremony
On September 14th, the ground breaking ceremony
was held for the new hospital. The celebration
drew about 500 community members, including
CMHS medical staff, auxiliary and employees as
well as city and county dignitaries.
Test Pillars
Clearing The Property
The official start to the project began as Venturabased McGillivray Construction cleared the site of
nearly 4,000 tons of material, including steel, iron
and concrete. In keeping with our commitment
to a “green” building process, CMHS partnered
with E.J. Harrison & Sons – based in Ventura – and
we were able to recycle 90 percent of all of the
materials cleared from the site.
32
Moving The Utilities
In order to bring power, electricity and water into
the new hospital, existing utility vaults and lines
needed to be repositioned. The exceptionally
complicated task of relocating all of these lines
was completed by the middle of summer.
Once the site was cleared, a portion of the site
was excavated and crews drilled four 40-feetlong and 3-feet-wide holes into the earth which
were then filled with concrete. Once these
pillars hardened, the state tested these pillars to
ensure the foundation – which would be made
up of over 2,000 such pillars – would withstand
a sizable earthquake. The “test pillars” were
approved by the state.
te
Only once in a generation something so significant occurs
that it touches the heart and health of an entire community.
for our generation the moment is now.
Hospital
Foundation Pillars
In order to ensure the building does not “slide
off” or move from its foundation in the event of
a major earthquake, crews have now installed
carefully positioned steel anchors – about 7-feet
high – in groups throughout the excavated
site. These anchors will be encased within
cement, and the hospital’s basement floor will
be laid over these encasements. The extended
steel anchors will then be bolted into the floor,
essentially acting as “fingers” anchoring the
building into place.
Digging The Hole
Shoring beams, and walls, were installed around
the perimeter of the site in order to support the
soon-to-be-excavated foundation.
Excavation crews led by Oxnard-based Toro
Enterprises were on-site to complete this portion
of the project. On a typical excavation day, nearly
200 to 230 dump trucks removed roughly 2,500
to 3,000 cubic yards of dirt, digging – seemingly
overnight – a massive footprint that came to be
known simply as “the hole.”
Strengthening The Earth
Because Ventura is a coastal community, much
of its deeper soil is soft due to groundwater. In
order to meet seismic requirements, the ground
underneath the building site needed to be
substantially strengthened. 2,240 40-foot-deep
holes will be drilled and filled with a cement
slurry to create a new bedrock foundation upon
which the hospital will be built. This critical
segment of the building process is being handled
by the Santa Paula branch of the geotechnical
engineering firm Hayward Baker.
Sign Up for Project Updates.
Visit www.cmhsbecause.org/projects
What’s Next?
Now that the foundation has been set, the hospital’s steel infrastructure will begin
to take shape. We look forward to this second phase and will continue to update
you on the progress of the new state-of-the-art Community Memorial Hospital.
33
Smoking Cessation Class - FREE
Weekly classes for eight weeks. On going in
Ventura, Ojai, and Oxnard. FREE patches & product
for participants!
Contact: HealthAware Office (805) 667-2818
[email protected]
Every month, Community Memorial Health System offers a variety of support and
informational meetings. Please verify meeting date and location with the contact
person listed. Sometimes meetings may be cancelled or rescheduled. You may also
view this listing at www.cmhshealth.org.
General Health
Bariatric Support Groups
General Group
4th Thursdays: 6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Lap Band Group
1st Tuesdays: 6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Contact: Nancy Barber (805) 676-9100
Bariatric Surgery Seminar
Selected Mondays: 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Contact: Nancy Barber (805) 676-9100
Better Breathers
In association with the American Lung Association.
2nd Wednesdays: 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
(dark the months of July and August)
Contact: Juanita Trine, RRT-NPS
(805) 652-5346, [email protected]
Caregivers Support Group
2nd Fridays: 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Contact: Carolyn Kopp (805) 492-0601
[email protected]
Joint Replacement Education Class
2nd Tuesdays: 2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Contact: (805) 652-5063
34
Heart & Vascular
Blood Pressure Screenings - FREE
Free blood pressure screeings done on a walk-in basis.
Mondays: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Contact: HealthAware: Heart Office (805) 667-2818
[email protected]
Community Reiki Share
1st Tuesdays: 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.,
Contact: Shannon Sosebee (805) 216-8675
[email protected]
Diabetes Screening - FREE
English/Español
2nd Monday: 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Facilitator: Nayra Gonzalez, Nurse Tech, CMA
“Se Habla Español”
[email protected]
Diabetes Update
2nd Tuesdays: 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Facilitator: Sharon Robinson
Contact: (954) 868-3771
[email protected]
Pulmonary Rehabilitation Classes
Classes meet twice a week for six weeks.
Contact: Juanita Trine, RT-NPS (805) 652-5346
Heart-Healthy Nutrition Classes
3rd Wednesdays: 5:15 p.m. - 6:15 p.m.
Facilitator: Heather Gilliam, RD
[email protected].
Restless Leg Syndrome
Quarterly on 3rd Sunday: 1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Contact: Dave Hennerman (805) 766-2035
Mended Hearts
1st Tuesdays: 6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Contact: Dick Hiser, (805) 646-4636
Weight Management Classes
Classes vary, please call.
Contact: Heather Gilliam, Registered Dietitian
(805) 652-5066
Prevention Strategies for Heart Disease
3rd Thursdays of odd months: 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Facilitator: Andrea Ricketts, MSN, ACNP-BC
[email protected]
Stroke Screenings
1st Fridays: 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Contact: HealthAware: Stroke Office (805) 667-2818
[email protected]
Stroke Support Group
2nd Wednesdays: 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Facilitator: Andrea Ricketts, MSN, ACNP-BC
Contact: HealthAware: Stroke Office (805) 667-2818
[email protected]
Walking Fitness Program at Kimball Park
Blood pressure screeings before and after walks.
Meets every Tuesday and Thursday morning.
Tuesdays
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
Thursdays
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
Contact: HealthAware Office (805) 667-2818
[email protected]
Yoga
1st and 3rd Mondays: 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Facilitator:Evon Rubenstein
Contact: (805) 652-5443
or email: [email protected]
Maternal Child Health
Maternity Tour
English
Tuesdays: 6:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m.
Espanol
4th Mondays: 7:00 p.m.
Contact: Sheila Dedrick, RN, BSN, IBCLC
(805) 658-BABY (2229)
Breastfeeding Support Group
Mondays 5:30 p.m. -7:00 p.m. or
Wednesdays 10:00 a.m. -11:30 a.m.
Contact: (805) 667-2838
Natural Childbirth
Sundays: 4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.,
Classes meet one night a week for six weeks.
Courses begin: June 24, Aug 12, Oct 7
(No class Sept 2 for Labor Day)
(No class Nov 11 for Veterans Day)
(805) 658-BABY (2229), [email protected]
Weekend Prepared Childbirth
Saturday: 9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Sunday 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Class dates: June 2-3, July 7-8, Aug 4-5, Sept 15-16,
Oct 13-14, Nov 3-4, Dec 8-9
Cancer Support Group
Wednesdays: 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Thursdays: 4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Facilitators: (Wed.) Gina Cole, MS, MFT,
The Wellness Community (Thurs.) Maryana Palmer
Contact: Cancer Resource Center (805) 652-5459
[email protected]
Evening Prepared Childbirth
Classes are one night a week for six weeks.
Tuesday classes: 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Classes begin: June 5, July 24, Sept 11, Nov 6
Wednesday classes: 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Classes begin: May 9, June 20, Aug 8, Sept 19, Nov 7
Creativity Central
Call for class dates and times.
Facilitator: Nicole van Dam
Contact: Cancer Resource Center (805) 652-5459
[email protected]
Childbirth Refresher Course
Call for dates and times
Baby and Me
Bittie Baby (0-3 months)
Tuesdays: 12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Bigger Baby ( 3 months & up)
Thursdays: 12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Babysitting 101
Saturdays: June 9, July 14, Aug 11, Oct 20
Infant Pediatric CPR
Saturdays: June 9, July 14, Aug 11, Sept 8,
Oct 20, Nov 17, Dec 1
9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Sibling
Sundays: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Class Dates: Feb 5, Apr 15, Jun 3
Cancer Program
Breast Cancer Support Group
Facilitated by The Wellness Community
Thursdays: 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Facilitator: Gina Cole, M.S., MFT
Contact: Kathleen Horton (805) 652-5459
[email protected]
Dietary Consults
By appointment only.
Call for dates and times.
Facilitator: Laura Fuld, RD
[email protected]
Guided Meditation with Frances Starr
2nd Fridays: 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Contact: Kathleen Horton or Patty Robles
Guided Meditation with Sharon Elvin
1st Mondays: 12:00 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Contact: Kathleen Horton
Head and Neck Cancer Support Group
4th Thursdays: 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Facilitator: Ronald Brand, Ph.D.
Contact: Cancer Resource Center & American Cancer
Society (805) 652-5459, [email protected]
Look Good, Feel Better
American Cancer Society program for women
undergoing cancer treatment to help them cope
with appearance related side effects.
2nd Mondays in Mar., June, Sept. and Dec. at 5:30 p.m.
Contact: (805) 652-5459, [email protected]
Lymphedema Screening Clinic
Tuesdays: 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Scheduled by appointment only.
Facilitator:Claudia Steele-Major, PT, CLT-LANA
Lymphedema Support Group
3rd Tuesdays: 12:00 p.m.- 1:00 p.m.
Facilitators: Claudia Steele-Major, PT, CLT-LANA
and Melissa Stoen
Call for an appointment.
Man to Man Prostate Cancer Support Group
Facilitated by The American Cancer Society
2nd Thursdays: 6:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Facilitator: Helmut Hoenigsberg
Contact: Cancer Resource Center or the
American Cancer Society, (805) 983-7792 ext. 21
or (805) 652-5459
[email protected]
Men’s Cancer Discussion Group
3rd Tuesdays: 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Facilitator: Roland Rotz, PhD
[email protected]
Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction
8 week course held in Spring and Fall.
We do ask that you commit to the intention of 100%
attendance. The course also includes a Saturday retreat
“Day of Meditation.” Please call for dates and times.
Facilitator: Catherine Baum, The Wellness Community
Movement Therapy
Call for dates and times.
Facilitator: Renee Garcia, GCFP
Reflexology
Fridays, Call for appointment.
Facilitator: Jane Ivey
[email protected]
Reiki for Cancer Patients
By appointment only.
Facilitators: Several Therapists
Contact: Patty Robles or Kathleen Horton
Restorative (Gentle) Yoga
Tuesdays: 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Facilitator:Toby Redlich
Social Services
Social worker available for individual support.
Mondays, all day.
Facilitator/Contact: Jody Giacopuzzi, LCSW
Yoga for Cancer Patients
Tuesdays: 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Facilitator: Toby Redlich
Contact: (805) 652-5459
Lymphedema Therapy
Call for an appointment.
35
Community Memorial Hospital of San Buenaventura
147 N. Brent St.
Ventura, CA 93003
Non Profit Org
US Postage
PAID
Community Memorial
Hospital of San
Buenaventura
Community Memorial Hospital and Ojai Valley
Community Hospital achieved accreditation
from DNV Healthcare, the leading accreditor
of US hospitals. DNV addresses the demands
of quality-driven hospitals that are dedicated
to patient-centered care.
Maternal Child
Health
at Community Memorial Hospital
Ventura County’s leading birth facility
• Level IIIb Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
• High-Risk Pregnancy Unit
• Epidural Available 24 Hours A Day
• Delivery by Board Certified Physician
DELIVERY BY BOARD
CERTIFIED OB/GYN
HIGH RISK
PREGNANCY UNIT
NEW PARENT
RESOURCE CENTER
KANGAROO CARE
• Perinatologist on Staff
• Pediatric Hospitalist on Staff
• Couplet Care
• New Parent Resource Center
LEVEL IIIb NICU
COMFORTABLE LOW
STRESS ENVIRONMENT
For more information visit
www.cmhshealth.org/mch or call 805/658-BABY

real life, real health in ventura county

Transcription

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