One woman`s battle to help her friend

Transcription

One
woman’s
battle to
help her
“I had the
power of
attorney
for her
healthcare
and I had
the paperwork,
friend
but...”
REAL LIFE, REAL HEALTH
I N VE NTU RA COU NTY
SPRING 2007
wilde thoughts
I’m Proud Of Our Many Laurels,
But You Can Be Assured We Won’t Rest On Them
Gary Wilde
President/CEO
I
In the ancient Greek Olympics, victors were
ceremoniously crowned with a laurel wreath.
However, to remain a champion a competitor
could not afford to “rest on his laurels.” We
deeply share this belief at Community Memorial
Health System. I am proud that Ventura’s Community Memorial Hospital, Ojai Valley Community Hospital and our Centers for Family Health
have a strong tradition of focusing on quality, yet
instead of being content with our accomplishments we have a renewed interest to ensure we
are doing all that we can to continue to provide
the highest quality of care for the community.
This is not merely my opinion; Community
Memorial Hospital participates in a number of
volunteer programs that benchmark the hospital
against other facilities. These studies include
the Society of Thoracic Surgery, the American
College of Cardiology, and the CRUSADE National Quality Improvement Initiative at Duke
University. In each case, I am both very pleased
and proud that the outcome of our care is highly
favorable compared to others throughout the
Michael Ellingson
Vice President of Marketing and Development
Mary McCormick
Editor
Stephanie Paul
Lisa Snider
Margie Stites
Woody Woodburn
Writers
Jann Hendry
Richard Slack
Hana Sumalpong
Ventura County Star
Photographers
ZestNet
Art Direction/Design
Published by:
Community Memorial Health System
A not-for-profit organization.
147 N. Brent St., Ventura, CA 93003
©2006 Community Memorial Health System
For permission to reprint any portion of this
magazine please call (805) 652-5492.
CARING | COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HEALTH SYSTEM
nation. Our philosophy is to participate in not
just mandatory reporting but also these and other
voluntary reporting benchmark studies.
Let me share just a couple of CMH’s
“laurels.” Our maternity outcomes (in terms of
infant mortality per 1,000 live births) are among
the lowest in the state. Also, our outcomes for
open-heart surgery again are much better than
state average and we are proud of this record.
To share the results for these and all the areas of
care and services we provide, you will increasingly find Community Memorial Health System
publishing our outcomes in a variety of ways. For
example, we are going to have our annual “State
of the Hospital” reports in April and May, in
which we will report on our continuous efforts to
ensure that we’re operating at the highest quality
standards for patient safety and outcomes.
Where else can you find the important
information you desire to be a well-educated
healthcare consumer? Some of our quality and
outcome information is available on public web
sites, including the Joint Commission and State
of California Published Data. In addition to the
myriad of established
public and voluntary reCommunity
porting
Memorial
Health System
2007 Board Of Trustees
Gary L. Wolfe, Chair
Martin A. Pops, M.D., Vice Chair
Harry L. Maynard, Secretary
Glen C. Farr, Treasurer
Douglas Woodburn, M.D.,
Chief of Staff,
Community Memorial Hospital
Daniel Sommer, M.D., Chief
of Staff,
Ojai Valley Community Hospital
Ralph R. Bennett
Michael D. Bradbury, Esq.
Trudy Cook
Philip C. Drescher, Esq.
Stanley Frochtzwajg, M.D.
Timothy J. Gallagher
John J. Hammer
William L. Hart, M.D.
John V. Hill, M.D.
Rabbi Lisa Hochberg-Miller
Fritz R. Huntsinger
Robert J. Lagomarsino, Esq.
F. Ted Muegenburg, Jr., Esq.
John W. Russell
Gregory H. Smith
William Speitel, M.D.
Kathryn M. Woodburn
EMERITUS MEMBERS OF
THE BOARD
Ralph Busch, M.D.
Leonard Ortiz
Janice P. Willis
by established national groups, there is today a
growing interest by consumer groups to have,
and provide, information on hospitals. We now
see companies like HealthGrades that attempt
to give consumers ratings for various elements
of care much like one would rate a hotel or a
restaurant. While CMH is flattered to receive a
number of five-star (highest) ratings including:
spinal surgery, women’s services, and maternal
child health, we acknowledge that measuring
healthcare quality is a far greater challenge than
measuring the services at a hotel or restaurant,
and with far greater consequences.
I am certain we will see many of these
separate surveys and groups ultimately converge
as the medical field creates standards that we
can all accept as the truest measures of quality.
However, I am equally certain this will take some
time. At present, not everyone agrees to what the
standards ought to be; what we should measure.
Should the measure of quality be process-oriented or should it be outcomes-oriented? Over
the next several years I believe much of this will
settle out.
Shortly, Community Memorial Health
System will be publishing our inaugural Annual
Report with information on our financial status,
our quality status, programs and services, and
what we’re doing to improve patient satisfaction.
We have many “laurels” to share and I proudly
invite the community to our annual State of the
Hospital addresses in both Ojai and Ventura.
Gary K. Wilde,
President/CEO,
BOARD PROFILE
contents
Harry
Maynard
A Real Mover
and Shaker.
I
In 1984, the Ventura Star-Free Press identified
Harry Maynard as one of the 10 leading movers
and shakers in the city of Ventura.
Maynard and five others on that list were
serving on the Board of Trustees of Community
Memorial Hospital. Maynard, who has been
on the board since 1978, said that during his
tenure with CMH, the board has always been
populated by Ventura community leaders.
A retired banker, Maynard’s fiscal expertise has served the hospital well in his role as
treasurer. He notes that the hospital’s largest
challenge since its birth a century ago lies on the
near horizon. The board must develop a plan
to finance and build a new hospital, estimated
to cost $200 to $300 million, to meet statemandated earthquake standards. Maynard is
past chairman of the Finance Committee and
current chairman of the Personnel Committee.
He will play a key role in determining how the
hospital modernization and expansion plan will
be financed.
Maynard isn’t alone in his dedication to
serving the hospital and the community. His
wife Carolyn has volunteered for the hospital
even longer, having been an Auxiliary member
for 44 years. She works the front desk every other
Wednesday and assists in the Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit on alternate weeks.
The hospital is the primary recipient of
Maynard’s community involvement these days.
He also serves on the board of Ivy Lawn Memorial Park. Over the past several years, he has given
his time to many organizations. He was president
of the Ventura Chamber of Commerce in 1965
and Ventura’s Citizen of the Year in 1969. He has
chaired Ventura’s Comprehensive Plan Advisory
Committee and served on the boards of the Los
Angeles Shrine Hospital; the Ventura County
Fair; Interface of Ventura County; the Foundation
for Preservation of Ventura County Parks; and the
Assistance League, among other organizational
activities too numerous to list here.
Harry and Carolyn Maynard have been married 54 years. Their daughter, Linda, lives eight
houses down the block from their East Ventura
home. Maynard spends as much time as he can
with his granddaughter Alissa.
UPCOMING COMMUNITY EVENTS
UPCOMING FOUNDATION EVENTS
State of the Hospital Address (CMH)
Gold Dust Gala
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Poinsettia Pavilion, Ventura
Info: 805-652-5385
State of the Hospital Address (OVCH)
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
St. Thomas Aquinas Church, Ojai
Info: 805-640-2355
Relay for Life
Benefiting American Cancer Society
Saturday & Sunday, May 19 & 20, 2007
Buena High School
Info: 805-276-8148, www.cancer.org
4
BEING IN CHARGE
Benefiting Community Memorial
Healthcare Foundation
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Seaside Park, Ventura
Info: 805-667-2881
SECURE YOUR HEALTHCARE WISHES
Get an Advanced
Medical Directive
5
6
IS THAT MY LITTLE BOY?
CMH Helps New Mom
Answer “Freedom Call”
From Her American Soldier
Husband in Iraq
7
11
FOUNDATION NEWS
DEDICATED STAFF
CMH Social Services Helps
Patients Cope with Illness
and Life Situations Every Day
PAIN MANAGEMENT
A Growing Specialty That
Employs a Wide Array
of Procedures
12
14
WHEN BACK PAIN STRIKES
15
CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE
Mark Reeves, Specialty
Practitioner of the Year
Wild West Night
Benefiting Ojai Valley Community Hospital
Foundation Guild
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Ojai Valley Inn Ranch & Stables
Info: 805-640-2317
PHARMACIST’S CORNER
Inhaled Insulin
16
NICU Golf Tournament
COMMUNITY @
Community
16
Benefiting CMH’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Sterling Hills Country Club
Friday, July 27, 2007
For more info: 805-667-2881
COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HEALTH SYSTEM | CARING
BEING
IN
CHARGE
Of making PREPARATION
medical
AND PROPER
decisions PAPERWORK Roni Peterson and Deanna Schultz have been dear friends for more than
half their lives. “For a very long time – about forty years,” says Schultz, 70.
So when Peterson experienced a cascade of medical problems beginning last November, she was comforted in knowing she had formally
given power of attorney to Schultz. Indeed, Peterson felt secure that should
she ever become unable to make her own healthcare decisions, her medical
fate rested in good hands.
What Peterson had not realized was that her friend’s hands would
be tied up in red tape because of legal fine print.
“I had the power of attorney for her healthcare and I had the
paperwork saying so,” explains Schultz, adding, “but …”
However, the document in Peterson’s trust was slightly different. “For
some reason it didn’t specifically grant me access to her medical records,”
Schultz explains. “It gave me the right to make medical decisions for her,
but not the right to have the medical information I needed to make those
decisions. It was a catch-22 situation.”
Exasperating the “frustrating” situation, Schultz believes, is that she is
not related to Peterson. However, assigning durable power of attorney to a
relative was not an easy option for Peterson.
“Roni is not married; she’s divorced, but not in touch with her
former husband,” notes Schultz. “She has no children, no family close by
– just a brother who’s in Sacramento. As her friend forever and living in Ventura, I was the natural choice. I just never dreamed it would be so difficult.”
The difficulty began in late November 2006 when Peterson was
diagnosed with a rare kidney tumor that had a 98 percent chance of being malignant. She entered Community Memorial Hospital and had
her kidney removed on the Monday before Thanksgiving.
“You can live without a kidney,” Schultz says. “But then trouble began.
She had problems with blood clots in the past, so she needed to be on
blood thinners. Her liver was annoyed, a common occurrence from the
surgery, and because of the blood thinners it began to ooze blood into
her abdominal cavity. With her liver not functioning, her remaining kidney
shut down and things went from bad to worse. She almost died. Twice she
had Code Blues.”
Schultz praises CMH’s “amazing medical staff ” for saving her friend’s
life. “She had wonderful doctors: surgeons, cardiologists, gastroenterologists;
great nurses and respiratory therapists. They all worked so hard to keep
her alive.”
While grateful for all the highly skilled and
dedicated specialists, Schultz points out it caused
a problem in itself. “It’s a real hurdle trying to
know who’s her doctor? Who’s in charge? It
seems like it’s always changing.”
Dr. Thomas Brugman, a pulmonologist,
recognized her dilemma. “Thank God for Dr.
Brugman,” Schultz allows. “He became my
contact. He told me, ‘Always come and talk to
me.’ So I did.”
Because she was not the “agent” of a medical
durable power of attorney, Schultz experienced
other frustrations.
“For example, the physical therapist legally
couldn’t talk to me,” Schultz points out. “I got
around that by writing out a list of questions and
concerns like, ‘When will she be sitting up?’ I
couldn’t have a conversation with the physical
therapist, but I could put a letter in his mailbox.
I didn’t care if he answered the questions – I just
wanted him to know what was on my mind.
“Later, I talked to him and he listened to
my concerns,” Schultz continues. “Because of
patient privacy laws he couldn’t legally respond,
but that was fine. Again, I just wanted him to
know my feelings. Another way I found you can
get around the patient privacy issue is by asking
hypothetical questions, and this worked well for
me as well.”
Adriana van der Graaf, CMH’s Director of
Health Information Management, praised the
way Schultz handled the situation. “She was
smart and became an informed consumer, and
was diligent in getting things accomplished.”
This included applying for financial assistance through Peterson’s Social Security.
“I needed to submit medical records to Social
Security but the healthcare medical directive I
had said I could make medical decisions about
her, but that I couldn’t have access to her medical records,” Schultz says. “Luckily, Adriana had
the best interests of the patient at heart, so she
did a very good thing and was able to give me
what was needed by Social Security.”
Van der Graaf says that her goal, and CMH’s
goal, always is to help the patient. “People think
they need a complete copy of the medical
records, but that could require photocopying
800-900 pages of paper and electronic records,”
she explains. “They don’t need all that. We ask
them, ‘What are you trying to accomplish?’
Then we can tell them what they actually need
to accomplish that. I try to help them every way
I can.”
While Schultz believes being a relative of
Peterson would have made matters easier for
her, that is not necessarily true. As van der Graaf
points out, the best course is to have the proper
legal papers in place.
“For example, let’s say you’re 50
and your dad is 77 and has become quite
cantankerous,” van der Graaf says. “He
doesn’t want anyone telling him what
to do, so he doesn’t have a medical
durable power of attorney. Meanwhile,
your mom – his wife – has Alzheimer’s,
so she doesn’t have the ability to make
his medical decisions. If you, the son,
need to arrange medical care, you have
no authority to have your dad’s medical
records – not without a medical durable
power of attorney. A spouse has the
right, but a child needs to legally be
designated.”
The importance of having the
proper documents in order, van der
Graaf stresses, can’t be overstated. “I’m
speaking from experience,” she says. “I lost my
mother, but I had conversations with her about
her medical wishes and I had the forms in place.
I advise everyone to do so – it makes a difficult
time less stressful.”
Van der Graaf shares a second personal experience that further illustrates this. Her motherin-law had advanced Alzheimer’s and passed
away at home late at night. Her wish had been
to not have CPR, so the family did not frantically
call the paramedics.
“You need to have the HIPAA
(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) form signed,” Schultz
explains.
“Fortunately, Roni’s brain was fine
and she eventually had the strength to
sign her name. But what if she couldn’t?
It would have been an even worse
nightmare. My advice to everyone is to
call Medicare, Blue Cross, Social Security,
AARP – whomever you have health insurance with – and request a HIPAA form.
Get this authorization form on file or they
won’t talk to you when the time arises.”
Asked what she has learned from her
travails serving as Peterson’s healthcare
advocate, Schultz replies, “It has definitely
made me revise everything I have – all
my paperwork, my trust and powers of attorney
and HIPAA forms. It’s easy to do and I advise
everyone to not put off doing it.
“Roni is an amazing person,” Schultz added.
“She’s 72 years old and was on a ventilator for
78 days! That tells you how remarkable her
doctors and nurses and everyone at Community
Memorial Hospital who cared for her are. They
were all fabulous. Nobody ever gave up on her.”
Including her dear, and persistent, friend
Deanna Schultz.
“THE IMPORTANCE
OF HAVING THE PROPER
DOCUMENTS
IN ORDER,CAN’T BE
OVERSTATED.”
“We actually waited until morning to call,”
van der Graaf says. “There was no question
about why we didn’t call an ambulance and
try to have her resuscitated because we had all
the information in place. We had an advance
directive that said, ‘I don’t want that.’ It made an
extremely stressful time a little more calm.”
For Schultz, the stress and frustration
seemed to mount. Perhaps no more so than
when she had to deal with Peterson’s health
insurance company.
Secure Your
Healthcare Wishes:
R
Receiving
the exact medical treatment you
want can include not
just consulting with your physician, but meeting
with an attorney to get a medical durable power
of attorney.
Also commonly called an “advance medical
directive,” a medical durable power of attorney
is a document you sign naming someone, called
your “agent,” to make your healthcare decisions
for you, should you not be able to do so in the
future. For example, if you are unconscious.
However, it is vital to recognize that a
standard power of attorney is not the same as
a medical durable power of attorney. Indeed,
the former grants the agent authority to make
non-medical decisions (such as financial matters)
for you.
“A durable power of attorney grants noth-
With an Advance Medical Directive
ing about medical and healthcare decisions,”
emphasizes Ventura attorney Gary Jacobs. “You
need to have the medical durable power of
attorney, the new term is – advance directive for
medical cause – to grant someone power over your
medical decisions.”
While a paralegal can do a medical durable
power of attorney, and simple fill-them-outyourself versions of this document can even be
obtained at stationery stores or free at various Internet sites, Jacobs strongly feels an experienced
lawyer is warranted.
“Frankly, I believe too much is at stake,”
says Jacobs, noting that any reputable general
practitioner, probate attorney or estate planner will
have the necessary expertise, and a malpractice
policy should problems arise. It’s far too important
not to go to an attorney. It’s not very expensive to
get done.”
The high stakes are the type of medical care
you want – or, perhaps just as importantly, don’t
want. For example, you can make it clear you do
not wish to be resuscitated
“A key reason to have this document is for
when someone is in the hospital and doesn’t
want to be resuscitated or doesn’t want to be
kept alive by machines,” notes Jacobs. “Usually
we’re talking about a person who is unconscious
and can’t make decisions for themselves.
Ideally the person does make these decisions
for him or herself – long beforehand.
“I would hope the person sits down with his
agent and really discusses things,” Jacobs explains.
“Do you want to be resuscitated? Do you want
me to authorize machines to prolong your life?
Would you want risky surgery? Really talk about it
so you know what that person wants.”
Organ and tissue donation is another thing
that should be discussed. The end result is you
will have a medical durable power of attorney,
and an informed “agent,” to represent your
wishes with your doctor if you become unable to
make healthcare decisions for yourself. This document also allows your agent to obtain copies of
your medical records.
“The time to get an advance directive for
medical cause is now,” Gary Jacobs emphasizes,
“before you might ever need it.”
?
isthat
my
little
boy
It ’s No
A
SOLDIER
STORY
CMH Helps New Mom Answer “Freedom Call”
From Her American Soldier Husband in Iraq
Three generations of Stevenson – Phillip Anthony Sr., Phillip Jr., and newborn Phillip III – came together at Community Memorial Hospital
on Friday, January 25.
“Is that my little boy?” Phillip Jr. asked when he first laid eyes on his namesake son.
“Yeah,” answered his wife, Teresa, who was tenderly cradling the baby in her lap.
Meanwhile, Phillip Sr., seated near Teresa and his first grandson, couldn’t take his tearing-up eyes off his son, whom he hadn’t seen for five
months.
What made this scene unique is that Phillip Jr. was more than 8,000 miles away. He was seeing his day-old son via a satellite hookup made
possible thanks to CMH’s video teleconference classroom in the hospital’s basement along with the non-profit Freedom Calls Foundation
(Freedomcalls.org) which connects U.S. military families with troops in Iraq by providing a satellite link to Iraq via Los Angeles.
“This is so wonderful to help make this happen and be a part of this,” said Estelle Brutton, CMH’s Manager of Labor and Delivery, who
was on hand in the conference classroom. ‘This is a special time for this family.’
“Though separated from their families by overseas duties, soldiers no longer need to be estranged from their families in time of war. They
can now participate in milestone family events from the front lines via video conference over the Freedom Calls Network.”
And so, while he couldn’t be on hand for the birth of Phillip III on January 25, less than 24 hours later Phillip Jr. – from Camp Fallujah Al
Asad Airbase – was able to celebrate the important milestone with nearly a dozen family members, including his one-year-old daughter Nadine,
who all gathered at CMH.
Shortly after 2:00 p.m., Cpl. Phillip Stevenson, a Computer Support Technician wearing camouflage fatigues, carrying a bottle of water,
CARING| |COMMUNITY
COMMUNITYMEMORIAL
MEMORIALHEALTH
HEALTHSYSTEM
SYSTEM
CARING
Continued on page 14
Helping CMH in its continuous effort
to offer the best healthcare possible by
consistently investing in the newest
technology, education and training.
SMARTGiving: Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust
F
For over four decades, they
have unselfishly and passionately
donated thousands of volunteer
hours to Community Memorial
Hospital – Harry serving on the
Board of Trustees and as an
integral member of the Community Memorial Healthcare
Foundation, and Carolyn serving
as a dedicated member of the
hospital’s auxiliary staff.
Now, the Maynards have
taken the lead once again and
made a substantial gift to the
hospital: They’ve established a
Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust naming the hospital’s
foundation as the beneficiary.
Harry and Carolyn’s trust consists
of 7,000 shares of bank stock
they own worth approximately
$250,000.
While the type of trust the
Maynards have established with
the hospital may not be unique, it
is an ideal way of giving.
“This is a win-win situation,” explained Russ Charvonia,
a financial advisor and estate
planning attorney. “This type of
giving allows the donor to get a
lifetime of income while avoiding
capital gains and reducing current
income taxes.”
As with other safe investments, the Maynards’ Charitable
Remainder Annuity Trust guarantees them an income for life. The
hospital invests the money and
pays the Maynards six percent
every year. Upon their passing,
the assets then revert to the
hospital’s foundation.
More importantly, Harry
wants their gift to be an example.
“I want it to be a model for others.
LEADING BY
EXAMPLE
Harry & Carolyn Maynard
Make a Sizeable Trust Donation to the
Community Memorial
Healthcare Foundation
Not only is the money a big help
for the hospital, but it’s a good
investment as well.”
Charvonia, a partner in the
financial planning firm The
Renaissance Group in Ventura,
said the manner in which the
Maynards have established their
trust is a relatively painless way to
make a substantial gift.
“There are a number of ways
a person can choose to donate.
Many gifts come in the form of
cash donations. However, bene-
factors such as the Maynards can
gift the hospital an appreciated
asset such as real estate or stock
by using a charitable trust that
benefits both parties.”
And the ways of effectively
giving can be as individual as the
donors themselves.
“Another way to make a sizable donation and help your heirs
is by naming the hospital as the
beneficiary of your life insurance
policy. It doesn’t have to be the
entire policy, either. You can
leave a portion – either a percentage or a cash amount – to the
hospital while still taking care of
your loved ones.”
Charvonia emphasized that
each individual donor is different
and the type of trust that the
Maynards have established might
not be the right one for everyone.
“It’s important that donors consult with a financial planner and
an estate attorney to determine
their individual objectives, income
needs, taxes, and charitable giving
desires,” he advised.
“Donors may not want to
part with their assets but rather
leave it with their children. In the
case of the Maynards, although
they’ve set this trust up with the
hospital, if their income were to
increase, they could leave more
to their children through a life
insurance policy. The beauty
of charitable giving is you can
actually get quite creative,” Charvonia noted.
Giving can range from a
simple strategy to the very complex, he pointed out. “The most
important thing to remember
Continued on page 8
SMARTGiving: Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust
LEADING BY
EXAMPLE
Continued from page 7
is that donors don’t have to be
ultra wealthy to make a difference.
There is literally a way for everyone to donate to their favorite
cause.”
“Not only are my wife and
I guaranteed a lifetime income
from the trust, but the foundation
will also be able to use our investment as loan collateral for future
borrowing to help build the new
hospital,” Maynard added.
Growing up the oldest of six
children in a small Iowa town,
Harry says his community activism
began at an early age. “Everyone
was involved with everything,” he
recalled with a chuckle.
A former middle and high
school teacher and athletic coach
who later turned to finance, Harry
and new bride Carolyn moved
to Ventura in 1952, and he began
working for a local bank.
“People think when you’re a
banker you have lots of time. They
asked, and I could never say ‘no.’”
Harry was very active with
the Masons, serving as Past Grand
Master for both California and
Hawaii, and also served as a past
president of the Ventura Chamber
of Commerce. Moreover, the
couple actively became involved
with the local care center – Foster
Hospital – where their first child
was born.
In the early 60’s, through
his work with the Masons,
Harry served on the construction fundraising committee
and helped lay the cornerstone
for the new eight-story facility which was renamed Community Memorial Hospital.
Charitable Annuity Trust
Harry Lee Maynard-Age79 • Carolyn Joyce Maynard-Age73
1
2
3
PROPERTY
PRINCIPAL
CHARITY
Value: $250,000
Cost: $4,500
Gain: $245,500
Transfer and sell tax-free.
Bypass up to $245,500 gain
may save $58,920. Income
tax deduction of $1,225
may save $470.
$250,000
6% Annuity Trust
10 years guaranteed
2 Lives
Annuity income $15,000.
Income payable in quarterly
amounts. Total estimated
income in 17.2 years
$258,000. Effective return
rate 6.01%
$311,483
If trust earns 6.843%, pays
6% annuity, trust value
increases. After two lives,
trust passes without
probate to charity.
After CMH was completed, the
Maynards daughter, Linda, was
born in the Goodyear Wing, the
labor and delivery area closest
to Loma Vista Road.
With his passion for finance
and his love of the hospital, Harry
was a perfect fit to serve on the
hospital’s Board of Trustees where
he has held a seat for 29 years – 28
of those as the board’s Treasurer
and Chairman of Finance.
Being instrumental in raising
construction funds in the 60s, the
dynamic philanthropist has again
turned his efforts towards helping
future generations: The couple has
earmarked their charitable gift for
the new building fund.
Like many donors, the
Maynards have family needs and
several groups close to their giving
heart. In addition to the hospital,
the Maynards have ensured that
their family will be taken care of,
and the world travelers support a
number of organizations including
Los Angeles Children’s Hospital,
and Harry’s alma mater, the University of Northern Iowa.
Yet, through all of their
financial kindness, the patrons and
visionaries know their local gift
will have a far-reaching impact on
future Ventura generations.
“CMH is purely a community organization. Our whole lives
have been around supporting the
hospital, and we just feel we owe
this to them. It is a great way to
give to the hospital, invest in the
future, and still have an income,
all while helping the local community and everyone who uses the
hospital,” Harry underscored.
To learn more about charitable
giving, contact the Foundation
office at 805-667-2881.
W
e are hard pressed to find someone whose life
hasn’t been touched in one way or another by
breast cancer. Many of the women battling breast
cancer are uninsured with no access to funds for treatment.
The Breast Center at Community Memorial Hospital
provides mammograms, ultrasound and biopsy procedures
to these women, at no cost.
I am especially excited about this year’s Gold Dust
Gala. The event gives us the opportunity to focus on
raising funds for early breast cancer detection and intervention. All of the net proceeds from the Gala will go
toward providing life-saving procedures for the women of
our community, with a goal to expand our programs into
outlying areas with underserved populations by utilizing
our Centers for Family Health.
It was sobering to learn that women under the age of
40, who need financial support for their breast care, have
few options. The Breast Center is one of the few facilities
that can help them. I recently became aware of a 24-yearold uninsured college student who discovered a lump in
her breast. She did not know where to turn. The Breast
Center performed a mammogram and ultrasound, at no
cost. No evidence of cancer was found, but the girl’s mind
had been put to rest. She could stop worrying.
Please support this worthy event and help the women
of our community. The Breast Center will receive all of the
net funds raised from the Gold Dust Gala. Your donations
are tax deductible.
Phil
Vassar
Presented by Movie Gallery
Saturday
May 12, 2007
Seaside Park
Ventura
Order Tickets or Sponsor Today!
Call 805-667-2881 or go to
www.golddustgala.com.
Tickets available at
The Wharf in Ventura.
Warm regards,
Gold Dust Gala Chair
Community Memorial Healthcare Foundation
Board of Directors
Kathryn M. Woodburn, President
Barbara C. Rose, Vice President
Dorothy Jue Lee, Secretary
Tommy Slater, Treasurer
Gary Wilde, President & CEO
Joanie Abou-Samra
Trudy Bale
Loye Barton
Ralph R. Bennett
Michael D. Bradbury
Jim Butterbaugh
Bonnie Carlton
Trudy Cook
Ray DiGuilio
Philip C. Drescher
Michael Ellingson
Anthony P. Fowkes
David B. Glyer
John J. Hammer
William L. Hart, M.D.
Lydia Hopps
Fritz R. Huntsinger
Lynn Jacobs
William J. Kearney
John P. Keats, M.D.
Gregory F. Lamp
Sandra R. Masiel
John Masterson
Harry L. Maynard
Barbara Meister
Leonard B. Ortiz
Dottie Pas
Jeffrey D. Paul
Jeanne Peters
Mel Sheeler
Carolyn Tedesco
Dominic J. Tedesco, M.D.
Norm Weitzel
Stan Whisenhunt
Douglas S. Wilkinson, M.D.
Gary L. Wolfe
James D. Woodburn II, M.D.
James D. Woodburn III, M.D.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Poinsettia Pavilion, 3451 Foothill Road, Ventura
5:30 p.m. Refreshments
6:00 p.m. Presentation
Foundation Report
Kathryn M. Woodburn, President
Community Memorial Healthcare Foundation
2007 State of the Hospital Address
Gary K. Wilde, President & CEO
Space is Limited.
For Reservations Please Call: 805-652-5385
Donations &
Contributions
Community
Memorial Hospital
appreciates
the many
generous gifts
from our friends.
Contributions to the
Foundation benefit
our community
in many ways.
We gratefully
acknowledge
the following
contributions
received between
June 1, 2006 and
December 31, 2006
Friends and Donors
Dr. Moustapha and Joanie Abou-Samra
Lauren Alexander
Eugene Andreasen
Dr. Michael and Alison Bailey
Trudy and Joe Bale
Dr. Walter Ballard
Dr. Edward and Jill Banman
Mr. and Mrs. Philip Basile
Dr. and Mrs. Marc Beaghler
Donna Beesley
Ralph and Donna Bennett
George and Joy Berger
Stuart Berggren
Dr. Helmuth Billy
Bryan and Alissa Binns
Frank and Verena Breker
Merwin and Ruth Bridges
Arleen Brooks
Dr. Thomas and Patti Brugman
Nick Buhlak
Roger and Joan Bujold
Mario and Carissa Calire
Don and Bonnie Carlton
Dr. and Mrs. Charles Brenner
Dr. Erwin Clahassey
Maria Constanza
Sally Crain
Dr. Richard and Ann Deamer
Ann Demartini
Dr. Estela and Dr. Patrick Diesfeld
Ed A. Dowd
Philip and Marcia Drescher
Michael Ellingson
Myron and Eileen Elliott
Charles and Roberta Erwin
Glen and Karen Farr
Fred and Virginia Ferro
Dr. Arthur and Jennifer Flynn
Anthony and Edris Fowkes
Dr. Stanley and Hiedi Frochtzwajg
Dr. Peter and Sandy Gaal
Edward Gaiser
Dr. Robert Garrison
10
Renee Gill
David and Maryellen Glyer
Dr. Thomas and Debbie Golden
Laverne Gragg
Carl and Lori Grether
Dr. Joseph and Carol Gstettenbauer
Angelina Hall
Dr. Jack and Beverly Halpin
Mr. and Mrs. Richard Hambleton
John and Glenda Hammer
Martha Hammons
Ruth Hansen-Swanson
Dr. Harvey Harris
Jim and Tish Harris
James and Mary Harrison
W.E. and Sally Hartman
John and Angie Hecht
Ronald and Carolyn Hertel
Dr. John Hill
Judy Hines
Orville and Martha Horn
Rod and Alisa Houck
Carolyn Huntsinger
Fritz and Nancy Huntsinger
Thaddeus and Cassandra Hyland
Alexandra Iliescu
Betty Isensee
Kensaku Ito
Dr. Gosta and Mary Iwasiuk
Lynn and Gary Jacobs
Paul and Lorna Jordan
James and Sherryl Keegan
Morris and Delcie Kelly
Gary and Nancy Kennedy
Randy and Sue Kinsling
Dr. Ron and Diany Klein
William and Pearl Knapp
Robert and Norma Lagomarsino
Haady Lashkari
Amber Lillard
Joe Lorenza
Marie Lukes
Michael Lurie and Nancy Kochevar
Dr. Nelly Mac
Thomas and Adele Mahoney
Alphonse and Janet Marra
Charles and Edie Marshall
John and Judy Masterson
John McCaddin
Charles and Rosena McConica
M.P. and Lucy McKnight
John and Mabel McVittie
Barbara Meister
Clinton Merithew
Charles and Barbara Messerall
Mary Pease Middagh
Tom Mobley
Barry Mosesman and Rhonda Spiegel
Ted and Dale Muegenburg
Gary Nichols
Barry Nielsen
John Noble
Alex and Norma Orr
Leonard and Lupe Ortiz
Roland and Chris Ouellette
Michele Overgard
Carol Padilla
Dr. Srisawai Pattamakom
Susan and Don Petty Jr.
Robert Phelps
Helen Pidduck
Judi and Ron Polito
Dr. and Mrs. Gary Proffett
Laura Punch
Dr. Constanze Rayhrer and Dennis Valianos
Reverend William and Edna Ree
Dr. Mark and Eleanor Richman
Mr. and Mrs. Ron Rose
Ric and Penny Ruffinelli
Albert Sakharoff
Sherry Scott
Dr. John and Jean Seder
Mel and Cathy Sheeler
Patricia Kong Slater and Richard Slater
Thomas and Debra Slater
Dr. Samuel and Pamela Small
Sandy Smith
Gregory and Shelley Smith
Bill and Martha Spriggs
Gary and Sheree Standefer
Dr. Michael and Pamela Stelman
Ed Summers
Mark and Tania Sussman
Jacqueline Swan
Dr. Aron and Roberta Swerdlin
Dr. Leo and Lucy Tauber
Margit Taylor
Adam and Alexis Thunell
John Trahan
Edith Trunkey
Jaromir and Libuse Turek
Laverne Venus
Frank Waldron
Dr. Eric Wallace
Clarence and Katzuko Walthall
Lillian Watkins
Dr. Daniel and Mary Waxer
Mr. and Mrs. Hans Weber
Norman and Lynn Weitzel
Rodney and Kathryne Weldon
Marion and Billie Whitehead
Gary and Cheryl Wilde
Dr. Douglas and Katherine Wilkinson
Robert and Janice Willis
Michael Wilson
Casimir and Elizabeth Wojnar
Dr. Doug and Caryn Woodburn
Dr. James and Kathryn Woodburn
Dr. William and Norma Zuber
Companies, Foundations
& Service Clubs
Air Liquide
Andria’s Seafood Restaurant and Market
AVC Office Automation
California Cardiac Surgeons
Cardinal Health
Cardinal Point Communications Inc.
City National Bank
Clarity Medical Systems, Inc.
CMH - Emergency Room Physicians
CMH - Radiology Group
Custom Awards and Engraving
DR Systems
Gordon Ross Medical Foundation
Grant and Weber
Grossman Imaging Centers of CMHS
Hammer-Hewson Associates
I-Flow
Integrated Insurance Services
IRJ Engineers, Inc.
Isensee Floorcovering, Inc.
Kaiser Permanente
Karl Storz Endoscopy
Kaufman Hall
KPN Networks, Inc.
Lee, Burkhart, Liu, Inc.
Masterplan Inc.
MedicKey
Medtronic, Inc.
Meister Family Foundation
Metro-Med Inc.
Mid-State Bank and Trust
Mundy Medical Marketing, Inc.
Pediatrix Medical Group
Perennial Designs
Philip Sorkin Consulting, Inc.
Precyse Solutions, LLC
Puretec Industrial Water
QAD Inc.
R.T. Beers and Company Insurance Services, Inc.
The Renaissance Group, Inc.
Ross Pediatric Products
Santa Barbara Bank and Trust
Sequetor Inc.
Sheeler Moving and Storage
Sound Inpatient Physicians
Surgical West
Taft Electric
Ted Mayr Funeral Home
Tri County Furniture
Ventura Anesthesia Medical Group
Ventura Cardiology Consultants
Ventura County Obstetrics and
Gynecologic Medical Group, Inc.
Ventura Printing
West Coast Environmental
West-Com and T.V. Inc.
Whisenhunt Communications
ZestNet
In Memory of
June Allyson Ashrow
Dr. William and Louise Hart
Betty Christy
Thomas and Theodora Christy
Nella A. Davis
Alvin Davis
Maria Eggler
Peter Chapa
Aldo Fattarelli
Sheila Fattarelli
Mrs. Barbara Garrison
Harry and Carolyn Maynard
Charles L. Gray, DDS
Thomas and Theodora Christy
Marvin Isensee
Rosalie Kosub
Sam and Donna Miller
Joy Meyer
Mei Hua Peterson
Commander Andrew Nutter
Victoria Nutter
Pablo Peralta
Gail Breines
Mrs. Trudy Real
Robert Rubel
Harvey and Judith Flax
Dorothy E. Terry
Joseph Terry
Dr. Robert Warwar
Elmer and Doris Ferber
In Honor of
Dave and Lisa Hermanson
Mary McCormick
Harry Maynard’s 80th Birthday
Rabbi Lisa and Rabbi Seth Hochberg-Miller
Steps of Life
Warren Brown
Karen Brown
R.W. Brown and Frances Brown
Warren W. Brown
Michelle Marie Burke
Christine Monica Burke
Kiana L. Lowe
Malcome N. Lowe
Frances Messersmith
Gary and Ann Wolfe
Lydia Wilde
We apologize for any omissions
or misspellings.
Helping OVCH in its continuous effort to offer the best healthcare possible
by consistently investing in the newest technology, education and training.
Followed by the generosity of local philanthropist, Chilant
Sprague, who donated funds to refurbish two hospital rooms for
patients last year, two more rooms at the Ojai Valley Community
Hospital have been refurbished, thanks to the munificent contributions of a local resident and a local organization. At a cost of $12,000 per room, among the improvements made to
each of the patient rooms are a special state-of-the-art bed that can be
raised and lowered to make it easier for the patient to get in and out, a
comfortable recliner for visitors, new curtains, laminate wood flooring
and fresh paint in a soothing blue-green color palette.
Light
B
Let There Be
Built in 1959, the Ojai Valley
Community Hospital and its tiny
emergency room were more than
enough for the population of
the Ojai Valley. As time passed
and the population of the valley
increased the room seemed to
get smaller and smaller. The
increased patient population has
created numerous challenges for
the physicians and staff.
One of those challenges was
the availability of adequate
lighting. The OVCH emergency
room had only one suture light,
but even more critical was
the nature of the light. It was
structured in such a way that
it required a staff member hold
the light while the doctor did
the suturing and the nurse
assisted. But now, thanks to a
“It’s just lovely!” beams current Ojai Valley Community Hospital Foundation Guild President,
Joyce West, of the upgrades made
to the room sponsored by the
Guild, an organization that helps
raise funds for the hospital. One
of several donations made annually by the Guild, the new hospital room benefits patients, visitors
and staff alike.
Another room was donated
by Carolyn Huntsinger, an Ojai
resident of 41 years, to honor her
husband Carl, who passed away
in 2003. Described as a civicminded person who cared deeply
about the Ojai Valley, Carl was
very active with Community Memorial Hospital, the Ojai Rotary,
the tennis tournament, and the
Civic Association. Carolyn says,
“I felt that donating a room in his
memory would be a fitting tribute
to a very caring man.”
A retired psychotherapist
who practiced in Ventura for 15
years, Carolyn continues to be
very active in Ojai. As a founding member of the Hospital Guild,
Carolyn recognizes the outstanding work the Guild does for the
$34,700 donation from Ojai’s
Peggy Stiegele, the hospital
has two state-of-the-art
lights that can be stretched
to reach any of the ER
beds. In addition, Peggy’s
generous donation allowed
for the purchase of a new
portable suture light which
can be used throughout the
entire hospital.
We were truly thrilled
said, Barbara Pops, chair of
the Hospital Foundation who
along with Stiegele recently
toured the ER. Stiegele
hospital. “Through my work with
the Guild, I became aware of the
need for replacing and updating
important medical equipment for
the use of the staff as well as the
need to make the appearance of
the hospital more welcoming. The
Guild does outstanding work raising funds and volunteering many
hours in this effort.”
In addition to her work with
the hospital, Carolyn is also very
involved with the Ojai Garden
Club, the Ojai Festivals and St.
Andrews Church. She also served
for 10 years on the board - one
year as president - of Casa Pacifica, a Camarillo home for abused
and neglected children. Together,
she and Carl raised three children
in Ojai.
“I consider giving to the hospital a privilege and something I
hope will be of benefit to many
people here. I feel that donating to
the hospital is important because
there is an absolute need for a fully
functioning hospital in this area.” Of her husband, Carl, Carolyn
says, “I know that if he were here
today he would share my enthusiasm regarding the hospital.”
Two of the new, state-of-the-art
suture lights in the Ojai Valley
Community Hospital ER.
Continued on page 10
7
Donations &
Contributions
Ojai Valley Community
Hospital appreciates
the many generous
gifts from our friends.
Contributions to
the Foundation benefit
our community in many
ways. We gratefully
acknowledge the following
contributions received
between June 1, 2006 and
December 31, 2006
Friends & Donors
Ren and Victoria Adam
Warren and Robin Adams and Family
Jose Aguilar
Leo Albea
Michael and Marjorie Ambarian
Robert Anderson
Ted and Delores Angus
Frankie Anthony
Alejandro Aquero
Terry Lynn Eicher Arousse
Ron and Alice Asquith
Ross and Patricia Atkinson
Robert Aviles
Berit Axelsson
R. F. Ayres
Herman and Ursula Baertschi
Cynthia Bahena - Wallin
Berkley and Suzanne Baker
Edward and Mary Ann Balaban
Claude and Jean Ball
Charles and Marabeth Barkman
Chuck Barnett
Richard and Nancy Barnett
Gary and Kate Barnhart
Mirko and Silvia Basich
Lois Baughman
Dr. James Todd and Alicia Beaty
Jim Becket
John and Sylvia Beckham
Ann Bedau
Steve and Briana Beebe
Ronald and Sharon Begley
Shed and June Behar
Ann Marie Behrendt
Norbert and Rosemary Beilschmidt
Mary Ellen Belk
Jean Marie Bell
Carol and Paul Belser
Eleanor Benelisha
Stephen A. Bennett
George E. Berg
Mary Bergen
Stuart Berggren
Norman Bergman
Gayle Bertsch
Donald and Mary Betlach
Daniel and Cheryl Biederman
Judy and Bob Billett
B. J. Blackwell
Cecily Blake
Leonard and Patricia Block
Julianne Bloomer and Scot Rabe
Portia Gayle Blue
Dewayne and Marilyn Boccali
Michael and Andrea Boggs
William Boone
Robert and Roberta Boschan
Marilyn Bower
Charlene Bowker
Lance and Kimberly Boyer
Michael and Heidi Bradbury
Jeff and Beckaa Bradford
Bret Bradigan and Neva Williams Bradigan
Paul and Wanda Brakebill
Daniel and Victoria Breen
Priscilla Brennan
Scott Brewer
Jacquelin Brobisky
Donald Brown
Eleanor Brown
William Brown
William and Velda Brown
Rinaldo and Lalla Brutoco
Michelle and Edward Buchman and Family
8
Dr. Robert and Tracey Buckingham
Kathy Buckley
William and Sue Burr
Mary Ann Burright
Donald and Janet Burt
Randall Bush
Eugene and Alisa Byrne
Peter and Mel Calvin
Allen and Marilyn Camp
Leanna and Mary Ellen Carter
Phillip Caruthers and Aryna Swope
David and Melodie Catlett
Alice Chesley
Betty Chesnut
Derald and Georgia Chisum
Martha Churchyard
Claire Clark
Dr. Ramona and Guy Clark
Jerry and Barbara Clausen
Loretta Cleary
Kenneth Clench
Austin and Sharon Cline
Rick and Victoria Cline
Don and Sheila Cluff
Elkin and Anna Cody
David Cohen
Sidney and Sheila Cohn
Suzanne Collingsworth-Smith
Terri Colmenero
James and Dorothy Combs
Linda Conrad
Ralph and Erica Coolman
Carl and Jody Cooper
Peter and Ann Costigan
Ora Lee Cox
Teri Cox
Thomas and Dorothy Crossman
Bruce and Diana Crothers
Helen Crowner
Gregory Culbert
Robert Daddi
Michael Daley
Duane Dammeyer
Robert Dautch
Robert and Greta Davis
Josephine De Leon
Kathy DeLao
Anthony and Roslyn Demaria
Paul and Lauren Deneen
Ann Derby Joy
Joseph Dickey
Elaine Donnelly
Ann-Marie Dorman
Martha Dowden
Amy Dozier and Michael Crooke
Ruben and Rachel Duarte
Irmgard Dubay
Frank and Pauline Duffy
Jeffrey Dunn and Stephanie Boynton-Dunn
Bentley and Clara Dunwoody
Susan Dvortcsak
Paul and Maelyn Ebert
Simone Ecker
Dr. and Mrs. John Edison
Craig and Deborah Edwards
Florence Edwards
Orville and Lillian Edwards
Kena and Ben Efraim
Joan and Robert Egbert
Patricia Egus
Jack and Artenia Ellinger
Michael Ellingson
Dr. Robert Elzer
Ben and Nancy Engle
Roger and Patricia Essick
Cathy Estill
William and Karen Evenden
Rosario and Josephine Falvo
Ruth Farnham
Gary and Brenda Farr
Dr. Fred and Shirle Fauvre
Jack and Marge Fay
Karen Fay
Kenneth and Louanne Fay
Katie Fellows
Jeffrey and Theresa Ferguson
James and Kristen Finch
Dr. Frank and Maudette Finck
Nancy Fischer
Michael Flanagan
Raymond and Debra Flowers
Emilio and Katherine Fontana
Boyd and Maxine Ford
Ernie and Carly Ford
B. and M.B. Fowler
Ruth Foyil
Lynn Frances
Jacqueline Francis
Patricia Franey
Nic and Susanne Frank
Stephen and Karen Frank
Mike Freidline
Deborah Gallagher
Les and Alice Gardner
Donald and Maggie Garrett
Mary Jo Garrett
George and Maxine Garvey
Stuart and Gigi Gehres
Helen Gehrke
Angele Gfeller
William and Karen Ghormley
Edward Gibbons
Sue Gilbreth
Barry Glass and Harriet Glass
Richard and Joan Glenn
Steve and Patricia Goldman
Salvador Gonzalez Zuniga
Helene Gordon
Emmett Gosnell
Dr. Richard and Cindi Gould
Gaylene Graham
John and Mary Jane Graham
Jurgen and Geraldine Gramckow
Orson and Alyce Gregory
June Greiving
Michael and Hannelore Gresser
Joel and Bonnie Griffin
Charles Griswold
Dennis and Jennifer Guernsey
Charles and Pauline Gustafson
Richard and Sandra Hajas
Michael and Carol Hall-Mounsey
Dr. James and Robyn Halverson
Roy and Pearl Hammerand
Leo Hammerschmitt
Robert Hamming
William and Sherry Hammond
Sylvia Hansen
Marvin and Patty Hanson
Wyatt Harris, D.D.S.
Dr. William L. Hart
Connie Hartman
Randall and Elizabeth Harward
Sean Hayes
Linda and Robert Heithoff
Richard and Velvet Heller
Kathleen L. Hellwitz
Gabriel Hernandez
Lois Hesse
Dr. Anthony and Barbara Hirsch
Amani Hishmeh
Gerben and Jill Hoeksma
Douglas and Barbara Hoff
William and Aurora Holland
Anne Holmes
John and Judy Hooper
Gary and Mary Sue Horgan
Thomas and Dorothy Horton
Stanley and Wendy Hubbell
Ruth Ann Hughes
Ed and Donna Hunt
Rosalynn L. Hunt
Leah and Joseph Hunter
Carolyn Huntsinger
Thaddeus Hyland
Charles and Willa Irwin
Dr. Robert and Marilyn Iverson
Jim and Susan Jackson
Ramona Jackson
Allan Jacobs
Jaspa
Leo Jennings
Philip Jevanian
Bradford and Carole Johnson
Ellen Johnson
Raymond and Patricia Johnson
Colin and Cindy Jones
Kevin and Nan Jones
Jerve and Alice Jones
Patsy Jones
Gerald and Anne Kaplan
George and Marilyn Kavanagh
Mary Kazmer
Patrick Keane
Patricia R. Kearns
Elizabeth Kent
Jerry and Marilyn Kenyon
James and Roberta Kerwin
Jeanne Keyser
Joseph and Barbara Kielty
Joan Kieran
David and Ruth Kille
Edwin Kindberg
Dr. John and Martie King
Ray King
Marjorie Kiphut
Roger and Marsha Klausler
Judy and Brian Knowles
Thomas and Cathryn Krause
Melvin and Yvette Krogh
Tod and Carolyn Kuhn
Zelda Kunkle
George and Wendy La Braque
Loren and Shirley LaBarre
William and Margaret LaChance
Ahde Lahti
Alex and Terri Laine
Eugenia Lambert
Jonathan and Linda Lambert
Rex and Heidi Lanning
Dr. Patricia and David Lanter
Ruth Lasell and Robert Bonewitz
Elizabeth Lashbrook
Connie Lashlee
Roberta Latimer
Daniel Lattimore
Donald and Linda Law
Rod LeGate
Arthur and Sally Lemire
Craig and Karen Lewis
Dennis and Teresa Lewis
Eleanor Lockton
Dorothy Loebl
William Lotts and Gwen Weiser-Lotts
Frances Love and Michael Magner
Scott and Cathy Lowen
David and Lisa Luckenbach
Bill and Lucy Lucking
Bent and Else Lundbye
Mike Lurie and Nancy Kochevar
Dr. John and Marilyn Lyon
Joseph and Josephine Macaluso
Dr. Ian and Virginia MacLean
John and Norma Magill
David and Vickie Mahan
Rick and Laura Mancilla
Edwin and Jacqueline Marks
Marian Marra
Carl and Patricia Marrs
Don and Elaine Marshall
Rhoda Martin
Robert and Airdrie Martin
Sam Martinez
John and Ann Mason
Anne Matesevac and Katarina Matesevac
Dr. Richard and Toni Matthews
Alan and Terry Maulhardt
Cecelia McBurnie
Dwayne and Susan McCulloch
Sarah McCune
Craig and Mary McDonald
Julie McFadden
John and Joan McNeil
Daniel and Terri McSweeney
Donal McWhirter
Arthur Medel
George and Peggy Melton
Wilma Melville
Thomas and Marilyn Menaugh
Jerry Mendelsohn
David and Aimee Mendoza
Dr. Fredrick and Margaret Menninger
Kassidy Meuchel
Leo Meyer
Jerry and Char Michaels
Patti Michaels
Charles and Bessa Mileham
Frank and Eva Milne
Gabrielle Mintz
Cicily Moloney-Sterling
Barry Molony
Jo Ann Monak
Bhanu Moon
Richard and Gail Moore
Sandra Moore
Evelyn Moraga
Erik Morales
Charles Morrey, III
John and Ruby Morrison
William and Marguerite Mors
Barry Mosesman
Harold and Binney Moss
Ted and Dale Muegenburg
Robert Mushaney
David and Barbara Nakada
Rudolph and Elizabeth Nava
Natalie Neal
Sandra Nelles
Dr. Douglas and Donna Nelson
Phillip and Mary Nelson
Grace Newell
Jenny Newell
Laurence and Jenny Nicklin
Keith and Victoria Nightingale
Charles and Nancy Nordstrom
Molly Oakland
Judith Oberlander
Jo O’Connell
Thomas and Yvonne Odle
Harry and Ann Oppenheimer
Eric and June Ordway
Bruce and Carol Oxley
Joyce Parkel
John and Peggy Parry
Richard Parsons
Dr. Betsy Patterson and Dr. Albert Stroberg
J. D. and Roberta Paules
Edwin and Claire Paulson
Fran Pavelko
William and Laura Peck
Nancy Pepper
Jim and Amy Perkins
Verity Perry
Rudy Petersdorf and Rikki Horne
Jerald and Geraldine Peterson
Lisa Phelps
Pamela Ann Phillips and Alan Bandoli
Ronald and Linda Phillips
Wayne Pickerell
Salvador Plaza
Charlie and Pam Plummer
Ron and Judy Polito
John and Marjorie Popp
Dr. Martin and Barbara Pops
Oral and Winona Potts
Andrew and Pierrette Prestridge
E. Norris Procter
William and Judith Pugh
George Puth
Mary Quijada
Deborah Quinn
Alan and Jan Rains
Dr. Lakshman Rasiah
Dr. Shlomo and Sylvia Raz
Dan and Mara Redden
Dr. and Mrs. Robert Rene
Eric Reth
Sallie Reynolds
Sidney and Jayne Rice
Ron and Janet Richards
Geoffrey and Emma Ridley
Philip and Bonnie Riege
Mark and Dawn Robbins
Mark Roberts
Mike Roberts
Richard and Sharon Rockefeller
Suzanne Roll
Ursula Rose
Jay and Barbara Roske
Judy Ross
Fred and Ila Rothenberg
Christine Rowe
Harold Ruddick
Herman and Joan Rush
John and Peggy Russell
Vivia Rutland
Anthony J. Sabatino
Alan and Carol Saltzman
Rebecca Sarate-Zarate
Gwendolyn Sargent
George and Nina Sass
Gil Saucedo
Bryce Sawyer
Donald and Ann Scanlin
Ron and Janet Schaefer
Marty and Nancy Schechtman
Dietrich and Valerie Schmidt
Clella Schneider
Dewey Schorre
Rosemary Schumacher
Jennie Scott
Anissa Seguin and Nigel Faulkner
Stephen and Sandra Selwyn
Margaret Seright
Lu Setnicka
Eugene and Jeanne Share
Aaron Sharp
Robert and Patricia Shaw
Tom and Karen Sheehan
Dorothy Shelton
Francis Shields
Brendon Shirer
Mrs. Lois Short
Joseph Signorino
Moises Silva
Charles and Linda Simon
Sally and Steve Simpson
Harry and Margery Sims
Dr. Robert and Alice Skankey
Don Smith
Graham and Leeanne Smith
Iris Smith
Randy and Sherry Smith
Scott and Elizabeth Smith
Bill and Lisa Snider
Martha Snyder
Robert and Kathryn Soares
Dr. Daniel and Edie Sommer
Peter and Alice Soracco
Diego Soria
Chilant Sprague
Emery and Martha Starkweather
Delena Starr
Hilton and Phyllis Stemwedel
Margaret Stiegele
Elizabeth Stiles
Gwen Stoner
David and Betty Strait
Jeanette Stuber
Andrew and Carol Stuffler
Dan Swanner
Aubrey Swetek
Roger and Vicki Sylvia
Tom Tagami
Nell Taylor
John and Caroline Thacher
Tony Thacher
Caroline Thompson
Charles and Charlotte Thompson
Adam and Alexis Thunell
Robert and Carolee Tibbitts
Fred and Victoria Tiedt
Leanne Tilmont
Irene Tirella
Scott and Cathy Titus
Mary Ellen Tolotti
Nat and Karen Traudt
Glenn, Jr. True
James and Sally True
Charles Turville
Rosalyn Tuttle
Frederick and Marion Twichell
Whit and Kay Ulrich
Dean and Gloria Vadnais
Moses Vargas
Lucille Vaughn
Wendy Velazquez
Henry and Barbara Villierme
Dr. and Mrs. Vinecour
Eugene and Kathryn Volkerding
Douglas and Moira Volpi
Jakob and Marianne Vos
Nancy Voyer
Thomas and Esther Wachtell
Fred and Janet Wachter
Steven and Adelfa Wagner
Dr. Colin and Susan Walker
Eldon and Eileen Walker
Judy Walker
Carole Waltz
Jeannie Wang
Elbert and Dorothy Ward
Carol Warrian
Barbara Watson
Don and Barbara Weber
Jack and Ellen Weber
James and Helen Weblemoe
Edward and Marguerite Webster
Richard and Jane Weirick
Donald Welch
Jacquelyn Welsh
Allan and Joyce West
Wayne and Grace Weyrich
Nita Whaley and Don Anderson
J.B. White
Jim and Martha Whitledge
John and Nancy Whitman
Marc Whitman
Monte Widders
Thomas and Alison Wilcox
Gary and Cheryl Wilde
Larry and Katharine Wilde
Susie Willeford
Ruth Willett
Huora Williams
Valerie Williams
Blake and Susanne Wilson
John and Ginger Wilson
Kay Wilson
Scott and Dr. Rochelle Wilson
Todd Wilson
Kay Wilson-Bolton
Mary Lou Wingate
Adam and Adriana Winter
Timothy and Teresa Wolfe
Duncan Wood
Diana Woodruff
Mary Woodruff
Roy and Jan Worsham
Mr. and Mrs. David Wrather
Terry and Cynthia Wright
Ward and Margaret Wright
Willam and Karen Wu
Herbert Yager and Sue Scott Yager
Martin and Doree Young
Alice Yount
Mareen and Dudley Zoll
Companies, Foundations
& Service Clubs
Assisted Home Recovery, Inc.
At Home in Ojai
Attitude Adjustment Shoppe
Australian Native Plants
Behar Public Relations, Inc.
Bonnie Lu’s
Carriger Cleaning and Carpet Care
Casa de Lagos
Century 21 Buena Vista
Century 21 Ojai Valley
Clausen Funeral Home
Crooked Creek Ranch
Forest Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Friends Ranches, Inc.
The Gables of Ojai
Golden Moon Restaurant
Halite Steel
Happy Valley School
Help Unlimited HomeCare
HFP Architects
HHL Foundation
Inside Track
Ivanhoe Foundation
Julia Rose and Company
Krogh Construction & Engineering
LifeLine Medical Transport
Los Padres Bank
Matilija Veterinary Hospital, Inc.
Medicine Shoppe of Ojai
Meiners Oaks Lions Club
Metro-Med, Inc.
Mid-State Bank & Trust
Morse and Sadie Gould Foundation
Myers, Widders, Gibson, Jones
The Oaks at Ojai - Employee Giving Program
Ojai Community Bank
Ojai Family Podiatry Clinic
Ojai Medical Equipment
Ojai Rexall Drugs
Ojai Valley Community Hospital Auxiliary
Ojai Valley Emergency Physicians Med Grp, Inc
Ojai Valley Family Medicine Group
Ojai Valley Garden Club
Ojai Valley Hospital Guild
Palms Imaging Center
Pueblo Radiology Medical Group, Inc
Quick Plumbing
Roberts Concrete Co.
Rotary Club of the Ojai Valley
Ruben’s Burritos and Catering
State Farm Insurance
Suzanne’s Cuisine
Swanner Physical Therapy
Thacher School
Villanova Preparatory School
Waite, Jacobs and Atkinson
Whitman Architectural Design
Wilde-Guernsey, Inc.
In Memory of
Daddy and Karla
Ron and Janet Richards
Our Parents
Don and Elaine Marshall
Deceased Members Meiners Oaks Lions
Meiners Oaks Lions Club
Helga Axelsson
Berit Axelsson
Hugo A. Bedau
Mrs. Ann Bedau
Bernard Behrendt
Ann Marie Behrendt
Wynne and Herbie Blake
Joe and Beatrice Snyder
William J. Blue
Portia Gayle Blue
Maurice Bomberger
Roberta Latimer
Stanford Brown
Tom Bryan
Paul Buckley
Kathy Buckley
Robert W. Carson, DDS
Mrs. Mary W. Carson
Howard P. Chewning
Celestine Chewning
Dr. Eddie Brent Crosen
Norbert and Rosemary Beilschmidt
Dr. Nyles D. Crowner
Helen Crowner
Betty Jean Culbert
Gregory Culbert
Pauline Dennis
Mary Ellen Belk
Ruth Ann Hughes
Thomas and Elizabeth Derby
Ann Derby Joy
Heather Dickey
Joseph Dickey
Joanne Duran
Jenny Newell
Louis Egus
Patricia Egus
Rod Embry
Jay and Erika DeSerpa
Jean Didier
Herbert and Cornelia Johnson
Gregory and Linda Wilson
Margalene Wilson
Judy Wright
Jack Estill
Kenneth and Patricia Bradley
Community Memorial Hospital
Peter and Harriet DiCapua
Sandy Eckels
Alice Norton
John D. Farnham
Ruth Farnham
Ruth Fischbach
Stuart Berggren
Jim Foyil
Ruth Foyil
Walter Gfeller
Angele Gfeller
Dorothy Gibson
Charles and Nancy Nordstrom
Deron Gray
Scott Silver and Jill Green-Silver
Joe Hesse
Lois Hesse
Vernon Holmes
Anne Holmes
Leonard Hunt
Rosalynn L. Hunt
Joan Jennings
Leo Jennings
Catherine Kiehl
Oral and Winona Potts
Inez Kielty
Marsha Klausler
Warren and Robin Adams and Family
Florence Edwards
Friends Ranches, Inc.
Linda and Robert Heithoff
Kathleen L. Hellwitz
Judy and Brian Knowles
Nancy Hughes Krumpschmidt
Carl and Patricia Marrs
Bruce and Carol Oxley
Richard Latimer
Roberta Latimer
Nancy Linkenhelt
Jack and Marge Fay
Jack Lockton
Eleanor Lockton
James Loebl
Michael and Elizabeth Hermes
Eva Sue Mahnke
Harold Mahnke
Eileen McCann
Glenn True, Jr.
Jim McCune
Graham and Leeanne Smith
Todd and Dale McMurray
Iris Smith
Evelyn Moraga
Helen Gehrke
Ursula Rose
Carl Morton
Rosie Morton
Bobby Newton
Connie Hartman
Margaret M. Partlow
Estelle and Richard Holden
Chemo Quijada
Mary Quijada
Ron Redden
Laverne A. Rose
Ursula Rose
Angelina Ruiz
William and Aurora Holland
Fred and Victoria tiedt
Joseph G. Sarzotti
Donald and Mary Betlach
Tom Schneider
Clella Schneider
Lupe Silva
Moises Silva
Lola Smith
Ralph and Betty Williams
Robert Smith
Spencer and Mildred Mitchell
Mansfield Sprague
Joseph and Florence Bacon
Eleanor Brown
Whitley and Helen Harris
Dorothy Loebl
Harry and Ann Oppenheimer
Alan and Jan Rains
Allan and Joyce West
Mansfield Sprague, Herbert Frenzell and the
Nursing Staff at OVCH
Chilant Sprague
J.T. Starr
David and Melodie Catlett
Delena Starr
John Stewart
Elsie Stewart
Leland Stiles
Elizabeth Stiles
Glenn Dale Stubblefield
Louise Stubblefield
Michiko Tagami
Tom Tagami
Robert L. Thompson
Marvin and Patty Hanson
John Tolotti
Mary Ellen Tolotti
Otho “Pete” Vaughn
Lucille Vaughn
Barbara Wheeler
Richard Wheeler
Patsy Whitaker
Sallie Reynolds
Ev Wieland
Ed and Donna Hunt
Herbert and Sammy Wittenbrock
Leo Meyer
Mary J. Wright
C. Howard Wright
In Honor of:
Dr. Fred Fauvre and Staff
Josephine De Leon
Dr. Richard and Toni Matthews
Rosalyn Tuttle
Ojai Valley Community Hospital Staff
Josephine De Leon
Barry Glass
Dr. Mary Dial and Staff
Rosalyn Tuttle
Dr. Timothy Williamson
Portia Gayle Blue
Allen and Marilyn Camp
Dr. Michael Gilmore
Cecily Blake
Jean Graham
Gaylene Graham
Dr. James Halverson
Otto Heino
Thomas and Dorothy Horton
Allan Jacobs
Ed Kindberg
Robert and Roberta Boschan
Nell Taylor
Dr. Douglas Nelson
Huora Williams
Virginia Palmer
Loren and Shirley LaBarre
Peggy Russell’s Birthday
William and Laura Peck
Dr. Raymond Sims
Rudy Petersdorf
Chilant Sprague
Gail Topping
George E. Berg
We apologize for any omissions or misspellings
9
WILD WEST NIGHT
Wednesday. May 2, 2007
St. Thomas Aquinas Church, 185 St. Thomas Dr., Ojai
5:00 p.m. Refreshments
5:15 p.m. Presentation
C
Calling all cowboys and
cowgirls! Shine up yer belt buckle
and mosey on over to Ojai Valley
Community Hospital’s fifth annual Wild West Night, complete
with casino-style gambling, tasty
vittles, foot-stomping music, a silent auction and raffle. Sponsored by the Ojai Valley Community Hospital Foundation Guild, the event will be
held Saturday, May 19th, 6:0010:00 p.m. at the Ojai Valley Inn
Ranch and Stables’ historic Rancho dos Rios barn at 117 N. Creek
Road. Wild West Night is just
one of the events the Guild puts
on each year to help raise money
for the hospital. With entertainment by the Len Mullins Band
and the Ojai Valley Boys, this
year’s event promises to be a real
crowd pleaser. “We have exceptionally good
music this year. And line dancing
was a huge hit last year, so we’re
having it again!” said this year’s
event chair, Cindy Mullins. The
blackjack tables will again feature
10
local dealers. “Your
neighbor might be the
one dealing your winning hand!” There
will also be a big wheel
and craps tables with
professional dealers.
Old west photos by the barn will
make it a night to remember, and a western- style menu with
great grub will satisfy
the biggest cowboy’s
appetite. But besides
great food and great
fun, the best reason
to come out for Wild West Night
is that it is a great cause. The
proceeds will go toward equipping the new ER, to benefit our
hospital.
Last year’s event raised close
to $30,000 which helps fulfill the
hospital wish list. “Where my
heart is in this is to raise the community knowledge about what
happens in their hospital. And
anyone who has visited the ER
knows it needs to be expanded. This is something that could be
critical to anyone of us,” Mullins
said of the Guild’s fundraising goal
to help support a new emergency
room, which breaks ground in a
year.
Tickets are $65 per person
and include dinner, entertainment,
one drink ticket and gambling
funny money. What better way
to support a critical service provider in the valley and enjoy an
entertaining evening at the same
time? So dust off those boots and
call 640-2317 for more information and to purchase tickets.
Foundation Report
Dr. Jim Halverson
Ojai Valley Community Hospital Foundation
2007 State of the Hospital Address
Mary Jo Garrett, Hospital Administrator
Ojai Valley Community Hospital
Gary K. Wilde, President & CEO
Space is Limited.
For Reservations Please Call: 805-640-2355
Light
Let There be
agreed. “It’s a lovely bright light,
and I’m very glad it will help” she
said.
Peggy Stiegele has always
supported OVCH. Five years ago,
when the Hospital Foundation
introduced the first Nightingale
Ball, Stiegele was so impressed
by the work done at OVCH that
she made her first donation and
Peggy has not stopped supporting
our community treasure. Stiegele’s latest donation
will also assist in the acquisition
of a portable ultrasound machine.
This, said nurses, would be a
great piece of equipment to have
when evaluating injuries and
illnesses. The ER is frequently
faced with accident victims such
as a motorcycle accident on
Maricopa Highway and with
this unit internal injuries could
be quickly diagnosed and the
needed treatment immediately
defined.
Peggy Stiegele sees the
value of OVCH to all of the
residents of Ojai and she has
made a commitment to help
it remain a significant asset for
our community.
Ojai Valley Community Hospital Foundation
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Barbara Pops, Chair
Gary Farr, Vice-Chair
John Mothershead, Secretary
Tim Wolfe, Treasurer
Peggy Russell, Asst. Treasurer
Don Anderson
Michael Ellingson
James Halverson, M.D.
Sue Horgan
Don Law
Martin Pops, M.D.
John Russell
Joyce West
Nita Whaley
Bonnie
Subira
Dedicated Staff
CMH Social Services Helps Patients Cope
With Illness and Life Situations Every Day
G
eorge Parker’s cough had worsened
and he now had pain in his chest,
but it was Sunday and his doctor’s
office was closed. He decided to go
over to the emergency room to see if
he could get some cough medicine.
The ER physician determined that
he had pneumonia and should be admitted
for further testing and care. Mr. Parker did not
expect to be hospitalized and he had concerns.
The Social Services department at CMH was
called, and when Michele Berry, Medical Social
Worker, arrived in the ER, she was ready for the
challenge.
“Lucy is waiting in the car and I have to get
my check tomorrow,” she overheard Mr. Parker
say. “I need to pay my rent. My son doesn’t know
I’m here.” The nurse assured the frustrated 84year-old patient that help was on the way.
Michele is part of a team of masters-prepared
social workers and registered nurse case managers that attend to the special, individual needs for
hospitalized patients at Community Memorial
Hospital. They are busy screening patients for
risk factors, assessing severity of illness and presence of family support, substance abuse history,
ing lot to notify Mr. Parker’s friend Lucy. When
Lucy turned out to be a very excited beagle that
needed to be walked, Michele made arrangements for that too. She lined up Mr. Parker’s
neighbor to make his deposit and hand in his
rent check. Slowly, the furrowed brow of the
elderly man eased. As the confusion cleared,
Mr. Parker began to focus on his treatment and
recovery. “Michele,” he said, “You are an angel
from heaven.”
Michele and the other dedicated “angels” in
social services help patients cope with illness and
life situations every day. “We are blessed with a
department that is really supportive of each
other,” says Bonnie Subira, Director of Social Services. Screenings take time and the department is
committed to helping each patient have a voice
and a choice in determining their own individual
care and treatment.
Since an illness affects the whole family, case
managers and social workers strive to encourage
communication among family members, support
staff and medical care providers. Discharge planning begins at admission, so their goal is to build
rapport early, in order to meet the needs of the
patient and family. “We are a community-based
hospital, and these
are our neighbors,”
explains Julie
Leonard, RN and
Case Management
Supervisor. “With
communication
and an understanding of the family dynamic, case management and
social workers can look at the big picture.”
Sometimes a patient has a need that is not
evident in the first meeting. Evelyn Ramirez
thought she had no need for a social worker. She
had a large support system including her mother,
four sisters, six nieces and nephews and many
friends. Her twin sister Mari had been admitted
to the hospital for treatment, but was losing her
battle with bone cancer. All three sisters had been
caring for Mari, and although they were able to
provide good care, it was taking its toll on the
“the department is committed to
helping each patient have a voice and
a choice in determining their own
individual care and treatment”
need for advocacy, psychiatric issues and complex situations at home. The staff is dedicated to
establishing a support system for patients during
hospitalization. Their goal is to help patients and
families formulate a plan for a smooth transition
home after their release.
Michele is able to address her patients’
psychosocial and emotional issues. She also has
access to resources that many patients do not
know exist. She knew she would be able to help
Mr. Parker. Michele contacted his son in Santa
Clarita and sent someone out to the ER park-
Julie
Leonard
Michele
Berry
family. Due to the severity of Mari’s illness, case
management was called while she was checking
into the hospital. Evelyn bristled when the case
manager arrived to assess the needs of her sister.
For Mari, quality of life issues and transitioning
to hospice living were most relevant. Social
Services was able to address those issues, and
help Mari establish an advanced directive to
appoint an agent. Ultimately, they provided grief
counseling support for Evelyn and the rest of
Mari’s family.
The dedicated staff of social services arrange
medical helicopters, home care, equipment, and
often have to cushion the fall when devastating
news is delivered by the hospitalist. The patient’s
right to be involved in their medical plan of
care is explained to every patient and Social
Services supports patient advocacy. They open
dialogue and help build a support team that
hopefully leads to the empowerment of the
patient and their loved ones.
After over a decade of service, Bonnie
Subira reflects, “The strength of the human
spirit is powerful and this is a very special place to
be. It gets hard sometimes, but everyday we are
given gifts.”
11
T
The field of Pain Management is a growing
specialty that employs a wide array of procedures – from epidural steroid injections and
nerve blocks to implanted electrical stimulators;
from miniaturized highly sophisticated pumps
that administer precise dosages of medications
to acupuncture. Dr. Nelly K. Mac and Dr. Philip
Bacon, who each have been at the forefront in
the field locally for more than a quarter century,
and who together helped open Community
Memorial Hospital’s Pain Management Center
four years ago, recently sat down to share their
insights into this exciting specialty.
Dr. Philip Bacon, who in addition to being a pain management physician is also an
anesthesiologist, has been in medical practice
for thirty-seven years. He came to CMH after
graduating from the University of Georgia.
Dr. Bacon attended The Medical College of
Georgia and then served both his internship
and residency at Los Angeles County/USC
Medical Center. He is certified by the American
Board of Anesthesiologists with a Subspecialty
in Pain Management. He is also a Diplomate in
the American Academy of Pain Management.
He lives in Camarillo with his wife, Carol; the
couple has two adult children – Laura, 33, and
Lane, 29.
Dr. Nelly K. Mac is also a practicing anesthesiologist at CMH in addition to being a pain
management physician. Now in her thirty-sixth
year of medical practice, she joined Community
Memorial Hospital in 1981 and in 1993 served
as CMH’s first – and only – female Chief of
Staff. Dr. Mac graduated and did her internship at the University of East Ramon Medical
School. She did her residency at Children’s
Hospital Medical Center in Boston and then
the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New
York. She is certified by the American Board
of Anesthesiology, and is a Diplomate of the
American Academy of Pain Management.
CARING: Briefly share a little history of
how Community Memorial Hospital’s Pain
Management Center came into existence.
DR. MAC: Well, we’ve been doing pain
management for many, many years. I think there
was a need to have a Center at the hospital.
DR. BACON: Yes, we’ve had an office together
since 1995 and have been doing pain
management in CMH’s Same Day Surgery
building across the street from the hospital since
the early 1990s.
DR. MAC: The CMH Pain Management Center
opened at its current site on the first floor of the
hospital in September, 2003. It’s been wonderful.
12
12
CARING || COMMUNITY
COMMUNITY MEMORIAL
MEMORIAL HEALTH
HEALTH SYSTEM
SYSTEM
CARING
DR. BACON: I think it was really needed – it’s
definitely been busy.
CARING: Just how busy is the Center?
DR. BACON: Last year we, and the dedicated staff
headed by Clinical Manager Mary Anne Marsch,
saw more than 2,300 patients – that’s nearly 200
a month.
CARING: What type of patient seeks treatment
at the Pain Management Center?
DR. BACON: Generally, we’re dealing with people
with chronic pain, not acute pain. We see chronic
nerve damage pain and nerve impingement pain;
chronic joint pain. We have a lot of patients with
cancer pain. And, of course, we treat a great deal
of back pain.
DR. MAC: To effectively treat different types of
chronic pain requires many different methods. We
do nerve blocks, spinal cord stimulators, morphine
pumps, discograms – inserting a needle in the disk
between vertebrae to inject a dye to see if this is
the precise location and the cause of pain.
DR. BACON: In addition to therapeutic work, a
very important aspect of what we do is diagnostic
to find where the pain is generated. I think what
sets this Center apart is that we offer fluoroscopic
guidance for our interventional procedures such
as epidural steroid injections in the spine. It is an
efficient effective center with an amicable and
conscientious staff.
DR. MAC: Back to who are our patients. Agewise,
we see a combination of all ages. Younger patients
often have spinal problems. With older patients we
also see spinal problems, but also a lot of hips and
shoulders, and we treat this pain.
DR. BACON: Ours is a consultative practice
and we depend on physician referrals for all our
patients. This decreases the risk involved with
narcotic-seeking people.
Dr. Philip Bacon
CARING: You both mentioned treating cancer
pain at the Center. Can you elaborate a little?
DR. BACON: We see cancer patients with unremitting pain and severe side effects associated
with medications they are receiving from oncologists. When an oncologist can’t relieve their pain
enough, oftentimes we can alleviate or ameliorate
matters by putting in a morphine pump or doing a
nerve ablation technique.
DR. MAC: A pump might also be used to manage
spasms, like a patient with MS (multiple sclerosis)
or other spastic disorders such as CP (cerebral
palsy) or post-stroke. The pump isn’t just for morphine; it can also administer other medications.
CARING: How do you fit a patient with a pump?
DR. BACON: Before we put in a pump, we do a
trial. It is actually very easy. We give a patient a spinal injection of the pump-planned medication and
then have them stay at least six hours for observation. If they have at least 50 percent relief, then we
M AN AG EM E NT
CARING: You mentioned a stimulator?
DR. BACON: A spinal cord stimulator, whose function is to mask pain, is also very small. Its battery is
just two-by-three inches in size, which is implanted
under the skin. But before we put in a permanent
stimulator, we again do a trial with temporary
epidural stimulation.
DR. MAC: The procedure to install a trial stimulator takes just half an hour usually; maybe an hour.
The placement of the lead has to be precise. The
patient is awake during the procedure, and when
we find the right spot that provides relief, they say
“Yes!” That’s what we call “the sweet spot.”
Dr. Nelly K. Mac
go forward with a permanent pump that is about
the size of a compact makeup mirror.
DR. MAC: Pump and stimulator technology is
getting better and better all the time. It is amazing,
actually. For example, pumps now have PCM – a
Patient Control Monitor – so that a patient can give
himself a larger dose of the medication periodically.
DR. BACON: One of the ongoing problems we, and
our patients, face is that pain is not constant – it
changes. Different positions, different times of day
can cause a different level of pain. With PCM the
patient can pump up medication levels when need
be, or decrease the dose when there is less pain.
When Back Pain
STRIKES!
DR. BACON: You need to leave the trial stimulator in and observe the patient for about a week,
because sometimes they wish it’s working, but it’s
really not – it’s like a placebo at first. So we use
different power levels during the trial to make sure
it’s working before we have a neurosurgeon install
a permanent system.
CARING: Tell us a little about acupuncture?
CARING: What is the success rate for patients
who come to CMH’s Pain Management Center?
DR. BACON: Success is very hard to define. Often
we can’t eliminate all of a patient’s pain, but we can
maintain it at a lower level and that might be seen
as a success for that situation and patient. Sometimes getting a fraction of relief is a great success.
DR. MAC: It is difficult to define success. I had a
patient come back that I last saw in 2000, so that’s
success. On the other hand, I have another patient
I’ve been seeing for the last eight years, but if the
pain isn’t getting worse, maybe that’s success also.
DR. BACON: We’re at the bottom line of therapy;
people come to us when all other options of therapy have been explored. Generally, I’d say we consider eliminating 50 percent of pain to be a great
success. Maybe we can do this with a stimulator or
medication. We can send a patient to a surgeon if
that’s called for. Some patients may need physical
therapy or hypnotherapy or behavior modification,
and we can also refer a patient for all of these modalities. If one of these helps, that’s also success.
DR. MAC: I do acupuncture if it is authorized by
insurance – and if I think the patient is a good
candidate. Medicare still has not allowed it. I’ve
been doing acupuncture since 1992. I learned it at
the UCLA School of Medicine in a course “Medical Acupuncture for Physicians” under Dr. Joseph
Helms. He is considered the “father of medical
acupuncture in the United States.” I carefully select
my acupuncture patients because it’s not effective
for everyone.
DR. MAC: It is very important that patients understand what they have, what their problem is, and
what a realistic result to hope for is. That might be
100 percent improvement or 50 percent relief from
pain, or even maintaining where they are.
When back pain strikes, simple acts like
bending down to tie a shoe, getting up out of
a chair or even walking across a room can be
agonizing. Imagine being a baseball umpire
who has to stoop and sweep off home plate,
continually get in and out of a crouch to call
balls and strikes, and even race to first base to
make a call.
Jay Johnson has been umpiring local little
league games for 27 seasons, but in February of
2006 the longtime Ventura attorney almost had
to give up being a judge on the diamond.
“My back just decided to give out,”
Johnson recalls. The diagnosis was a bulging
disk in his lower back and he was referred to
Community Memorial Hospital’s Pain Management Center.
Dr. Nelly K. Mac treated Johnson with a
series of three epidural injections, each spaced
about two weeks apart.
“It worked well,” Johnson shares. “The first
injection calmed my back pain down a little;
the second improved matters 50 percent; and
the third knocked it out completely. The results
remained good through the summer.”
Indeed, as often is the case, the symptoms
returned.
“The pain came back with a vengeance that
summer,” recalls Johnson, 62, who has lived in
Ventura for 32 years. Last December, Johnson
returned to the Pain Management Center for
another series of epidural injections.
Once again it was “Three strikes and you’re
out!” for his lower lumbar pain.
“This time the first injection knocked the
pain down 50 percent,” Johnson happily recalls.
“The second one knocked it almost all the way
out and the third injection again completed the
job.”
Asked if the injections were painful, Johnson
answered: “No. I never felt a thing!“ Dr. Mac is
wonderful; outstanding,” he continued. “The
entire staff is excellent; they remember your
name and are always very friendly, but also very
professional. I love the way I was treated.”
Jay Johnson also loves his treatment results,
noting: “I need to do 200 deep knee bends every
afternoon and beat 12-year-olds running to first
base. If I can do that, I’m doing well. And right
now, so far so good!”
DR. BACON: The bottom line is that success varies
from patient to patient. We strive to improve their
lives – that’s medicine! That’s why we became doctors in the first place.
13
?
CMH Helps New
Mom Answer
“Freedom Call”
From Her
American Soldier
Husband in Iraq
isthat
my
little
boy
and a rifle, sat down on camera and appeared
on the oversized projection screen. Teresa,
sitting in a wheelchair, wearing a pink top
and a blue blanket over her legs, and carrying
21-inch-long Phillip III swaddled in a white
blanket and wearing a knit beanie, smiled to
the camera beaming her image from Ventura
to Los Angeles and then to Iraq.
Teresa: “Want to see him?”
Phillip Jr.: “Yeah, I do.”
Teresa (holding the baby up towards the camera): “Can
you see him?”
Phillip Jr. (smiling broadly): “Yeah. Is that my little boy?”
Teresa: “Yeah, he is. He just got done eating. He passed his hearing test. Everything is good with him.”
It was a different story when Nadine
arrived as Yuma’s first New Year’s Day baby in
2006. After Teresa endured two days of painful
labor, Nadine was finally delivered by cesarean
section and had to spend a week in the NICU
because of a collapsed lung
Teresa: “Can you see Nadine?”
Phillip Jr. (his smile giving the answer): “Hi Nadine! Hi
Sweetie! Hi Baby!”
(Nadine answers, not with words, but a giggle and a wave.)
Teresa: “She knows how to wave now. She learned
about two weeks ago.”
Phillip Jr. (waving back): “Nadine? You being good?”
Teresa: “She’s great. She’s very smart. She’s in 24-month
clothes now.”
Teresa thinks missing Nadine’s first
birthday four weeks earlier was not as hard on
her husband as missing the birth of their son.
“I was a couple months along when he
was sent to Iraq,” Teresa shared. “It was hard
knowing that he wasn’t going to be here to
see the birth. He was there when our daughter
was born, so he knows what he missed out
14
on this time. He’s not usually very emotional,
but you can see how hard this was on him. He
doesn’t cry easily.”
“It was so emotional,” she admitted.
“I haven’t seen him for so long. I miss him
terribly.”
The occasion was not without levity,
however. When Teresa expressed concern
about whether their military health insurance
covered circumcision, Phillip Jr. quipped: “It
should. It did for Nadine … but she turned
out to be a girl.”
Teresa: “I’m breast feeding really well. He’s 21 inches
long and he’s got your feet – your long slender toes.”
(Silence filled the room as Phillip Jr. just stared at his baby
son and toddler daughter – well, at their images on the video monitor in Iraq.)
Phillip Jr.: “When can you take him home?”
Teresa: “Tomorrow probably. He was easier than Nadine.”
Phillip Jr.: “Daddy’s going to come home in a couple
months. I’ll be home in April, Baby Girl.”
Phillip Sr.: “Doing OK, Son?”
Phillip Jr.: “Yeah, everything’s fine.”
Dad and mom, and wife, all knew better.
“He looks really tired,” Carrie said afterwards, and Teresa nodded in agreement. “As his
mom, I can tell he’s tired.”
Dad could tell, too. “He’s weary,” Phillip
Sr., who once served in the Army, agreed. “I
haven’t seen him since September when he
deployed from San Diego. I miss him. I’m
proud of him.”
Phillip Jr., now 22, was born and raised
in Oxnard, and went to Channel Islands High
School. After joining the Marines, he met
Teresa, now 20, in Paris – well, actually, in front
of the Paris Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.
It was, Teresa says, “love at first sight.” They
were married two months later on New Year’s
Eve of 2004.
Less than half an hour after the milestone
moment began, it is ending. The satellite
signal will soon be lost. Phillip Jr., biting his
lip and sniffling, waves from 8,000 miles away;
waves on the giant screen in CMH’s basement
classroom; waves to his family.
Phillip Jr.: “Bye little girl.”
(Nadine, sitting on her teary-eyed grandfather’s lap, waves
back enthusiastically while Teresa, holding Phillip III on her
lap, and Carrie wave forlornly as if in slow-motion.)
Phillip Sr.: “I love you, Son.”
Phillip Jr.: “I love you, too.”
Then, in a blink it is over. The magic has
ended. The screen turns to a test pattern menu.
After 23 minutes, the reunion is over. But the
milestone memories have been made.
s
ric
iat
Ma
rk
R
r in Neon
a
t
a
e Yea
l-Pe
f th
d
ro
Credit
Where
Credit
is Due
Specialty Practi
tio
es:
v
ne
ee
He knew what he needed, but Mark Reeves did not have the equipment he required.
His training and zest for life had catapulted him from Oregon into a neonatal respiratory
therapy unit at a hospital in Saudi Arabia. He had never worked with newborns before,
and these conditions were somewhat primitive. They had to have a ventilator. In his mind,
it was time for innovation. So when Mark and his staff constructed a homemade ventilator
system, their modernizing effort helped the hospital and the local community.
A self-proclaimed adventure seeker, Mark
applied and was hired to help open a new
hospital in Saudi Arabia. Shortly after returning
to the States, he received a letter that urged
him to come back to Saudi Arabia to help open
the Social Insurance Hospital in Riyadh. While
working in Riyadh, Mark met his future wife
Sheila, who was a dentist at the clinic attached
to the hospital. They married in Bahrain in 1994,
and their son Rolf was born the following year.
In 1996, when their work contracts were up, they
returned to Southern California where Mark
would take a position in respiratory therapy in
the NICU at CMH.
RRT’s must rely on clinical assessments
and experience related decision-making when
evaluating a patient’s condition. The department
at CMH is state-of-the-art and provides new
therapies as they are being introduced to the
neonatal population by the FDA. CMH provides adequate time for a training program that
contains academic and clinical perceptive work. “We are a team,” says Mark.
“We are given clinical autonomy for assessment
and intervention decisions. The system works
like a very well-oiled machine.”
“Credit must be given to the nurses and
support staff,” explains Mark. “What I have done
with the training program was a direct result of
the effort from the fine group of people with
whom I work.”
SELECTING A PHYSICIAN
IS A DIFFICULT DECISION
Throughout his career, Mark has strived to
improve situations with lasting results.
His dedication and effort have earned him the distinction of Specialty Practitioner of
the Year in Neonatal-Pediatrics by the 52nd Annual International Respiratory Congress.
Although Mark was unanimously nominated for his highly regarded training program, he
was still surprised. “They said I went above and beyond my duties, but I’ve gained so much
more. I was happy to return what little I could.”
Mark works in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Community Memorial
Hospital and has developed a comprehensive training program for the hospital’s respiratory
care unit. After mentioning his program in an online respiratory therapy question and answer
forum, he began getting requests for copies of his course. To date, Mark has sent over 60
training programs to be utilized in respiratory therapy departments across the country.
Born in Manhattan Beach, Mark grew up in Palmdale. His initial exposure to medicine
was at the local hospital as an orderly, and later in an on-the-job training position in inhalation
therapy. Upon graduating from the University of Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in Social
Psychology, Mark began working for the state of Oregon as an intake counselor at a minimum security correctional facility. “It was an eye-opening experience,” he recalls. Motivated
to make a career change, Mark took another job as an inhalation therapist in Milwaukee,
Oregon and enrolled in the respiratory therapy program at Mt. Hood to complete the necessary educational and credentialing requirements.
is here to help. Physician referrals are
available at no charge.
Physician Referral Service
(805) 652-5600
15
PHARMACIST
CORNER
by Gary Metalak
Inhaled Insulin
In January, 2006, the Food & Drug Administration approved Pfizer’s inhaled powder form of
human insulin for the treatment of adult patients
with type-1 and type-2 diabetes. The approval
provides 5 million American patients with the first
new insulin delivery option since the discovery of
the substance in the 1920’s. It is marketed under
the name Exubera, and was introduced in the U.S.
late last year.
For patients with type-1 diabetes, inhaled
insulin can be used as a replacement for the
short-acting insulin taken with meals as part of
a regimen that includes a long-acting insulin.
Patients with type-2 diabetes can use inhaled
insulin alone, in combination with oral diabetes
drugs, or with longer-acting insulins. Due to its
rapid onset of action, inhaled insulin should not
be inhaled until 10 minutes before a meal.
Exubera is available in blisters containing 1
mg and 3 mg of insulin powder (equivalent to
3 units and 9 units of injectable regular human
insulin, respectively). An Exubera inhaler device
will be used to release the powder from the blister so it can be inhaled. Appropriate use of the
inhaler is essential. A written medication guide
and videos are available to describe the proper
use and care of the device.
Inhaling insulin powder into the lungs can
cause cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, dry
mouth, and sputum production. Blood glucose
levels need to be monitored, and patients need
to be aware of the symptoms of hypoglycemia.
Patients who smoke or have smoked in the last
six months should not use Exubera because these
patients will absorb more insulin than others
and have a greater risk of low blood sugar. Just
another reason to stop smoking!!! Exubera is not
recommended for patients with asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, or COPD. Lung function tests
are required prior to starting Exubera and every
6 to 12 months thereafter. Because most studies
have been performed in adults, Exubera is not yet
recommended in children under 18 years of age.
The cost of Exubera is high and can be as
much as 4 times the cost of equivalent injectable insulin. This will undoubtedly influence
decisions on insurance coverage. For this reason,
Exubera has not had the blockbuster start that
was anticipated. Four additional inhaled insulin
products will be on the market by 2009, and
this competition should result in lower prices to
the consumer.
Inhaled human insulin is an innovative diabetes treatment, and replacing an injection with an
inhalation is very appealing. If you have diabetes
and use a short-acting insulin, talk to your doctor
to see if Exubera might be right for you. Since the
use of Exubera will be new to everyone including
physicians, new users will need to work closely
with their healthcare professionals to adjust the
Exubera dose to one that is appropriate for their
diabetic condition. In addition, it will be necessary
to promptly report any problems associated with
Exubera’s use. Further information is available at
www.exubera.com or 1-800-EXUBERA.
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.
Meetings and Support Groups at CMH
147 N. Brent St., Ventura
• Aging in the 21st Century
A series of selected and current topics.
7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Wednesdays in May
Contact: Meridith McDonald, City of Ventura
(805) 646-4178
• Better Breathers
American Lung Association
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., 2nd Wednesday
Contact: Juanita Trine
(805) 652-5346
• Bariatric Surgery Seminar
6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Selected Mondays
Call for more information
Contact: Pam Sanchez
(866) 720-6296
• Bariatric Support Group
7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m., 3rd Thursday
Contact: Nancy Barber or Dr. Helmuth Billy
(805) 648-2227, ext. 111
1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., 3rd Monday
Contact: Katharine Raley
(805) 477-7310, press 4
• Hepatitis C Support Group
6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., 1st Tuesday
Contact: Janeen Lyche, RN, FNP
(805) 641-6536
• Living with Cancer
3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., Wednesdays
Contact: Carrie Sundberg
(805) 652-5010
• Caregivers Support Group
• Diabetes Education Program
3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m., 2nd Friday
Contact: Arlene Reynolds
(805) 445-1181
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m., every other Friday
Contact: Quin Rex, RN
(805) 797-3676
• Prostate Cancer Support Group
American Cancer Society
6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., 2nd Thursday
Contact: May Lee Berry,
(805) 278-6100 or visit: [email protected]
• Stop Smoking Class
10:30 a.m.–11:30 a.m., Mondays OR
6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m., Thursdays
Contact: Kathy Cook
(805) 652-3231
• Weight Management Classes
Overcoming barriers to weight management.
5:15 p.m.–6:15 p.m., Tuesdays
Contact: Heather Gilliam, Registered Dietitian
(805) 652-5061
6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., 3rd Wednesday
Contact: Melissa Stoen
(805) 644-9620
[email protected]
• Mended Hearts
American Heart Association
6:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., 1st Tuesday
Contact: Dick Hiser, President
(805) 646-4636
• Restless Leg Syndrome
Support group & relevant seminar topics.
Quarterly, 3rd Sunday at 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Contact: Dave Hennerman
(805) 766-2035 or visit: [email protected]
Meetings at Maternal Child Health House
129 N. Joanne St., Ventura
• Early Pregnancy, Prepared Childbirth, Refresher Classes
Call 658-BABY (2229) or visit: www.cmhhospital.org
• Maternity Tours, Sibling Class,
Pediatric CPR Class
• Supersitter Class
Children 11 years and older learn to be responsible babysitters and how to administer CPR to an infant or child.
• Baby and Me: Bittie Baby (Newborn to 3 months), Bigger Baby (3-7 months)
Various weekly discussions and breastfeeding support.
• Lymphedema Support Group
• Cancer Survivors Day Celebration
Sunday, June 3, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Huntsinger Garden (near hospital lobby)
Contact: Kathleen Horton, Cancer Program Mgr.
(805) 652-5459 or [email protected]
Nutritional management classes.
5:15 p.m. – 6:15 p.m., Tuesdays
Contact: Heather Gilliam, Registered Dietitian
(805) 652-5061
• HICAP (Insurance Help for Seniors)
16
• Diabetes & Weight Management
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

One woman`s battle to help her friend

Transcription

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