$25,000 Fine

Yesterday, September 24, a press release was put out by the California Department of Public Health. The press release was entitled “CDPH Issues Administrative Penalties to 11 Hospitals.” Unfortunately for us at Mendocino Coast District Hospital, our hospital was one of the 11 hospitals named. At Mendocino Coast District Hospital, we take patient safety very seriously. We have learned from this case and we have made changes that have improved the way that we provide care in our Obstetrics unit. However the allegation that we have caused harm to one of our patients is extremely hurtful to our staff. For the record, the coroner’s report, as documented in the State’s report, confirms that our hospital had no chance to save the life of the baby who was the subject of this case. Unfortunately, the baby died prior to admission at our hospital and nothing that we could have done would have saved this precious life. For that reason we have decided to appeal the $25,000 fine that has been assessed against our facility. I continue to be extremely proud of the care that we provide at our hospital. We constantly strive to improve the care that we deliver that is why we are currently actively involved in an OB Initiative in improving care to our obstetrical patients. I welcome any comments that anyone may have about the care provided at our hospital.

WineSong - My favorite Day of the Year in Mendocino

September 11 and September 12, 2009. It began with the 8th anniversary of that fateful day, September 11, 2001. As a result, we observed a moment of silence on September 11, 2009 to recognize the President's announced Day of Remembrance. I love everything about WineSong! I love meeting new people, who are all huge supporters of Mendocino Coast Hospital. The 2-day event began with a reception in the hospital's new Event Garden, which was planned and sponsored by our Hospital Foundation. Many of our most generous donors over the years are recognized with their names etched on a pave stone in our beautiful new garden. It was a gorgeous day on the coast. A perfect event and perfect weather. The next event is a barrel tasting event in a fabulous venue at the Little River Inn. We cannot thank our donors, our volunteer helpers (many are employees and Foundation volunteers), our Foundation staff that planned these 2 events and, of course, Little River Inn, enough.

Saturday is a magical day. It is utterly amazing to see the number of community volunteers that work this event. The volunteers include hospital employees and prominent community members. I even saw 4 doctors waiting on tables! That was so heartwarming to see.

It is utterly amazing that this year's live auction raised $500,000. It is a tribute to the Foundation staff that works so hard to put on this event, to our volunteers that make this such a pleasurable experience, to our donors and sponsors who provide a world class selection of exotic wines, original artwork and incredible trips. And it is particularly a tribute to our Event Coordinator, Norm Roby, our wonderful auctioneers, David and Dawn Marie and our celebrity Narsai David. And a special thank you to our guests and patrons. You make this special event what it is.

Finally, the highlight for me, of this year's WineSong! was the "Special Cause" auction item. Our extremely generous guests donated over $60,000 to purchase a new portable ultrasound machine for our Hospital Emergency Department. It is this type of generosity and this type of gift that is so badly needed by our hospital, that makes this event truly special. I can hardly wait for next year's WineSong! already. But our planning staff is getting a much deserved break. It takes almost a full year of planning to put on a world class event like this. Thank you Carol, Carmen, Jeri and Sue.

Moving Day

It was a bittersweet day on September 3. It was moving day from Tehachapi, where I served as the CEO of Tehachapi Hospital for 8 years up north to the Mendocino Coast where I have found a home for the past 3 years. We finally sold our beautiful home in Bear Valley Springs and then we packed up and hit the road, headed north. We are now very happy residents of the Mendocino Coast in Northern California and I love my new job as CEO of the Mendocino Coast Hospital. I say "new job" because I still feel new here after 3 years. I am looking forward to many, many more years in my beautiful new home community.

Southern Humboldt Community Hospital - Garberville

Recently I had the opportunity to meet with members of the administrative staff, medical staff, hospital staff and Board of Directors of the Southern Humboldt Community Hospital in Garberville, California. Garberville is a very charming small town with a main street with restored shop fronts and restaurants. The staff of the hospital obviously cares deeply about providing high quality medical care in this community. I was in town to talk to the Board of Directors about the advantages of working together with other small and district hospitals through membership in a Joint Powers Authority with 4 small district hospitals in Sonoma and Mendocino Counties (including Mendocino Coast District Hospital). By working together, we anticipate cost savings, shared services and opportunities available to us through combining our bed sizes and our resources. I am hopeful that Southern Humboldt Community Hospital will join us too. In these days and in this economic climate, one important strategy for survival is strength through numbers and by working together.

Rural America

I love living in rural America. Everywhere that you look around you, there are gatherings of people and events that makes one feel connected in a very special way. Fort Bragg just opened the CV Starr Swimming Pool complex. It is a beautiful facility with an Olympic size swimming pool, water slide and therapy pool. All combined in a beautiful building (pictured above). During one recent weekend, I was invited to attend the grand opening of the Swimming pool complex on the same day that I attended a BBQ fundraiser for the Volunteer Fire Deparatment in Westport (a small community north of Fort Bragg). And I completed the weekend with a Sunday breakfast at the Caspar Community Center on Sunday morning. 3 more great opportunities to connect with the fabulous people that live in our area.

Calling Dr. Robot

Today we had a special visitor come meet our employees during my bi-weekly CEO Forum meeting. The visitor is our new robot. We got a demonstration of how the robot works and how it will have a positive impact on patient care. I enjoy having these opportunities to meet with members of the staff and to take the time to talk to them about what is going on and to answer any questions that they may have. This week the main topic of discussion was the recent decision by the Hospital Board of Directors to offer a construction contract for a new Diagnostic Imaging Center on our campus. We expect to have the financing in place during the month of September and begin construction right away. The anticipated time for the project is approximately 13 months. So, if we begin in October, we may be able to open the new center by the end of 2010.

Sidney Colaco

Today Sidney Colaco was the guest speaker at our Fort Bragg Rotary Club. Sidney is a bright engaging young man who has been working at our hospital as a student intern for the past 3 1/2 weeks. Sidney is a 2nd year graduate school student at the University of Southern California (USC). It has been a pleasure to have him working at our hospital this summer. It always seems like we learn as much, or more, from our students than they learn from us. Today, Sidney spoke about the field of Engineering Management, the applications that it has for hospital operations (including the work that he has been doing at our hospital during the past month) and he spoke about his home country, India. He made a very good impression on our Rotary Club. Members saw the value of his work, and how it could be used to help other businesses and government. I have no doubt that Sidney has a very bright future ahead of him. I truly hope that I will be able to keep in touch with him as he completes his education and embarks on a very exciting career.