When Emanuel Medical Center’s talented cardiovascular team goes into surgery, there’s another team standing behind them – the more than 300 Legacy Circle volunteers who raise money to help make open heart surgery at Emanuel possible.
More than 200 of those volunteers are from Turlock, Denair and Hilmar.
Last year, donors and volunteers in Emanuel’s Legacy Circle annual giving campaign raised more than $1 million in just six weeks to support the hospital’s expanding cardiac care program, and this year’s goal is to raise $1 million more.
“People give to a good cause; that’s what it’s all about,” said Turlock’s Bill Gibbs, the fund drive co-chair with his wife Cindy. “And now we’re seeing some of the results of the program – multiple open heart surgeries are happening here in Turlock, and a large number of cardiac catheterization procedures.”
Since opening in May, Emanuel’s cardiothoracic and vascular surgery team, led by Dr. Harold Tabaie, the medical director of cardiothoracic and vascular surgery, has performed several open heart surgeries, including bypass operations and valve repairs.
In addition, local cardiologists have used the advanced Cardiac Cath and Interventional Lab at Emanuel to perform 14 emergency angioplasty procedures in the past three months to open clogged coronary arteries in patients having heart attacks. With the added assistance of something like a Philips FRx AED at hand, the likelihood of these patients being stabilised before being transported for surgery in its lab increases. As well as this, the lab is also used for diagnostic and other interventional procedures, and 600 of those have already been performed this year.
“During this campaign, we’re going to hear some of those stories,” said Shirley Pok, Emanuel’s vice president of development. “These are life-changing and life-saving stories from people who wouldn’t have survived a 30-minute drive to another hospital.”
As Emanuel performs more cardiac procedures, those stories are becoming more common. Gibbs even recently happened upon one of Emanuel’s first open heart patients, a women from Hilmar who didn’t know he was a major volunteer for the hospital.
“She went on and on about how she felt so blessed to have had the procedure at Emanuel,” he said. “She couldn’t believe we have that advanced capability so close to her home and she was so pleased with the doctors and care team.”
Legacy Circle uses a team structure to promote giving, with 29 team owners recruiting volunteers who then ask others to give, explained Jana Rhine, the hospital’s director of annual giving.
“The fellowship we all have with each other, along with the friendly competition between teams, is just wonderful,’ she said.
The next phase of Emanuel’s cardiac program is opening two new cardiac operating suites – including a cutting-edge hybrid room where the surgical table is integrated with an interventional radiology scanner normally found in a catheterization lab. That integration allows one surgeon to control both the table and the scanner, and will allow Emanuel doctors to treat two emergency patients at once.
“We’ve already had instances where we were treating one patient in the cath lab when a heart attack patient arrived in the emergency room,” Pok said. “So the need for additional services is evident.”
The new surgical suites will cost nearly $4.5 million to build and equip, and are scheduled to open in late 2012. Legacy Circle is committed to raising $5 million in five years to support the $10.5 million program.
This year’s campaign kicked off on August 25th and runs for six weeks. Supporters from local communities include:
Turlock: Beth Adams, Debbi Agresti, Elizabeth Allen, John and Corinne Allen, Michael and Alison Allen, Marilyn Alvarado, Martha Alvarez, Regina Amador, Celeste Ameer, Becky Bailey, Derek Bailie, Mark Baptista, Roxanne Baskin, Mavis Bekoe, Julie Bettencourt, David and Nancy Boulos, Judy Brighella, Danielle Brown, Randy and Lisa Brown, Council Member Amy Bublak, Jeff Burrow, Nanette Burch, Ana Cabral, Scott and Julie Campbell, John and Donna Cardoza, Dr. Paul Carmichael and Dr. Katherine Barton, Steve Carkeet, Margie Catone, Kristen Cederlind, Marge Combs, Scott and Paulette Cooper, Noelle Corgiatt, Karen Cozzi, Kristi Curiel, Terra Curiel, Dr. Oussama Dagher, Nancy Daley, Bella Daniel, Charmaine Daniel, Martha DelReal, Tom Diaz, Carol Dodge, Greg Eisenhauer, Dr. Mohamed Eldaly, Ken Erlenbusch and Dianna Bettencourt, Anna Eshoo, Dr. Alexander Evens, Rick and Linda Falkenberg, Dr. Isaac Faraji, Emily Faria, Jeani and John Ferrari, Don and Alta Fernandes, Bob and Terri Field, Seraphin Fontes, Rick and Denise Fortado, Susie Fortich, Phyllis Frasier, Kimberly Garcia, Dr. Yohannes Gebreegziabher, Erich and Brandy Gemperle, Bill and Cindy Gibbs, Ken Gomes, Tina Gong, Lorraine Gonsalves, Betty Gonzalez, Rachel Govett, Devin Griffiths, Jane Hacker, Julie Hagins, Ronda Hall, Trustee Eileen Hamilton, Soya Han, Bob Hansen, Renee Harris, Brett and Camy Honoré, Brad and Stacey Humble, Tara Humphries, Trevor Irish, Flora Jacob, Nicole Jessee, Bernadette Khanania, Erika Kinsley, Adam King, Terrie King, Kyle and Nicole Kirkes, Mark and Dana Kirkes, Roger and Delores Kirkes, Brad and Melissa Koehn, Jeff and Kim Kruthoff, Kirk and Jennifer Larson, George and Zella Linn, Carol Litfin, Dara Lopes, Thelma Losano, Lindsey Lundquist, Jason Madruga and Amy Wilson, Gary and Dawn Mallory, Debbie Martin, Harriet Martinson, Dick Martinson, Greg and Jami McMullen, Greg Meyers, Ann Marie Moe, Dr. Andrew Nasseri, Dr. Reza Nazari, Bill and Sue Nixon, Phaedra Norton, Bob Nutcher, Lodelle Nyberg, Crystal Nyquist, Troy and Teresa Old, Jeanette Olvera, Monika Palma, Jennifer Parker, Pam Parker, Mike and Theresa Passarelli, Kristy Patrias-Dias, Kristen Payne, Emma Perales, Marlene Pereira, Sweetlana Pirehadeh, Dave Pok, Susan Quigley, Gloria Ramos, Lisa Ramirez, Navin and Manpreet Rasoda, Torre and Monica Reich, Jennifer Ribeiro, Kathleen Riedel, Linda Robledo, Pennie Rorex, Ryan Runca, Debbie Tuttle, Bryan Saint, Aylin Sarkis, Alicia Sawyer, Janice Scharf, Elaine Schneider, Catherine Schroer, Mehdi Shams, Mary Sherwood, John Sigsbury, Sharon Silva, Lani Smith, Lisa Smith, Melissa Snyder, Curtis and Sally Souza, Pastor Paul Springer, Kurt and Shirley Spycher, Dr. Harold Tabaie, Steve Talkington, Alan and Diane Tate, John and Janene Temple, Toni Thompson, Janie Van Winkle, Amy Veitch, Rod and Carrie Vilas, Lyn Villarente, Wendie Virden, Lucy Virgen, Balbir Wahid, Breanne Walker, Margie Walker, Dan and Ann Walker, Dayna Ward, Tom and Cindy Waterson, Dan Whisenhunt, Council Member Forrest White, Stephanie Williams, Britton and Rhonda Willson, Lynn Woolf, Carol Zinke.
Denair: Gary and Cecelia Almeida, Roberta Anderson, Dr. Ira Bailie, Deb Borba, Jack and Cathy Doo, Wilma Elliott, Dan and Carol Finn, Teri Guess, Bart Muller, Ursula Navarro, Amy Richardson, Dorothy Shuping, Ruth Villarreal, Justin White.
Hilmar: Luisa Benevides, Jacquelyn Bridges, Chasity Cox, Christopher Freeberg, Peter and Jeanine Gemperle, Judi Honoré, Vera Johnson, Carol Lucero, Jerry and Geri Martin, Becky Nyman, Chris O’Brien, Renee Pimentel, Diana Raposo, Beverly Strom-Wenstrand, Joey and Julie Silva, Mary Sousa, Pat Wickstrom.
To donate online visit www.emanuelmedicalcenter.org give or phone (209) 664-5180.
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