Category Archives: Coronavirus

Community Memorial Health System has reopened inpatient and outpatient non-emergent surgical procedures

After suspending such procedures at the onset of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in mid-March, Community Memorial Health System (CMHS) has followed guidance from the CDC, US Surgeon General, American College of Surgeons, the State of California and the California Hospital Association, as well as expert surgeons, anesthesiologists, infection control specialists and nurses in establishing safety criteria and protocols prior to resuming non-emergency surgeries.

“After thoughtful evaluation of the data and careful implementation of the policies and procedures outlined by the CDC and state and local public health leaders, we have decided to resume scheduled, non-emergent surgical procedures at Community Memorial hospital in Ventura,” said Gary Wilde, Community Memorial Health System President and CEO. “As with most hospitals in the state of California, we suspended elective procedures to prepare for the potential surge of COVID-19 patients, but feel that it’s important to the overall health and wellbeing of our community to begin offering these services again at this time.”

Before scheduling medically necessary, non-emergent procedures, all hospitals and surgery centers across the nation must meet the following criteria: A sustained reduction of COVID-19 cases in the community; sufficient patient capacity (beds) and equipment; adequate supply of personal protective equipment (PPE); and a COVID-19 testing procedure in place for all appropriate patients scheduled for a surgical procedure.

In addition to meeting these criteria, CMHS and Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura continue to follow additional rigorous protocols to ensure the safety of their patients, healthcare professionals, and community as a whole. These protocols include:

· Mandatory COVID-19 testing for every preoperative patient in advance of his/her procedure.

· Mandatory COVID-19 screening for everyone who enters Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, the Emergency Departments at either location, all Centers for Family Health clinics and Urgent Care locations, and all other CMHS outpatient service locations. This screening includes patients, essential companions, physicians and staff.

· Mandatory use of surgical masks for everyone in all CMHS inpatient and outpatient facilities, regardless of their COVID-19 status.

· Continued use of separate intake, evaluation, and treatment areas for patients who present with COVID-19 symptoms and those who do not.

· Continued use of separate waiting areas (including waiting in vehicles) and phone registration following appropriate screening, in order to minimize contact and maintain social distancing standards.

· Continued use of enhanced sterilization and cleaning protocols of operating suites, patient prep and recovery areas, and patient rooms to ensure optimal cleanliness and minimize potential spread.

· Continued restriction of visitors (one essential companion only) in all CMHS facilities to limit potential exposures.

CMHS has carefully determined which medically necessary, non-emergent procedures can safely be performed at this time, and will continue this evaluation process in the coming weeks and months. Urgent and emergent cases will continue to be prioritized with the reintroduction of elective procedures.

It takes a village

The River appreciates those who support them.

The River Community Church is certainly flowing through the City of Ventura these past six weeks during the Covid-19 pandemic. They have been the recipient of numerous donations from many local businesses, and just like a river, they are a channel to help those who are in need, especially food supplies.

As early as March 18, they have seen the arrival of a well-stocked kitchen from the Ventura Beach Marriott, so much, that they were able to share the abundance with the Ventura County Rescue Mission and the Salvation Army. Other downtown restaurants, such as Peirano’s Market & Delicatessen, Aloha Steakhouse, Palermo ~ Coffee and Gelato have shared their specialties with The River from hot meals to fresh chicken and salmon to gallons of milk. Their Food Pantry recipients often get blessed with fresh meat, especially since Sharon Parker of Main St. Meats has donated hundreds of turkey breasts and fresh or smoked chickens.

The River has seen donations from Ferraro’s Italian Restaurant and The Berry Man along with those from neighboring Camarillo, such as Manhattan of Camarillo and Noah’s Bagels. Others who have made continuing donations to care for The River’s volunteers are Giddyup Group LLC, Missy’s Cupcake Creations and Water’s Edge. Water’s Edge provides 15 meals every day to The River. Many of Water’s Edge donations are passed on to the ladies at Tender Life Maternity Home or to the families at The City Center Transitional Living who are thrilled to receive such mouthwatering dinners.

Another community supporter to The River is Food Forward. They generously donate fresh produce twice a week, so those who are in need can stretch their food budget and pick up more than just canned goods. Other partners include Trader Joe’s (on Victoria), Ventura County Backpack Medicine plus several in the community who have given generous cash donations.

Jim Duran, Lead Pastor of The River Community Church, says, “It’s times like these (Covid-19) that you need people around you who are going to help. We are so blessed the community has stepped up and has partnered with The River Community Church to meet the needs of those suffering. We could not do what we do without our valuable partners.”

Over these past six weeks since the Stay-At-Home orders have been in effect, they have served over 600 families representing 1,697 people in Ventura. The River appreciates those who support them, so they can continue being a conduit of God’s blessings to reach the community and those in need.

For more information about The River Community Church, please visit their website at www.TheRiverCommunity.org or call the Church Office at 805-648-7955. They are located at 889 E. Santa Clara St. in downtown Ventura at the corner of Kalorama and E. Santa Clara Streets.

Help feed Ventura County foster/resource, kinship, adoptive families

After the first week, over 1,500 meals had been distributed.

Kids & Families Together (K&FT) is a nonprofit that serves foster/resource, adoptive, kinship, and birth families throughout Ventura County. K&FT works with children who have experienced trauma, abuse, neglect, loss, and multiple placements. Caregivers are supported with specialized education, support, and strategies to help raise safe, healthy, nurtured children that thrive.

Having hosted and catered several events for K&FT, the owners at Rincon Brewery Ventura are well aware of the needs of the families served by K&FT. Many of these families were struggling prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, and with the growing economic impacts, needs for these families have escalated. When World Central Kitchen joined the team a fantastic community partnership was born.

Rincon Brewery reached out to WCK offering to re-open their Ventura restaurant to make a difference in the community.

Because K&FT serves families throughout Ventura County, the need became clear that some families, due to lack of transportation, could not get to Ventura to pick up meals. K&FT’s staff rallied again and established a delivery network to get meals to families that had no means to get there. These families, particularly Foster/Resource and Kinship Families, have opened their homes and hearts to Ventura County children and K&FT wants to be there to support them.

Meal distribution takes place six days a week (Monday – Saturday). Families receiving services from K&FT can receive meals each day for all members of the household. Meals are prepared on site at Rincon Brewery the day before and refrigerated overnight for the next day. Rincon Brewery’s Chef, Steven Stroh provides a daily message called the “love note” explaining what each dish means to him.

After the first week, over 1,500 healthy, chef-prepared meals have been distributed/delivered to families across the county. Response from families has been extremely positive!

To volunteer at the distribution site or make deliveries please sign up via this link, created with the help of Ventura County Fire Department. https://vcfd.galaxydigital.com/need/?agency_id=112680

Financial donations to support this effort can be made via this link. https://mailchi.mp/kidsandfamilies.org/mealdistribution

 LAUNCH Videos Premiere Online Week May 26, 27, 28 at 4:30 PM

See Kristie Steinlicht of Anacapa Middle School on her video.

Curated by Ventura Education Partnership (VEP), LAUNCH engages business, community and school leaders to come together during fast-paced, inspiring presentations from highly innovative Ventura Unified School District educators. During this unique gathering, public education supporters hear first-hand from passionate educators about how they connect with students to strengthen engagement and deepen learning.

In it’s second year, LAUNCH also raises funds to support grants for VUSD classrooms.

As with so many of our community events, this year’s LAUNCH, scheduled for March 12, had to be executed differently than planned due to COVID-19. President of VEP, Madhu Bajaj said, “We closed the program to a live audience with only a small, socially distanced group in attendance. Rather than postponing, we felt it was important to capture our amazing educators’ stories who had been working hard to prepare for the evening. We thank our courageous presenters who shared their stories in a most beautiful and compelling way.”

Thanks to a partnership with Ventura Adult and Continuing Education (VACE) the evening’s presentations were captured on video by students and staff from the Digital Multimedia and Studio programs, lead by Rich Sigerist. These programs prepare students for careers such as graphic artist, video editor, camera operator, production assistant, and much more.

VEP invites the community to join us for the LAUNCH Video Premieres on Facebook. Each video is approximately 10 minutes and will feature the presenter available for comments and Q/A through chat. A strong theme that emerges is how the educator not only focuses on teaching content, but also the social emotional and varying needs of students so students can become empowered citizens in our community.

May 26 4:30 PM Cameron Crouch of Foothill High School

May 27 4:30 PM Petra McCullough of ATLAS Elementary

May 28 4:30 PM Kristie Steinlicht of Anacapa Middle School

“As we all look for inspiration and positive activities during this time, the LAUNCH Video Premieres are a quick and easy way to celebrate amazing educators and learn from their stories of classroom innovation,” said Bajaj.

LAUNCH is made possible by sponsors such as Aera Energy, Mountains 2 Beach Marathon, Fred Evans Team at Remax, FASTSIGNS of Ventura and many more.

For more information on this shared viewing experience please like Ventura Education Partnership on Facebook, visit our website www.venturaeducationpartnership.org or contact Madhu Bajaj (805) 754-9861.

Giving back to the local community

Denise Tyner, facility liaison at Ventura Post Acute receives the “Thank you VPA HEROES” sign from Cypress Place Senior Living.

Cypress Place Senior Living in Ventura has a long history of giving back to the local community: whether it be collecting suitcases for kids in the foster care program, hosting an annual “Health & Wealth” expo geared towards seniors, creating a scholarship fund for local high school students wanting to pursue a college degree, hosting workshops on how to avoid senior scams, or honoring Veterans at their annual “Salute Our Veterans” event, the senior community is always looking to help.

Due to the COVID-19 coronavirus this year, and the subsequent stay-at-home orders, the senior community has had to cancel their annual “Health and Wealth” expo and “Salute Our Veterans” events for 2020.

But that hasn’t slowed the senior community from continuing to look for ways to reach out. Wanting to recognize local healthcare heroes, Cypress Place recently delivered a decorated thank you board filled with gift cards for nurses and staff at local skilled nursing facility Ventura Post Acute, to honor them during National Skilled Nursing Care week.

“Ventura Post Acute is on the front lines of protecting a very frail and at-risk population. The challenges they face are enormous and the work they do is vital,” said Steve Spira, executive director at Cypress Place. “We wanted to donate gift cards that they could raffle off to their staff, to show our appreciation, and hopefully brighten their day a bit.”

Recognizing the opportunity to also support another local business with the donation, Cypress Place purchased the gift cards from Café Ficelle, a popular, local family-owned business that has been greatly impacted by the virus and shelter-in-place order.

“We can’t thank Cypress Place enough for their sign of support for our nurses and staff,” said Denise Tyner, facility liaison at Ventura Post Acute. “Little things like this make such a big difference to keep everyone’s spirits lifted. And the photos of Cypress residents make it that much more personal.”

Cypress Place has delivered other signs of support, including to local hospital partners, and continues to look to be a positive force in the community.

“We are all in this together,” said Spira. “We are all just looking to get through it the best we can.”

Cypress Place Senior Living is a premiere senior community in Ventura County. The beautiful senior living campus features an Active Senior Living community and adjacent Assisted Living and Alzheimer’s/Dementia Care community connected by a lushly landscaped courtyard.

To learn more about Cypress Place Senior Living of Ventura, visit their web site at www.cypressplaceseniorliving.com.

Rumor Alert

There is a rumor that the County of Ventura is removing positive covid patients from their homes. That is not true. If a person cannot safely isolate at home and they would like an alternative location, then a different location is offered.

Public Health Officer Doctor Robert Levin stated “What I would like to say to those people who interpreted what I said as forcibly pulling people from their homes if they become COVID positive is that if I conveyed that, it was a mistake on my part and I apologize for that. I am sensitive to that as well. We have no intention of taking people from the environments they feel safe and comfortable in. To demonstrate our past actions, because they speak louder than words, we have managed over 600 people in our county with COVID-19 and we have not forcibly removed anyone from their home or wherever they wanted to be. We have removed about 7 of our seniors who were living in Long Term Care Facilities (LTCF) and had them admitted to one of our hospitals. This was to protect the other seniors and to observe those hospitalized for worsening of their symptoms. If COVID establishes itself in a LTCF (a nursing home), it can kill dozens as it did in Washington State. We also placed two homeless people who were COVID positive in a motel because they wanted to return to a crowded camp in the river bottom. Virtually everyone wants to stay in their home. It is safest when such a person can have their own room and bathroom but many of our COVID cases have not been so fortunate. When that is the case, our Communicable Disease nurses find ways of keeping them in their home such that it is still safe for the others who are there.”

Shared Streets for Health and Safety During COVID-19

The City’s Public Works Department have launched a Shared Streets for Health and Safety During COVID-19 initiative to help make neighborhood streets safer to walk and bike through the creation of wider spaces using current traffic lanes and sidewalks. This effort in intended to help pedestrians and cyclists practice physical distancing while enjoying healthy outdoor activities and sharing the street with slower-moving vehicles.

During COVID-19, five streets will have “Local Traffic Only” signage posted in neighborhoods to provide more space for physical activity on traffic lanes with slower-moving vehicles. This includes Olive Street, San Nicholas Street, Preble Avenue, Mound Avenue, and Darling Road.

“This initiative provides additional street space for more than just cars. It enhances pedestrian and bicycle safety while maintaining access needs for those who live in the area,” commented Phil Nelson, Ventura Public Work Director. “Sidewalks are typically too narrow to exercise proper physical distancing around others who use the same path. Oftentimes, people walk into the street, which can be dangerous for pedestrians when vehicles are driving by in the same or adjacent lane.”

Traffic patterns will not change on the “Local Traffic Only” and “Shared Streets” configurations. Emergency services will continue to have full access to the street network. Designated street signs for this temporary initiative will include signage or barricades, indicating one of the following designs:

“Local Traffic Only,” open to motorists traveling to a specific destination on that street.

“Shared Street,” open to cyclists, pedestrians, and vehicles. Motorists are encouraged to drive slowly and be extra cautious.

“Repurposed Street,” temporary parking restrictions or lane changes in select locations to widen key walking and biking corridors.

The public is encouraged to provide feedback on the five pilot phase streets as well as share ideas for other areas in the Shared Streets initiative.

Some examples of cities that have successfully implemented similar models include Alameda, Oakland, Burlington, Salt Lake City, Seattle, Pittsburgh, and more.

For more information on this initiative, the pilot phase, or to let us know if you would like your street considered, please visit www.cityofventura.ca.gov.

New version of walking the dog

by Ivor Davis

Bicycling on Ventura path by the Pier recently I ran across this brave lady who gave new meaning to the phrase “walking your dog.” She was actually as you can see– walking with the dog on her shoulders—and it was a pretty large pooch. And a warm day!

I took her photo–said I would send her a copy–but got the wrong email address.

If you can run this photo, then maybe she can get her picture.

Anyway, I am sure all her friends will recognize her–mask or not!

Ventura the Ventura Townehouse (VTH) donated some resources to local nurses and foundations

Doing good at COVID time for Ventura the Ventura Townehouse (VTH) donated some of their resources to local nurses and their foundations showing support for the people on the front lines at Community Memorial Hospital and Ventura County Medical Center. VTH donated thousands of masks, hundreds of gowns and meal and coffee cards. And supplied much needed sundries of toilet paper, paper towels, shampoo, conditioner, soap and hand sanitizers to the local senior mobile home parks.

VTH started a Pen-Pal group between their residents and the mobile home residents. If you are interested in joining in on the Pen-Pal Group, please contact 805.642.3263.