Daily Archives: January 25, 2021

Narrow roads and traffic congestion continued to draw the focus of the Ascension Parish Planning Commission this month as the panel approved two new neighborhoods constituting 140 new homes and an La. 30 industrial park that will be first piece in a more than 600-acre development in Geismar.

In the case of both residential projects, local landowners and their developers were coming back the commission on Jan. 13 with revised proposals that either cut down home lots or proposed major traffic improvements to mitigate the impact of their new homes after previous concepts had been denied or required other traffic improvements.

With the industrial park proposed for the Buzzard Roost property, commissioners responded to concerns from the planning staff that they wanted to see more of developer Grady Melancon's plans for the large site by requiring him to supply his master road plan and where he plans to locate a community sewer plant along with approval for the 121-acre park.

Melancon, parish officials and state highway officials have been negotiating for two years to use Melancon's large Buzzard Roost property between the Cornerview Road area and La. 30 to provide the land for key access routes for a future Interstate 10 interchange south of Cornerview.

The Buzzard Roost project and one of the neighborhoods, Windermere Crossing, drew opposition from residents who live near the future projects, primarily over traffic concerns.

After the meeting, Parish President Clint Cointment, who ran on controlling growth through the development code, issued a statement on his official government Facebook page a day after the hearing. He pledged to do everything in his administration's power to tighten restrictions on development further.

"Those changes will be seeking to retain Ascension's rural character, while ensuring the necessary infrastructure is in place before new development is approved," Cointment said in the statement.

He said the volunteer commissioners have a thankless job of balancing landowner rights against those of their neighbors' as drainage problems are unresolved, roads remain undersized and sewage options remain inefficient.

The 103-home Windermere Crossing proposed off the northwest corner of Roddy and Cannon roads drew the most discussion and negotiation between the developer, his engineering representatives and the commission.

Windermere Crossing is proposed on the same nearly 36-acre site where Amalfi Cove had been proposed in December 2018 and been narrowly rejected over traffic concerns.

Cannon is a notoriously narrow, substandard road. Despite the virtual setting of the meeting, several residents aired, by emails and telephone comments, their experiences with accidents and near misses with oncoming traffic and worries about more traffic ending up on Cannon.

After considerable negotiation, the developers agreed to reconstruct and widen Cannon at least to the standard 18-foot width between Roddy and O'Neal roads and have entrances for the subdivision on Roddy and Cannon. Left turns out of the subdivision onto Roddy would be prevented.

The developers had proposed widening Cannon even farther west to La. 44 and having an entrance only on Cannon Road, but cut the road widening offer in half due to cost after commissioners, responding to public concerns about only one exit for the neighborhood, pressed for a second entrance.

Parish officials raised the prospect of turning the developer's offer into a Move Ascension project to widen Cannon to more than 18 feet across but, under the commission's decision, the developer must build at least to the 18-foot width before homes can start being built.

Commission Chairman Matt Pryor and fellow Commissioners Ken Firmin, Julio Dumas and Robert Hodgson voted to approve. Commissioners Richard Carmouche and Aaron Chaisson opposed. Commissioner Shannon Hutchings was absent.

The commission also approved the 37-home Clare Court neighborhood off Cornerview Road a half mile west of Interstate 10. The site had been proposed for 43-home Evelyn Estates in May 2019, but traffic concerns led the commission then to require mitigation of traffic impacts to improve the level of service on nearby intersections, including at La. 73 and Cornerview.

The developer came back this month with a smaller development that didn't require a renewed look at outlying intersections under the parish traffic policy but also after a traffic light was added to the La. 73/Cornerview intersection.

The commission approved that development with one "no" vote from Commissioner Carmouche.

Link:

Windermere Crossing, Buzzard Roost get nod after requirements, concessions - The Advocate

Like many members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., Mattie Collins said she wore pink and pearls in commemoration of their sorority sisters place in American history.

Kamala Harris, was sworn in Wednesday as the 49th vice president of the United States, just moments before Joe Biden took his oath as the 46th president. Harris is the first woman, first Black person and first person of South Asian descent to occupy the second-highest office in the land.

First of all, lets talk about an awesome human being, and awesome woman, said Collins, a 52-year member of Alpha Kappa Alpha and president of the nonprofit Ivy Center for Education in Pine Bluff who watched the inauguration at home. Shes a Black woman and we are proud of that. She has broken the ceiling, but like she said, she would not be the last.

Collins said she heard Harris speak once at a sorority conference in New Orleans and described her as a woman with a warm spirit whose intelligence is off the chain.

I just thought, whomever she is, shes very friendly and kind, Collins said. I love kids, but when you show kindness to adults or kids, that makes me feel very good.

Patricia Berry, the Ivy Centers executive director and fellow sorority member, followed the inauguration and texted family members who are sorority sisters. Berry said she took in every detail of the days events.

It meant a realization that Black women or any woman at all can reach the highest position of leadership in our country, she said. It meant a reckoning that we can do that, and that it will inspire other young ladies to keep going and work hard and realizing if you work hard and reach your goals, you can put yourself in position to go as high as you can and youll be able to do it.

Harris joined Alpha Kappa Alpha while attending Washington, D.C.s Howard University, where the sorority was founded in 1908. She graduated from the historically Black institution in 1986.

With her return to Washington as vice president, Inauguration Wednesday ranked really high in Alpha Kappa Alpha history, sorority sister Marguerite Flannigan of Pine Bluff said.

This is a day not just for AKA, but for all women, women of color and of all ethnicities, Flannigan said. This is a day we saw in America that a woman is in the second-highest office in the United States. When we saw President [Barack] Obama being inaugurated, that was a big day. Now as an African-American woman and just as a woman, thats up there really high.

Sorority members wear pearls in honor of the founders and incorporators of the sorority. Flannigan said she wore her pearls at work thinking about what Harris swearing-in meant for little brown girls, adding that it meant they can achieve anything.

Being a graduate of Dollarway and a citizen of Pine Bluff and being here all my life, that inspired us, Flannigan said.

A presidential inauguration would typically draw a large crowd in front of a television at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluffs L.A. Davis Sr. Student Union, but pandemic precautions kept the student center room locked and number of students walking from building to building sparse on a quiet, cloudy Wednesday morning. UAPB, like Harris Howard University, is a historically Black institution.

Due to covid, everyone has been encouraged to watch in private, in their dorm rooms, at home, on a computer or on their smartphones, said Courtney Jackson, the student union building manager. Everythings at the touch of a button.

No one answered the door at the Alpha Kappa Alpha house on campus when a reporter knocked just before Harris took her oath.

Despite the notable day in sorority history, Collins rued the health pandemic in which Harris and Bidens inauguration and related events unfolded.

Im hoping she [Harris] and Joe Biden will work together, and it looks like theyre going to get our country back to normalcy, Collins said of the former rivals in the race for the Democratic nomination. The coronavirus has taken over 400,000 lives. Thats enough to make me cry. I cant believe we live in a country where this was allowed to happen. People have lost friends, family members, and some have lost their parents. This is awful. This is terrible. Im hoping they will work together to bring an end to this.

Berry said she looks forward to Harris promoting service to all mankind, a motto in Alpha Kappa Alpha.

Im looking for her to have an impact especially in the areas of education, economic issues and human rights and global issues, Berry said. Those are the areas Im interested in.

Students on the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff campus were encouraged to watch the inauguration in private instead of in congregate settings.(Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)

The Alpha Kappa Alpha house is shown at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Sorority member Kamala Harris, who attended Howard University, was sworn in Wednesday as the U.S. 49th vice president.(Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)

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Sorority sisters in pink and pearls proudly take in Harris' ascension - Arkansas Online

In her 1995 autobiography, A Simple Path, Mother Teresa wrote, The greatest disease in the West today is not TB or leprosy; it is being unwanted, unloved and uncared for.

The late Saint Teresa of Calcutta couldnt have known what would befall the world in 2020the COVID-19 global pandemic, and heartbreaking and all-too-frequent instances of social injustice and racism. But she almost certainly anticipated something more enduring: how poor people, especially people of color, are not able to get the health care they need.

There are dozens of medical groups in the U.S. that have made it their missions to care for poor and underserved populations. One of these is Ascension Medical Group. Along with its parent company, Ascensiona leading nonprofit, St. Louis-based Catholic health system with hundreds of locations across the U.S.the medical group has been caring for underserved populations for decades.

Ascension Medical Group is an AMA Health System Program partner and its work to improve professional satisfaction was honored with its inclusion in the AMA Joy in Medicine Recognition Program.

AMA member Baligh Yehia, MD, MPP, is senior vice president at Ascension and president of Ascension Medical Group. Among many other roles during his career, as a medical student he served on the AMA Council on Medical Education. Board-certified in internal medicine and infectious diseases, Dr. Yehia is a nationally recognized expert on health disparities and HIV medicine, publishing more than 150 articles, abstracts and chapters in leading journals.

He also served as the first deputy undersecretary for health for community care at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and oversaw the VA's Community Care Network. Dr. Yehia spoke with the AMA about how organizations can tackle systemic racism. The first step, he says: Prioritize this work. The second: Have a plan. The third: Make a long-term commitment.

AMA: Social justice deservedly became an especially hot topic in health care in 2020 and will doubtless continue to dominate strategic thinking in 2021, but its been a core emphasis at Ascension for years. Howso?

Dr. Yehia: Well, it starts with the mission, which specifies being an advocate for a compassionate and just society through actions and words. Some health systems only recently started to tackle health disparities, structural racism and diversity and inclusion. Ascension has been focused on health equity for a long time. In fact, weve had quality targets for many years that include disparity components.

For example, we know there's a disproportionate impact of diabetes in African American communities. So while we have a goal to improve hemoglobin A1c for all, we also have a specific focus to reduce it even more for the African American community. And we've done that for many other conditions, such as COPD and asthma and colonoscopies.

AMA: The concept of systemic racism entered the mainstream during the racial reckoning of 2020, and the AMA recently declared racism a public health threat. How does that play into your work at Ascension?

Dr. Yehia: Shortly after George Floyd was killed, our CEO, Joe Impicciche, spoke out publicly in support of justice and peace while condemning racism and intolerance. He then tasked our leadership team to develop a plan for Ascension to help address racism and systemic injustice by creating a more diverse and inclusive culture. We developed a framework called ABIDE, which stands for appreciation, belongingness, inclusivity, diversity and equity. This framework is intended to help us review and rebuild our policies, practices and ways of working so that we can eliminate the forces within the health system that contribute to or perpetuate inequities, including systemic racism.

The ABIDE framework also involves a four-part process of listening, praying, learning and acting. We just wrapped up our first listening phase, in which we asked all 160,000 of our employeeseveryone from environmental service workers to physiciansto participate in a series of anonymous sessions to share their viewpoints and help us identify themes for future action.

We have a large system that includes hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, home health agencies, insurance programs, all focused on delivering excellent patient care. Our goal is to intentionally digest it and then come up with a path to action that specifies what we are going to do, both within our system and in collaboration with others.

There are many steps we are taking todayfor example, we're raising our minimum wage. The organization is committed to helping every one of the people we serve to achieve their full potential, and it all comes down to our core belief that each person has value, whether they're rich or poor, Black or white, of any ethnic background.

AMA: Earlier in your career, you served in a significant leadership role in the VA and at prominent academic medical centers. How did that work prepare you for what youre trying to accomplish now with Ascension?

Dr. Yehia: When I had the chance to join Ascension, I jumped at the opportunity because it has such a deep commitment to serving all people, with a focus on the poor and vulnerable. So its a situation where my personal mission and the organization's mission are perfectly aligned.

But it also gave me the opportunity to work with many great individuals who were transforming care at a large scale. Its much like the VA, in that you have the opportunity to improve the lives for large groups of people across the country.

AMA: Your research at Ascension on COVID-19 outcomes by race, published in August 2020 in JAMA Network Open, yielded results that might be surprising to some. What are the main takeaways?

Dr. Yehia: We looked at the first part of the pandemic, between February and May, and what happened when patients were admitted to our hospitals. And we asked the question: did outcomes differ between Black and White individuals?

We described our population, in terms of their clinical conditions, sociodemographic factors and comorbidities. We also were able to include items like the neighborhood deprivation index, which uses ZIP code-level data to assess neighborhoods socioeconomic disadvantage.

Then we followed those patients throughout their hospitalization and we noticed something: There was no difference in mortality by race. The take-home point is that once you're able to get into careinto hospital careyour outcomes are the same, which is really important.

In the study, we emphasized the point that this does not contradict what we know from population health datathat minority groups have higher rates of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. This is important because it shows the work left to do in this area.

AMA: Well, then, what do you think is missing from the public debate around health equity, structural racism and diversity and inclusion?

Dr. Yehia: In 2019, I would have said the first thing that was missing at the national level was the discussion itself. The pandemic and the protests over social injustice made this really evident in 2020 and encouraged many organizations to take a stand on the issues, which is important. But we need more dialogue and focus because that's where innovation happensin that researchers and scientists and community activists and patients and health professionals work together to come up with new ways to approach this important issue that has been under addressed for decades.

Another thing thats important is to acknowledge that we have to continue to strive to make progress in this area. Sometimes we make progress and then we plateau. Its a journey that requires dedication to change the structures and factors contributing to inequity.

Lastly, I think as a profession and health community we have to develop a common language. Many people don't have a complete picture of what we mean by health disparities, structural racism, structural inequities, and diversity and inclusion. While they are related, they are very different constructs. A diversity-and-inclusion initiative is not the same as a health equity initiative or a commitment to address structural racism.

AMA: So, where do we go in 2021?

Dr. Yehia: There are two things that should remain top of mind for physicians and care team members.

First, some are skeptical that the attention on systemic racism will last. When I talk to groups, that's what I hear. And this concern about sustainability is valid, because, after all, these are not new issues. Structural racism goes back many decades, so people worry, Is this really the time when things will change for the better? I tend to be more of a glass-half-full person, and I think it's great thatas a health system, as a community, as a countrywere addressing these important topics.

Second, especially with all the demands of the pandemic, everyone is wondering what action really means and how to stay focused. Its not an easy question to answer: How do we make sure something else doesn't come along and distract us from this important work? Thats where I think you look to your personal and organizational missions.

In other words, whats important to you? And to me and many others, this is very important.

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Q&A: 2021 will test dedication to ending health inequities - American Medical Association

Prince George, the eldest child of Kate Middleton and Prince William is the third in line to the British throne.

And while the seven-year-old is ahead of quite a few senior royals in the line of succession, by the time he becomes king, the monarchy as well as the world in general would be poles apart to what it is like currently.

The heir to the throne is currently in the third place, behind his grandfather Prince Charles and father Prince William.

Despite many royal fans and critics drawing up a probable timeline of when each member would ascend to the throne, it is highly unlikely that it would happen anytime soon as his great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth is showing no signs of stepping down and continues to rule even at the age of 94.

However, there have been rumours about Prince Charles abdicating once he takes over the throne after his mother and handing it directly to his son Prince William. This in turn, would shorten the time that Prince George would have to wait.

The young royal would only become king upon any unforeseen circumstances involving his fathers deathand that too only if he is above the age of 18.

Given the circumstances arise prior to Prince Georges 18th birthday, his uncle and Williams younger brother, Prince Harry would become the monarch till the third-in-line is old enough to assume the throne.

Constitutional expert Ian MacMarthanne explained the scenario, per Express, saying: "In the event of Prince William having become king, and dying before Prince George had reached his majority, and there having been no further provisions passed by Parliament - such as in 1953, then the rather anomalous position would arise, given present circumstances, whereby Prince Harry, as next in line who had attained a majority, would become Regent."

More:

Prince Georges ascension to throne: When will Kate, Williams son become king? - The News International

Wichita, Kan. (KSNW) The monoclonal antibody treatment is here and in use in Kansas.

To try this infusion you have to talk to a doctor. Then we get the referral, said Amy Charles with the monoclonal antibody clinic.

Charles is director of the clinic that does infusion treatments at Ascension Via Christi St. Joseph campus.

Its just showing a lot of promise. We are busy, said Charles.

Charles said they have infused about 150 patients with the monoclonal antibody treatment called Bamlanivimab or BAM for short. Hutchinson hospital through the Hutch Clinic is also using the treatment.

Monoclonal antibodies are used because some doctors believe it helps cut back on the severity symptoms for COVID-19 positive patients.

So how do you get the infusion if you want to give it a try?

Talk to your doctor and ask for it. They will contact us, said Charles. A physician then reaches out to our infectious disease team to go through inclusion/exclusion criteria, make sure that they meet those before the patient is ever even scheduled.

Ascension Via Christi, through the St. Joseph location, has ramped up capacity at the clinic. While there is not yet a large study group nationally to back the efficacy of the therapy there is anecdotal evidence it may keep people out of the hospital who have contracted COVID-19.

It is an emergency use authorization drug. Thats because they havent completed all the studies with FDA, said Charles. But they were seeing such positive results with it that they needed to get it out.

Charles says they believe it helps cut back on the severity of symptoms of covid positive patients. The monoclonal antibodies are not considered a vaccine.

You cant show up at the hospital and ask for it. You can ask your doctor to give it a try at either the Hutch Clinic or Ascension Via Christi.

It is infused in the arm and the process takes about an hour.

We keep people an extra hour after the process to make sure there are no reactions to the medication, said Charles.

She also said so far they have not seen any reactions to the infusions.

If your doctor contacts Ascension Via Christi for the treatment in Wichita you could get an appointment. Those appointments happen at the St. Joseph campus. The campus is set for COVID-19 positives to get treatment.

So we have an entrance and hallway dedicated to only these patients, says Charles. They come in and park at the designated spots for them. They call in and we come get them.

Charles says the clinic is now infusing patients five days a week. The unit has strict safety protocols to follow since it involves treating COVID-19 positive patients.

Operationally its tough. There are hospitals that have received drugs that are not able to operationalize, said Charles. But we are doing it. We are safe. If you think you want this then talk to your doctor.

The treatment is not for those on oxygen or someone already hospitalized and being treated for COVID-19. Right now patients need to be at least 65 and testing positive for COVID-19 or near that age with health risks and complications.

Talk to your doctor, said Charles. But we are doing this and we think we are making a difference.

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New therapy to treat COVID-19 patients explained - KSN-TV

Nearly a third of the of the Northwoods population falls into the 65 and older category that will soon be eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Ascension Wisconsin, Aspirus, and Marshfield Clinic will all be helping vaccinate this group.

Ascension will be contacting current patients that qualify to set up appointments. Its asking people not to call hospitals and clinics at this time.

Both Marshfield Clinic and Aspirus have phone lines and an online system to set up appointments.

Your name will get added to a list and someone will reach out to you as vaccine doses become available to schedule a time for an appointment.

Marshfield Clinic said its gotten vaccine requests from thousands of people. It says wait times on its phone lines are lengthy. It recommends using its online system.

Aspirus Senior Vice President Jesse Tischer says appointments will be set up much like when you see your provider.

Weve chosen to administer the vaccine utilizing our clinic structure. We encourage folks, because of that approach, to utilize those care locations where they normally receive care for most of their communication and the vaccine distribution, said Tischer.

Part of the reason for the clinic structure is to make sure theres staff on hand to monitor people after they get their shot.

Dr. Susan Schneider is a primary care physician with Aspirus. She says allergic reactions have been rare. There have been some mild side effects reported.

[We] really have not seen anything that has caused us any concern about the safety of these vaccines. Theyre incredibly safe and theyre incredibly effective and theyre going to be one of our most effective tools for end this pandemic, said Dr. Schneider.

You can find the links and phone numbers to put your name on a waitlist for the vaccine on WXPR's COVID-19 Vaccine Information page.

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Northwoods Healthcare Systems Working to Vaccinate 65 and Older Group - WXPR

Nursing student Brandi White, right, injects her mother, Angie Stark, left, with the Pfizer vaccine at Ascension St. Vincent William K. Nasser, MD, Healthcare Education, and Simulation Center: 1801 W. 86th Street, Indianapolis, on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021.

INDIANAPOLIS Nursing student Brandi White, 43, was a little nervous vaccinating her mother in mid-January.

Angie Stark, 62, was initially hesitant to get the COVID-19 vaccine, even though she works at a long-term care facility for the elderly. But pride quickly replaced that hesitancy when she saw her daughter at work on the evening of Jan. 16.

After White was done, her mother stood up, gave her a big hug and said, thank you.

It was amazing, White said, who also vaccinated her 21-year-old daughter that night. The three generations of health care workers volunteer at Ascension St. Vincent William K. Nasser, MD, Health Education and Simulation Center in Indianapolis.

While White and Stark administer vaccines to Indiana residents, the youngest registers patients at the front desk. Shes also very proud of her mom.

It was nice for all of us to be there together, White said. It feels good to be doing something.

Medical students are expected to be an increasingly important part of the nation's unprecedented vaccination effort. President Joe Biden's National COVID-19 strategy says clinical students, retired health care professionals and health workers who normally do not give vaccinations should all be called upon to deliver vaccines.

In White's case, her chance to administer vaccinations came through her school. It worked with the Students Assist America program, an initiative spearheaded by the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine to speed up COVID-19 vaccinations by using qualified medical students.

Watch: Fortunate few win coronavirus vaccine lottery

The effort comes as the nation faces a surplus of distributed but unused vaccines, with about 20 million doses currently waiting to be administered, according to Friday data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Theres no doubt that we have not been able to vaccinate as many people in an efficient way that we want in part because theres not enough people involved at all levels, Virginia Bader, director of Students Assist America and senior adviser to the president and CEO of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic medicine. If we could fully engage the million students in SAA, theres no doubt that wed be in a far better position than we are now.

Story continues

More than 830,000 students educated by institutions in Students Assist America are trained to vaccinate with supervision during their education. An additional 147,000 students who are trained in social work, psychology and other areas of public health are available to assist with nonclinical aspects of mass vaccination.

Many of these students still attend classes virtually and are eager to begin clinical work as part of their training.

These students have been asking for ways to help for months, their lives have been really disrupted by this and their education process has been upended, Bader said. (Volunteering) is a good way for people to gain some sense of control and agency."

White has volunteered a total of seven times. In six-hour shifts, she vaccinates between 50 to 60 patients.

That has been possible because Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb extended an executive order Dec. 23, first issued in March in response to the pandemic, to grant temporary licensing to retired or student health care workers. This included authorizing qualified students to administer the COVID-19 vaccine.

In New Jersey, students from the Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Stratford began administering vaccines after Gov. Phil Murphy issued a similar executive order. The school vaccinates 300 to 400 patients per day on campus, according to the schools dean Dr. Thomas Cavalieri. That amounts to one in every 95 patients vaccinated in the state.

Initially, we had an internal discussion as to whether we had the resources to do it. We came to a conclusion, no wasnt an option, he said. Its not a matter of should we, its a matter of we must.

Students say they feel a similar sense of duty.

MacKenzie North, a student at Marian Universitys College of Osteopathic Medicine, doesnt have the credentials to administer vaccines yet, but she jumped at the chance to assist with registration.

Feeling like you are a part of the solution is a very rewarding feeling and puts in perspective of why youre going into medicine to begin with, she said.

Dr. Amanda Wright, interim school dean, is proud of the how professional and selfless the student volunteers have been in helping to streamline the vaccination process.

She said students help offload work from other health care workers who may need a break or dont have the extra time to volunteer after working at strained hospitals.

It's also a unique learning experience for students that licensed doctors today may never have had, Wright added.

Theyre going to be our future leaders, she said. When I trained, I never saw something like this happen. These learners have, so theyll be very prepared for future crises because theyve gone through it.

Jan. 21: Amazon offers to help Biden administration with COVID-19 vaccine distribution

COVID-19 cemented Whites decision to switch her career to nursing in March 2020 and volunteering has made her feel prepared to join the workforce battling the pandemic when she graduates in December 2021.

As White and her family volunteer side-by-side to immunize Indiana residents, she felt proud to be a part of this historic effort.

This will be a defining moment in all of our lifetimes, she said. We will be a part of history.

Follow Adrianna Rodriguez on Twitter: @AdriannaUSAT.

Health and patient safety coverage at USA TODAY is made possible in part by a grant from the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition in Healthcare. The Masimo Foundation does not provide editorial input.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: COVID-19: Medical students administer vaccines, speeding up rollout

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'We will be a part of history': Eager medical students are helping speed up US vaccine rollout - Yahoo News

Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital, Mayors Office, Trevecca announce updates

Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital has named Doris Price director of its emergency department.

Price (pictured) most recently served as director of critical care services for Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth, according to a release. In her six years with the states largest faith-based, nonprofit health system, she oversaw an emergency department, intensive care unit, catheterization laboratory, and trauma and dialysis services. The hospital underwent a multimillion-dollar ER expansion under her watch.

Prior to that, Price spent five years in nursing and clinical leadership roles at Aurora Sinai Medical Center in Milwaukee.

In addition to a doctoral degree from Chamberlain University College of Nursing in Addison, Illinois, Price holds masters and bachelors degrees from Milwaukees Cardinal Stritch University. She is a member of the American Organization of Nurse Executives andPhi Beta Sigma Honor Society.

Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital is honored to welcome industry veteran Doris Price to our growing emergency department, Teresa Collins, chief nursing officer, Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital, said in the release. We are certain that Doris offers the expertise and passion needed to lead in these unprecedented times.

Cooper taps deputy chief of staff

Mayor John Cooper has named Robert Fisher as deputy chief of staff.

In June 2020, Fisher joined Coopers team as senior advisor for education, responsible for supporting Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS), Nashvilles higher education institutions and other public, private and nonprofit organizations dedicated to learning.

Fisher will report to Deputy Mayor and Chief of Staff Bill Phillips and will continue as a senior policy advisor with an emphasis on education, according to a release.

Last fall, Fisher helped MNPS design its plan for spending $24 million in federal pandemic relief dollars allocated for the system including laptops and internet hot spots for virtual learning. Fisher also supported Coopers advocacy efforts to secure more local education dollars from Congress latest round of pandemic relief funds, as well as move Nashvilles K-12 teachers closer to the top of Tennessees COVID-19 vaccination distribution schedule.

Fisher is a Rhodes Scholar and holds a masters degree in education and a masters degree in public policy from the University of Oxford in Oxford, England, as well as a bachelors degree in political science from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Robert brings a deep commitment to public service and organizational excellence to our team, Cooper said in the release. Im confident his leadership abilities will help everyone on our team to maximize their own talent and dedication as they serve the people of Nashville.

(Click on View Gallery in the above image to see a photo.)

Trevecca names VP of marketing and communications

Trevecca Nazarene University has tapped Mollie Yoder to serve as associate vice president of marketing and communications.

According to a release, Yoder is responsible for leading the universitys marketing, branding, media relations and communications efforts.

Yoder began her marketing career as Liberty Universitys director of marketing from 2009-16. Yoder most recently served as the director of marketing and membership at the Pocket Testament League, a Christian nonprofit.

Yoder holds a bachelors degree in communications and public relations and a masters degree in business management and leadership, both from Liberty University.

We are excited for Mollie to join the Trevecca family, Holly Whitby, TNU vice president of enrollment and marketing, said in the release. Not only is Mollie a great mission fit for the university; but she also brings a wealth of experience in higher education, donor relations, and spurring exponential growth.

(Click on View Gallery in the above image to see a photo.)

Send personnel info to wwilliams@nashvillepost.com.

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On the Move: 19 January 2021 - Nashville Post