February 11, 2021
FREE
DOUGLAS COUNTY, COLORADO
A publication of
LoneTreeVoice.net
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 10 | LIFE: PAGE 12 | SPORTS: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 15
VOLUME 20 | ISSUE 1
Recall process initiated Effort targets four DCSD school board directors amid COVID-19 controversy BY JESSICA GIBBS JGIBBS@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
to have access to this tool, according to a news release from the hospital. The technology being used, known as augmented reality, layers 3D, computer-generated images over the user’s real-world surroundings. In the case of spinal surgeries, the augmented reality headset superimposes an image made by a CT scan of the patient’s body onto the patient, allowing the surgeon to see exactly where he needs to make an incision or place hardware. This is important because each patient’s spine and body are going to be slightly different. Knowing the exact layout of each patient’s anatomy provides a significant advantage. “I feel like this technology allows me to take what I’ve mastered and amplify it in a way that the
A group seeking to oust four members of the Douglas County School Board has formally initiated the recall process and now awaits the green light from Douglas County’s clerk and recorder to begin collecting signatures on petitions. Castle Rock resident Nate Ormond, who is spearheading the effort, submitted proposed petitions to the county on Feb. 2, seeking approval to start the signature-gathering process in hopes of recalling directors Christina Ciancio-Schor, Susan Meek, Elizabeth Hanson and board President David Ray. “We’re ready to rock and roll,” Ormond said. The proposed petitions allege directors have shown a “lack of leadership” by frequently shifting plans during COVID-19, and claims they mismanaged tax dollars by purchasing an e-learning program that weathered a rocky launch to the school year. The petitions also say board directors have shown a “lack of trust and transparency” by not being responsive enough to emails and by disregarding survey results, and claims they “misled the public on the departure of their superintendent.”
SEE SURGERIES, P6
SEE RECALL, P16
Dr. Brent Kimball wears the xvision headset that allows him to see an image of his patient’s spine before making any cuts. PHOTO BY ELLIOTT WENZLER
Sky Ridge offers augmented reality-assisted surgeries Headset is essentially a way to see inside patient’s body BY ELLIOTT WENZLER EWENZLER@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
When Dr. Brent Kimball looked down at his spinal surgery patient in an operating room on Jan. 28, he found himself with an ability very few have ever experienced: the equivalent of X-ray vision. Kimball, a neurosurgeon at Sky Ridge Medical Center in Lone Tree, was wearing a special headset created to augment his vision and allow him to view the inner workings of his patient’s body. The 68-year-old man’s spine was there, in 3D in front of Kimball’s eyes. And he hadn’t yet made a single cut.
MAKING PROGRESS
Dine-in service not back to normal, but capacity continues to grow P2
“We can actually see where the spine is underneath the skin, the fat, the muscle tissue, the ligaments, we can see where the nerves are, we can see where everything is without even making an incision,” Kimball said. “It allows the approach, the planning, to be very, very precise.” Over the next three hours, Kimball worked to relieve the man’s lower back and leg pain, which was being caused by a slipped vertebrae. For the first time, Kimball was aided in the spinal surgery by this cutting-edge tool, which allowed him to be even more precise. “Accuracy is really important,” he said. “There’s a lot of nerves nearby and they’re very, very sensitive to even the smallest inaccuracies.” The near-eye display headset, made by Augmedics, is custom fit for each user. Sky Ridge is the first hospital in the Denver metro area
NOT ALONE
Couples share the challenges of dating and relationships during the pandemic P12