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Hope on the
Horizon
Health care heroes lead the way in medical care BY CHRISTINA CAVAZOS
Parks Projects Page 4
“The vaccine will be a challenge for the health care world, in terms of administration, but there will be continued growth in healthcare, and advancements of technology . . . While COVID has been difficult for all of us, like in all crises, there is great innovation and advancements in technology and triumph of the human spirit.” TODD HANCOCK Chief Executive Officer Christus Good Shepherd Health System
Outdoor Fitness Pages 6&7
ABOVE: CHRISTUS Good Shepherd nurse Melanie Gordon vaccinates her son, Longview police officer Dusty Seay with a dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
©2021, M. ROBERTS MEDIA
SECTION C | FRIDAY, JANUARY 15, 2021 QUARTERLY | 1 OF 4
Photo by Les Hassell/News-Journal
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As health care heroes across Longview rolled up their sleeves to give and receive a COVID-19 vaccination this winter, their thoughts have been with their patients for whom they have cared over the past year. Throughout 2020, doctors, nurses and a team of health care leaders provided care to patients impacted by the new coronavirus while also continuing to provide all of their regular services that the community has relied upon for decades. When asked what they considered to be their biggest wins of 2020, health care leaders said there are too many to count. “Responding to a global pandemic. Being on the frontline of the crisis. Taking exceptional care of our community. Seeing the vaccine developed and to be administered to frontline caregivers and first responders by the end of the year. Being part of the heroism of 2020 and seeing the nurses, doctors and other caregivers sacrifice so much to a grateful public,” said Todd Hancock, chief executive officer for the Christus Good Shepherd Health System. “The teamwork and collaboration from both federal, state and local officials – we forged bonds that will last beyond this crisis and will ultimately make healthcare better for all we serve.” To show their support for health care workers, the community stepped up like never before offering words of encouragement, delivering meals and praying for those on the frontlines. Nurses and doctors said that while challenging, 2020 could be counted as one of the most rewarding of their careers. Suzy Gillespie, a nurse and director of the surgical unit at Longview Regional Medical Center Medical, said it is an honor to provide care to the community at all times, but especially amid the health pandemic. “While each day presents its own challenges, during the pandemic, these challenges allow for me to share the spirit of nursing with not only other nurses, but with my patients,” Gillespie said. “I’ve always considered my nursing profession an honorable role I take great pride in, and this year was the See HOPE, Page 3C
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Longview News-Journal, Friday, January 15, 2021
Chaplain James Hall of Hughes Chapel CME and Longview Regional Medical Center chaplan speaks to hospital staff during a Good Friday communion service. Photo by Michael Cavazos/News-Journal
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HOPE
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perfect opportunity to give that love away to hopefully inspire others, despite what each day brings.” As a COVID-19 vaccine became available late in the year, hospital leaders called the first vaccinations to health care workers a moment to remember. They described the vaccine as bringing hope to the horizon with light in the future for 2021. “The vaccine will be a challenge for the health care world, in terms of administration, but there will be continued growth in healthcare, and advancements of technology,” Hancock said. “While COVID has been difficult for all of us, like in all crises, there is great innovation and advancements in technology and triumph of the human spirit.”
Amy Fajardo, left, and other representatives from Country Tavern deliver meals to CHRISTUS Good Shepherd Medical Center. The restaurant in partnership with Alpine Church of Christ provided over 900 lunch and dinner meals to the hospital staff. Photo by Les Hassell/News-Journal
As I look forward to 2021, I am filled with hope. This is not naivety. I do not believe that all of the challenges we faced over the past year and the past few weeks are magically going to disappear. . . .
Letter from Mayor
Andy Mack Hope is powerful. Hope is a powerful thing. It causes a young woman to move across the country to go to college, to earn a degree, and make a difference in the world. It makes a young man get down on one knee and pop the question. It enables a mother, father, brother, sister, husband, or wife to get out of bed each morning when one they love is gone. And, it binds us as a people - a City, a state, a nation - promising us that no matter the difficulties we currently face, there is a better future ahead. As I look forward to 2021, I am filled with hope. This is not naivety. I do not believe that all of the challenges we faced over the past year and the past few weeks are magically going to disappear. Like you, I am dismayed by the hurt, the sickness, the political unrest, and the violence. Hope is not a glossing over of the real pain and trauma and continued hardship that we are collectively facing. It isn’t ignoring reality. Hope, rather, is the recognition that in spite of these challenges things can be better. Still, hope isn’t enough. It can’t be. Instead, it must serve as internal motivation, a basis to turn aspiration into action. As we long for a future that is better than the past 12 months and as we yearn for a 2021 that marks an end to the division, strife, and disorder that has become our reality, let us - as individuals and a community - make choices that will transform hope into positive action.
So, what I am hopeful for? I am hopeful ... … our families and individuals will continue to make wise choices. That our lives will be marked by doing the smart activities of washing our hands often, physically distancing, avoiding unnecessary large crowds, and wearing face masks. In short, I am hopeful that our community will continue to care for one another and the most vulnerable among us. … our healthcare community will continue to do their work to care for the sick and roll out the vaccine to our community. I am grateful for the work they have done on the frontlines of this fight and thankful that their dedication to serving and loving our community has not flagged. … those in our community will do their due diligence, research credible sources, and make their own wise choices when the opportunity arises for the community at large to receive the vaccine. I am thankful that as a member of the medical community I have already received both doses of the vaccine. I am thankful that I have not had bad side effects, and I am appreciative of the research and dedication it took for the vaccines to be developed. … our business community will take steps to
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Longview makes progress
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on parks projects BY CHRISTINA CAVAZOS
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ccavazos@news-journal.com
Longview residents will soon be able to enjoy upgrades and additions at the city’s parks. In 2020, the City of Longview laid a lot of groundwork on projects approved in a 2018 bond election. In 2021, residents can expect to see much more progress, especially at the city’s parks which will see much work completed in the coming year.
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Work begins in December at McWhorter Park on improvements slated as part of a November 2018 bond election. Khane and his twin brother Knoxx Taft, 10, spend their afternoon keeping cool at the Jack Mann Splash Pad in July at Lear Park. Cody Morow and his daughter Savannah, 2, spend their afternoon playing on the swing set at McWhorter Park last summer. Dryver Putney, 10, spends his afternoon playing basketball with his father Darick, in December at McWhorter Park. Photos by Michael Cavazos and Les Hassell/News-Journal
Scott Caron, the city’s Parks and Recreation director, said Longview has a vast park system and the city’s staff has done “an incredible job” maintaining them. However, one of the challenges is making “significant improvements,” he said. Fortunately, Longview voters in November 2018 overwhelmingly gave their approval to borrowing more than $104 million in bonds to upgrade public safety facilities, parks and streets. The bond was divided into three propositions, one of which called for issuing $24.7 million in bonds for improvements and additions to city parks including trails, playing fields and other sports and recreational facilities. “These projects will provide tremendous benefits by providing new amenities and opportunities to maintain a healthy lifestyle,” Caron said. “In addition, our parks will continue to draw visitors who will spend money in our community to allow our residents a greater quality of life.” In 2020, the city began work on a slew of parks related bond projects with much of the work expected to be completed in 2021 and 2022. At Lear Park, the bond calls for the city to add two new softball fields with lights, two new baseball fields with lights, convert two soccer fields to artificial turf and install lights on two soccer fields. In 2019, the city also added play features to Jack Mann Splash Pad. At Lear Park ground work is underway and the city is working on the utilities for the baseball, softball and soccer fields. At Broughton Recreation Center, the city has finished design work and is preparing to begin advertising bids for construction. Broughton Recreation Center is slated to see the construction of two additional gyms, more parking and a renovated entryway. Meanwhile, Broughton Park will see new playground equipment and pavilions, an extended trail, more play features at its splash pad and an improved field. Upgrades to Lear Park and Broughton Recreation Center and Park are tentatively scheduled for completion in spring of 2022. Bond work for the cities’ other parks is being split into two phases. In 2020, the city began work on the first phase which includes upgrades at Lois Jackson, McWhorter, Spring Creek, Patterson and Stamper/Womack parks. Those improvements are tentatively planned to be completed in late 2021. Work started in 2020 at McWhorter Park, Lois Jackson Park and at Stamper Park. Improvements at Spring Creek and Patterson will begin later. At McWhorter Park on Toler Road, the existing playground will be replaced, a new playground will be added, a new basketball court will be added and a sand volleyball court will be installed. At Lois Jackson Park on Bill Owens Parkway, the existing pavilion and playground will be replaced, an additional pavilion and playground will be added and a restroom will be installed. And at Stamper Park on Fair Street, the existing playground and pavilion will be replaced, the basketball courts will be moved and reconstructed, a new pavilion installed and the parking lot improved. Womack Field at Stamper Park will be reconfigured with two new flag football fields, a new football field, ticket booth and concession stand. The planned improvements at Patterson Park include replacing the existing playground, resurfacing the existing basketball court and improving the parking lot. At Spring Creek, the existing playground will be replaced, basketball court updated and a pavilion and restroom installed.
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Outdoor
Fitness
1 From virtual runs to working out outdoors, Longview residents took to the city’s trails, streets and outdoor spaces for their fitness routines in the past year. The COVID-19 pandemic created a need for people to social distance, and the great outdoors provided residents with the perfect space to get in their workout routines.
Get Healthier at every step From Staff Reports
The past year saw many organizations switch to virtual runs to avoid organized gatherings. Even the acclaimed Boston Marathon went virtual and, in a way, was held in Longview for the first time in 2020. Meanwhile, locally owned fitness retailers, such as Woolley G’s Bike and Fitness, saw an increase in sales in 2020. “We have been really, really lucky throughout the entire year of 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic,” Woolley G’s co-owner and operator David Hernandez said in 2020. “We have seen a lot of sales and service work, just people coming in to facilitate their outdoor adventures a little bit more now than ever before. So, we have been really happy through (the pandemic) from a business perspective.” Woolley G’s sells bikes, accessories, nutrition products and apparel and offers maintenance and repair services. The store also hosts group bike rides for the community. When the pandemic started, people began turning to alternative modes of transpor-
tation and getting into fitness and outdoor activities. In March, children’s bike sales increased 56%, and adult leisure bike sales increased 121%, according to the NPD Group, a market research group that monitors consumer purchase data across a variety of industries. Since March, most people walking through Woolley G’s doors have been new customers as people looked for new modes of fitness, Hernandez said. City of Longview trails, such as the Paul G. Boorman Trail and the Cargill Long Park Trail, also saw an uptick in the number of residents visiting them. Callen Scroggins, who works at a gym, said in the spring that his workout time is a big stress reliever. When gyms were temporarily closed amid the pandemic, he found himself looking for that release. “I’ve been out here every day,” he said in April. “It is a stress reliever and so many people find that relief at the gym, so now you
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Longview News-Journal, Friday, January 15, 2021
4 “We’re just finding ways to get outside — planting on the patio or doing things like that just to get outside instead of being inside with all of those walls closing in . . . It can be depressing, especially for people who deal with anxiety or depression, to stay inside. It’s a lot better to get outside.”
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CAROLINE SCROGGINS can get outside, get some exercise and get that stress reliever this way.” Callen and his wife, Caroline, said they had done workouts at home, but Caroline said in April that even though it’s a workout, the walls are still there. “We’re just finding ways to get outside — planting on the patio or doing things like that just to get outside instead of being inside with all of those walls closing in,” she said in April. “It can be depressing, especially for people who deal with anxiety or depression, to stay inside. It’s a lot better to get outside.” While more people reconnected with outdoor workouts, seasoned runners did not let the pandemic alter their planned races. In Longview, many local runs transitioned to “virtual” events in which people ran a set mileage or course at their convenience, instead of gathering en masse for a planned event. Even the acclaimed Boston Marathon saw Longview residents take to
this city’s streets for runners to complete the course. Longview residents Manny Alaniz, 51, and Tom Smith, 60, qualified to participate in the race that has historically started in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, and finishes in Boston. The Boston Athletic Association announced in late May that the 124th Boston Marathon, originally scheduled for April 20, would be held as a virtual event, following the cancellation of the race because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Alaniz and Smith were required to complete the 26.2-mile distance within a six-hour time period between Sept. 7 and 14 and provide proof of their times to the Boston Athletic Association. The pair ran a course in September that went through and north of Longview with other runners in tow. Smith finished in 3:48:40, while Alaniz finished about 10 minutes behind him in 3:58:37.
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“I’m running the Boston Marathon with the people that I run with, the people that I train with and I can’t put a price on that,” Alaniz said in September. “I’m happy the way it turned out. It’s emotional how the group came together on their own free will. I thought it was just going to be another long run where I would have to provide my own support, and it’s not going to be like that anymore.” The tradition of exercising outdoors is continuing in the New Year. About 30 to 40 Longview runners and cyclists started off the 2021 New Year with a Resolution Ride and Run from Woolley G’s Bike & Fitness. “As runners are an eclectic group, we find any reason to run,” said Gary Ford, a co-owner of Woolley G’s. “It’s just a good way to hold us accountable for maybe making some poor decisions on New Year’s Eve.”
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Crystal Frank and her son Ethan, 9, ride their bikes on the Paul G. Boorman Trail.
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Tom Owens tries to keep warm as he walks his dogs Sonny and Sally along the Paul Boorman Trail in November.
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Cassie Dittrich spends her morning walking her dogs Effie and Rue on the Paul G. Boorman Trail.
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David Hernandez, co-owner of Woolley G’s Bike & Fitness, is pictured with store inventory. Photos by Michael Cavazos and Les Hassell/News-Journal
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Don Knoop, 81, uses hiking poles while rollerblading on the Paul G. Boorman Trail near H.G. Mosley Pkwy. Brian Weaver and his grandson Cole Oden, 3, spend their afternoon walking Cargill Long Park Trail. Belinda Seward spends her afternoon walking Cargill Long Park Trail.
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Longview News-Journal, Friday, January 15, 2021 news-journal.com
“Our cardiac team is thrilled to be leading the way in improving care for the patients to continue to receive their heart care, right here, in Longview . . . With many of the same capabilities as a traditional pacemaker, we are now able to offer an alternative that is cosmetically invisible to the patient post-implementation and implanted within 15-30 minutes.” DR. JORGE MASSARE Electrophysiologist Longview Regional Medical Center
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Longview Regional Medical Center
Expanding Services
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marks 40th anniversary BY CHRISTINA CAVAZOS ccavazos@news-journal.com
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Longview Regional Medical Center marked its 40th anniversary by expanding its range of procedures and celebrating milestones in its patient care. While caring for patients impacted by COVID-19, the hospital continued to grow its line of regular services that the community has relied upon for years. For example, the hospital celebrated performing its 300th Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) and added more cardiology services. In November 2020, the hospital announced that electrophysiologist, Dr. Jorge Massare, began treating atrioventricular (AV) synchrony with what has been called the world’s smallest pacemaker. “Our cardiac team is thrilled to be leading the way in improving care for the patients to continue to receive their heart care, right here, in Longview,” Massare said. “With many of the same capabilities as a traditional pacemaker, we are now able to offer an alternative that is cosmetically invisible to the patient post-implementation and implanted within 15-30 minutes.” Marketing Director Libby Bryson said with a team of 13 providers, Longview Regional Medical Center strives to provide comprehensive services to address the full range of heart health needs to the East Texas community. “To date, our facility is considered a cardiac training hospital for TAVR procedures providing excellent teaching for fellow cardiology physicians, surgeons and TAVR reps,” Bryson said. The Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) procedure is a less invasive heart procedure than open heart surgery. The procedure is meant for high-risk patients with aortic stenosis, a disease that affects 1.5 million Americans, according to the hospital. In 2015, Longview Regional was one of the first hospitals in East Texas to pioneer the cardiac procedure for high risk heart patients. In addition to heart care, Longview Regional Medical Center provides a wide range of health care services including maternal care, emergency services, critical care, rehabilitation, re-
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spiratory care, wound care, surgical services and infusion. In 2020, the hospital cared for many people in the community amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “Our hospital considers the biggest win of 2020 quite simple — our outstanding team of healthcare workers,” Bryson said. “Longview Regional’s team has navigated the pandemic daily taking each day in stride with positivity and hard work. Each employee has risen to the occasion and done a wonderful job ensuring that our hospital remains a safe place for the East Texas community to receive care.” From kind words of encouragement to meal deliveries, Bryson said the community showed overwhelming support for the health care community throughout the year. “Weekly kind hearts extend their thoughtfulness to our hospital, it could be a simple note/card of encouragement, or a pastor offering to pray over our team — it’s undeniable that Longview Regional Medical Center has not been impacted by any single act of kindness,” she said. Bryson noted the pandemic, while challenging, allowed the hospital’s health care team to shine in their care for the community. “This year, our team remained committed to working together during an extraordinary time, beyond anything anyone has ever seen,” she said. “Each individual, each impact made an immeasurable difference in our healthcare community, and most importantly to our patients in the East Texas community.” With a COVID-19 vaccine now available, the hospital has provided vaccinations to more than 1,500 people, including health care workers and EMS, Bryson said. Research has shown that the vaccines, provided by pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Moderna, are about 95% effective. “As a hospital we remain encouraged that hope is on the horizon for the entire healthcare industry for 2021 and the years ahead,” Bryson said. “We are not giving up hope, and the safety of our healthcare team and our patients remains our top priority.”
Nurse Shelly Gilcrease administers Longview Regional Medical Center’s first Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine to Dr. Brett Burnett in December at Longview Regional Medical Center. Longview Regional Medical Center staff gather for a Good Friday communion service. Nurse Kristin Hooper of Longview Regional Medical Center participates in a Good Friday communion service being held on the hospital helipad in April 2020. Stress Technician Stacy Evans performs an ECG on Pine Tree ISD student athlete Max Gidden, 15, during the Play It Safe free teen heart screening event at Longview Regional Medical Center. Photos by Michael Cavazos/News-Journal
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Longview News-Journal, Friday, January 15, 2021
Your Health Can’t Wait We know you are concerned about your health. We are, too. That’s why we are taking extraordinary measures to make our care environments safe for every patient. Whether you have a chronic health condition that requires ongoing medical care with a physician or you are experiencing sudden symptoms of a serious, life-threatening condition, like heart attack or stroke, please don’t delay your healthcare. Your life may depend on fast action. We’re here and ready to help you – now.
Learn how we’re keeping patients safe. Visit LongviewRegional.com/covid-19.
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In an emergency, call 911.
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Giving Care
Staying Connected BY CHRISTINA CAVAZOS
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ccavazos@news-journal.com
Celebrating its 85th year of serving Longview, Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center marked its milestone anniversary by adding services and specialists while caring for the community during an unprecedented year. “This past year was bittersweet,” said Todd Hancock, chief executive officer for the health care system. “On the one hand there was a lot of hardship for the frontline caregivers and our community. On the other hand, we witnessed the strength of those caregivers, the dedication of our teams and the tremendous advancements in the practice of medicine in the face of this challenge. We saw undaunted courage on the part of our healthcare heroes as they treated and cared for the most vulnerable in our community.” Throughout the past year, Christus Good Shepherd strived to provide topquality care to the community amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Hancock said patients with COVID-19 accounted for up to one-third of the hospital’s patients, at times.
“We have felt their prayers, and their kindness went such a long way to bolster morale,” he said. “We just can’t say thank you enough.” In efforts to continue giving back and growing services, Good Shepherd continued to expand its offerings for Longview and the surrounding community. In 2020, the hospital saw advancement in its heart program with the addition of electrophysiology, a field that focuses on the electrical activity of the heart. In January, the hospital also broke ground on a new, $8.5 million cardiovascular center that, when completed later in 2021, will provide even more services for the community. “Another special milestone has been a big step in our journey with CHRISTUS Health: we welcomed Angela Lidia Szczawinska of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth into the Christus Good Shepherd ministry,” Hancock said. Szczawinska is serving the hospital in Mission Integration, with a focus on associate wellbeing. The hospital also welcomed a record
“Christus Good Shepherd nurses have always considered ourselves part of this community . . . Through this pandemic, we really became connected with even more patients and touched more lives. Many of our patients needed higher acuity care and were here for extended stays. So, we were able to really get to know our patients and their families, and it was such a blessing to be able to celebrate their recovery and return home.”
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TERESA HALCOMB Chief Nursing Officer Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center
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Nurses, doctors and a team of caregivers provided care to those patients while remaining dedicated to the hospital’s everyday care of delivering babies, performing life-saving surgeries and other services that the community has relied upon for decades. Chief Nursing Officer Teresa Halcomb said 2020 showcased innovation in nursing as the team explored new patient care models and found creative ways, such as using FaceTime technology, to engage with patients’ loved ones. “Christus Good Shepherd nurses have always considered ourselves part of this community,” Halcomb said. “Through this pandemic, we really became connected with even more patients and touched more lives. Many of our patients needed higher acuity care and were here for extended stays. So, we were able to really get to know our patients and their families, and it was such a blessing to be able to celebrate their recovery and return home.” From meals delivered to the hospital to words of encouragement, Hancock said the community stepped up in 2020 to show support for the hospital’s associates.
number of female specialists in primary care, general surgery, OB and gastroenterology to its team in 2020, Hancock said. Of particular note, Christus Trinity Clinics added a new midwife group and a team of certified nurse midwives. A midwife is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth. The new group, which is the only one of its kind in Longview, allowed Christus Good Shepherd and Christus Trinity Clinic to expand its prenatal and post-natal care for mothers in the community. As a COVID-19 vaccine became available in December, the future remains bright for health care at Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center. “The vaccine will be a challenge for the health care world, in terms of administration, but there will be continued growth in health care and advancements of technology,” Hancock said. “While COVID has been difficult for all of us, like in all crises, there is great innovation and advancements in technology and triumph of the human spirit.”
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Nurse Michelle Hardin of Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center is provided with a free lunch courtesy of Jucy’s Hamburgers and Louis Morgan No. 4. The two businesses were working together to provide area nurses with a free hamburger lunch.
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Nurse Amie Cockrell administers Longview’s first Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine to Nurse Melissa Montgomery of the Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center’s Critical Care Unit, at Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center.
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Nurse Jenna Lucas prepares for the administration of Longview’s first batch of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine at Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center. Administrative Director Keith Kelly and EMT Alexandra Zeigler of Christus Mother Frances Hospital - Sulphur Springs prepare masks to be returned to their owners after using a UV light decontamination trailer to sterilize masks for the staff at Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center. Photos by Michael Cavazos/News-Journal
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Longview News-Journal, Friday, January 15, 2021
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Excellence in health care is at the heart of any thriving and healthy community, and in 2021, CHRISTUS Good Shepherd will proudly open the doors to Longview’s first Cardiovascular Center of Excellence.
Cardiovascular Center of Excellence Fast Facts • The Cardiovascular Center of Excellence will be located at CHRISTUS Good Shepherd – Longview on the first floor of the Medical Plaza Parking Garage with designated VIP Parking • 21,500 square feet for clinical offices and comprehensive cardiac health services • Provides capacity for 12 existing specialists with opportunity to expand further • Combines cardiology, electrophysiology and cardiovascular surgery into a single medicallyintegrated clinic
One-Stop Services • Minimally Invasive Vein Clinic
• EKG & Echocardiography
• Nuclear Imaging
• Heart Health & Device Education
• Cardiac Rehabilitation
• Minor Procedure Rooms
• Stress Testing
• Pulmonary Function Testing
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