NORTH COUNTY TEAMS
Groundhog Dinner
HEAD FOR POST SEASON
Tonasket Kiwanis Groundhog Dinner at THS Commons, Friday, Feb. 5 from 5-7 p.m.
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SERVING WASHINGTON’S
OKANOGAN VALLEY
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Oroville School Board tackles discipline issue
WE’VE GOT SPIRIT
Staffs In-House Suspension and Solutions Rooms (IHS), rather than being sent home. High School Principal Kristin Sarmiento was asked to explain how OROVILLE – In an effort to get a students were disciplined in her building. “It starts with a positive reinforcement handle on discipline, especially what to do with suspended students, the school system. We have student expectations board approved the hiring of a para- posted and they are reviewed often. We also meet once a week professional for each building to give them “I’ve been talking to to go over problems that we are working an in-house option for parents, they want on,” she said. improper behavior. The high school The approval came something done teaches social behavafter a lot of discusnow! I think In-House iors, but when there sion between the to be a secondary board, administrators, Suspension would be needs intervention because a teachers and parents a great program.” problem is escalating at the Monday, Jan. the school arranges 25 meeting and the Kolo Moser, School Director, for teacher and parent previous board meetOroville School Board contact and perhaps ing in December. The even teacher, parent paras will be assigned and counselor contact. to monitor a place for “Typically the first one or two times students who are being disciplined, in the elementary it will be something like the having school detention handles the Solutions Room that was staffed there in problem. There is after school detention past years. In the high school it will be for repeat offenders and they find out a place where suspended students can spend their time in In-House Suspension SEE DISCIPLINE | PG A2 BY GARY A. DE VON
EDITOR@GAZETTE-TRIBUNE.COM
Gary DeVon/staff photos Oroville High School held a Spirit Week leading up to this week’s high school athletic events including wresting against Chelan and Republic on Wednesday and boys and girls basketball against Manson on Thursday. Above, Some of Oroville’s Cheerleaders fire up the crowd at a bonfire behind the Catholic Church. Left, Alexis Allenby is caught by Mikaela McCoy, Bonnie Roley and Jennifer Cisneros to complete a stunt during the game against Manson. Below, James Thacker dressed as Oscar the Hornet shows his spirit.
Jeffko elected as Mayor Pro Tem for Tonasket Approve Stewart’s mission to keep flags up to code BY KATIE TEACHOUT KATHERINE@GAZETTE-TRIBUNE.COM
TONASKET - City Council Member Claire Jeffko has been named Mayor Pro Tem for the next two years, replacing Jill Vugteveen who has servied in that role since January 2014. A mayor pro tempore assumes mayoral duties in the event of a mayor’s absence. Jeffko, a city council member the past two and a half years, said she had confidence in her ability to fulfill the role. City council members made a motion allowing decorated war veteran Michael Stewart to take over raising and lowering flags in Tonasket; modifying flag poles with winches and keeping flags and poles up to code. Stewart said he embarked on this mission when he approached a local business and asked them to lower the flag on 911. “She refused, because it was too difficult,” said Stewart. Stewart said the U.S. Armed Forces Legacy would pay for new cables to
modify flag poles. Stewart said he would like to see American flags taken down if they were not treated with respect, adding it was usually due to a lack of education. Stewart had been at Tonasket High School earlier in the day to present information on proper flag etiquette and said he would be happy to share the information with other interested organizations. Stewart said he ordered a new City of Tonasket flag at his own expense to fly at the Tonasket Visitors and Business Resource center. Jeffko offered to kick in $75, and Mayor Patrick Plumb offered to pay for shipping. In department reports, City Clerk and Treasurer Alice Attwood said she was approached by Oroville’s Arnie Marchand about starting a Neighbor Day where councils of neighboring cities would tour each others’ cities and share ideas. Police Chief Darren Curtis said a fulltime position as a police officer has been
SEE COUNCIL | PG A2
NVH board approves purchase of new equipment
Replacing aging cardiac monitor, endoscope BY KATIE TEACHOUT KATHERINE@GAZETTE-TRIBUNE.COM
North Valley Hospital registered two patients over 103 years old in 2015, according to Jana Symonds in her yearend report at North Valley Hospital’s Jan. 28 board meeting. If investing in high-quality equipment helps more Okanogan County residents live longer along with increasing hospital revenue, NVH is on the right track. “Investing revenue back into equipment is what we are about,” said NVH Board Member Herb Wandler. The comment was in response to Board Member Adam Tibbs questioning a request made by NVH’s Kelly Cariker for a new GE Cardiac Monitor System at a cost of $99,818.16. “It’s a very expensive system, but this
does all our cardiac monitoring,” said bypassing the possibility of human error Cariker. “We want to do anything we can retyping in vital signs read electronically. for the safety of our residents within the “It’s more the standard of care in larger zip code.” facilities,” said Cariker. “We would be Cariker said the hospital’s current car- the first Critical Access Hospital (CAH) diac system is “well in the county to have past it’s end of life and this.” starting to be a con“We owe it to our “We want to do anycern, as they no longer patients,” said Zwicker. thing we can for the make parts for it.” “Anyone with any type Cariker said a new safety of our residents of cardiac monitorsystem was budgeted ing that needs done within the zip code.” in last year, and venneeds this equipment. dors brought in differ- Kelly Cariker, Chief Information Officer We don’t want to be in North Valley Hospital ent equipment for staff a position to have to to test. The GE model ship anyone out.” they chose is compatWhen Tibbs asked ible with the system already in place, why the request was being made now, Cariker said they budgeted almost Cariker said he didn’t want to wait until $118,000 for a new system, and CEO the current system failed to order the Mike Zwicker had negotiated a steep dis- new one. count to bring the price down to under “This isn’t something you can bring in $100,000. a vendor and get it installed in a week,” The new system will access direct- said Cariker. “This can take up to a ly into the hospital’s computer system, month to get installed.”
OKANOGAN VALLEY GAZETTE-TRIBUNE Volume 112 No. 4
“We want this for best practice,” added Zwicker. “When anyone comes into ER it is best to monitor them; it’s one of the first things we do.” “The system we have now is older equipment and we always worry about the viability of equipment over five years old. Anytime something is five to seven years old it becomes obsolete; technology is always changing,” explained Cariker. “This is one of those pieces of equipment we can’t get away with not having,” said Helen Casey. Surgery Manager Trevor Rise said every time he has been on the floor, at least one patient was being monitored on the system. The motion was moved and seconded to purchase the cardiac unit, with no one opposed. Rise next approached the board to request the purchase of a Pentax HD endoscopic system with a five year service contract at a cost of $155,362.54. “This is a capital budget item that has
SEE EQUIPMENT | PG A2
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been on the agenda the past six years.,” said Rise, adding the hospital does over 200 procedures per year; a service the hospital has been providing for almost 20 years. “Our current system is over ten years old, and in medical years that’s a long time. We’re going on year 14, so it is past it’s life expectancy,” said Rise, adding he had just received a letter from Olympus saying the hospital’s current model was no longer supported. Pentax sales representative Mark Pyle said Olympus owns 80 percent of the market on this equipment, thus they were able to dictate to hospitals when they needed to update their systems. “We knew this day was coming and it is here,” Rise said. Rise said the hospital in Republic has the Pentax system. “I took my surgery tech up there and we looked at it and we both like it. They have had it two years
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