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Chandler Service Wound healing Club honors center is honored Only hospital awarded in Arizona members Sixty-one Chandler Service Club Flower Girls were honored at Chandler Service Club’s 79th annual Charity Ball, held recently at Scottsdale Resort and Conference Center. The high school seniors attended seminars throughout the year on etiquette, financial management, image, safety and self-defense, and donated many hours of their time to group community service opportunities. Each girl also established a personal project of her own. Club President Candace Pedersen welcomed 460 guests to the event, which honored Life Member Barbara Knox with the club’s first lifetime achievement award. Three Chandler Service Club Scholarships were awarded to Flower Girls Nicole Briones, Mikaela Miller and Jessica Thomas. Chandler Service Club was established in 1933 when a small group of women decided to help hungry children in Chandler and cooked, delivered and served hot lunches to the students. Eighty years later the women of Chandler Service Club look forward to again providing food to Chandler school children with the club’s new backpack program launching this spring. For more information about Chandler Service Club, visit chandlerserviceclub.org.
An award for achieving high patient outcomes for 12 consecutive months is given to Chandler Regional Medical Center’s Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Oxygen Center by Healogics, the nation’s largest provider of advanced wound care services. The center is the only hospital in Arizona to receive the honor. More than 5 million people suffer from chronic wound afflictions every year. “We are very honored to receive this award,” says Brian Paterick, M.D. the center’s medical director. “Our center heals the chronic wounds of patients who might otherwise experience an amputation or other life-threatening condition.” Healogics recognizes healthcare facilities for going above and beyond in patient care and safety. To receive designation as a Center of Distinction, the center must meet certain key clinical indicators, including having a 92% patient satisfaction rate and a 91% wound healing rate within 30 median days to heal, among other quality outcomes. Earlier this year, the center received its third accreditation from the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society. The center is located at 1875 W. Frye Rd. in Chandler. For more information, call 480-728-3701 or visit ChandlerRegional.org.
April 20 – May 3, 2013
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HEART from page 1
Along with camp, the Nick & Kelly Children’s Heart Fund provides medically related financial assistance to families of children with heart disease, as well as an annual Family Day Heart Talk — a symposium where parents receive upto-date information on congenital heart disease treatments while their children enjoy a behind-the-scenes tour of the Phoenix Zoo.
INTENSIVE CARE: The Nick & Kelly Children’s Heart Fund, founded by Dan and Margaret Majetich, helps families like that of Sun Groves resident Noah Sherman, who underwent his first heart surgery when he was 8 days old. Submitted photo
“We know what these parents are going through and we try to help them,” Dan explains. “The thing that we found to be the best help for the children is the camp program, because a lot of these kids have low self-esteem. They can’t do gym. They can’t do sports, so they’re excluded from a lot of activities. A lot of them are on meds, so they aren’t able to spend nights
at other people’s homes.” Camp del Corazon has two pediatric cardiologists and 20 to 25 nurses on staff, and many of the counselors are former campers. Still, sending Noah to camp for the first time “was almost as gut wrenching as signing the informed consent papers for his heart surgeries,” Sherman recalls. Noah, who was diagnosed with complex congenital heart defects shortly after birth, underwent two heart surgeries and two heart catheterizations before his first birthday, and required “fairly intense athome nursing care” during his early years. While the bright student and budding guitar player faces more surgeries in his future, his camp experiences have taught him that he’s not alone. “Most of the campers have ‘zippers’— scars that run down the midline of their chests,” Sherman explains. “Many have similar physical endurance and stamina limitations, so Noah doesn’t feel like the slowest runner who always has to stop and take a break to catch his breath. Heart camp gives him confidence. It’s a unique life experience that I, as a parent, cannot give him. “I’m eternally grateful to Dan and Margaret for what they’ve done and continue to do,” she adds. “Out of their own grief, they’ve created something that has given back a thousand fold.” The Nick & Kelly Children’s Heart Fund Golf Challenge will be held Sat., April 27 at Arizona Golf Resort. To learn more or make a donation, visit nickandkellyfund.org. K.M. Lang lives and writes in Sun Groves. To contact her, email kmlang@santansun.com.
2013
Celebrating 11 years of service.