FA L L 2 0 1 7
|
VOLUME 15
|
NO. 2
A bridge, seven decades long Fred Watkins has received care at The Clinic since its late 1940s beginnings (PAGE 2)
For three generations of Bantas, The Clinic has been a “community� (PAGE 4) Breast-cancer survivor takes fast track to becoming Project H.E.R. mentor (PAGE 6)
70 TH A N N I V E R S A R Y E D I T I O N
NEW CHOICES FOR CARE
MEDICARE ANNUAL WELLNESS PROGRAM Elisabeth Mahmud, AGNP-C | 541-757-3750 For Elisabeth Mahmud (Ma-Mood), the journey to become an Adult-Geriatric Nurse Practitioner began as a nursing assistant, listening to patients. “My favorite stories came from older adults who had been in this world the longest.” Observing how being listened to helped them heal emotionally, she earned a master’s in psychology. However, after time as a counselor, she realized she wanted to help patients take charge of their physical health as well. Ms. Mahmud offers risk assessments, disease-prevention counseling, and information on available resources for Medicare patients of The Corvallis Clinic’s primary-care providers, located in the Asbury Building in Corvallis, North Albany Village, and Waverly Drive Albany. Outside of her practice, she enjoys taking road trips and exploring the outdoors with her husband and their three young children. She is certified in Adult-Gerontology Primary Care by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board.
FAMILY MEDICINE Rebecca Pengilly, M.D. | 541-967-8221 A self-described “country doctor” and our newest primary care provider at Waverly Drive in Albany, Dr. Rebecca Pengilly chose her specialty because she likes to provide individualized care for the whole family, making sure to listen closely to people’s problems. “More than 50 percent of the time, the diagnosis is what the patient says it is.” She then clearly explains the issue and discusses options. “I also pay attention to cost and only order necessary tests that will change treatment.” She also strongly believes in “physical, occupational, and speech therapy and in the importance of psychological aspects of well-being.” Outside her practice, she enjoys reading, walking, playing board and card games, and listening to movie soundtracks. She and her husband have three children, one of whom is still living at home. She also has two dogs and two Maine Coon cats. She is certified by the American Board of Family Medicine.
ORTHOPEDIC SURGERY & SPORTS MEDICINE, Matthew Taylor, M.D. | 541-754-1276 With lifelong participation in sports and a childhood goal of becoming a physician, it’s no surprise Dr. Matthew Taylor chose a career in primary care sports medicine. “It gives me the opportunity to be part of a team and be on the sidelines providing medical coverage.” Dr. Taylor’s goal is to get people back to the activities they love without drastic intervention. “If we can make simple changes to training regimens, lifestyle, or foot wear, and help patients feel better—that’s a win. I try to do as much as I can conservatively and then refer to our surgeons when needed.” He says he is very specific when explaining to patients about their issue. Dr. Taylor likes to camp and hike with his wife and four young children. He is certified by the American Board of Family Medicine with a Sports Medicine Certificate.
INTEGRATED BEHAVIORAL HEALTH, Cara Wheeler, Psy.D. | 541-967-8221 For Cara Wheeler, what was merely a minor field of study while pursuing a pre-medical degree, eventually became her passion. “Psychology found me and I put it on like a favorite pair of jeans that had gotten lost in the closet.” She says her patients would describe her as approachable and warm. “I can identify with people from all walks of life, knowing that being human is an imperfect state.” As an integrated behaviorist, Dr. Wheeler works with patients of The Corvallis Clinic’s primary-care providers at Waverly Drive Albany in a non-traditional, mental-health treatment style. Not a conventional psychotherapist, she instead helps patients identify any mental-health barriers that may get in the way of them feeling their best. Dr. Wheeler treats people from two years old on up to seniors and has special training in eating-disorder recovery. Outside her practice, Dr. Wheeler loves to “explore the world” with her family. She enjoys arts and crafts and is learning to have a green thumb. “Also, as a mommy, I love engaging in learning activities and play.” She is a licensed clinical psychologist.
On the cover: Taken by Jodi Herrling of Emagine Marketing and Photography, the photo depicts the continuation of compassionate care The Corvallis Clinic has afforded local citizens since shortly after World War II. Fred Watkins, right, holds a portrait of Kurt Aumann, M.D., a Clinic founder, with help from Lance McQuillan, M.D., a Clinic family physician and The Clinic’s current chief medical officer. Dr. Aumann treated the young Fred Watkins in 1947, and Dr. McQuillan carries on that care to this day as the now 86-yearold’s physician. On page 2, read all about “Friendly Fred,” as well as other tales published in this 70th Anniversary edition of The Clinic Connection. To order this 70th Anniversary book, go to CorvallisClinic.wufoo.com/forms/70th-anniversary-order-form/.
Inside 2
Cover story: For seven decades, ex-businessman has chosen his care at The Clinic
11
Sound reasoning: Over-the-counter hearing devices offer opportunity, concern
A publication of The Corvallis Clinic 444 NW Elks Drive, Corvallis, OR 97330 541-754-1150, Judy Corwin, Director of Marketing & Public Relations
4
Giving back: Albany woman, family continue to find a community at The Clinic
12
Imaging mission—Ethiopia: MRI technologist Bart Pierce works to narrow radiology gap
6
Fighting attitude: Breast-cancer survivor, Project H.E.R. mentor chooses not to back down
13
Send comments or questions to Tony DeMeo, Editor, at tony.demeo@corvallisclinic.com.
New MRI coming: Updated system to offer more patient comfort
CorvallisClinic.com
8
Dr. William Ferguson retires: Helped build Occupational Medicine Department to leading local position
10
New director: Dr. Tavis Cowan takes reins as medical director of Occupational Medicine
11
Quicker, safer detection: Dr. Griffith Liang among few Oregon pulmonologists using new test for lung-cancer diagnosis
FA L L 2 0 1 7
14 16
Refugee physician: Marina Arbuck, M.D., says experience as U.S. newcomer made her a better doctor and person Clinical Research news: Sheena Strohmayer named new manager
More than 100 providers in 27 specialties serving the mid-Willamette Valley at these locations: Asbury Building Aumann Building Immediate Care Center North Albany Village Philomath Family Medicine QuickCare Albany QuickCare Corvallis Surgery Center Walnut Boulevard Waverly Drive Albany
1
Fueled by his love of off-road motorcycling, Fred—seen far left as a young man in the mid-1950s—ventured into the business of the two-wheeled vehicles. Fred owned motorcycle franchises throughout Oregon, including one on Third Street near downtown Corvallis, shown in top photo, one of three in the Albany-Corvallis area and seven in other parts of the state. He also ran a nationwide motorcycle parts distribution company (see business card, bottom image). Photos courtesy of Fred Watkins.
Friendly Fred Former owner of area cycle shops has been a Clinic patient for 70 years BY CURTIS WRIGHT FOR THE CORVALLIS CLINIC
When 15-year-old Fred Watkins returned with his family to the Willamette Valley, he learned firsthand why the original Native American tribes allegedly called it “The Valley of Sickness.” “When we moved back to Corvallis, I started having serious hay fever problems—real, real bad,” said the now 86-year-old. “My mother took me to a doctor’s office downtown.” That doctor was Kurt Aumann, M.D., who was just starting an internal medicine practice. Aumann was one of the original founders of The Corvallis Clinic. Fred remembers climbing the two flights of stairs to the second floor of the Rennie Building above what was then the J. C. Penny Company at the corner of Third and Madison in downtown 2
Corvallis. (In later years, the Albright & Raw Rexall Drug store occupied the space, and more recently, the Many Hands Trading store.) “Dr. Aumann gave me a test on my back for 80 things I could be allergic to,” Fred said. “I reacted to 70 of them.”
People Person “Friendly Fred’s” was the name of Fred Watkins’ motorcycle parts distributing company. Spend a few minutes with Fred, and you’ll quickly understand why the name. Fred is a real people person. He enjoys making new acquaintances, forging new friendships. And he ends many of his sentences with a smile. “On my daily walk, I see lots of people, many with dogs. I like to stop and talk with their dogs—and the people, too.” A fourth-generation Oregonian, Fred’s great-grandfather, Levi Franklin Watkins,
came to the Oregon Territory in the early 1850s. His parents, Kenneth Oren Watkins and Dorothy Lois Estock, are both listed in the “Pioneers of Benton County Oregon” GenWeb genealogical record. Fred was born in 1931 in Delake (now Lincoln City), Oregon. Before he was 15, he had lived in Philomath, Eugene, Milwaukee, Lone Pine and Darwin, Calif., Los Angeles, and, finally, Corvallis. “We moved around a lot because of my father’s work. He was a mining engineer in the Bohemia gold mines, and later in Portland’s mercury mines. When we first moved to California, my father was the mine foreman at a tungsten mine near Lone Pine. “ After the U.S. entered World War II in 1941, the government sent his father to build Liberty ships in Los Angeles, where his mother went to work on the rent control board. “And I got my first job,” Fred said, “at ten years of age, putting on price tags in a grocery store for 10¢ an hour. “A while later I got a job delivering newspapers. There was a competition among the delivery boys to see who collected the most money, and the winner got to use the manager’s motor
scooter to make deliveries. It was a thrill to ride that scooter at 4:00 a.m. over the rain-slicked, electric trolley rails in the streets then.” Those early morning rides through the streets of Los Angeles were undoubtedly what sparked Fred’s lifelong love for motorcycling.
Friendly Fred’s In 1961, Fred bought the Honda motorcycle franchise for Corvallis. He rapidly built a business fueled by the West Coast’s love for the two-wheeled moving machines, adding the Yamaha, Suzuki, and Kawasaki franchises. Fred had three franchises in Corvallis, two in Tillamook, four in Bend, and one in Roseburg. He also operated his nationwide motorcycle parts distribution company, Friendly Fred’s.
Fred sold Fred’s Honda in 1988. But the name still lives on at 1925 SE 3rd Street in Corvallis and on Facebook: “Fred’s Honda. Helping You Have Fun Since 1961.” “Many motorcycle magazine publishers and others in the business have told me I know more about the motorcycle industry than any man alive. I was involved in almost every facet of it.”
“Dr. (Lewis) Krakauer had a great sense of humor. A Walking Man In 1947, the year Fred went in for He asked me to get him allergy tests with Dr. Aumann, two a bunch of off-color other young physicians practiced bumper stickers, and then in that downtown Corvallis office: he put them on the other Frederick Asbury, M.D., an obstetriciangynecologist, and Robert Marcum, M.D., doctors’ cars.” an internist. In that year, these three FRED WATKINS, ON THE CLINIC’S LONGTIME INTERNIST
doctors formed a partnership that, about CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
Brief history of The Corvallis Clinic the latter which ended up leaving the organization in 1997. Founded in 1947 by Drs. Frederick Asbury, Kurt Aumann During this time, The Clinic named its 3680 NW Samaritan and Robert Marcum, The Corvallis Clinic has grown to be the Drive location the Asbury Building and its 444 Elks Drive largest multi-specialty medical group in the mid-Willamette location the Aumann Building, in honor of its founding fathers. Valley. The Clinic was initially located in downtown Corvallis The Clinic Surgery on Third Street above Center opened in 2007, what is now the Many the first outpatient Hands Trading store. As surgery center in the the practice grew, the mid-Willamette Valley. In physicians moved into a 2008, The Clinic opened larger building at NW its North Albany Village 27th Street and Tyler office with three primary Avenue in Corvallis in care physicians. 1952. This building now Recognizing the need houses the Benton County to provide patients more Health Department. convenient access to In 1978, The Clinic health care, The Clinic headquarters moved opened a retail clinic on to 3680 NW Samaritan Monroe Street across Drive to be near Good The first office of The Corvallis Clinic was located above Albright & Raw Drugs, from Oregon State Samaritan Hospital. The right, in downtown Corvallis. University in 2014. In Immediate Care Center 2015, the name changed to QuickCare and a second clinic opened in the early 1980s, offering diagnosis and treatment opened in Albany. of urgent, non-life threatening illnesses and injuries. The Corvallis Clinic now has 10 locations across the During the 1990s, The Clinic expanded by purchasing the Elks Lodge and three local practices: Albany Family Medicine, mid-Willamette Valley and has 113 independent providers in 27 specialties. Philomath Family Medicine, and Corvallis Family Medicine, FA L L 2 0 1 7
3
Friendly Fred CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3
three years later, was officially named The Corvallis Clinic. After James Riley, M.D., joined the practice in 1949, he became Fred’s primary care provider. Dr. Riley also saw Fred’s parents and his sister, Jenean. “I saw Dr. Riley for many, many years, not just as a patient, but as a friend, even after he retired.” Fred recalled Lewis Krakauer, M.D., coming to his home in the late 1950s when doctors still made house calls and then, years later, helping him pull a stunt on other Clinic physicians. “Dr. Krakauer had a great sense of humor,” he said of the internist who practiced 32 years at The Clinic. “He asked me to get him a bunch of off-color bumper stickers, and then he put them on the other doctors’ cars.” These days Fred is being cared for by Lance McQuillan, M.D., a family physician located at The Clinic’s Waverly Drive Albany location and also The Clinic’s Chief Medical Officer. To see and talk with Fred, you’d think he’d never been sick a day in his life. But he’s a man who beat colon cancer and survived a massive heart attack— both around the turn of the century. What advice does he have for others? “I never smoked. I never drank— well, maybe a taste of someone else’s drink once or twice in my life. And for the last 21 years, I’ve been walking two miles a day, every day, down on that city path off of Queens.” So, if you ever find yourself on the Periwinkle Creek Bike Path in Albany, keep an eye out for Fred Watkins. You’ll know him instantly. He’s the friendly one. 4
Jeanette Banta and her family stand with Clinic Internist Robert Wirth, M.D., at the Mennonite Village in Albany. From left is Jeanette, husband Dennis Banta (Dr. Wirth is his physician), mother Leona Schrock, Dr. Wirth, son Ryan Banta, and daughter Stacey Banta. Photo by Jodi Herrling/Emagine Marketing and Photography.
When a clinic becomes community Multi-generational connection motivates Albany woman to give back BY HANNA KNOWLES FOR THE CORVALLIS CLINIC
“It’s been part of my DNA for so long.” Asking Jeanette Banta, who has been a patient of The Corvallis Clinic for 49 years, to pinpoint why she started coming to The Clinic is like asking her why she has eyelashes. She just does and she couldn’t imagine it any other way. She said it might have been related to her husband’s health insurance at work when she sought a pediatrician for their 11-month old daughter, Stacey. However, for Banta, why she started coming to The Clinic doesn’t matter. What matters is the consistent, quality care that fuels her loyalty and desire to give back to The Clinic community. “I liked that the doctors engaged with me about my kids’ health concerns,” said
Banta. “I always felt they were very kind and tender to the children.” Banta’s mother, 94-year-old Leona Schrock, and her sister Judy are currently patients. Her father, Vernon Schrock, past Linn County commissioner, was also a patient until he passed away in 2001. “It’s been a good fit for all of us,” said Banta. “We’ve been patients for a long, long time.” The multi-generational affair continued with the birth of Banta’s son Ryan in 1971. Dr. Ronald Copeland, who retired in 2001, was her obstetrician-gynecologist. As luck would have it, Dr. Copeland was on vacation when Banta went into delivery. Dr. Frederick Asbury, one of The Clinic’s founders, ended up delivering her son in The Clinic’s original 27th Street location.
As a baby, Ryan had constant ear infections and was eventually referred to Dr. Jay Kent, The Corvallis Clinic’s Ear, Nose & Throat specialist at the time. At 15-months-old, Ryan had his first set of ear tubes. “We were very nervous about our baby having anesthesia and for us not to be with him,” said Banta. “Dr. Kent was very kind and reassured us he would do fine.” As her son and daughter grew, Dr. Michael Wong, now retired, and the late Dr. Eldon Younger served as their pediatricians. “At the time, it was about $15 for a visit,” said Banta. Banta’s father also had a positive experience with The Corvallis Clinic specialty care. In the mid-1980s he had a lung removed and was treated by surgeon Darrel Bibler, M.D., and pulmonary disease specialist Robert Lakin, M.D. Impressed by the care her husband received, Leona Schrock transitioned to The Clinic in the early 2000s when she needed a new doctor. She said she was confident it was the best fit and has never regretted her decision. With a roughly 30-year history with The Clinic, Schrock is a loyal patient. “They’ve done such a great job over the years,” she said. “Why would I change now?” Schrock’s current provider is Yvonne Keep, FNP-BC, at The Corvallis Clinic at Waverly Drive Albany. Banta’s trust in the providers deepened after witnessing the compassion her father-in-law received when he was in hospice. “My father-in-law was in a hospice facility and on a Saturday Dr. Olsen and her little boy visited him,” said Banta. “That really touched me and that’s when I changed to start going to her.” At one time, Dr. Jennifer Olsen, a family physician now practicing in Salem, was the primary care provider for Banta, her mother, sister, mother-in-law, and father-in-law. Banta is now a patient of Rebecca
FA L L 2 0 1 7
Jeannette Banta, left, listens to The Clinic’s Facilities Manager Anton Grube, along with other members of the Patient and Family Advisory Council at a recent meeting. The council aims to improve safety, patient satisfaction, and quality. Banta said she respects how receptive The Clinic is to suggestions. Photo by Jodi Herrling/Emagine Marketing and Photography.
Pengilly, M.D., a family medicine provider at The Clinic at Waverly Drive Albany. Her husband of 53 years, Dennis, sees Robert Wirth, M.D., an internist at The Clinic’s North Albany Village location. “The Clinic has been a big, positive part of my life. I trust the professionals I’ve been sent to see,” said Banta. “Dr. Olsen, if she wasn’t sure about something, she’d send me to a specialist. I always appreciated that about her.” In 2014, Dr. Olsen started a walking group to help motivate people to stay active. Corvallis Clinic physical therapist Aimee Casemier now leads the Waverly Walkers in Albany. Banta, already an active person, partially thanks to Dr. Copeland encouraging her to stay fit during her pregnancies, eagerly joined the group. In addition to fitness classes, yoga, and dancing, Banta continues to join the Waverly Walkers twice a week as the last of the original walkers. Not only does Banta benefit from services and programs offered by The Corvallis Clinic, she actively volunteers her time to improve care for other patients.
After completing a survey, Banta was contacted by Find-a-Physician Specialist Trista Graeber to inquire if she would be interested in joining a council dedicated to improving safety, patient satisfaction, and quality: the Patient and Family Advisory Council, which Graeber leads. “I had expressed some concerns on a post-appointment Clinic survey, and they were impressed with my feelings and opinions,” said Banta. She said the council members are very invested and she respects how receptive The Clinic is to suggestions. “It’s been fun to be a part of the community and the process,” she said. “You feel like you’re still a viable part of society.” Parking lot visibility, lighting, and signage improvements have been implemented as a result of the council’s recommendations. For Banta, The Clinic has become more than a health care provider. It’s become a community that inspires her to stay active, to serve fellow patients, and to help the greater Corvallis and Albany area. “The Corvallis Clinic is an integral part of the community,” she said.
5
In battling breast cancer, schoolteacher shows it’s all in the right attitude BY KEITH BOWERS FOR THE CORVALLIS CLINIC
Judging by Sandy Baumgartner’s appearance and vitality, one would never suspect that she recently completed a breast-cancer treatment regimen that lasted more than eight months. Her athletic build, bright eyes, and stylish clothes and haircut suggest the opposite—that cancer has never touched her. Talk to Sandy for a few minutes, though, and you learn that she went through chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation treatment, and that her attitude made all the difference in how she fared. At her chemo appointments, for example, she would arrive dressed in fabulous outfits and with food to share with everyone. “I never left the house without being put together,” said Sandy, 57, a teacher at Mountain View Elementary School who has lived in Corvallis for nearly three decades. “I had a choice.” She said her husband, Mark; her two sons, 27-year-old Jordan and 22-year-old Jared; and her sister were among family and friends who provided crucial support.
Sandy also helped herself by rarely missing a day at the gym. The workouts kept her physically active during treatment and helped her maintain social contact with people—many of whom told her every day that she looked great. “It was everything,” she said. Her treatment began in August 2016 at The Corvallis Clinic Oncology Department and was completed at Samaritan Health Services during a transition time between The Clinic’s department closing and the new Willamette Valley Cancer Institute opening. (The Willamette Valley Cancer Institute is now offering oncology treatment services at The Clinic’s Aumann Building, 444 NW Elks Drive in Corvallis). Her final round of radiation treatment came on April 19, and her final round of reconstructive surgery is scheduled for October 11. Sandy’s irrepressible attitude has earned her another accomplishment: becoming a mentor with The Clinic Foundation program known as Project H.E.R., whose acronym stands for Help, Enlightenment and Resources. Among other things, Project H.E.R.
Sandy is seen here with her husband, Mark, at a “Survivor Day” event in June. She cites Mark, her sons, Jordan and Jared, and her sister among family and friends who provided crucial support. Photos courtesy of Sandy Baumgartner. 6
Sandy Baumgartner stands on the deck of a houseboat above the Columbia River during a Pink Sistas retreat last summer. Project H.E.R. put her in touch with Pink Sistas, a group founded by Deb CollinsHart that raises funds for and organizes survivor events. Sandy’s experience fighting cancer inspired her to become a Project H.E.R. mentor.
provides patients support from the time of cancer diagnosis through survivorship. Once limited to breast cancer, the program now is open to all patients with different cancer diagnoses. Through Project H.E.R., Sandy worked with Joann Stutzman, who until recently was the program’s nurse navigator. She describes Stutzman as a vital ally in her fight with cancer. “There’s not one question I could ask her that would seem weird,” she said of Stutzman. “And she always had something for me,” citing hats, books, and meals as items she provided. Stutzman’s efforts illustrate Project H.E.R.’s mission to prepare patients for what’s to come in the health care process, then to help them by providing support and links to outside resources. “We aim to be one of the first people they talk to in the process,” said Kathy Nepper, Project H.E.R.’s new nurse navigator and also Sandy’s chemotherapy nurse during treatment. Said Sandy, “They just made everything easy—seamless,” including providing a person to take notes during physician appointments. Project H.E.R. links patients to many community resources, as well as offers its own supportive services. Donna Bella Lingerie in downtown Corvallis, for example, helps women with bras, breast forms, and post-surgical cami’s.
The American Cancer Society’s Look Good Feel Better class provides makeup and teaches beauty techniques for women undergoing cancer treatment. Project H.E.R. partners with Dream Dinners to provide meals for cancer patients through the Cook for Cancer program. Hair Body and Sole Salon and Spa offers complimentary services for women going through cancer treatment. Before she started chemotherapy, Sandy received a manicure and pedicure as well as a bob haircut there—she and a group of friends made a sort of celebration out of the event. Project H.E.R. also put Sandy in touch with a group called the Pink Sistas, which organizes social events, weekend retreats, and produces a calendar featuring breast-cancer survivors. It’s where she bonded with a fellow breast-cancer survivor named Yvonne, who’s now a close friend. “She has been a godsend,” Sandy said. That type of bond is what Project H.E.R. looks to build in its mentor program. “Many mentor relationships turn into lifelong friendships, where the mentor becomes part of the patient’s family,” said Parker Cochran, outreach coordinator, who also worked with Sandy during her treatment. Project H.E.R. pairs newly diagnosed cancer patients with “mentors” who have been through a similar diagnosis, as well as the process of treatment and recovery. Cochran said Project H.E.R. has mentors of various ages. The youngest are in their mid-20s, while the oldest are in their 70s. She also said the program advises women to wait a year from the time they finish treatment to become mentors. This way, she explained, a person can come to terms with the experience, process it, and grieve as needed, and then become strong enough to take on the emotions of a person who’s been recently diagnosed. But Sandy didn’t want to wait, so Project H.E.R. gave her a shot. In late July, three and a half months after her final radiation treatment, Sandy met with her first patient. Cochran and Nepper said Sandy mirrored her own experience by bringing many things, including bras, photos of herself throughout treatment, and tips on clothing, as well as how to maintain an athletic regimen during treatment. (The woman she met with is a longdistance cyclist.) “I don’t think Sandy realizes how helpful and encouraging she was to that patient,” Nepper said. “It’s exciting to see one of your own patients pay it forward, I believe it helps them heal.” Sandy said she wants to give to others what she got from Project H.E.R. Help, Enlightenment and Resources. “I look forward to sharing my experience with others,” she said. FA L L 2 0 1 7
Kathy Nepper is Project H.E.R.’s new nurse navigator Kathy Nepper, RN, OCN, is the new nurse navigator for The Corvallis Clinic’s Project H.E.R. Nepper succeeds Joann Stutzman, BSN, RN, OCN, who held the position for 12 years. Nepper describes the role of a nurse navigator as a person who offers education and individualized assistance to patients and Kathy Nepper, their families to help overcome healthcare RN, OCN system barriers. “It has been my passion in my 39 years of nursing to develop and maintain relationships with my patients through care coordination,” said Nepper, an Oncology Certified Nurse. “I have the ability to listen to a patient and hear what their needs are. I can address these needs, find solutions and communicate a plan.” She said that having such a plan saves time for patients and relieves stress during what’s already a trying process. To read the full Kathy Nepper article, go to CorvallisClinic.com/ healthblog/Nepper.
Willamette Valley Cancer Institute now at The Clinic Willamette Valley Cancer Institute (WVCI) is now open and seeing patients at its newest location in Corvallis, providing more options for cancer patients in Benton, Linn, and Lincoln counties. To schedule an appointment, call 541-754-1256. Located inside The Corvallis Clinic’s Aumann Building at 444 NW Elks Drive, the cancer clinic includes six exam rooms and Keith Wells, M.D. an infusion area with nine chairs, where patients can receive chemotherapy and other treatments. “Getting the treatment that people want, where they want it is important,” said medical oncologist Dr. Keith Wells, who serves as one of two primary physicians caring for patients at The Clinic, alongside 10 staff members. “Bringing other options here to Corvallis is going to help people stay local,” he said. The Corvallis Clinic considered potential oncology partners from throughout the Northwest, deciding that Eugene-based WVCI is the right fit. “WVCI’s central location offers great access,” said Kelly Hower, RN, Director of Clinical Services for The Corvallis Clinic. “Together, we’re giving patients another choice where they can receive their services. That’s huge.” To read the full WVCI article, go to CorvallisClinic.com/ healthblog/WVCI. 7
Building from scratch
Retired Occupational Medicine Medical Director Bill Ferguson, M.D., guided department’s growth—with help BY TONY DEMEO, CLINIC CONTENT MARKETING SPECIALIST
Dr. Bill Ferguson admitted that he and Diana Hendrickson, the current Occupational Medicine Director, at first didn’t know what they were doing. About a year into his practice at The Corvallis Clinic, he was asked by then-CEO David Kobriger if he wanted to create an occupational medicine department. “I answered, ‘I don’t know anything about creating a department,’” Dr. Ferguson recalled. But Kobriger didn’t yield. “‘I want one,’” the Occupational Medicine Medical Director remembered the CEO retorting. “So, Diana and I sat down and made a department.” And when he retired in August after 41 years of practice, 24 of them at The Corvallis Clinic, Dr. Ferguson left a department that now provides health and safety guidance for more than 1,300 businesses and government agencies and sees an average of 20-30 patients a day. Not bad for two people who did not know what they were doing.
From the Appalachian Mountains to the Mid-Valley Dr. Ferguson’s journey to medical director of The Corvallis Clinic Occupational Medicine Department began in a high valley between the Great Smokey and Blue Ridge mountains in far western North Carolina. There, in the town of Waynesville, where his father was postmaster, he dreamed of being a nuclear physicist and then an astronaut. “I was going to go to 8
“There wasn’t a day when I went home that I had not learned something,” said Dr. Bill Ferguson of his 23 years in occupational medicine. “That’s probably what I’m going to miss most.” Annapolis and fly, but I had to wear glasses,” he said. Eventually, the science-loving young Bill decided to become a doctor. He earned a BA in chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1969 and then stayed to earn a Doctor of Medicine from its medical school in 1973. “Instead of going 15 miles down the road to the county rock pile,” he said laughing, referring to Duke University in Durham, Chapel Hill’s archrival in basketball and… everything else. Although recruited hard by Chapel Hill, he instead drove to Utah with a medical-school friend to attend the McKay-Dee Family Medicine Program. “I thought if I don’t go west,” he said, “I’ll never see the rest of the country.” He ended up even further west when he began his family medicine practice with fellow McKay-Dee resident Dr. Bill Origer in Albany in 1976. “I got recruited pretty heavily by Albany because there was a shortage of docs there at the time,” Dr. Ferguson said. He was one of 10 physicians and four family practitioners who began practice around then. Diana, a clinical nurse at
the time, left a clinic in Monmouth to work in his Albany practice and began a long professional association with him. Dr. Ferguson eventually joined a different Albany group practice before joining The Clinic as an associate family physician in 1993. He became a shareholder in 1995.
Building a department By the early 1990s, The Clinic was involved with some occupational medicine. It was doing drug testing and starting to form relationships with local employers, but with no physician involvement. “It was his idea, not mine,” Diana said laughing, referring to Dr. Ferguson and the creation of an official Occupational Medicine Department. “I didn’t want to do it.” With that said, Dr. Ferguson credits its growth over the last 23 years to Diana. “I have to give all the success to this group to her. People would come to us and ask, ‘Can you do this?’ And we’d look at each other and say, ‘Yeah.’ And then we’d sit down and ask ourselves, ‘How the hell are we going to do that?’ And then Diana would come up with something; she always made it work.”
Transportation exams, along with flight One such example is when they were In addition, he has been an assistant asked by one of the local wood product and immigration physicals. professor of family medicine at Oregon “(Dr. Ferguson) has seen people he plants to develop a questionnaire to Health & Science University and is a had cared for as little kids during his member of the American College help employees better understand the for Occupational and Environmental signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion. family practice days as adult injured workers,” Diana said. She said it was Medicine. It was years before access to all the hard to tell people who he saw as a During his tenure at The Clinic, Dr. online tools available now, but they family physician that he was leaving. Ferguson served on the Board of created one. “And for about six years after he joined Directors twice, 1998 to 2000 and During the early days of the new The Clinic,” she said, “people were 2007 to 2010. He was board president department, Dr. Ferguson completed asking, ‘Could he just see me this one in 2009 and 2010. “That was a great a “mini-residency” program at the time’ for this or that?” experience,” he said, “because you get University of California-San Francisco to know the business of medicine and The department also offers drug School of Medicine called the things that are impacting physicians screening and employee health and Occupational and Environmental that they don’t understand Medicine Continuing Medical but are important, such as Series, which entailed finances and governance.” periodic two-week sessions He also served as Interim over two years. Medical Director from He said Occupational 2011 to 2012 and from Medicine at The Clinic then 2015 to 2016, a role he was “sort of the poor step called challenging. “I’m not child.” Its first location was a confronter,” he said. “If I between the Immediate Care could dance around an issue Center and Physical Therapy I would, but you can’t as in the Asbury Building. medical director. It made It was relocated to the me learn to confront folks Neville Building across from more easily.” Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center and then to “Such compassion the Aumann Building. The and integrity” department resided in a Occupational Medicine Director Diana Hendrickson and Dr. William The only thing Dr. trailer during the remodeling Ferguson stand outside The Corvallis Clinic Occupational Medicine Ferguson likely will have office. Diana started working with Dr. Ferguson upon his arrival in of Aumann and the building to confront now is the the mid-valley right out of residency in 1976. Later, in the 1990s, as of Walnut Boulevard location, they began to create the Occupational Medicine Department, they challenges of fly fishing in were tasked with many challenges. “And then Diana would come up where it has resided since the rivers and streams with something,” Dr. Ferguson recalled. “She always made it work.” 2010. “It just made sense for around Coeur d’Alene, us to be put with Physical Therapy.” Dr. safety programs for area employers, Idaho, where he and his wife, Rita, plan Ferguson said. such as Hollingsworth and Vose, to live in retirement. The department now has 15 staffers, Georgia-Pacific, Consumers Power Inc., “I enjoyed family practice,” he said, along with two physicians, Tavis Cowan, and the Corvallis School District 509J. “but occupational medicine has been M.D., who is taking over for Dr. Ferguson The programs include onsite hazard the best because I got to talk to people as medical director, and Christopher and ergonomic assessments, hearingabout all the interesting things they do Swan, M.D., who practices at The Clinic conservation promotion, and workers’ in their work and private lives. Initially at Waverly Drive in Albany. Dr. Ferguson compensation guidance. we got thrown a ton of curves that we called the current staff “probably the Activities, roles beyond practice had to scratch our heads and ask, ‘How best ever.” Dr. Ferguson also has been medical do we do this?’ As time went on, not The majority of care Occupational director for EMTs and first responders as much, but there was still a learning Medicine offers is workers’ in several industries in Linn and curve. There wasn’t a day when I went compensation claims, both new and Benton counties and has served on home that I had not learned something. follow-up exams. The department the Emergency Medical Services That’s probably what I’m going to also does pre-employment fitness-forCommittee for the state of Oregon. miss most.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 duty and truck-driver Department of FA L L 2 0 1 7
9
Ferguson CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9 Usually in retirement stories, it is the retiree who is given the last word. But due to her 41-year association with Dr. Ferguson, the last word is granted to Occupational Medicine Director Diana, who was also a patient of his, as were her late husband, three children, and foster child: “I remember years ago I was admitted to Albany General Hospital with a headache, and he drove down on a Sunday evening from his home in Salem to admit me and write orders. I remember him saying, ‘I’m taking care of her; she works with me.’ ” “Ferg,” she said, using the moniker many people call him, “just has such compassion and integrity. If you’re going to have a boss, you have to have someone to look up to. If you wouldn’t entrust the care of your own children to him, why would you work for him? I always felt really good about that.”
What others are saying about Dr. Ferguson “It has been an honor working with you these past 24 years. Employees from Corvallis School District always reported back to me as to how caring and thoughtful you were in taking care of them and their needs. They couldn’t have asked for a better physician to assist them with their injuries. Many of these employees reported they would like to have had you as their Primary Care Physician. You were, also, there to assist me if I had a question or needed your expert advice on how to help my employees. You always took the time to return my calls and to carve a little time from your busy schedule for me. The Corvallis School District family thanks Dr. Ferguson for his many years of service and wishes him well as he enters this next phase in life.” KAREN SALENDAR, RISK MANAGER, CORVALLIS SCHOOL DISTRICT 509J
“It has been a joy working with Dr. Ferguson. He is one of the most approachable, collaborative, and hard-working physicians I have had the pleasure to work alongside.” MICHAEL GRAY, DPT, CORVALLIS CLINIC PHYSICAL THERAPY MANAGER
“An exemplary physician whose service to The Clinic is unparalleled.” CHRISTOPHER SWAN, CORVALLIS CLINIC OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE PHYSICIAN
10
Tavis Cowan, M.D., is new medical director of Occupational Medicine Tavis Cowan, M.D., is the new medical director of the Occupational Medicine Department, taking over for William Tavis Cowan, M.D. Ferguson, M.D., who retired in late August after serving in that role for 22 years. A family physician who began his career at The Clinic in 2015 in the Immediate Care Center, Dr. Cowan said he wants to build on what Drs. Ferguson and Christopher Swan, the latter currently at Waverly Drive in Albany, and Occupational Medicine Director Diana Hendrickson have accomplished over the years. “I want to continue down the path they have blazed. Hopefully, we can also work even closer with the rest of The Clinic, especially primary care, orthopedics, and physical therapy. We want to be a significant resource to help workers stay safe, healthy, and productive.” Dr. Cowan, who grew up in Eastern Oregon and earned his undergraduate degree from Oregon State University, said occupational medicine gives him the chance to help people in a key part of their lives. “We spend much of our adult lives at work. Assisting workers and employers to promote safety and healthy living provides a unique opportunity.” To read the full article on Dr. Cowan, go to CorvallisClinic.com/ healthblog/TavisCowan.
Dr. Liang offers new lung-cancer diagnosis procedure Griffith Liang, M.D., a pulmonary medicine physician at The Clinic, is one of the few doctors in Oregon to offer a less-invasive procedure for lung-cancer diagnosis. “My goal is to try to find lung cancer earlier with the least invasive and least risky techniques,” said Dr. Liang. Griffith Liang, M.D. “Defining lung cancer as early as possible is our best chance to cure people.” When attempting to diagnose lung cancer, a physician will often perform a navigational bronchoscopy. This involves passing a thin tube (bronchoscope) through a patient’s nose or mouth, down their throat, and into their lungs, guided by three-dimensional images. According to the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, for patients with low or intermediate risk of lung cancer, more than 50 percent of diagnostic bronchoscopies yield inconclusive results.
Sound Reasoning
New hearing-aid category presents opportunity—and concern BY DIANE L. BACH, CERTIFIED HEARING INSTRUMENT SPECIALIST
One of the latest developments in the hearing-aid world is the passage of the Over-The-Counter Hearing Aid Act, signed into law by President Trump on August 18, 2017. This legislation falls under the FDA Reauthorization Act, which aims to encourage new medical innovations and, hopefully, reduce the cost of certain drugs. It also seeks to guide the FDA in the Diane Bach creation of a category of over-the-counter hearing aids for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss. So, what affect will this new category have? It will certainly lead to more people pursuing help for their hearing loss. It is uncertain, however, who will sell these devices and what type of devices will be available. There is concern among
FA L L 2 0 1 7
To reach a conclusive diagnosis, such patients will typically receive follow-up screenings or an additional invasive procedure, potentially leading to further complications and costs. To avoid additional invasive procedures, Dr. Liang has recently integrated DNA testing into some bronchoscopy procedures. When a diagnostic test is inconclusive, and a patient has a low or intermediate risk of lung cancer, Dr. Liang sends the lung-tissue sample to the Veracyte CLIA laboratory for genome testing. The test, called Percepta, analyzes gene alterations that occur in current or former smokers’ lungs to determine the risk of lung cancer. Since the test became commercially available in the U.S. in July 2015, national trials indicate that when a bronchoscopy is paired with genomic testing, the ability to inform a lungcancer diagnosis improves. For high-risk patients, Dr. Liang said invasive procedures are necessary to diagnose the exact type and stage of lung cancer so that the best treatment can be offered. “I want to provide this test in order to help patients avoid unnecessary procedures and complications from them,” said Dr. Liang. “Treatment for lung cancer has been advancing very rapidly, and over the next few years, there may be many more options for a patient’s treatment.”
audiologists and other licensed hearing instrument specialists that this will open a Pandora’s Box of confusion and problems. For example, who will determine what a mild hearing loss is? How advanced can ‘moderate hearing loss’ be before it exceeds the criteria? The bottom line is we don’t want to see the general public seeking hearing aids without some professional guidance and medical clearance. What we do know is that the FDA is directed to have something available within three years from passage of the legislation. All of us would like to see the cost of hearing aids come down, but most professionals already offer a good basic digital hearing aid at an affordable price. More insurance companies are also offering a hearing-aid benefit. Half the battle of getting hearing aids is adapting to them, being motivated to wear them daily and recognizing the benefit of having them. I am here to answer your questions and help guide you through the process of what type of hearing aids to purchase, what style is best for you, and what you can afford. Hearing Instrument Specialist Diane Bach can be reached at The Corvallis Clinic Ear, Nose and Throat Department, 541-754-1251.
11
since 1988. He is also the director of RAD-AID Ethiopia. The three-week trip was filled with contradictions, to say the least, starting with some negative surprises.
“It was like rush hour all the time”
Bart Pierce stands in the Imaging Department at The Corvallis Clinic, where he is an MRI technologist. Pierce, the director of RAD-AID Ethiopia, traveled to Ethiopia to train providers at the Black Lion Hospital in Addis Ababa. Photo by Jodi Herrling/Emagine Marketing and Photography.
Narrowing the radiology gap Clinic MRI technologist takes expertise to Ethiopia BY KEITH BOWERS FOR THE CORVALLIS CLINIC
Those of us who don’t work in health care might never consider the importance of radiology until we or a loved one need an X-ray, a CT scan, an ultrasound procedure, or an MRI scan. Yet radiology in all its forms is nothing short of crucial in diagnosis and treatment. “There’s hardly any diagnosis made without some type of imaging,” said Bart Pierce, an MRI technologist at The Corvallis Clinic Imaging Department. Of course, Pierce was speaking about developed countries such as the United States. Radiology is rare in many Third World nations. One such place is Ethiopia. Until recently, the capital city of Addis Ababa—a city of about 4.6 million—had only a single MRI machine, Pierce said. By comparison, he said, Corvallis has three, while there are probably six in the Corvallis-Albany-Lebanon area and dozens in Portland—cities whose combined population is less than 12
one million. The absence of radiology has drastic consequences. As many as 4 billion people worldwide are at risk for health problems and death that could be avoided if radiology were available, according to RAD-AID International, a nonprofit group that aims to improve radiology in underserved regions of the world via education and training. As examples, RAD-AID cites infants lost to complications that could have been avoided using ultrasound, deaths from breast cancer that could have been detected with mammography, and limbs that could have been saved after trauma if X-rays had been available to identify fractures. To help offset this imbalance, Pierce traveled to Ethiopia last spring. His mission? To train providers at the 800bed Black Lion Hospital in Addis Ababa where an MRI system had recently been installed. Pierce, who attended Oregon State University, has worked in radiology since 1986 and with MRI technology
Pierce’s hotel was located near Black Lion Hospital in a poorer section of Addis Ababa. “It was owned and staffed by a group of wonderful Ethiopians who treated me like family,” he said. While he said he never feared for his safety, he was overwhelmed at the crush of people and volume of activity. “It was like rush hour all the time,” he said. Pierce described streets filled with cars and sidewalks lined with people— some walking, some standing, some sitting or lying down. He said the hospital was just as crowded. “It was the same thing, but the people were all sick,” he said. “In radiology we literally had to push people aside to walk down the hallway.” Another negative surprise was the lack of ability to communicate, even though many Ethiopians speak English. In the U.S., “there are signs for everything: where to go, what to do, what not to do,” Pierce wrote in a RADAID report covering the trip. In Addis Ababa, however, “I found very few signs, and the ones there, I couldn’t read [because they were not in English.] At the airports there are no itineraries, just announcements that you can’t understand.” Communication with his family back in Oregon was also problematic. The Ethiopian cell phone system is excellent, he said, but calls to the U.S. are very expensive, and not all American phones work there. Internet-based video services such as Skype are an option, but stable web connections are nearly as rare as radiology equipment. Pierce described the technology at Black Lion Hospital as lacking, too. “Infrastructure and IT issues occur daily,” he wrote in his report. “Power
is problematic even though a backup generator is in place. It seldom kicks on at the appropriate time.”
Transformative Experience Pierce admits to having second thoughts about the endeavor, wondering whether he had what it took to see it through. But soon, positive surprises turned things around and contributed to a transformative experience for him and Black Lion Hospital’s radiology department. He found the technologists proficient in running the machine; they had received some training from the company that installed it, and some of them had worked on the other local MRI system at a private facility. What’s more, working 12-hour days alongside the radiology staff, Pierce found them well trained, professional, and hardworking. “The technologists who I worked with were just phenomenal,” he said. “I would have brought any of them home with me. They were as knowledgeable and professional as any techs I’ve ever worked with.” They also showed remarkable hospitality and generosity: “The technologists here took me in and treated me like family. I have never been so well taken care of and so appreciated.” For example, one day Pierce got sick
with a gastrointestinal bug, so he missed a shift at the hospital. Upon his return, the technologists were unhappy with him—not because he’d been out, but because he failed to contact them so they could arrange to take care of him.
Training and equipment goals Pierce’s long list of objectives included increasing the staff’s MRI knowledge, training them to apply that knowledge, and evaluating safety practices. It turned out to be on-the-job training, as the machine had a flood of patients to serve. Pierce explained that most people in Ethiopia don’t see a physician for what we consider routine things, but only for disorders that render them unable to work or function. “By the time they get there,” Pierce said, “whatever is wrong is really wrong.” What’s more, Black Lion is a big public hospital drawing people from all over Ethiopia. Accordingly the amount of pathology seen in MRI patients was astounding. “In the U.S., we may see one abnormal case for every 50 or so scans,” he said. But at Black Lion “it is just the opposite. There is a normal one in every 50 cases.” The number of people served also surprised Pierce: “One day, we scanned 34 patients.” At The Corvallis Clinic, Pierce said, technologists usually scan about a
dozen people per day. After a few days of service, though, the scans had to stop. The MRI system works by burning images to CDs, which are taken to a different room to be read. All the images must be permanently stored, however, and at one point the hard drive filled up and nothing could be done until a portable drive could be located. “It would be helpful to have some of these critical but relatively inexpensive items on hand,” Pierce wrote in his report, noting that “medical supplies such as tape, cotton, and alcohol are also in short supply.” Ditching the CD method and completing the installation of a more efficient one known as PACS—picture archiving and communication system— was among the recommendations in Pierce’s report. Other recommendations include addressing a spatial safety concern in the screening area, developing printed training materials, and determining a certification process for technologists and the department overall.
“My friends forever” Unfortunately, since the autumn, Pierce has not been able to communicate much with Black Lion to check its progress. A state of emergency declared by the Ethiopian CONTINUED ON PAGE 16
Making way for a new MRI
Riggers from Omega Morgan, a Hillsboro-based company, place the plastic-covered, demagnetized Toshiba MRI on a semi-trailer truck bound for Texas after removing it from the Asbury Building. Photo by Peter Krupp. FA L L 2 0 1 7
The Clinic recently bid adieu to its Toshiba Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system after 12 years of service. A new MRI system, the Siemens VIDA, is scheduled to arrive in November and to begin being put to use in January 2018. In the meantime, the Imaging Department will service patients with a mobile MRI. “The new 3T (Tesla) system is not only more powerful,” Clinic MRI Technologist Bart Pierce said of the Siemens VIDA, “but it contains the latest technology to enable us to perform both routine and complex exams quicker and with more resolution.” The VIDA has a larger opening and table than the Toshiba and has the ability to perform some exams completely quiet. “It is built around patient comfort,” Pierce said. 13
Experience as Russian refugee shapes newest internist’s approach to patients BY KEITH BOWERS FOR THE CORVALLIS CLINIC
It can’t be easy for someone who was a physician in her native Russia to find herself a refugee in the U.S., cleaning up cigarette butts as a nursing assistant. However, for Marina Arbuck, M.D., it was just one experience among many—throughout four decades and three continents—that she has used to enhance her role as a provider. “Overall,” said The Clinic’s newest internal medicine physician, “it made me a better person and a better doctor.”
Russian beginnings
of many government records by Mikhail Gorbachev, the final leader of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev also eventually allowed Soviet Jews to exit the country, so in 1989, at age 31, Dr. Arbuck and her family decided to leave.
Transition in Italy They entered a resettlement network administered by a group called the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. One of their first stops was in Nettuno, Italy, where nearly 100,000
and you’ve never lived better.”
Arrival in the U.S. In 1990 the couple moved to Indianapolis, where they found a small community of Russians who made the transition much easier. She said they walked into their new apartment to find it furnished, with a refrigerator full of food. She and her husband contributed to doing the same for Russians who arrived later, and everyone helped one another with tasks such as driving kids to appointments. Assistance also came from the U.S. government, which was eager to help Jews fleeing its Cold War foe. She said the sense of community she found was among the best in her life, “It was a paradise,” she said. “It was a bliss like that for four months.” Dr. Arbuck says it’s a little embarrassing to think of themselves as refugees. “We were not physical refugees, not like ones you see today in Europe,” she said.
Dr. Arbuck said the idea of being a physician appealed to her when she was a child, but medical school was also a matter of place. She lived in the Russian city of Yaroslavl, which in the 1970s was still part of the Soviet Union, and there were four professional schools available. One was medicine. “In Russia, you’re quite tied to the place where you happen to be born,” she said, explaining that people couldn’t An interest in psychiatry settle where they wanted In Indianapolis, before without government approval. passing the medical boards Marina Arbuck, M.D., has had seven Scottish Terrier rescue “Probably 90 percent of my to get into a U.S. residency dogs since 2000, including her current ones, Corky, in front, classmates are still in that and Cory. Dr. Arbuck says animals have taught her much about program, Dr. Arbuck was hired same city.” humans. “Knowing them, observing them through all stages of as a nursing assistant to work life—I frequently bring that into my work as a physician.” Photo Dr. Arbuck described with psychiatric patients, taking by Jodi Herrling/Emagine Marketing and Photography. life as rather insulated and vital signs, talking to people on comfortable, yet she eventually learned Russians awaited their next destinations. suicide watch, and accompanying some about the nation’s oppressive nature. Her husband worked as a pediatrician patients on supervised shopping trips. Arbuck said her family did not suffer for the refugee group while Dr. Arbuck “It was great experience because because of Stalinism, but the family worked as an interpreter for an Italian behavioral science was not something of the man she married certainly did, physician. She had taken Latin in we studied in the Soviet Union,” she including a grandfather who was medical school, so she picked up Italian said. “I learned so much in those days— imprisoned and tortured. The stories pretty easily. and your English improves when you do told by her then-husband, a psychiatrist She said she earned only $5 an hour, nothing but talk on 16-hour shifts.” who also is the father of their son, were and while they couldn’t afford much, “it She said certain mid-level employees eventually underscored by the release was still great, because you’re in Italy gave her grief, saying things like, “You’re 14
a physician, and look—now you’re cleaning up cigarette butts,” but the physicians treated her with respect. She said she met many patients who’d had full lives and families but lost everything. “It teaches you about compassion,” she said, “and it makes you ask the question, ‘Who is normal?’” It also has shown her how prevalent mental health issues are. As a physician, she said, “One out of every four or five people you see during the day has mental health issues.” Understanding this helps her connect with patients. Dr. Arbuck said she has also experienced depression, and sometimes she brings it up with patients, saying, “I had this too, I know what you’re going through.”
Infectious disease study Dr. Arbuck’s specialty in infectious disease came during her residency in internal medicine at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis. She explained that in Russia, physicians were required to spend time in remote or disadvantaged parts of the country as a way to repay the government for their education. During her stint, she worked with many tuberculosis patients and learned a lot about the disease. So on a fellowship paid for by St. Vincent, she traveled to Swaziland, Africa, to study tuberculosis as well as malaria, HIV, and meningitis. She found a great sense of community in Africa, too: “Everybody regards you with such respect. There’s no reason for those doctors to be there except they wanted to be doctors.”
The move to the Pacific Northwest On a trip to the University of Washington, Dr. Arbuck said she fell in love with the state. She eventually held staff physician jobs at the Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma as well as practices in Auburn and Redmond. She later moved to Bellevue, where she said she became disappointed professionally as well as personally. “I don’t like doing preventive medicine only,” Dr. Arbuck said, FA L L 2 0 1 7
describing an environment where there seemed to just be too many physicians. The affluent city of Bellevue began to wear on her as well. She describes an experience in a department store alongside many well-dressed, wellgroomed individuals in a slow-moving line, all of whom “had an expression as if they just had a very sour apple.” She wanted to shout at them: “People! You have no idea how well you live! Why don’t you appreciate it?” Dr. Arbuck’s son lives in Washington, and she investigated Corvallis because one of his friends lives here. She says she has been well-received at The Corvallis Clinic. “I feel like people are interested in me, not only as a doctor, but also as a person,” she said.
Art and dog rescue Art and animals are among Dr. Arbuck’s passions outside medicine. She began painting about five years ago, in oil and then acrylic. She took lessons and read books, then she was introduced to a painter who gave
her lessons—a Russian architect who studied at a prestigious Russian school. Things went well but then she began to experience frustration with her work. She remedied the situation by taking a drawing class and doing exercises from the book, “Drawing From the Right Side of the Brain.” When it comes to animals, Scottish Terriers are Dr. Arbuck’s love. She currently has two rescue dogs and has had a total of seven Scotties since 2000. In Washington she worked with a group called Scottish Terrier Rescue Northwest, and she plans to search for a similar group here in Oregon. Dr. Arbuck says animals have taught her much about humans. “Knowing them, observing them through all stages of life—I frequently bring that into my work as a physician,” she said. She also says people could learn important things from dogs. “If they’re a little deaf, a little blind, they don’t get depressed about it,” she said, “they just adjust.”
It’s a Pain to Wait Get the help you need without spending time in a waiting room. Quick, convenient medical care is available at the QuickCare Clinics in Albany and Corvallis. Make your appointment online when you need fast, affordable care for everyday illnesses, sudden injuries, shots, and vaccines.
Feel better. Faster.
Schedule online now: QuickCare.clinic
Open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. 7 days a week
QuickCare.clinic
Albany: Heritage Mall, 1815 14th Ave. SE Corvallis: 2001 NW Monroe, Ste 104
15
Sheena Strohmayer, MHA, is new manager of Clinical Research Center Sheena Strohmayer, MHA, is the new manager of The Clinical Research Center at The Corvallis Clinic. She succeeds longtime manager Pat Eshleman, RN, who has retired. “My hope is to continue to build on the department that Pat has created,” Strohmayer said. “Pat has built something wonderful, and I believe there are countless opportunities to keep moving her vision forward.” Strohmayer most recently held the position of Community Connect Supervisor at Salem Health, but her new position is something of a homecoming. She began her healthcare career a
decade ago at The Clinic, where she held several positions before leaving. From 2007 to 2012, Strohmayer worked as a Clinical Sheena Research Assistant Strohmayer, MHA and then a Clinical Research Associate Coordinator in the center she now leads. Having earned a Master of Healthcare Administration in 2011 from Walden University, she was named in 2012 as The Clinic’s Senior Clinical Quality lmprovement Analyst
and eventually Manager of Quality Improvement & lnformatics, a position she held until 2015. Asked about her vision for her new role, she cited external as well as internal goals. “I want to make sure the community knows about the amazing work that is being done at The Clinic through our Clinical Research Center, and I want to get more investigators interested in working on studies,” Strohmayer said. “I would also like to look into opportunities we might have to allow providers at The Clinic to conduct their own research in areas they are interested in.” Strohmayer’s interests outside healthcare include fantasy fiction, family, and travel. “I’m a huge Harry Potter nerd,” she said. “I love to read, and I spend most of my time hanging out with my son, who turns two in September.”
Radiology CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13
committed to the project and believes things will continue to move forward at Black Lion. He welcomes the chance to return and continue to help. “These are people who will be my friends forever, whether or not I ever return,” he said. “I am looking forward to a continued, long-range relationship, professionally and personally.” Asked whether there’s an overarching
lesson he learned on the trip, Pierce replied: “We are all alike, no matter where we are or where we come from. Each day we strive to make our lives, the lives of our children, and the lives of those around us better than the day before.” For more information about Ethiopia or RAD-AID International, contact Bart Pierce at bartpierce@rad-aid.org.
government has severely limited contact with staff. According to a recent report from Human Rights Watch, the action “permits arbitrary detention, restricts access to social media, and bans communications with foreign groups.” Nonetheless, Pierce remains
Click here for everything about you Email your provider. See your test results. Request prescription refills. Confirm your appointments. My Health Info on The Corvallis Clinic website is all about you and your communication with your provider and care team. The Corvallis Clinic has partnered with Athena Health to provide you with a secure, online patient portal through My Health Info. Just ask our staff to send you a text message or email at your next appointment so you can register. It’s a better way to communicate than by waiting on hold.
Register Now for My Health Info CorvallisClinic.com/my-health-info
16
An informed mind is a healthy mind Classes and events on important health topics that matter to you and your family.
Healthy Baby Each Healthy Baby session features one of our expert pediatricians. Pediatric topics include normal newborn appearance, crying, sleeping and bathing, development, medical care and problems, nutrition, and breastfeeding.
Tuesdays, 7 p.m. Asbury Dining Room, Nov. 7, Dec. 5 Register: 541-738-2075 or CorvallisClinic.com/classes
Baby Bundle Each Baby Bundle session features Clinic obstetricians discussing childbirth, including signs of labor, birthing options, pain relief, when to call your doctor, partner help during labor, and choosing your baby’s doctor.
Wednesday, 7 p.m. Asbury Dining Room, Nov. 8 Register: 541-738-2075 or CorvallisClinic.com/classes
Clinical Research currently enrolling studies • Alzheimer’s Disease: Alex Wang, M.D.; Richard Lafrance, M.D. • Type 2 Diabetes: Michael Chen, M.D.; Lindsay Bromley, M.D.; Ruth Palma, FNP To learn more about ongoing and upcoming studies at The Corvallis Clinic Research Center, or to learn about becoming a study volunteer, visit CorvallisClinic.com/research or call the Research Center at 541-766-2163. Also, visit our blog by going to CorvallisClinic.com, clicking Blog and then selecting Clinical Research.
Waverly Walkers Hit the mall during the cold-weather months with physical therapist Aimee Casemier.
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7-7:30 a.m., at Heritage Mall, 1895 14th Avenue SE, Albany Meet at the main entrance near Hobby Lobby. FREE. Register: CorvallisClinic.com/waverly-walkers FA L L 2 0 1 7
17
444 NW Elks Drive Corvallis, OR 97330