EvergreenHealth Names Jeff Tomlin, MD, As New Chief Executive Officer

Dr. Jeff Tomlin

Kirkland, Wash. – EvergreenHealth’s Board of Commissioners announced today its selection of Jeff Tomlin, MD, to lead the Kirkland-based health system as chief executive officer. Dr. Tomlin had filled the role of interim CEO since May 31 following Dr. Amy Beiter’s departure from the organization.

Before serving as interim CEO, Dr. Tomlin oversaw the health system’s clinical quality and safety initiatives as EvergreenHealth’s chief medical and quality officer, and was responsible for leading risk management, patient relations, infection control and research, employed specialist practices, surgical services, pharmacy and medical staff services.

“As a longtime and esteemed member of our leadership team and greater community, Dr. Tomlin has an incredibly informed understanding of our organization, from both a strategic and operational perspective. During his time as interim CEO, he has skillfully translated this understanding into thoughtful action,” said Al DeYoung, chairman, EvergreenHealth Board of Commissioners. “In addition to his impressive track record of leadership within our health system, he has also established strong ties to the community we serve throughout his 30-year tenure. Under Dr. Tomlin’s leadership, EvergreenHealth is well-positioned to continue pursuing our mission to advance the health of the community with high-quality, safe, compassionate and cost-effective health care.”

Laurene Burton, EvergreenHealth Executive Director, Governance & Community Affairs retires after 27 years

Laurene Burton has shared her plans to retire from her position as Executive Director, Governance & Community Affairs. After 27 years working on behalf of our patients and community, she looks forward to traveling, kayaking, spending more time with her family and reading a good book or two. For a while, she says she’ll enjoy “every day being Saturday.” Laurene’s last day with EvergreenHealth is July 5.

Since Laurene joined EvergreenHealth in 1992, she has been widely recognized for her commitment to building relationships in our community. Initially hired to write curriculum for Community Health Education, she quickly acquired additional skills and was selected to become Director of Community Health Education in 1998. In 2005, she joined our administrative team, where she developed an affinity for governance activities and enjoyed working closely with our Board of Commissioners, whose work she deeply admires. Laurene continued her practice of active community-building through oversight of EvergreenHealth’s art program, volunteer program, community service programs and levy-funded programs – and carried out our organization’s commitment to transparency in her role as EvergreenHealth's Public Disclosure Officer.

It was EvergreenHealth’s culture that first appealed to Laurene. “It’s what drew me and what kept me here,” she says. With our origins and history of sustaining strong community ties, Laurene could freely follow her own natural instincts: “When I saw areas where we needed to have a connection, I tried to make one; I looked for needs in the community that EvergreenHealth could fill and pursued partnerships. In my experience, good relationships are crucial to any achievement. I’ve had the privilege of working with so many wonderful people in my role here, and I value every single one of them.

Laurene’s proudest achievements, not surprisingly, involve partnerships and a sense of satisfaction in helping these relationships grow and thrive:

UPDATED: Evergreen Hospital Board to vote on hospital-based midwifery

UPDATED:  April 17 at 6:30 pm: The Board of Commissioners will Vote on the Return of Midwifery Care to Evergreen Hospital.  On April 3rd they will have a Study Session which will include a conversation on midwifery - the public is not invited to speak at Study Sessions, unless they changed their policy. 

Your support is needed to ensure approval of this critical step toward the return of full-service midwifery care to Evergreen Hospital. Please attend the Board of Commissioners’ Meeting on Tuesday April 17, 2012 at 6:30 pm to show your support for the proposed Certified Nurse Midwives Practice.

On April 3rd, Evergreen Hospital’s Board of Commissioners will vote on the establishment of a hospital-based midwifery practice. This is a critical step toward the reinstatement of full-service midwifery care at Evergreen Hospital. Your attendance is needed to demonstrate the community’s continued support for the return of full-service midwifery care to Evergreen Hospital.

The Hospital’s administration will present to the Board a proposal to establish a practice comprised of four full-time and one half-time Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs).  Read More >>

"Suicide Prevention" forum at Evergreen Hospital

Nami-Eastside invites you to a forum on...

"SUICIDE PREVENTION”
Kelly McDonald, MPH

Tuesday, March 20, 7 PM - 9 PM

Evergreen Hospital,

Physicians and Surgeons Building, Suite Tan 100 

Kirkland, WA 

Kelly McDonald, MPH has worked in suicide prevention for more than 10 years, including with the US Army at Fort Lewis and Kitsap County Health District.

She currently facilitates suicide awareness education and training for Washington State’s Youth Suicide Prevention Program and is providing support to community groups in King County and to schools in the implementation of peer-to-peer suicide prevention education.

In this presentation she will talk about suicide (facts, warning signs), the higher risk of gay, lesbian and bisexual youth, the relationship between suicide, bullying and depression. She will also offer information on how to help someone with suicidal thoughts and the resources available in the community.

Join us! This event is FREE and open to EVERYONE!

425-885-NAMI (6264)
http://www.nami-eastside.org/
INFO@NAMI-EASTSIDE.ORG

What's behind the Puget Sound's ER building boom? | LocalHealthGuide

What's behind the Puget Sound's ER building boom? -- Seattle Times Seattle/LocalHealthGuide:

"What’s behind the ER building boom?" — Seattle Times
LocalHealthGuide November 27, 2011

Hospitals in the Puget Sound region are in the midst of an emergency room building boom, and in today’s Seattle Times health reporter Carol Ostrom explains the economics–and controversy's–behind the construction.

“Hospital-industry leaders say they’re doing what patients want and what makes good business sense,” Ostrom writes, but critics say the free-standing emergency rooms are “cash cows for hospitals, strategically built in affluent areas to lure busy, well-insured patients and collect fat reimbursements."

Hospitals say the new ERs will streamline care and help reduce costs, but Ostrom points to research that suggests the opposite:

Read "Seattle Times" reporter Carol Ostrom's article here >>

Last year, the "Center for Studying Health System Change," a national research group, noted concerns that increased competition around Seattle could increase overall costs. It found hospitals invading one another’s turf with free-standing ERs and vying to provide big-ticket specialty procedures in cardiac, cancer and orthopedic care.
--Seattle/LocalHealthGuide

Read all RNB stories on Redmond's free-standing Emergency Rooms (ER) here!  
B.Y.