| Subject: |
|
Project aims to ease ER overcrowding |
| Name: |
|
AV Press |
| Date Posted: |
|
Oct 3, 07 - 1:34 PM |
| Email: |
|
lhymas@avpress.com |
| Where are you from? |
|
Antelope Valley |
| Message: |
|
Gala to benefit health
Project aims to ease ER overcrowding
This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press on Wednesday, October 3, 2007.
By LINDSAY HYMAS
Valley Press Staff Writer
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LANCASTER - Antelope Valley Partners for Health will present a community clinic gala at 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 12, at the J.P. Eliopulos Hellenic Center, 43404 30th St. West.
The clinic will help relieve pressure on emergency rooms in the Antelope Valley and help patients who either don't have access to emergency rooms or don't have the money to pay for visits, said Ingrid Gearhardt, a project coordinator for the nonprofit Partners for Health organization.
"For the last two years, we've been coming up with a plan to make the community clinic project work," Gearhardt said. "The only way we would be able to target this issue is if we came together as a community.
"We were able to bring together the cities of Palmdale and Lancaster, as well as the county of Los Angeles, AV Hospital, Lancaster Community Hospital, Kaiser Permanente and High Desert Medical Group," she said.
During the event, the organization will honor the following people for their service to the community: Dr. Sethu V. Madhavan, an area physician; Dr. Richard D. Rojas, Partners for Health dental director for the Save-A-Smile program; Dr. Philip Tuso, a kidney specialist with Kaiser Permanente, and Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich.
For the first hour of the event, guests can relax to the melody of harp strings as they participate in a silent auction.
Prizes include VIP tickets with parking to the "Dr. Phil" show, hotel and resort packages, rounds of golf at the Altadena Golf Course and the Pacific Palms Conference Resort, tickets to a Los Angeles Avengers arena football game in 2008, passes to Universal Studios, Ripley's Believe it or Not, Kodak Theater and Six Flags Magic Mountain, tours and tasting at various wineries and vineyards, and a billboard, said Sandra Reed, administrative coordinator for Antelope Valley Partners for Health.
Bidding will continue until the final call around 7:45.
During the evening, guests can enjoy dinner catered by Fresco II while viewing a slide show about Partners for Health, Reed said.
Around 8 p.m., Waymon Roy, Partners for Health fundraising chairman, will introduce new board members. The guest speaker will be Jonathan E. Fielding, director of public health and health officer for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services.
High Desert Medical Group and Kaiser Permanente will give check presentations and Antonovich will announce the county's participation. Grace Lubwama, executive director of Antelope Valley Partners for Health, will give closing remarks at 9:15 p.m.
Tickets are $100. For details, call Sandra Reed at (661) 942-4719, Ext. 312 or Mike Keeler at (888) 552-1900. Dress is business attire.
Partners for Health is a nonprofit, community-based organization of area residents, leaders and organizations that has brought $7.5 million to the community for grant-funded programs in seven years, Gearhardt said.
The organization promotes physical activity in schools and conducts annual health fairs at Jackie Robinson Park in Littlerock to promote physical activity and healthy nutrition habits.
It pioneered the Save-A-Smile dental program and the Antelope Valley Best Babies Collaborative, which targets infant mortality in the Antelope Valley by educating pregnant women on maternal health and wellness, Gearhardt said.
The organization also has been involved in community needs assessments, case management resources for older and disabled adults, mental health care in schools and housing concerns for transitional foster youth. Antelope Valley Partners for Health also has implemented a community network to support at-risk youth and their families.
lhymas@avpress.com |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
Home
bravenet.com