We Stand For Care

Imagine only having your new kidney for nine months when you decide to compete in the World Transplant Games. That is what Randall Stafford, MD, PhD did in 1984; but his participation has fueled his passion for competition that continues today. “I enjoy the camaraderie of being with others who are intent on preserving their quality of life as they grow older,” said Stafford, an associate professor at Stanford and Director of the Program on Prevention Outcomes at Stanford Hospital & Clinics. Stafford will compete in the 2009 Summer National Senior Games, proudly sponsored by Stanford Hospital & Clinics, along with three other former Stanford Hospital patients.

More than 30,000 visitors from around the country are expected to attend. The competition includes 10,000 athletes age 50 and over competing in 25 sporting events. To promote COMPASSIONATE CARE and MAKING A DIFFERENCE, Stanford Hospital & Clinics will be providing medical services to the athletes and offering lectures and activities on health and peak performance.

Among those athletes are Greg Baker and siblings, Claudia Simpson and Chris Simpson. “It’s been a challenge to learn to adapt and slow down,” said Baker, a Louisiana insurance agent, “I am rethinking how to live and compete – just to be in the Games is enough.” The dedication, COMMITMENT, and drive of the patient-athletes is truly awe inspiring. “I run for fun, fitness and to literally follow in the footsteps of my parents,” Claudia Simpson said.

For a more in-depth look at the patient-athlete participants, schedule of lectures and activities, and the Senior Games, click here.

Imagine waking up from what you thought was a minor procedure, to find two pumps stuck through your stomach feeding your body blood, and facing the news that you need a new heart, fast. That is was happened in March 2006, to rugby player and surfer, Joe Matthews’ when he was 18-year’s-old. Matthews, who calls himself “English Joe,” was undergoing a procedure to implant a heart defibrillator when his heart became so weak and stopped beating on its own for nearly an hour at Stanford Hospital & Clinics.

Trained to provide BETTER MEDICINE, doctors at Stanford Hospital & Clinics used all their available resources and expertise to keep Matthews alive. Three weeks later, doctors MADE A DIFFERENCE for Matthews’ when he underwent a heart transplant.

Today, Matthews is back in England training for the World Transplant Games to be held in Brisbane, Australia, in August. Since his heart transplant, he’s replaced his passion for rugby with track and field and hopes to set a new world’s record in the 100 meters at the Transplant Games.

Stanford, a leader in the field of heart and lung transplantation, is COMMITTED to unraveling the mystery of Matthews’ particular type of heart failure. “This place has a long and important history in the area of heart failure,” said Robert Robbins, MD, chair of cardiothoracic surgery and director of the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute. “We expect to make important advances in the future, as well, in better understanding the mechanisms of heart failure.”

For more information on Matthews and the continued research in cardiovascular care, click here.

A $100,000 planning grant was announced on June 12, by the Stanford Medical Center to enhance the response to teen depression and suicide. The grant, funded by Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, the Stanford University School of Medicine and Stanford Hospital & Clinics, enables the local mental health community in Palo Alto to provide COMPASSIONATE CARE for adolescents in need.

“There is great interest, from all groups treating our community’s youth, in finding ways to work together promptly and effectively to respond to teens in crisis,” said Frances Wren, MD, a pediatric psychiatrist who directs the Child and Adolescent Depression Clinic at Packard Children’s.” This grant will help provide the resources we need for essential COLLABORATION and planning with all community stakeholders. We hope the new coalition will MAKE A DIFFERENCE in the lives of teens and families.”

For more information regarding the community’s collaboration, click here.

Twice a year, nurses from Stanford Hospital & Clinics, who are part of the hospital’s Life Flight helicopter rescue team report to the Center for Immersive and Simulation-based Learning at the School of Medicine for a hands-on refresher in the advanced-skilled lab.

Nurses Susan Kumura, RN and Geralyn Martinez, RN had to deal with multiple trauma injuries suffered by a 70-year-old male with diabetes who had taken a nasty fall. In our constant quest to IMPROVE patient care, a video of their nursing and decision-making skills during the simulation was replayed. The instant replay, Kimura said, is “the biggest bonus of the simlab.”  Martinez, a 19-year veteran of Life Flight, added: “It’s always interesting to see how we did, and what we could have done differently.” Their COMMITMENT and TEAMWORK helped them work through their critical-thinking process to stabilize the patient, and ensure they remained prepared for real-life scenarios.

To read more about Life Flight, our amazing nurses, and our advanced-skilled lab, click here.