When it comes to connecting with NorthBay Health, our patients have plenty of options. NorthBay now accepts more plans than ever — including Blue Shield Access+ HMO, Health Net HMO, WHA and United Healthcare. And our network of doctors continues to grow. The Western Health Advantage health plan was created to serve local employers and better control…
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Entries Tagged as Healthcare News
Ask Kelly
If you have questions or need a little extra help getting your health care plans solidified, Kelly Rhoads-Poston is ready to help. Kelly, a health plan specialist, has more than 20 years of experience in the health care and insurance industries. The quickest way to get answers is to visit www.NorthBay.org/openenrollment and click on “Ask…
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There are Hidden Extras for our Primary Care Patients
Patients at the NorthBay Health Center for Primary Care have a choice among 27 physicians who specialize in pediatrics, family medicine and internal medicine at three locations in Solano County, in Vacaville, Fairfield and Green Valley. Every physician is also partnered with a care team — a nurse practitioner and a medical assistant — who put the patient at…
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Executive Team Sees Big Changes
As NorthBay Health charts its road to economic recovery, it does so with several new faces on its executive team, all committed to dynamic leadership and creative approaches to building a sustainable health care system that will continue to serve the community for years to come. Paul McGinty, President of NorthBay Health Foundation. Paul came…
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Awards
NorthBay Health has received a number of prestigious awards and accreditations in recent months. NorthBay Health Medical Center is recognized as “High Performing” by U.S. News & World Reports for 2022-23 in six specialty procedures/conditions: COPD, Heart Attack, Heart Failure, Kidney Failure, Pneumonia and Stroke. A “High Performing” rating acknowledges care that was significantly better…
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Mayo Clinic Care Network Provides Expert Input
Since May 2016, NorthBay Health has been a member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, allowing NorthBay Health physicians to work closely with Mayo Clinic specialists — sharing medical knowledge and clinical expertise in ways that directly benefit patients. Through eConsults, NorthBay doctors have access to more than 4,000 Mayo Clinic physicians and scientists for second…
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NorthBay Health Foundation Presses Forward with Vision, Vigor
After a two-year hiatus, NorthBay Health Foundation is launching its re-envisioned structure and mission this fall, under the guidance of a new board of directors, and new NorthBay Health Foundation President Paul McGinty. Given the post-pandemic crunch that nonprofit hospitals are facing around the country — with inflation, high labor costs and low reimbursement rates, NorthBay Health…
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Fresh Brand Conveys World-Class Experience
Check us out! A new name, a bold look, new colors, but the same trusted health care partner you’ve come to expect from an organization that has grown up in Solano County and continues to serve the patients of our community under the same, sustaining mission: Compassionate Care, Advanced Medicine, Close to Home. Today we’re…
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Don’t Get Lax: Vax, Vax, Vax!
When it comes to preventive medicine, NorthBay Healthcare has three words for you: vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate! From COVID-19 vaccines and flu shots to childhood immunizations, health care experts agree it’s the best thing you can do to protect you and your loved ones from life-threatening diseases. Unfortunately, not only did the pandemic keep people away…
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Many Plans Include WHA…
The Western Health Advantage health plan was created to serve local employers and better control premium costs. Now co-owned by NorthBay Healthcare and Dignity Health (formerly known as Mercy Healthcare), it continues to grow and provide expert care for individuals and families in nine Northern California counties: Solano, Sacramento, El Dorado, Placer, Yolo, Colusa, Napa,…
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Urgent Care: Stronger Than Ever
It’s been two years of pandemic pivoting, but that has only made NorthBay Urgent Care stronger and more flexible to serve the ever-changing needs of the communities it serves, according to Mary Jameson, director of Urgent Care, Primary Care in Vacaville and Women’s Health. The pandemic took hold just as NorthBay opened a second Urgent…
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Powerful Alliance: NorthBay, UC Davis Team Up in Time of Stroke
Above: Emergency medicine physician Andy Lee, M.D., shows off a wireless, bedside “robot” used in NorthBay Healthcare to connect with stroke specialists at UC Davis Medical Center. Although NorthBay Healthcare has been offering tele-stroke services at its hospitals since 2010, it entered into a new partnership with experts at UC Davis Medical Center earlier this…
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Collaboration Brings Expertise to Diagnosis
Kinue Post was having pain in her shoulder and a persistent cough back in April of 2018. The 80-year-old Fairfield woman was moving slower than normal, and sleeping most of each day. A visit to the emergency room ended with a diagnosis of pneumonia, but the medications didn’t seem to make a difference. “We have…
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NorthBay, Mayo Clinic Solve Medical Mystery
We’ve all experienced stomach pains — after a spicy meal or a stressful day — but when Jasmine Kaur’s sharp stomach pains persisted for more than a couple of months, even without a spicy diet, the Vacaville resident made an appointment to see her primary care doctor. The physician ordered some lab work to determine the exact cause of…
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Operation: Vaccination – NorthBay Team Does Its Part to Battle Pandemic
Thousands Receive Their Pfizer Doses at Clinics, Drive-throughs It started with a couple of physicians, a handful of nurses and a respiratory therapist boldly rolling up their sleeves and receiving the first doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at NorthBay Medical Center early one morning in December 2020. Fast forward many months later and NorthBay…
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NorthBay Brings Urgent Care to Grateful American Canyon
On the heels of establishing two successful urgent care centers amid retail outlets in Vacaville and Fairfield, NorthBay Healthcare, in partnership with Carbon Health, will open a third NorthBay Urgent Care facility in the summer of 2022. An official groundbreaking in June at 416 Napa Junction Road in American Canyon brought together NorthBay and American…
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Nine New DAISYs Bloom
Nine NorthBay Healthcare nurses have received the coveted DAISY award since August, 2020, presented to honor their outstanding patient outreach. They are: Susan Pack, R.N., a nurse in NorthBay Medical Center’s Mother/Baby Unit; Jayne Nanalis, R.N., a nurse in NorthBay Medical Center’s 1800 Unit; Loida de Vera, R.N., program coordinator for the Joint Replacement Program;…
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New Roles for Two Familiar Faces
Two veteran health care administrators with wide-ranging experience have assumed key leadership roles with NorthBay Healthcare. Wayne Gietz, who for the last five years guided NorthBay’s outpatient services, is the new president of NorthBay Healthcare Group. He succeeds Aimee Brewer, who is the new president and CEO of Sturdy Health in Massachusetts. Gietz has an…
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Welcome New Doctors
Larissa Chartrand, M.D. The Center for Primary Care in Vacaville welcomed another new physician to its team in November. Larissa Chartrand, M.D., is an internal medicine doctor who comes to NorthBay Healthcare from Miami Beach, Florida, where she was medical director of the primary care center and associate program director of the internal medicine residency…
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Nine New DAISYs Bloom
Nine NorthBay Healthcare nurses have received the coveted DAISY award this past year, presented to honor their outstanding patient outreach. Isabelle Johnson, R.N., a nurse at VacaValley Hospital’s 1-2 West, was singled out for the compassionate care she shares not only with her patients, but with her coworkers. MacKenzie Anderson, R.N., a nurse in NorthBay…
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Seven Months That Changed the World
Remember what daily life was like before late February? It feels as if a decade of change has occurred in the past seven months.ABOVE: Intensive Care Unit Nurse Sherryl Oliva, R.N., wears an N-95 mask and face shield on the COVID-19 unit. Patients preparing for surgery are tested for COVID-19 at drive-through test sites (below)…
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Western Health Advantage and NorthBay
In the mid-1990s, NorthBay Healthcare executives wanted to gain control of costs and provide better quality health care. They met with leaders at Woodland Memorial, who later brought the University of California, Davis, Health System to the table. The result was a new health insurance plan. Western Health Advantage was created to serve local employers…
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Sudden Silence Needs Urgent Action
A ringing in the ear, a feeling of fullness or sudden silence — these issues are not to be ignored, as Barbara Battenburg discovered.ABOVE: Regular hearing checks by Wendy Schreuder (right) help keep Barbara Battenburg hearing well.The Vacaville resident was in a car with her husband in 2011 when she lost hearing in her left ear. “All…
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Diabetic Team in Your Corner
Darin Moore, 46, of Fairfield, knew he had diabetes for 20 years and did all he could to control it but when several low blood sugar incidents left him feeling out of control, he made the decision to get more help.ABOVE: Darin Moore (right) looks over his latest blood sugar reports with diabetologists (left to…
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Broken Ankle? Time for O.U.C.H.
Sprained your ankle? Broke your wrist? It’s time for O.U.C.H.! It’s better than it sounds. O.U.C.H. stands for Orthopedic Urgent Care at Hilborn.ABOVE: Physician Assistant Joe Mashinchi (right) takes a look at Dominick Baker during an orthopedic visit. Joe is the primary provider for the O.U.C.H. program, providing patients with connections to the right orthopedic…
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Second Urgent Care Opens in Nick of Time
NorthBay Healthcare’s second Urgent Care Center was set to open in early March, with plans for a grand opening celebration. Then the COVID-19 crisis broke and those plans were shelved.ABOVE: J. Paz Rodriguez and sons Moises and J. Paz, Jr. check in for care at NorthBay Urgent Care Center in Fairfield.“Patients needed to be seen,”…
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New Moniker Adds NorthBay, Brew to the Mix
It started out as just a wine and cheese tasting event at a local church 33 years ago, but NorthBay Healthcare Foundation’s most popular fundraising event has evolved into so much more through the years. So, Jubilee organizers say now is the time to call it what it is: A NorthBay event with even more….
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Three New DAISYs Bloom
Three NorthBay Healthcare nurses are the proud recipients of the coveted DAISY award, presented to honor their outstanding patient outreach. Tiffany Song, Nora Maligaya and Christine Aye all received their awards at separate presentations in front of their nursing colleagues this year. Tiffany, a nurse in NorthBay Medical Center’s ICU, was singled out by the…
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A Season of Awards
Accolades from Across the Nation Pour in for Local Healthcare System ABOVE: Teams celebrate on hearing the news that NorthBay earns redesignation as a Baby-Friendly (top) and Magnet organization (bottom). NorthBay Earns Magnet Status — Again! With scores of NorthBay Healthcare employees across campuses and medical offices in Vacaville and Fairfield listening in, an August conference call…
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‘NorthBay Way Wall’ Shines Light on History, Commitment
Installed just weeks before the opening of the North Wing, a new art project featured prominently in NorthBay Medical Center’s main corridor showcases the history, milestones and medical advancements of NorthBay Healthcare. Called “The NorthBay Way Wall,” it is composed of nine panels, hundreds of photographs and “Our Story,” of a hospital system borne from…
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Welcome New Docs
NorthBay Healthcare has seen the addition of several new physicians in recent months including specialists in diabetes and cardiology as well as family medicine and otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat). Here is a look at some of the doctors: Sumera Ahmed, M.D. NorthBay Healthcare Diabetes & Endocrinology Center recently welcomed diabetologists Sumera Ahmed, M.D. to…
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Building more than Character
NorthBay’s Biggest Accomplishment Exceeds Expectations In 17 years at NorthBay Healthcare, Assistant Vice President Real Estate & Facilities Development Joelyn Gropp has led the design of eight new buildings and scores of remodels and tenant improvements. But, without a doubt, the $200 million North Wing takes the crown. It was easily the largest project, both…
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What’s Cooking for Visitors, Staff?
With the opening of the new North Wing at NorthBay Medical Center comes The Shaw Family Kitchen, which opened for use Oct. 1. ABOVE: Staff and visitors can enjoy respite in a bright and spacious dining area. Photo credit: Photographs © 2019 Sasha Moravec The new nutrition services area includes a 6,000-square foot kitchen and…
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Shaw Family Kitchen
Not one for the spotlight, local philanthropists Al and Patt Shaw prefer to support their favorite causes without fanfare. But that changed when the Green Valley couple realized they had the means to make a significant impact on NorthBay Healthcare’s future and to serve as an inspiration to others in the process. ABOVE: NorthBay’s mission…
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All at Your Fingertips
Just steps away from the Welcome Pavillion at NorthBay Medical Center is a brand-new visual and interactive tribute to NorthBay Healthcare’s most loyal supporters: the donors who have, through the decades, shared the vision and determination to build and sustain a healthcare system that would provide top-flight healthcare for our friends, neighbors and family members…
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Art as Healing
New, freshly painted walls of the North Wing provided an empty canvas for NorthBay Healthcare leaders to fill with vibrant, unique art selections, and touched off a decision to upgrade art throughout the hospital. “We know that art has healing qualities,” explained NorthBay Healthcare Group President Aimee Brewer. “So we teamed up with ACS (Art…
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An Investment in Imaging
The North Wing at NorthBay Medical Center features advanced imaging services with the most up-to-date equipment. ABOVE: Radiologic Technologist Melanie Adams positions the Diagnostic Imaging Department’s new fluoroscopic imaging equipment (above), which displays continuous X-rays on a monitor. Photo credit: Fred Greaves The inpatient Diagnostic Imaging Department on the first floor of the new wing…
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Ultra Clean Behind the Scenes
One department you’ll never see on a hospital tour of NorthBay Medical Center is Central Sterile. That’s because everything inside — all the tools used for surgeries and procedures — must be kept pristine and infection-free to ensure the safety of patients. If you could enter those hallowed halls, located on the first floor of the new North Wing,…
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Best Care, Coming and Going
PACU is the Place for Patient Transitions Patients awaiting surgery or recovering from post-surgical anesthesia will spend some time in a post-anesthesia care unit, or PACU, under the watchful eyes of nurses whose main tasks are to manage airways and alleviate pain. ABOVE: Patients recover in bright, spacious areas in the new post-anesthesia care unit….
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Patient Rooms Have Posh Feel
They may look like they belong in a posh hotel, but patient rooms on the second floor in the North Wing are fully equipped to handle a patient’s urgent needs at a moment’s notice. ABOVE: Former NorthBay Healthcare President and CEO Gary Passama and wife Judy (left) were among the first to take a tour…
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The Robot Advantage
The pièce de résistance in Surgical Suite No. 7 arrived in November and promises to help NorthBay surgeons deliver the most advanced techniques for patients in the years to come. It’s the da Vinci Surgical System, which offers surgeons an advanced set of instruments to use in performing robotic-assisted, minimally invasive surgery, via a console…
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Such Suite Success
Rare is the time you’d want to be wheeled into a surgical suite, but if fate happens to bring you to one of the eight operating rooms in NorthBay Medical Center’s new North Wing, know that they are all filled with the latest equipment, technology and talent found nowhere else in Solano County. ABOVE: J….
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Beyond the North Wing…
Although the newly opened North Wing may seem like it’s the center of NorthBay Healthcare’s universe, it’s actually only one of a number of projects that have come to fruition in the past three years. The North Wing was actually the final piece of a three-phase project at the NorthBay Medical Center campus in Fairfield….
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Finding True North
If finding True North is synonymous with finding life’s purpose, then NorthBay Medical’s Center’s newly opened North Wing is aptly named. For a hospital, it delivers on all fronts: There are 22 sleekly designed patient rooms with high-tech features at every turn. Eight new surgical suites with the latest and greatest tools that technology can…
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New Wing Readies for Patients
After three years, construction on NorthBay Medical Center’s new North Wing was deemed officially complete when the California Office of Statewide Health & Development (OSHPD) completed final inspections on July 17. Immediately after that, move-in plans ramped up.ABOVE: NorthBay Medical Center’s new North Wing is home to 22 patient rooms, a large and brightly decorated…
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Welcome New Physicians
NorthBay Healthcare recently welcomed a new obstetrician/gynecologist to the Center for Women’s Health. Stella Huang, D.O., earned her medical degree at Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Vallejo and holds a master’s degree in epidemiology from Stanford University School of Medicine. In her new role at NorthBay she is the Inpatient Women’s Health Services…
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On the Road Again
Physicians Team Up to Get Officer Back on his Bike Tony Blencowe, 46, was doing the job he loves when he felt a pinch in his neck. The California Highway Patrol officer was on his motorcycle taking a quick glance over his left shoulder when he felt something snap. It was a motion he’d made…
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Your Best Choice
Everyone wants to be healthy, but no one enjoys mulling over health plans and insurance models. PPO? HMO? It’s an alphabet headache! Yet the decisions you make will impact you and your family for years to come. When you choose a health plan, it’s just the first step on your path to good health. Make…
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Care Team Embraces 101-year-old
ABOVE: The care team for Gerald Simoni (center) includes his girlfriend, Jean Eldridge and NorthBay Center for Primary Care staff (left to right) Tammy Ingham, M.A., Victoria Satterwhite, M.A., and Ali Hassani, M.D.Mary Jameson remembers the first time Gerald Simoni called her. “He was 98 years old and he was taking a vitamin a day,…
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Care ’til 8 Provides After-hour Expertise
It’s never fun for kids or adults to develop a high fever or to wrench a back muscle, but why does it always seem to happen on a Friday? Or late in the afternoon? If your physician isn’t available, does this mean a trip to an emergency room? NorthBay Healthcare has another solution: Care ’til…
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