It's personal - Community Memorial Health System

larger and more modern hospital, that he andGeorge Power personally pledged to cover anyshortfall between public donations and the projected$250,000 construction cost. They madegood on their promise.Building a new not-for-profit CommunityMemorial Hospital is an especially daunting undertakingin today’s difficult economic times.Remember, however, that the hospital Fosterhelped make a reality came during even moredire fiscal times: the Great Depression. Despitethis challenge, on January 1, 1931, Hospital deBuena Ventura – complete with a modern X-raymachine – opened. One year later, following thegreat philanthropist’s death, it was renamed FosterMemorial Hospital, a name it retained until becomingCommunity Memorial Hospital in 1962.Now, once more, a pivotal crossroads hasbeen reached where an avant-garde medicalfacility is needed. California’s more stringentseismic standards approaching on the horizonprecipitated the building of the new CommunityMemorial Hospital, but in truth it is dearly neededanyway in order to meet increasing patientdemand and future advances in medical technologiesin all fields at CMH, including heartand vascular, neurosurgery, urology, oncology,radiology, gynecology, orthopedics, general surgery,ICU, CCU, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit,imaging, maternal child health, pediatrics, andthe emergency department.When I look at the construction site for thenew Community Memorial Hospital, I see morethan a hole in the ground – I see a hole that isspecial because it must be. Indeed, from it willrise not just a new hospital scheduled to openin March 2015, but our new vanguard hospitalwhere our families and our neighbors will be expertlycared for – by healthcare experts who arealso family and neighbors living in our community.It is said that a house is made of brick andmortar, but a home is made by the people wholive there. Similarly, a hospital is made of brickand mortar, but Community Memorial Hospital– past, present and future – is made by thephysicians, nurses, technicians and other dedicatedemployees who work inside.It is only human nature that when we arehealthy we do not often think about our hospital.But when an accident causes injury, when chestpains strike after dinner or labor contractionsbegin in the middle of the night, when we or aloved one needs to be mended, cured and caredfor, Community Memorial Hospital is a lifebloodalways there to serve us.Hippocrates once stated: “Cure sometimes,treat often, comfort always.” His words perfectlydescribe what Community Memorial Hospitalmeans to me.ABOUTWOODYCommunity Memorial Hospital’s commitment to being part of the communityby caring for our fellow citizens, neighbors, co-workers and family membersis exemplified by Woody Woodburn, making him the ideal person to write our coverstory for this special edition of CARING Magazine.Indeed, Woody represents a wide spectrum of people in our community whoselives are touched by CMH.To begin, Woody grew up in Ventura and has been a community member fornearly four decades. Moreover, thanks to his award-winning sports columns at theVentura County Star for a dozen years and now through his Opinion Page generalinterestcolumn every Saturday, many residents throughout the County feel theyknow him as a “friend” or “neighbor.” CMHS is also proud to have him as ourprincipal writer for CARING Magazine.While CMH’s physicians, nurses and staff strive to take care of patients as ifthey were their own family, Woody has literally been cared for at CMH by family: hisfather, Dr. James Woodburn II, and two older brothers, Drs. James and Douglas, areall surgeons on the medical staff.Woody’s wife, Lisa, has been a patient at CMH as has the couple’s 24-year-olddaughter, Dallas, and 21-year-old son, Greg, who was also born at CMH.“Like so many people in our community, I am very thankful to CMH and feel areal connection to it,” Woody says. “It’s hard to imagine anyone who lives here whohas more than one degree of separation from CMH: if they haven’t been cared forat the Hospital, one of their family members, friends or co-workers has.”Or perhaps they’ve read newspaper columns by a writer who has.Make aDifferenceJoin the AuxiliaryCommunity Memorial Hospital: 805/652-5043Ojai Valley Community Hospital: 805/646-1401COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HEALTH SYSTEM | CARING 7