Healthcare - Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula

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leslie and Dr. Charles Snorf
Stroke is the third-leading cause of death in
the united States. On average, someone suffers
a stroke every 45 seconds in this country, and
someone dies from a stroke every 3.1 minutes.
In Monterey County, an average of nearly two
people per day experiences a stroke. Those
weighty statistics prompted Community Hospital
to become a certified stroke center to advance
the level of stroke education, response, care,
and rehabilitation in this community.
These statistics also hit close to home for
orthopedic surgeon Dr. Charles Snorf, who has
had five members of his family and a number
of colleagues and friends suffer devastating
strokes. Now retired, he and his wife Leslie lead
active, healthy lives in Carmel. Yet the couple,
who share five children and anticipate a 13th
grandchild, are keenly aware of the potential for
stroke and its impact on family.
“What I’ve learned,” he says, “is the importance
of education and early intervention.
The idea of early diagnosis and treatment is
key to how a person survives a stroke.”
To aid in that early education, the Snorfs
contributed to Community Hospital’s stroke
program, and went further by championing
the program among his former colleagues.
Dr. Snorf worked with Community Hospital
to reach out to doctors in the community,
requesting support of the stroke program.
The response resulted in more than 40
donations to the hospital. Since the stroke
program began, more than $1.6 million has
been raised.
“We wanted to donate not just to the hospital
but to emphasize a certain discipline,”
Dr. Snorf says. “We realized it made a lot of
sense to support the Community Hospital
stroke program.”