Newsletter Fall 2007

So, with so much going on these days, we thought a quarterly newsletter was in order…We were considering waiting for January 2008 to begin but with the recent fires burning through our beautiful city, we think now seems as good a time as any for some uplifting news…First on the agenda, the long awaited upstairs birth suite is complete! Come by to view! We are happy to give you a tour!

~We’d like to welcome the newest addition to our Best Start family. On August 26,2007 @12:26PM , one of our own midwives, Sarah Khorram and her husband, Saul Alarcon Farfan gave birth to a healthy baby girl, named Zyanya Alarcon Khorram, She weighed 7lbs/4oz and was 19 inches long. We are thrilled for them! We hope to have Sarah back with us part time in January of ’08. She is currently on maternity leave, enjoying time with her baby. In Sarah’s absence, Brooke Ray is taking her place as our part-time Certified Nurse Midwife. She has clinic each Friday. Hopefully you will get a chance to visit with Brooke, as she may be “on-call” when you deliver!

~Kel Shields, CNM took a week off to further her education in pharmacology…This means she is on her way to becoming certified to write prescriptions. Great job Kel!

~Roberta Frank, Medical Director and CNM; Bonnie Everett, Insurance Billing Specialist; and Karen Roslie, Exec. Administrator, were recently away to Anchorage, Alaska for the annual AABC convention. We happened to be gone on Roberta’s 39th wedding anniversary. Since we each brought our husbands, we found it most appropriate to visit Homer Alaska, where coincidentally Roberta and her husband Bill, were married and lived 39 years ago!

While there, wouldn’t you guess it….We ran into a woman who had her first child at Best Start 13 years ago…and yes, Roberta was her midwife!

Needless to say, this was a very magical trip. AABC conventions are always a great way to meet up with other Nationally Accredited birth centers to share information and knowledge… But this trip was especially memorable.

~More good news…Many of you remember Ruth Goldberg who has previously worked at Best Start many years as an RN and Birth Assistant. Ruth is now back with us as a Student Nurse Midwife, interning to complete her preceptorship to become a Certified Nurse Midwife. Once she has graduated, Ruth plans to come back to work at Best Start as one of our midwives. We know you will find her as much a joy to work with as we do!

~ Also interning with us are Tuesday Benivediz, (SNM) and Tamara Herald, (SNM). Both these interning students will complete their internship in early November of 07’.

~We also want to welcome Michelle Reynolds to Best Start. She is an RN with experience working in birth centers not only nationally but internationally as well…Michelle will be working part-time at Best Start as a birth assistant. Welcome Michelle!

~Best Start is partnering with Project Concern International and several other health care institutions in San Diego, on a grant program called “Healthy Start”. This program focuses on under-served high risk women and babies. It has been proven very successful in other states in providing much needed prenatal and postnatal care. Trained “Promotora’s” (pregnancy counserlors) and doulas, (birth coaches) will be utilized to guide moms-to-be through pregnancy and up to age two for the children born in the program. The goal is to create a model in San Diego which links all the current resources so women have easier access to quality care.

We are honored and excited to be part of this endeavor! If you or anyone you know would be interested in becoming a volunteer doula for this program, we would love to hear from you…
No Experience Needed!
Please contact Karen Roslie:
kroslie (at) beststartbirthcenter.com

~In closing, we would like to thank those who help support Best Start in our efforts…
Amongst those are the physicians and hospitals that provide back up for the birth center. This network of support allows Best Start Birth Center to provide natural child birth services to our clientele: Larry Flickinger, MD and Karl Evelyn, MD provide care for our clients at Scripps Mercy Hospital; Resident Physicians under the Supervision of Thomas Moore, MD at UCSD Medical Center; Our long time consultant, Gary Blake MD who accepts our transfers at Sharp Mary Birch Women’s Hospital. Together, these physicians and hospitals have provided “back up” for over 20 years. In the unlikely event of a hospital transfer, you can rest assured the care you receive will be in your and your baby’s best interest.

Best Start Birth Center would like to express its heartfelt thanks all our “Support Services” for their continuing support and contributions to Best Start Birth Center and its patients. We recently had a successful fundraiser event, in which Jonathan Olow, RE agent, generously provided Best Start the use of his incredible home in Mission Hills, (photos can be viewed on our website). This and the donations of time and services from all of our collaborating supporters made this the success it was. Please view our “Thank you” page for more information on these individuals/ organizations.

Finally, We’d also like to thank Bobbie Oudinarath, Vice President of Washington Mutual Bank, for sponsoring us an ad campaign which ran the month of October, 2007. It encompassed more than 50 radio commercials, and 2 half page color print ads in the SD Union Tribune, (10/9/07), as well as the SD Business Journal, (10/8/07.)

Hopefully you got to hear and see them…Thank you, Bobbie for being such an incredible support for Best Start. We are truly grateful!

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