The University of Vermont Health Network- Porter Medical Center

Francisco Herrera: Gratitude "My life was not easy. It’s different now, and I thank God for that. I grew up in the Dominican Republic countryside. My mother was just 16 when I was born and raised me and my brothers and sisters by herself. We had animals, a garden, but often there was not enough to eat. We would go out into the forest to find whatever we could. A mango, sometimes that was all we had. I didn’t go to school, it was too far away. I helped with the animals, with the garden. If my mother needed something done, we did it. My brothers and sister and I didn’t complain. In 1973, my mother moved us all to the city. I was 12 years old by then. I sold newspapers on the street, or bread, or sweets, whatever we could to make money. But it was dangerous there. There had just been an election, and young people were being killed. There were gangs on the street. When a boy tried to beat me up, my oldest brother protected me. My mother moved us all back to the country after that. I became a firefighter in 1982. I nearly died three times. Once, there was a fire on a ship. I went on board to fight the flames with two others, which is always how we did it, to keep each other safe. As soon as we went below, the ship exploded. I looked around and was suddenly alone. The two men with me jumped into the water and left me behind. I could feel the fire burning me. Thank God, another firefighter came and got me out. Later I became a fire investigator for the government, but there was a lot of corruption. My mother had always taught me to be honest, to tell the truth. But that was hard to do without getting in trouble. So I decided to leave. I came to the U.S. in 2008, moved to Vermont a few months later, and got a job at UVM Medical Center. I couldn’t believe how friendly everyone was. Everybody was saying ‘hi’ to me. And after everything I’d been through in my life, I was so grateful. I try to do the same for everyone I meet here." Francisco Herrera works in environmental services at the University of Vermont Medical Center. He’s been with us for 16 years.

?? Welcome Dr. Kate Geschwind to Primary Care Vergennes! ?? We’re thrilled to introduce Dr. Geschwind, who joined Porter in October. Originally from Minnesota, she completed her family medicine residency in Vermont. Dr. Geschwind is passionate about providing comprehensive care—from newborns to seniors! She’s especially interested in sports medicine (including adaptive sports), women’s health and procedural care like joint injections and skin biopsies. Outside of work, you’ll find her enjoying the Vermont outdoors: running, hiking, cross-country skiing or relaxing with a good book. Join us in welcoming Dr. Geschwind to the community!

We are moving forward with reductions to administrative and clinical services to comply with Vermont state budget orders and enforcement actions issued by the Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB), the health care regulator in Vermont. These actions will have both an immediate and long-term impact on patients served in the region and, based on current information, will ultimately result in a workforce reduction estimated to be as many as 200 people who currently serve the health care system, including both employed staff and temporary/travel staff. Changes will take place both immediately and over the next several months. Patients will be informed when the timelines and care transitions for impacted services are clear. Below are the decisions we’re announcing today: - Reduce the number of patients who stay overnight at University of Vermont Medical Center from approximately 450 to 400 and limit regional incoming non-emergency patient transfers. - Eliminate Surgical Renal Transplants at University of Vermont Medical Center and collaborate with Dartmouth Health on care alternatives. University of Vermont Medical Center performed approximately a dozen kidney transplants this year. -End University of Vermont Health Network staffing and operation of kidney dialysis clinics outside of our primary service areas in Vermont, impacting approximately 220 patients across three clinics. - Consolidate Some Family Medicine and Rehabilitation clinics that are part of Central Vermont Medical Center (CVMC), which should not impact access to CVMC-run primary care services for existing patients. - Close the Inpatient Psychiatric Unit at CVMC, which has had an average daily census of approximately eight patients, due to capacity challenges. - More than $18 million in administrative expense cuts, with reductions in expenses, open positions and employees. For more information, please read the full press release on this subject: https://lnkd.in/ef5hG3YQ

Today, we are announcing some hard decisions about the care we can provide in Vermont. Here at University of Vermont Health Network, we find ourselves in a difficult situation. Due to legal orders by the budget regulator of our Vermont hospitals – the Green Mountain Care Board – we are being forced to reduce our budgets. We’re deeply sorry to share the challenging decisions we have had to make that will impact the care we are able to provide in Vermont. Decisions to reduce or close health care services of any kind has a big impact on our patients, our staff and our communities. This is a painful day for all of us, because our patients – each of you – are our friends, our families and our neighbors and you have chosen us for your care. To the extent possible, we have focused on ways to minimize the impact of these decisions. We will continue to roll out information on where we will be forced to reduce care. For more information, please read the full press release on this subject: https://lnkd.in/ef5hG3YQ

Porter is proud to have received the 2024 Governor's Excellence in Worksite Wellness award, presented by the Vermont Department of Health and the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. Congratulations to our Employee Health and Living Well for Life teams, and to all our staff who contribute to making Porter a healthy, wellbeing-focused workplace!

“If the state works with health care providers to ensure every Vermonter gets the right care, when they need it, in the right setting, we can save untold millions of dollars. This is the quickest path to affordability, aside from growing our population of working Vermonters and tax base. Instead, recent [Green Mountain Care Board] budget decisions penalized University of Vermont Medical Center for providing more lifesaving care to our patients last year than allowed, even though the net financial result of that care caused us to lose money. As Vermonters, we face an important decision: will the path forward be defined by the rapid erosion of our safety net health care system, or will we demand actions that foster the stability necessary to build a stronger, more sustainable system of care?” Jason Williams, UVM Health Network’s chief external relations officer, on what’s at stake for the future of health care in Vermont and the pressing need for meaningful partnerships to deliver sustainable solutions.

Michael Dufort: Right to the Drums "There’s so much you can do with just a couple of sticks in your hands. On a very primal level, I like the different sound things make when you hit them and when you hit them with different amounts of force. I just think the way it varies is so cool. And I like how having various drums or percussion going fills out the sound of a band. I was a very big listener of music as a young child. I have older siblings who were always playing rock music, playing the radio, playing records, and I skipped over that little-kid music phase. I got right into, for example, Billy Joel when I was about 4 or 5. And I used to look at the band and know I wanted to do it. Drums were always something I picked out in songs. Everything I heard went right to the drums. And there are a few songs that really stick with me and inspire me as a percussionist. “Sunday Bloody Sunday” by U2 is one of the first songs I remember hearing as a kid and noticing the drum intro. The late Neil Peart from Rush is one of my drumming idols. I finally saw them live for the first time in college with a bunch of friends and often think of “Spirit of Radio.” I heard “Barrel of a Gun” by Guster for the first time in college and thought it was cool that their drummer exclusively played hand drums rather than a conventional drum set. And “Fool in the Rain” by Led Zeppelin is simultaneously one of the hardest drum beats to master – and most fun to play. After college, life got busy, and music slipped away for a while. I moved back to Malone in 2012 to help care for my Dad after he became ill. I went down to my cousin’s house to catch up with him and some friends and he said, “Hey, let’s jam.” It just came right back, and I’ve been in probably five or six bands since I’ve been back. Right now, I play in a band called Bluebird a few times a month. Music brought my family together. My wife and I have six kids between us, and everyone plays an instrument. It was our love of music that bonded us. And it will always be there for me and the people I love." Michael Dufort, RPh, FACA, is the director of pharmacy at Alice Hyde Medical Center. He’s been with us since 2013.

As part of ongoing efforts to manage crucial IV fluid supplies during a national shortage, UVM Health Network will reschedule certain elective procedures that require large amounts of IV and sterile irrigation fluid, starting this Friday. Patient safety will be the top priority in assessing each case, and patients will be contacted if their procedure is affected. Elective procedures scheduled from Friday, October 25, through Friday, November 1, that typically use large volumes of IV and sterile irrigation fluid will be canceled and rescheduled. Procedures will be evaluated based on urgency and patient safety. Not all procedures will be delayed – patients should continue to arrive for procedures and appointments as scheduled unless contacted by their provider. We are continuously monitoring and adjusting to the situation as cleanup efforts continue at a major IV fluid production facility in North Carolina, which was flooded by Hurricane Helene, causing a nationwide shortage of IV fluid.

We’re excited to welcome three new providers to Porter Medical Center! Dr. Devon Anderson joins Porter Orthopedics as a sports medicine orthopedic surgeon, working with Middlebury College Athletics and the US Ski & Snowboard teams. He specializes in knee and shoulder surgeries, including ACL reconstruction and cartilage repair. Outside of work, he enjoys cycling, skiing, and outdoor adventures with his wife, Abigail, and their sheepadoodle, Maisie. Dr. Clare O'Grady joined Porter Palliative Care in August as the Palliative Medicine Site Lead. She is dedicated to providing compassionate care to rural Vermonters and their families. In her free time, she enjoys running, skiing, and mountain biking with her husband, Emory, and their cat, Mika. Dr. Tyler Wark joins Porter Cardiology after completing his fellowship at UVM. A Burlington native and Middlebury College alum, Dr. Wark is excited to continue his practice close to home. Outside of the clinic, you can find him staying active in the Vermont outdoors

Summer Collette: A Better Way "I’d be lying if I said I’ve been a die-hard environmentalist my whole life. But every day in the operating room, we use a lot of medical supplies: gowns, sutures, gloves, masks, drapes and countless other materials – all in the delicate care of our patients. Much of it is destined for the landfill, including medical supplies that have expired but could otherwise still serve a purpose. Years of watching all this material turn to waste changed something in me. I knew there had to be a better way, a way to be better stewards of the environment and the resources we use to care for our patients. A visit to my surgical colleagues at UVM Medical Center opened my eyes to a new possibility: We should donate this waste to people in need. UVM Medical Center was already working with Partners for World Health, a nonprofit organization that collects medical equipment and supplies for disadvantaged communities. It clicked for me: The waste we were creating at Porter could become something meaningful to people far beyond our operating room walls. This concept lit a fire in me, and I knew I needed to push for a change. So I started squirreling away everything I could. Early this year, Porter donated its first truck full of expired surgical supplies to Partners for World Health. Since then, units from across Porter are now talking about how they, too, can collect and donate supplies. It feels like we are all in this together, working in our own corners of this health system, trying to make things better. Breaking out of old habits has been an important lesson for me. We can always do things better. As the saying goes, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you always get what you’ve always gotten.”" Summer Collette is a surgical technologist at Porter Medical Center. She’s been with us nearly 20 years. Summer's story is part of The Mosaic Project, a collection of short stories about the people of University of Vermont Health Network.