North Bay Business Journal

HEALDSBURG — Nancy Schmid has been named the new chief executive officer of the North Sonoma County Healthcare District, which owns and operates 43-bed Healdsburg District Hospital, the board of directors announced today.

Commercial real estate broker Burt Polson, who has operated ACRES Real Estate Services in Napa for two decades, is joining Strong & Hayden Commercial Real Estate. …

Stellar Energy, based in Rohnert Park, hired Chris Larsen as director of southeast project development. …

Kurt Hahn was honored for 15 years of service to Healdsburg District Hospital after he announced his retirement and resignation from the board. …

Chris Call recently joined the board of the Santa Rosa-based Climate Protection Campaign as treasurer. …

The California Parenting Institute board of directors welcomed five new board members. …

Sausalito-based Equilibrium named Pal Storehaug as its vice president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. …

Rack & Riddle, a Hopland winery and custom-crush facility, hired Raphael Brisbois as director of winemaking to lead the production of client and branded wines. …

Signorello Estate appointed Britny Sundin estate chef. …

Soutirage hired Master Sommelier Desmond Echavarrie as senior wine advisor. …

The Hess Collection, which has a winery in American Canyon, appointed Illinois-based Jeanne Jesse as north central regional sales manager. …

Cline Cellars and Jacuzzi Family Vineyards in Sonoma Valley named Robert Hawk as Great Lakes regional manager. …

The board of directors of the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission announced that Karissa Kruse will be its next president, replacing Nick Frey as he retires. …

Value-Based Purchasing is a Medicare program started in January that seeks to hold hospitals accountable for the care they provide.

Last year, Medicare rolled out penalties for hospitals that have too many returning patients within a month.

This chart shows the effect of the two programs combined.

HEALDSBURG — The board of directors of the North Sonoma County Healthcare District today announced the appointment of George Protos as interim chief executive officer. He will begin the role on Jan. 1.

Healthgrades, the leading provider of information to help consumers make informed decisions when selecting physicians or hospitals, recognized Healdsburg District Hospital and Sutter Medical Center of Santa Rosa in its American Hospital Quality Outcomes 2013: Healthgrades Report to the Nation. …

Sonoma County residents and others who use local hospitals honored Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital as a 2012-2013 Consumer Choice Award winner for the Santa Rosa-area market, according to results of consumer surveys announced by National Research Corporation in the journal Modern Healthcare. …

Nearly 60 employees of the General Dynamics development and production center in Healdsburg were recognized for their excellence and leadership in technology-related fields as part of the 17th annual Women of Color in Technology awards program. …

The Meritage Medical Network, formerly known as the Marin-Sonoma IPA, has officially made known its plan to earn accountable care organization, or ACO, designation by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act of 2010. …

Mendocino Coast District Hospital, a 25-bed nonprofit critical access facility, is seeking bankruptcy court protection from creditors as it seeks to reorganize its debts while keeping the doors open. …

Evan Rayner, Healdsburg District Hospital chief executive officer, is stepping down from his position, according to the North Sonoma County Healthcare District, which owns and operates the 43-bed hospital. …

HEALDSBURG — Evan Rayner, Healdsburg District Hospital chief executive officer, is stepping down from that position, according to the North Sonoma County Healthcare District, which oversees the hospital.

Now that Western Health Advantage formally announced its expansion into the North Bay, existing care providers said the arrival of a new health plan is an important step in providing choice for employers and consumers and will help those involved move toward a more integrated model of care.

It also caps off years of planning among the region’s hospitals and independent physicians, who collectively sought collaborations amid an increasingly competitive, consolidating health care landscape spurred by the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.

Western Health Advantage formally announced its plan to expand into the North Bay, adding Marin, Sonoma and Napa counties to its roster with hopes of offering a commercial health plan for employers and individuals by Jan. 1.

The Sacramento-based HMO in June only listed Sonoma and Marin counties for expansion, but it later included Napa County.

Western Health Advantage has filed for an expansion of its business into Marin and Sonoma counties, where it hopes to partner with the Marin-Sonoma IPA and much of the region’s hospitals in offering a new health plan for employers and individuals

HEALDSBURG – A new level of wound care is being provided by Healdsburg District Hospital, one that previously was unavailable anywhere in the North Bay and one that could help the hospital carve out a niche as it seeks to identify both health care needs and sustainable new business ventures.

BloodSource, a Sacramento area-based blood supplier of hospitals in Central and Northern California, has leased nearly 7,200 square feet at 3505 Industrial Drive in Santa Rosa, which will be the company’s permanent location for Sonoma County. … OffSiteCare, a telemedicine company founded by Sebastopol physician Dr. James Gude, has opened a central hub in San Francisco, where it it intends to provide nighttime hospitalist and specialist consultations for seven Northern California Hospitals, including several in the North Bay, the company said. … Daymon Doss, the current executive director of the Northern California Health Care Authority and former Petaluma Healthcare District CEO, has taken a three-month consulting job as interim executive director of the Mt. Diablo Health Care District in eastern Contra Costa County. … Marin Commuinty Clinics was awarded $460,000 by the Marin County Board of Supervisors to help adults suffering from the onset of serious psychiatric illness, along with other mental health services. … Napa County has selected San Diego-based McAlister Institute to operate a short-term residential and detox center on the campus of Napa State Hospital.

SANTA ROSA — Sutter Health and the county of Sonoma have rejected a proposed settlement of a lawsuit filed by the North Sonoma County Healthcare District opposing Sutter’s $284 million hospital project north of Santa Rosa.

SANTA ROSA — Two Sonoma County health care districts say they plan on appealing a recent court ruling that mostly sided with Sutter Health over objections to Sutter’s new $284 million hospital, now under construction just north of Santa Rosa.

SANTA ROSA — Two Sonoma County health care districts announced this evening they appealed a recent court ruling that sided with Sutter Health over objections to Sutter’s new $284 million hospital, now under construction just north of Santa Rosa.

The Northern California Center for Well-Being, along with the Northern California Medical Associates, today celebrated the 20th anniversary of the HeartWorks Fitness Center, a cardiovascular rehabilitation program. The Center for Well-Being, which focuses on wellness and preventative care, and NCMA, a practice of cardiologists, have collaborated on the program made possible by ongoing support from [...]

SONOMA COUNTY — Members of a regional effort to create a strong network of physicians across the North Bay are in early talks with a Sacramento-based health maintenance organization about forming an insurance product around the nearly 500-member physician network, with the possible goal of offering a commercial health plan to employers.

HEALDSBURG — The Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County announced that it has accepted a $3 million matching grant from Mill Valley-based Kalmanovitz Charitable Foundation, providing up to $6 million in “much-needed” equipment upgrades at Healdsburg District Hospital over the next five years.

SANTA ROSA – Sutter Health can continue construction unabated on its $284 million hospital after a Sonoma County judge last week dismissed most of the challenges filed by opponents that centered on project’s environmental impact report.

SANTA ROSA – Sutter Health and the North Sonoma County Healthcare District recently squared off in front of a Sonoma County judge, each presenting its case as to why or why not Sutter’s forthcoming $284 million hospital north of Santa Rosa is in line with the California Environmental Quality Act and the county Health Care Access Agreement.