North Bay Business Journal

Three-story addition to Queen of the Valley fully under way

NAPA — Queen of the Valley’s planned new acute care facility, a 72,000-square-foot, three-story addition that will help the hospital meet state seismic requirements, is under construction.

Hospital dedicates Peggy Herman Neuroscience Center

NAPA — St. Joseph Health System’s Queen of the Valley Medical Center has established the Peggy Herman Neuroscience Center, which officials said will significantly expand services while reducing the need to send patients with acute neurological conditions out of county for care.

Santa Rosa Memorial starts birthing center renovation

SANTA ROSA — Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital is undertaking a $444,000 renovation of its Family Birthing Center.

Large regional physician network planned

NORTH BAY — A leading Marin County doctors’ association is heading an effort to create a potentially powerful network of hundreds of North Bay physicians that, if successful, would significantly alter the region’s health care landscape.

Memorial names new director for acute rehab unit

SANTA ROSA — Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital announced today it has appointed Danny Arzanipour as the new medical director of the hospital’s Acute Rehabilitation Unit. In his new role, Dr. Arzanipour will be responsible primarily for evaluating and admitting patients to the acute care unit, overseeing the care and treatment of patients in the unit [...]

St. Joseph’s mobile dental clinic wins cash prize

SONOMA COUNTY — St. Joseph Health System — Sonoma County’s mobile dental clinic is among five winners to share in a $100,000 cash prize awarded to programs that offer accessible dental care to needy populations, it was announced today.

Memorial doctors perform angiogram from wrist

SANTA ROSA – Cardiologists at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital recently performed what they describe as a far less invasive procedure to examine the heart and arteries, making it the first hospital in Sonoma County to perform a procedure that could become the norm.

Napa’s Queen opens wound care center

NAPA — Queen of the Valley Medical Center announced today that it opened its Regional Wound Care Center in Napa, where it will offer comprehensive and personalized planning to assess and effectively treat chronic wounds.

Wellness programs draw more interest

SANTA ROSA – Growing numbers of employers of all sizes in the North Bay are embracing wellness programs for their employees. A recent survey of commercial insurance carriers by the Business Journal revealed a common theme of business clients seeking information or actively developing wellness programs both to manage employee health care costs and prepare for the impact of health care reform.

St. Joseph’s Dental Clinic among national finalists for funds

SANTA ROSA – St. Joseph Health System – Sonoma County’s mobile dental clinic is among 10 finalists nationwide to share in a $100,000 cash prize to help grow and support programs that offer easily accessible dental care to needy populations.

St. Joseph signs 5-year managed print contract

NORTH BAY – St. Joseph Health System signed five-year contracts worth $4 million to $5 million with Mission Viejo-based Auxilio, a managed print services company for the health care industry. The contracts will cover service for Santa Rosa Memorial and Petaluma Valley hospitals as well as Queen of the Valley in Napa.

Healdsburg, Santa Rosa Memorial hospitals sign affiliation agreement

HEALDSBURG and SANTA ROSA — The parent organizations of Healdsburg District Hospital and Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital today announced they have entered into an affiliation agreement to share certain resources between the two institutions.

Web links ICU babies with outside world

SANTA ROSA – For new parents there’s nothing quite so harrowing as an infant needing the intensive care nursery.

Health care Q&A: Leaders in the North Bay

The BUSINESS JOURNAL will present its 2010 Health Care Conference from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 18 at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek in Santa Rosa. In advance, we asked for comments from health care leaders and panelists Kevin Klockenga of St. Joseph Health System – Sonoma County; Martin Brotman, M.D., Sutter Health West Bay Region; Nancy Oswald, Redwood Community Health Clinics; Kirk Pappas, M.D., Kaiser Permanente; Wayne Fairchild, Redwood Regional Medical Group, and Mike Purvis of Sutter Health in Sonoma County.

Health Care Conference registration closes Friday

NORTH BAY — Registration for the Business Journal’s Health Care Conference will close Friday. The event will feature the top California official for the National Federation of Independent Business to discuss the impact of health care reform on small business in the keynote address on Nov. 18. To register, contact Linda Perkins at 707-521-5264 or events@busjrnl.com by Friday, Nov. 12, or go to www.NorthBayBusinessJournal.com.

Top small business expert to address health care conference

NORTH BAY — The top California official for the National Federation of Independent Business will discuss the impact of health care reform on small business in the keynote address for the Business Journal’s annual health care conference Nov. 18.
Following John Kabateck, executive director of NFIB/California, a panel of top North Bay hospital executives will discuss the impacts of reform along with hundreds of millions of dollars in hospital and other projects.
To register, contact Linda Perkins at 707-521-5264 or events@busjrnl.com by Friday, Nov. 12, or go to www.NorthBayBusinessJournal.com.

Health Care Conference registration closes Nov. 12

2010 Health Care Conference: What health care reform will mean to you and your business, as hospitals invest hundreds of millions in new facilities, programs
Thursday, November 18, 2010, Registration 7:30 a.m., program 8-11:30 a.m., Hyatt Vineyard Creek, Santa Rosa
To register or for more information, visit www.northbaybusinessjournal.com.

St. Joseph adds seven physicians to Annadel Medical Group

SANTA ROSA – St. Joseph Health System’s Annadel Medical Group announced that seven new primary care physicians will join its medical practice, marking the largest single increase the group has seen since it was founded in 2008.

Fast Growing Companies in 2010

Three of Sonoma County’s newest tech companies — Raydiance, Enphase Energy and Métier — have widely diverse products: ultra-short pulse lasers, microinverters for the solar industry and project portfolio management software.

BioMarin Pharmaceuticals, the Buck Institute for Age Research and TriVascular are expanding research, products and staff.

Nearly every sector within health care in the North Bay is undergoing rapid expansion, reflecting a nationwide trend that shows little sign of a respite. This is just a sampling of the quickly growing health care companies and providers across the North Bay, from corporate giants to rural clinics.

La Tavola, ProSight, Central Payment add space, markets; Frank-Lin, Kiewit to move to the North Bay: From linen rentals to financial transaction processing to insurance underwriting to alcoholic beverage production to heavy construction, several companies in various industries have relocated or expanded in the North Bay this year.

Hospitals, health centers planning new facilities, expansions

Nearly every sector within health care in the North Bay is undergoing rapid expansion, reflecting a nationwide trend that shows little sign of a respite. Hospitals are expanding or being rebuilt entirely. Outpatient facilities continue to crop up as a broader patient base is sought by some providers. Physicians groups are racing to recruit more doctors to their ranks to ensure purchasing power while maintaining a competitive advantage. And federally qualified health centers, with a significant increase in federal funding and a clearer role in light of health care reform, are consistently doubling in size in an effort to treat an influx of patients. The following is just a sampling of the quickly growing health care companies and providers across the North Bay, from corporate giants to rural clinics.