Notes from the President

I am too old and jaded to get excited anymore about New Year’s Eve and resolutions. Usually Judy and I are in bed at our usual hour, and get up on the first day of the New Year at our usual 5’ish time. I know, that’s pretty bad, but it is what it is.

Despite that nod to the aging process, there is something special about a new slate, a fresh road, an uncharted course, which we are all going to go down together. And when you have the privilege of looking across an entire institution, cast against a 100-plus year history of challenges and successes, you tend to reflect and wonder. Will this be a good year for Loma Linda? What crises will we face? What will be recorded in the history book of time? What will be etched on our Centennial Pathway about 2014?

Let me run the risk of commenting on, even trying to predict, some of what 2014 might bring. Some of these events are already unfolding. Certainly the changing face of health care in this country will affect Loma Linda greatly. As the largest private provider of Medicaid (MediCal) services in this state, Loma Linda can expect a major impact from a change as significant as the Affordable Care Act. Theoretically, the planned decrease in Medicare reimbursement rates will be offset by new coverage provided to those who now come to us without any ability to pay. It is estimated that there will be an additional 200,000 to 300,000 people in the Inland Empire area of Southern California who will now be eligible for health care. With the narrow margins of profitability in health care that we all experience today, it will be very important that we monitor these changes very carefully as we move into this new paradigm.

There will be some major physical changes on campus. The Centennial Bridge is to be completed by May, once again making our campus contiguous. I believe you will all enjoy both the convenience and beauty of this new structure and associated landscaping. This will also allow us to permanently close the old University Avenue to vehicular traffic and once again make the Norman Woods Walkway a relaxing center of the campus for walking, visiting, and just enjoying the great California outdoors.

We also plan to dedicate our latest sculpture during graduation events, titled “This is the Very Place.” It commemorates the moment when Ellen White, our founder, first visited Loma Linda and recognized that she had seen this very setting in a vision several years before. She had selected Loma Linda for a daring new type of health care institution and professional training center, in direct contrast to the practices of the day. This was done at the very time that the federal government had appointed Abraham Flexner to shut down many of the medical schools in America due to their poor quality.

Our plans for the San Bernardino Campus are also taking shape. One group is working on the financial plans and building design, while another is sorting out all of the relationships that are expected in this new partnership. Our 7¼-acre parcel of land is along the freeway in downtown San Bernardino, and we hope to begin construction in the next few months. Our goals are to establish a major clinical facility to host SAC Health System, together with a “Gateway College” that will work with the San Bernardino City Unified School District to provide young people with job entry skills to the health professions. The enthusiasm in the city and school system is palpable, and we look forward to cementing this growing relationship.

But more than buildings, it is people who make Loma Linda what it is. And we have several major transitions taking place that I want to share with you. I mentioned earlier that Danny Fontoura has transitioned to our new VP for wellness position. In this capacity, he will lead out in bringing together the various health promotion programs on campus, as well as the development of a new institute that will coordinate lifestyle, wholeness, and wellness initiatives. We will also develop new programs and strategies that can focus and implement more effectively a culture of wellness that contributes to a productive and enjoyable lifestyle and longevity for our students, faculty, and staff.

We have also added Dr. Richard Rajaratnam to our leadership group. Dr. Raj, as we know him, trained here at Loma Linda and has worked for Kaiser Permanente for many years. He now returns to head up our new office of clinical transformation (OCT). In this role, he will collaborate with Dr. Jim Pappas, head of our patient safety and reliability workgroup; Dr. Todd Martell, working in the Faculty Medical Offices; and Dr. Judy Storfjell, our chief nursing officer and senior VP for patient care services. Together we expect this group to be a major think tank on how to improve our systems, making them more effective and efficient. We must continue to make progress on accessibility and managing patient flow, preparing for bundled payment protocols, quality patient care, evidence-based treatment protocols, value-based purchasing, etc.

Another major change will be the departure of Zareh Sarrafian. Zareh has been an integral part of our Medical Center for 20 years, and he is perhaps best recognized for his leadership of our Children’s Hospital. Zareh has also served as chair of the board of the California Children’s Hospital Association, championing children’s issues throughout the state. He has helped our own Children’s Hospital become well recognized for the quality of its services as it has become the destination of choice for all components of child care.In more recent years, Zareh has also helped orchestrate operations at our three adult hospitals in Loma Linda—the University Hospital, the East Campus rehabilitation hospital, and the Heart & Surgical Hospital. His wide-ranging knowledge of health care, along with his careful attention to detail, have been instrumental to our growth and success over the past few years. He will be missed, and we wish him well as he spends more time with his family and other interests.

So we stand ready for 2014, both excited and anxious, as we try to anticipate and prepare. There will certainly be challenges we didn’t expect, but I remain confident that Loma Linda, which has been under God’s guidance for so many years, will once again demonstrate excellence and resilience in the New Year.

Cordially yours,

Richard Hart