medical

It has been and will remain the mission of the Lake Valley Fire Protection District to provide the highest level of public safety services for our community, its people, and the environment. As our motto states, it is “Because We Care “. Driven by these guiding principles, in 2001 the LVFPD entered into a partnership with the City of South Lake Tahoe to provide fire based ambulance transportation and advanced life support paramedic services throughout the South Shore of Lake Tahoe.

Barton Health has expanded their OB-GYN practice with the addition of Dr. Lisa Carbonell who is an Obstetrician and Gynecologist who studied medicine at the University of Puerto Rico. She completed her residency at the University of Arizona Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona and is currently in the board certification process. Dr. Carbonell is fluent in both English and Spanish.

The Nevada Highway Patrol say a Sparks woman missing over two weeks has been found dead, the apparent victim of a single vehicle rollover crash near Sand Harbor

72-year-old Betti Jean Fernandes left a home on Millstone Court to go for a drive Monday, November 30, 2015 and did not return. Her family had not heard from her since.

A photographer was in the area when he spotted the wreckage with Fernandes' body inside on December 14. The southbound travel lane of SR28 was shut down for several hours while the crash scene was investigated.

Todd Moss has been promoted to Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District Battalion Chief. The South Tahoe High graduate has been with the department since 1998 when he started at a firefighter/paramedic.

In his new capacity, Moss will be responsible for the day to day operations for A Shift. Moss will also serve as the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Chief and Custodian of Records. Chief Moss will be the NV PERS Chief Officer Representative, a member of the Employee Benefits Committee and he will oversee the GASB 45 and 68 compliance requirements.

The annual Barton Foundation Festival of Trees and Lights opened Wednesday at MontBleu with tree judging and the Senior Stroll.

The winners of the designer and school trees and wreath contests:

Designer Tree Category

Best Interpretation of Theme: No Place Like Home, by Cyndy Brown – Carlton

Most Elegant: Tantalizing Tango, by Belen Urrutia

Most “Out of the Box” (Creative): Steampunk Christmas, by Jeri Oishi & Enchanted Florist team

Best of Show: Tantalizing Tango, by Belen Urrutia

LTUSD Trees:

The South Tahoe High Sober Grad Night Task Force would like to thank the following businesses and individuals who helped make our annual event for the graduating seniors such a success! The kids loved the evening and it couldn't have been made possible if you weren't a part of it.

El Dorado County schools chief Jeremy Meyers received a $125,000 buyout package this month for resigning after being arrested twice on suspicion of drunken driving.

In exchange for stepping down Nov. 14, Meyers will receive a lump sum payment equal to his salary through June 2016 – $114,821 – minus taxes and other withholding items, according to a copy of the agreement obtained late Monday through a Public Records Act request. The El Dorado County Office of Education also will pay Meyers a lump sum of $10,930, equal to his medical, dental and life insurance benefits through June.

Sheriff Ron Pierini announced his department's newest deputy Monday. Derek Short was sworn in as a Douglas County Deputy Sheriff during a ceremony at their office in Minden, Nev.

Derek Short graduated from Southern Oregon University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration and a minor in Criminal Justice. He will start his career with DCSO in the Jail Division.

"South Lake Tahoe, you should be proud of yourself."

Those words, said by South Lake Tahoe Police Sgt. Brian Williams, were echoed throughout the evening as the City of South Lake Tahoe celebrated its first 50 years with a golden anniversary gala Saturday night.

Almost 300 people were at the Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel to share memories of the past, review of the present, and a look towards the future of a city that was formed because many of the residents were tired of being represented by a government in Placerville.

Get help enrolling in health insurance or MediCal with Covered California. Barton Health’s Certified Enrollment Counselors are available to assist in English and Spanish.

Barton Health will host two open enrollment working sessions during which individuals can apply for health coverage and have access to certified representatives for any needed assistance. Please bring your picture ID, social security number and household income to the enrollment session:

December 8, 2015 ~ 3:30-6:30pm at Lake Tahoe Community College, Computer Lab D123

Location

Laura Fisher of Washington, Illinois has been identified as the third victim in Saturday's single vehicle rollover accident on Highway 50 in Churchill County that also claimed the life of South Lake Tahoe Police Officer Mark Hounsell and his wife Jeanne.

The 33-year-old Fisher was visiting the Hounsells.

The Nevada Highway Patrol investigation details indicate a white 2004 Chevrolet Suburban driven by Minden resident Mark Hounsell, 42, was traveling westbound on US Highway 50. Six other occupants were in the vehicle including his wife Jeanne, 34, Fisher, four children.

A panel of mental health experts will address the impact of suicide, drug overdose, depression and other issues affecting people in South Lake Tahoe during a workshop on October 21 at the Lake Tahoe Community College from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Creekside Room.

There are a host of partners presenting this workshop to the community including
El Dorado County, Barton Health, Tahoe Youth & Family Services and the Tahoe Regional Young Professionals (TRYP).

September 11 evokes a different meaning to South Lake Tahoe resident Christine O’Farrell. In 2002, on the one-year anniversary of the September 11 attacks, Christine was on the operating table at Barton Memorial Hospital facing a new threat: cancer.

Christine had been diagnosed with an aggressive case of breast cancer. At the time, she was 42 years old and working at Barton’s Home Health and Hospice for quality assurance and infection prevention. Her three children were 14, 12, and 9.

A man from Homewood, CA was arrested and cited on September 25, 2015 for allegedly furnishing alcoholic beverages to minors during the South Lake Tahoe Police Department's "Decoy Shoulder Tap Operation."

Mark Finlayson, 38, was approached by a minor under the direct supervision of a peace officer outside a store in the area of Emerald Bay Road and Lake Tahoe Blvd. The minor asked Finlayson to buy them alcohol, stating they were underage and couldn't purchase the alcohol by themselves.

Finlayson faces a minimum $1000 fine and 24 hours of community service.

A school bus and pickup collided Friday afternoon on Highway 50 East near Airport Road in Carson City, sending the driver of the pickup to the hospital. The driver of the bus and two children aboard were not injured, said Carson City Fire Chief Bob Schreihans.

"There were no injuries to anyone on the bus and the parents of the kids were there to pick them up," said Schreihans.

The El Dorado County Sheriff's Office and South Lake Tahoe Police Department will be taking back unwanted prescription drugs on Saturday, September 26 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Lira's Market in Meyers.

Take expired or unused drugs as the disposal site. No sharps will be accepted.

Prescription drug abuse continues to be a problem in the community, and removing unwanted containers of drugs from medicine cabinets will take them out of the hands of abusers.

The Reno Gazette-Journal filed a lawsuit Friday against the city of Sparks in an effort to compel them to release the names of medical marijuana business licensees.

As the newspaper expands its coverage of Nevada’s burgeoning medical marijuana industry, the RGJ has requested and collected copies of current business licenses for cultivation centers, dispensaries and production facilities in the area. Reno and Washoe County both have policies to release all of the information that the licenses entail.

An 86-year-old Gardnerville man who held Douglas County deputies in a Sept. 1 standoff in which the man's wife was deceased inside the home, died Friday from apparent organ failure after ingesting medications, a Douglas County sheriff's sergeant said Tuesday. Investigators say the couple made a suicide pact.
William Lewis, 86, died at Renown Medical Center in Reno. His wife, Phyllis Lewis, 82, was found dead inside the couple's Edlesborough Circle home, said Sgt. Pat Brooks.

The South Lake Tahoe community is doing what they do best, helping out others when needed.

With the Butte Fire forcing hundreds out of their homes while destroying over a hundred of them, and burning tens of thousands of acres, people in that community are in need of assistance.

Enter into the picture Monica Nichols and dozens of other locals as they spearheaded a donation drive and are now taking them into the burn area.

Dr. Clint Purvance will be taking over the helm at Barton Health on November 1, replacing the retiring John Williams who will retire in early 2016 after nine years with Barton Health.

Dr. Purvance has served as Chief Medical Officer for Barton Health for the past eight years. He is board-certified in Emergency Medicine and has practiced medicine at Barton Memorial Hospital since 1999.

High schools in the Placerville area wore the colors of Union Mine High today as a sign of solidarity after two of the school's Junior Varsity football players suffered brain injuries during a football game on Friday.

Parents worried that their college-bound children might succumb to the temptations of campus life may want to take note of a new analysis that found that students tend to experiment with specific types of drugs for the first time during certain times of year.

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.

The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at press time and the story will be updated when provided.

8/16

2:21 a.m. - Vacation Rental Noise Disturbance - Crystal Air Drive - DEPUTIES RESPONDED TO NOISE COMPLAINT AT A RENTAL PROPERTY IN THE AREA OF SOUTH LAKE TAHOE. AN INFORMATION REPORT WAS GENERATED AND FORWARDED TO DEPUTY ALMOS FOR FURTHER FOLLOW-UP.

Hippocrates, a physician and philosopher of health, said: “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”

Food is often underestimated as an effective medicine. One collection of ingredients gaining attention are phytonutrients. Phytonutrients, sometimes called phytochemicals, are nutrients found in plants that contribute to its vitality. They can be found in a variety of plant-based foods and research shows when humans consume phytonutrients, they interact with the body and promote healing.