October 14, 2001

Getting new dental instruments for a children’s clinic or a new treadmill for a cardiology department is probably business as usual for most medical offices. But for the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency’s clinics, new equipment is a big deal.

The county health agency provides medical services for thousands of men, women and children in Stanislaus County. Many of those patients can’t afford private health insurance.

But with the agency’s budgetary limitations, it can’t afford to routinely replace its aging medical equipment.

Enter the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency Foundation.

Through its fund-raising efforts, the 19-year-old nonprofit foundation has bought new and improved items used by the doctors, nurses, technicians and other health care providers, said foundation President Lou Santistevan.

“(The foundation) has raised over $500,000 since 1982 for various programs,” Santistevan said.

Each year, the foundation selects an HSA department to assist, and that department makes a wish list for needed items. In recent years, the foundation has raised funds for:

• Teen pregnancy prevention programs.
• Telemedicine equipment
• A fetal Doppler monitor
• Dental education
• Equipment for the county MOMobile, a traveling clinic that goes to outlying areas.

Last year’s beneficiary was the children’s dental clinic in the county’s Medical Arts Building on 17th Street in Modesto.

This year, the foundation will assist the HSA’s cardiology services department, which is in need of a new exercise treadmill.

It is important for the department to get a new treadmill if the county health agency is to continue its aggressive fight against heart disease, one of the biggest health risks plaguing residents in the area, Santistevan said.

But the treadmill won’t come cheap – approximately $20,000. Its features go far beyond treadmills typically seen in fitness centers, said Elizabeth Cooper, manager of the HSA’s specialty clinics.

“It’s bigger, longer, sturdier and is connected to a sophisticated computer,” Cooper said. “It’s not like something in a gym that will just tell you your pulse. This can monitor your heart.”

The computer can tell whether a person exhibits signs that can indicate an impending heart attack, track an irregular heartbeat and indicate what a person’s target heart rate should be for his age and weight. It also prints out a full report and summary of results.

Foundation members hope that the group’s annual String of Pearls Charity Ball will help raise the money needed for the treadmill. This year’s event is Oct. 20. Tickets cost $80 per person.

The foundation will continue to support the Health Services Agency’s vital work, Santistevan said.

“The community need is there. The agency services hundreds of thousands of patients,” he said. “We have to help them fulfill their needs.”

NAME: Stanislaus County Health Services Agency Foundation
ADDRESS: P.O. Box 302, Modesto, CA 95353
PHONE: 558-5636
WEB SITE: www.hsafoundation.org
E-MAIL ADDRESS: djones@schsa.org
PURPOSE: To support the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency as it leads the way to a healthy community. We value pride in service, compassion in care and excellence in teaching.
YEARS OPERATING: 19
PAID STAFF: None
BOARD OF DIRECTORS: Lou Santistevan, president; Meredith MacDonald, vice president; Matt Friedrich, treasurer; Yvette Steves, secretary

Reprinted by permission of The Modesto Bee.