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LAKEPORT – Sutter Lakeside Hospital chief executive officer Kelly Mather says she's leaving the position for a new job in the Sutter Health organization.
Mather, who has led the hospital since 2001, will leave Sutter Lakeside Sept. 2.
“This was a very difficult decision for my family and me as my time at Sutter Lakeside has been richly rewarding,” Mather said in a statement. “Sutter Lakeside is a 'healing hospital' pioneer and I look forward to sharing its successes with other health care organizations.”
In her new job she'll be heading Sutter Health’s efforts to promote the wellness model of health care and improve community health programs throughout Northern California.
The Sutter Lakeside Board of Directors has begun the process of hiring a successor to Mather and will rely on existing local and regional leadership to oversee hospital operations while the search unfolds.
Bill Kearney, Sutter Lakeside’s Board chairman, praised Mather's efforts. “Kelly has led the hospital with passion and insight and has gained the respect and admiration of the hospital staff, physicians and the Board of Directors,” he said in a written statement.
Mather served as the chief executive officer of San Leandro Hospital from 1996 to 2001, prior to taking the helm at Sutter Lakeside.
Since 2001, the hospital's capital improvements have included expanding its Emergency Department, adding a surgical pavilion and most recently the Don Pifer Medical Imaging Service, a $10 million dollar renovation to the medical imaging department featuring the latest diagnostic technology and patient conveniences.
In addition, the hospital campus has undergone a major face lift and its Wellness Center has expanded.
Mather has focused on a “healing hospital” model that combines wellness and illness care. She's worked with a Rural Health Partnership model to better address the community health needs of Lake County, and also has helped develop several innovative community benefit programs such as the “Healthy Kids are Contagious” school site program, which provides a health and wellness curriculum to students of Lake County schools.
Sutter Lakeside reported that, under Mather's leadership, the hospital has been one of the few financially stable rural hospitals in California.
However, decreased Medicare reimbursement forced hospital leadership to seek federal assistance, resulting in Sutter Lakeside converting to a Critical Access Hospital in March. That federal designation is meant to provide increased Medicare funding to certain rural hospitals that meet specific criteria.
Mather said she's grateful to all the employees, physicians, community leaders and Lake County residents who have supported the hospital and its over the past seven years.
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BIG VALLEY – It's summertime, which also means it's tule boat racing time at Big Valley Rancheria.
The rancheria's seventh annual Tule Boat Festival, which began Wednesday, will culminate on Friday in the annual tule boat races.
The races will be held on Clear Lake offshore of Big Valley Rancheria, located on Mission Rancheria Road.
The event is a chance for tribal members from around the county to practice the traditional Pomo craft of building sturdy boats from native tules.
Dance groups, activities for youth and environmental demonstrations also are a part of the annual festival.
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The four-fire complex was sparked to the north and northwest of Lake Pillsbury by a dry lightning storm on June 21. It's located on the Mendocino National Forest's Upper Lake Ranger District.
Forest Service spokesman Marc Peebles reported Thursday that the complex is still expected to be fully contained on Saturday.
That's when the last and largest of the complex's fires, the Mill Fire, also will be contained. It's burned 3,043 acres and was at 93-percent containment Thursday.
Overall, the complex had burned approximately 8,652 acres, according to Peebles. There are 810 fire personnel, 22 crews, 29 engines, three dozers, 10 water tenders and three helicopters assigned to the complex.
Peebles said the Southern California Incident Management Team No. 3 – which is headquartered at Upper Lake High School – will remain in unified command with Cal Fire to manage the Soda Complex through Friday at 8 a.m.
Peebles said firefighters have made excellent progress on the fire, improving, holding and performing mop up procedures on containment lines throughout the fire perimeter. He said fire suppression repair work has begun and is being coordinated with district resource advisors.
At the same time, multiple aircraft continue to support firefighters on the ground with water drops, and the area of the complex's contained fires – the Monkey Rock, the Big and the Back – will continue to be patrolled by air, Peebles reported.
Specific figures on the Vinegar Fire on the Mendocino National Forest, which is now managed as part of the Lime Complex, were not available Thursday.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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HOPLAND GRADE – Two people escaped serious injury Thursday afternoon when the vehicle they were riding in went off the roadway and flipped over.
A gold SUV was reported as having gone off the Hopland Grade at 3:53 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.
Officials at the scene reported that the vehicle had flipped over more than once, but that the two occupants had survived and walked away with minor injuries.
The driver may have had a problem due to a medical condition, the CHP reported.
The roadway was closed for at least an hour and a half while emergency personnel assisted the crash victims and removed the totaled vehicle from the scene.
No further information, including names of the vehicle's occupants, was available late Thursday.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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In recent days, smoke pouring into Lake County's air basin has led some county residents to conclude that there must be new fires nearby.
But county Deputy Air Pollution Control Officer Doug Gearhart reported that the smoke is coming from the Soda Complex on the Mendocino National Forest and the Lime Complex, with west to northeast winds bringing the smoke here.
The Soda Complex of four fires has burned nearly 8,652 acres and is 95-percent contained, according to the US Forest Service. The Lime complex, composed of 92 fires that includes those on the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness, is spread across several wilderness areas and National Forests in Northern California, with 116,488 acres burned.
Using the Federal Air Quality Index for particulate matter, Gearhart said Lake County’s air quality is expected to be in the moderate range for a 24-hour average.
Although the 24 hour average may be moderate trending to unhealthy, mid-day to early evening conditions have been in the unhealthy for sensitive groups to unhealthy range, with similar conditions expected Friday, Gearhart said.
On July 10, air quality also was in the unhealthy for sensitive groups range, according to statistics Gearhart provided.
Smoky conditions can cause issues for everyone, but can be particularly hazardous for young children, the elderly, individuals with heart conditions or chronic lung disease such as asthma, bronchitis and other respiratory conditions.
Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Karen Tait advises area residents to be cautious.
“Variable weather conditions and ongoing fire activity may result in localized areas of reduced air quality, which could pose health risks to people with underlying health conditions,” she said. “Since we can’t always predict when and where ‘pockets’ of poorer air quality may occur, it is prudent to be careful until conditions stabilize.”
Individuals with asthma, bronchitis, emphysema and other lung or heart diseases should carefully adhere to their medical treatment plans and maintain at least a five-day supply of supply of prescribed medications. They should limit outdoor activity and unnecessary physical exertion. Drinking plenty of water to avoid drying of the airways is generally recommended, unless restricted for medical reasons.
Dust masks are not protective against the most harmful pollutants caused by wildfire smoke that drifts to nearby areas, health officials reported. Masks are useful in filtering out the larger particles and ash that are encountered in burn areas and should be considered when recovering property or cleaning areas that have burned.
Air purifying respirators, such as N-95 filtering face pieces, may be effective in reducing harmful particulate matter, but also increase the work of breathing, can lead to physiologic stress, and are not recommended for the general public in Lake County. Their use should be limited to individual circumstances requiring additional protection in personnel trained and familiar with the proper fitting and use of these devices.
Mechanical air filtering units with HEPA filters, can be useful, according to health officials. It is important that the size and the air flow of the unit be matched to the indoor space it is intended to treat. There are a variety of other devices marketed to purify air that should be avoided, as they might be ineffective under wildfire circumstances and some can actually worsen the air quality by producing ozone.
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LAKE COUNTY – A dog that was hit by a semi and left without vet care for two days until her seizure by an animal control officer is preparing to start rehabilitation, while another dog taken into protective custody was euthanized due to his age and condition.
Animal Care and Control Director Denise Johnson said that “Whiskey,” a 6-month-old female pit bull taken from a Lucerne home by Officer Eric Wood on June 27, is on the mend after her painful ordeal.
However, a 10-year-old German shepherd dubbed “Luke” – taken into county custody by Wood earlier this month – had to be euthanized, Johnson said.
Johnson said Whiskey is getting ready for rehabilitation. She's spent the last month in the care of Wasson Memorial Veterinary Clinic in Lakeport.
Whiskey had been hit by a semi truck and left to cry in pain, with no medical care, in her owners' backyard in Lucerne for two days, officials reported.
The dog's back right left has some nerve damage; although she can walk and put pressure on it, she drags the paw, so her leg is in a split to stop the paw from dragging, said Johnson.
Johnson said the next six weeks will be very important in Whiskey's recovery, and will determine if she'll regain use of the leg or if it will need to be amputated.
Johnson said Whiskey is in good spirits, and appears determined to run and jump again. But much of how she recovers will hinge on finding her the right foster home, which hasn't happened so far. The dog will require detailed care for the next eight weeks.
Whiskey's former owners – Paul Westergren, 43, and Carrie Malsack, both of Lucerne – are facing charges of animal cruelty and failure to provide veterinary care, the latter of which is a misdemeanor, said Johnson.
Johnson said Gary Bazzano of Middletown, Luke's former owner, is facing similar charges because he left the dog without vet care for two weeks. The dog had been unable to walk, and also had been found without food or water.
The older German Shepherd was euthanized at Clearlake Veterinary Clinic on July 16 after it was determined his age and weight – he was at 120 pounds – made it impossible for rehabilitation, said Johnson.
“The most humane thing to do was to put him down,” Johnson said. “It was a very emotional day at Clearlake Vet and Animal Care and Control. It really is a shame that it had to come to this.”
In recent weeks more animal cruelty cases have appeared to come to the surface, Johnson said. She said in just under two weeks, out of five animal cruelty reports, three were validated.
“The number of reports are usually three to five per week but they aren't usually valid,” she said.
Most of the time the reports come from a disgruntled individual – a neighbor or relative – or arise from issues with spouses, but usually it turns out that the animals are OK, said Johnson.
In other cases, she said the issues aren't affecting the animal's health and the owner is willing to change the situation, so Animal Care and Control works with them and checks back to make sure the changes have been made.
Lately, however, the reports are more often valid and the cases are extreme, said Johnson, so Animal Care and Control is trying to bring the problem to the attention of the public.
That's important to do, she said, because most times animal abuse leads to, or is happening hand-in-hand with, abuse of children, spouses or the elderly.
“So if people see animal abuse and report it we can step in and, if needed, we can call for outside agency assistance to handle the human issues,” she said.
To report animal abuse call Lake County Animal Care and Control, 263-0278.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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