President Davis called the meeting to order at 12:25 – a few minutes ahead of our usual time. The invocation was given by Michelle Reynaert and was followed by a Rotary rendition of The Star Spangled Banner. Peter Adieng circulated the microphone for the introduction of guests and visiting Rotarians. Particularly of note was the introduction of Bruce MacGuire, a former member of our club who was a guest of John Grettenberger Sr. President Davis added a bit more history on Bruce’s involvement in our community, including a mention of MacGuire Park and Bruce’s involvement with the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce. Terry Terry had a Remembrance Report, telling us that John Stevenson is home and recovering from a broken arm and that Dave O’Leary has as much of his wits about him as he has ever had. President Davis added that Melissa Nay gave birth to a son, Alexander Paul, on June 8th. President Davis gave the club a last reminder that the Rotary International Convention is being held in Atlanta and that it is not too late to attend. Darwin Brewster will be there representing our club. He also pointed out that our meeting on June 30th will be held at Impression 5 and will begin at 10:30am. This meeting will feature the ribbon cutting for Flow: A Watter Experience!, the new water exhibit that was made possible by our club’s donation. Box lunches will be available, but please make note of the earlier time. Ken Beachler introduced our special music. Travis Williams, who was sporting a gorgeous jacket, is a graduate of LCC who is currently continuing his studies at Western Michigan University. Mr. Williams shared two selections – the first from Porgy and Bess titled “There is a Boat Leaving Soon for New York”. That was followed by “Lost in the Wilderness” from Children of Eden. As Mr. Williams completed his performance, President Davis stopped Laurie Baumer, who was on her way out the door, so he could mention that she is the current Chair of the Month. That was followed by introduction of Darwin Brewster, our next president and Chair of the Day. Darwin had hoped this meeting would be at the new cancer center, but failed to consider the importance of an occupancy permit. Without one, we will have to settle for photos. We were fortunate to have both Staci Bakkegard, manager of Planning & Design, and Dr. James Herman, Medical Director, Sparrow Cancer Center, as speakers. The presentation began with a short video featuring the Herbert and Herman families. It did a great job of outlining how the project began and why these two families are so committed to making the new cancer center a reality. If you weren’t at the meeting or just want to give it another viewing, check it out at http://sparrowtv.org/videos/the-herbert-and-herman-families/#.WT8mscvrsdm. All construction at Sparrow runs through Staci’s office. The Herbert-Herman Cancer Center is one of the biggest projects lately. At the core of all development, including the cancer center, is Sparrow’s patient pyramid. This is the organization’s guiding principal and helps the team to focus on doing what is best for the patient. The cancer center is a destination service, attracting patients from a 60 mile radius. The project began with an extensive design process. The building connects to the existing professional building on 3rd floor, so patients can get all the way to the hospital without leaving enclosed areas. There is also an enlarged parking ramp and flat surface parking. The existing center is 24,000 square feet; the new center will have more than double the space. Staff started with an inventory of what existed in old center and planned for there to expand with new technologies and demands in mind. The staff also engaged in table top proximity exercises to devise floor plans that make sure everything is conveniently located for both patients and staff. Ground breaking was 2 years ago and staff has been involved at the construction site. Regular tours have made it possible to check and double check details to be sure that everything is coming together as planned. A two story atrium helps to make two separate departments feel like one center. There is adequate waiting space and the Red Cross will have an area on site to help patients with research as they begin to learn about their diagnosis. Some of the features of the new center include: - A radiation therapy vault planned with changes in technology in mind. It will be able to accommodate newer technologies as they become available without major changes to the structure.
- Combined exam/consultation rooms that mean patients don’t have to move from one room to another during their visits. This is an idea that was adopted from the Mayo Clinic.
- The south wall of the infusion area is all glass with a green rooftop outside. Patients spend several hours here and will have a pleasant view during their treatments.
- The circular drive has been equipped with a snow melt system so there is no need for salt.
There has also been a focus on public art. There will be a sculpture in the circle by Herb Babcock, a Michigan artist, a Pewabic tile installation in the stairway area, and lighted glass that will be lit in colors corresponding to monthly cancer awareness campaigns. There is also interactive art, most notably a Tree of Hope where patients will attach ribbons for their type of cancer. Craig Mitchell Smith has designed a glass spiral that will hang from the ceiling. Dr. Herman took over from Staci to explain what happens in the building. He is very thankful to the community for $8.1M in donations for the center and excited about moving into the facility. The opening is scheduled for July 11th – ready or not since the invitations are in the mail. The first patients will be seen on July 17th. Dr. Herman shared that 1 in 3 people is diagnosed with cancer sometime during their life. This figure does not include skin cancer, which would boost the number to 2 in 3. Cure rates were 35% when he started his career, but are now close to 80%. He has had a rewarding career, but continues to work towards curing all cancer. Cancer rates are not decreasing and our risk increases as we age. He is very excited about the programs that will be developed and will grow in the new center. The center will feature a patient driven approach. Every patient will be seen in a multi-disciplinary clinic – specialists will come to the patient who will leave with a plan of action without having to make appointments with different specialists in different offices. There will be expanded clinical trials in genetics and increased access to trials across in the country. Clinical trials now are typically late stage, but will move them to earlier in a patient’s treatment. Treatments will be based on genetics and genomics, which helps to target the specific cancer. Both the old and new centers are outpatient facilities. The new center might worsen the inpatient experience because more patients will be attracted to Sparrow. Staci commented that Sparrow is looking to increase inpatient capacity, but it will take a long time to accomplish. In response to a question about why new clinical trials are necessary, Dr. Herman explained that we may be treating a cancer with success, but creating complications. New treatments may be equally as effective, or even better, and may have fewer complications. It is a very long process to test a new protocol and replace existing treatments. The goal is to make this cancer center the best community cancer center in Michigan. There is a place for specialized cancer treatment centers – like pediatric cancer centers, but that will not be a goal for this center. Sparrow will do everything that they think they can do effectively. This will include treating a very wide set of cancers, made possible by partnerships with other facilities like the Mayo Clinic. All of the equipment in the new center will be new. Equipment in the old center will be retired. The new center will have a state of the art linear accelerator that incorporates MRIs to allow imaging during treatment. That makes it possible to more effectively target the cancer with tighter fields. This accelerator is an $8M piece of equipment and is one of only 4 in the country, with 2 of those used strictly for research. To make it easier for patients and their families, parking areas will be designated as A, B, C and D. There will be obvious signage identifying each area and patients will be given instructions indicating where to park based on which part of the complex they will be using. Parking tickets will indicate where you left your car to make it easy to get back to the right area when it is time to leave. President Davis thanked our speakers, presented the Rotary coin and let them know that we will honor them with a donation to a clean water project. Our next meeting is back at the Lansing Center and will feature our annual Changing of the Guard – a meeting that you don't want to miss. |