Blue Ribbon Panel Kicks Off Planning Process

Second Meeting Scheduled for April 16

(San Francisco, March 20, 2008) The Blue Ribbon Panel, which was formed to help shape the future of healthcare delivery South of Market, including the future of St. Luke's Hospital, kicked off its discernment and recommendation process today with the first meeting of its 31 members -- leaders from San Francisco community, labor, local government, health care and business.

The Blue Ribbon Panel has been established as an independent body to create a viable plan for acute care hospital and outpatient services at St. Luke's, which complements and is supported by CPMC's current institutional plan for all its San Francisco campuses and meets the healthcare needs of the communities served.

Stephen M. Shortell, Ph.D., MPH, Dean and professor at the UC Berkeley, Chair of the Panel and the Rt. Reverend Marc Andrus, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of California, Vice-Chair of the Panel presided over the open meeting with Convener San Francisco Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier. More than 35 attendees from the public were present.

The two hour meeting was a lively discussion guided by facilitator John Golenski, EdD. During the meeting the chair and vice chair outlined the process the panel will undertake, established the ground-rules for participation, and articulated how the panel will receive the broadest range of public input possible. Every member present contributed to the discussion.

"We are thrilled that we have been able to assemble such a stellar and diverse panel of leaders genuinely interested in working together to ensure the heath of the South of Market community and the viable and sustainable role of St. Luke's in San Francisco," said Shortell.

"I was heartened by the common concern of the panelists in their caring for the city's most vulnerable populations," Bishop Andrus added. "We all come to the table with different points of view, but we are united with our shared goal of reaching a viable plan for acute care hospital and outpatient services at St. Luke's."

The Blue Ribbon Panel meets next on April 16th at a place still to be determined; this meeting is open to the public. For more information, visit www.cpmcbeyondmedicine.com.

The Blue Ribbon Panel to San Francisco's California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) is an independent body created under the guidance of San Francisco Supervisor Alioto-Pier and the San Francisco Director of Health, Mitch Katz, M.D. Chaired by Stephen Shortell, PhD, MPH, Dean and professor at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health, and the Rt. Reverend Marc Andrus, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of California, the goal of the Blue Ribbon Panel is to articulate a viable plan for acute care hospital and outpatient services at CPMC's St. Luke's campus which complements and is supported by CPMC's current institutional plan for its other campuses and to meet the health needs of the communities it serves. For more information please visit http://www.cpmcbeyondmedicine.com.

Login