Around the Valley | Food bank grant, health facilities break ground, safety heroes
.jpeg "Amanda Silva, left, and Lorena Perez were named Kaweah Delta’s Patient Safety Heroes of 2019.")
Central California Food Bank renovates with grant
A $100,000 Farm Credit grant is helping the Central California Food Bank add 5,000 square feet of freezers to its 20,000 square feet of cold storage, the organization announced.
Fresno Madera Farm Credit, Golden State Farm Credit and Farm Credit West have given $170,000 to the food bank since 2015.
The Central California Food Bank, previously known as Community Food Bank, is currently storing fresh and frozen foods in eight refrigerator trucks in the food bank’s parking lot.
Construction begins on new health facilities
Two new United Health Center facilities recently broke ground in the Valley and are slated to open early next year, according to spokesman David Phillips.
Construction began on a facility at 300 Westgate Way in Dinuba on March 20. The new center will have 18 exam rooms, 14 dental operatories, two chiropractic exam rooms, behavioral health services and a suite of seven exam rooms for urgent care with X-ray, Phillips said.
A new facility at 2022 E. Manning Avenue in Reedley will replace a smaller one. It will have 22 exam rooms, six optometry rooms and several more rooms for chiropractic and behavioral health services and an in-house pharmacy. Construction broke ground on Feb. 20.
Women named Kaweah Delta safety heroes
Two women were named Kaweah Delta’s Patient Safety Heroes of 2019 on March 22.
Lorena Perez, a registered nurse, and Amanda Silva, an associate social worker, were honored in front of more than 300 leaders at the fifth annual Patienty Safety Symposium at the Visalia Convention Center.
Perez has worked at Kaweah Delta for 12 years and Silva for three years. Perez was honored for fixing “a breakdown in communication on her unit that was potentially lifesaving for patients,” according to Kaweah spokeswoman Laura Florez-McCusker.
Silva was awarded for creating a process “to improve communication with child welfare services to protect children.”
This story was originally published March 23, 2019 at 12:20 PM with the headline "Around the Valley | Food bank grant, health facilities break ground, safety heroes."