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SSOCIATED
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EWSPAPERS OF
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ICHIGAN
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AGE
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November 15, 2012
R
OMULUS
- W
AYNE
City employees help
Adopt-a-Family effort
Annapolis Hospital unveils renovations, expansion
City employees who are members of
Teamsters Local 214 have donated $1,000 to
the "Adopt aFamily" fund.
Themoney will be added to the funds col-
lected throughout the year when city
employees donate $2 to wear jeans on
Fridays and will be used to fulfill needs of
Romulus families during the Christmas holi-
day.
The members of Local 214 voted unani-
mously to donate the funds, according to
Chief Steward Joseph Watt. The union has
57members fromlabor, trades and clerical.
The Adopt a Family program is a person-
alized approach to helping those in difficult
times, but is different from the Romulus
Goodfellows' support, which is open to
needy people who apply to receive toys and
food vouchers during the holidays.
"We help specific Romulus families that
are referred to us by the schools or our
police officers or firefighters," said Linda
McNeil, clerical steward for Local 214. "We
buy based on what they need, whether it's a
winter coat, boots, socks, shoes or backpacks.
It goes beyond what Goodfellows does. This
year, we'll be able to do more with the addi-
tional $1,000. We can givemore to a family or
a couple families."
Watt said that in the past, city employees
have helped families whose homes have
burned down and those who have been in
serious car accidents around the holidays.
When families are referred to the city
employees group, the needs are determined
and several employees go shopping to fill
those needs.
"In this day and age, where the Teamsters
have accepted cuts, we realize there are
peopleworse off thanwe are andwewant to
give back to the community,"Watt said.
The Local 214 members also assist the
Goodfellows organization. They will help
solicit funds while selling the Goodfellows
magazine on Romulus street corners and
intersections on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1.
Goodfellows have helped an average of 117
qualified Romulus families during the past
two years, McNeil said
Those in need can apply for assistance by
completing an application available at
Romulus City Hall, 11111Wayne Road, or on
the City of Romulus website, www.romulus-
gov.com.
Officials at Oakwood Annapolis
Hospital in Wayne unveiled the
first phase of an extensive renova-
tion and expansion of the
EmergencyDepartment last week.
The project is designed to pro-
vide more space in the emergency
department, increase the efficiency
of the operation and reduce the
amount of time patients will spend
there. The year-long project cost
about $4 million, and is the largest
investment in the emergency
department since the hospital
opened in 1957. It will be construct-
ed in four phases with the estimat-
ed completiondate of June, 2013.
“Our goal is to ensure that
patients are seen earlier by an
attending physician, which will
result in earlier treatment, earlier
relief of symptoms, earlier test
results, and ultimately a shorter
stay in the ED,” said Eric W.
Widner, division president of
OakwoodAnnapolisHospital .
The project involves an expan-
sion of about 1,500 square feet as
well as a renovation of the existing
11,000 square feet in the depart-
ment. The renovation will increase
bed capacity with a significant
improvement in design of patient
flow, along with optimized patient
privacy, along with enhanced geri-
atric care safety.
“Our big gain will be in efficien-
cy,” saidRalphScolari, DO, Chief of
Emergency Medicine at Oakwood
Annapolis.
Oakwood acquired Annapolis
Hospital in 1989. Since 2004,
Oakwood has constructed a surgi-
cal center at the hospital, fully ren-
ovated its birthing center, opened a
specialized hospice and palliative
care unit, and made numerous
upgrades to services and technolo-
gy, including an Open MRI unit,
and most recently the purchase of
a daVinci surgical robot.
Teamsters Business Agent Al Lewis (left), Local 214 Clerical Steward Linda McNeil, Chief
Steward Joseph Watt and Jennifer Frayer, who is the Adopt a Family coordinator for the city
will use the $1,000 donated to help a Romulus family during the holidays.
David Bertasio, right, RN, BSN, MSA, director of Emergency Services at
Oakwood Annapolis Hospital, outline the planned future renovation at
the Emergency Department there to Troy Adamen, left, and Paul Lauzaur
from Oakwood Southshore Medical Center.