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Petersen Hastings in Kennewick and Walla Walla, Washington is honored to announce our recertification from the Centre for Fiduciary Excellence (CEFEX) for the 13th straight year. This certification is only granted by CEFEX to firms that demonstrate adherence to fiduciary best practices. It is a hallmark accomplishment as it signifies conformity to a recognized global standard of fiduciary excellence. 

The CEFEX certificate requires that advisors undergo annual fiduciary assessments conducted by the program’s expert analysts to ensure they are upholding fiduciary standards and that practices are in place in order to achieve cultural excellence, supported by documented and structured processes. The CEFEX Fiduciary assessment, in detail, includes administrative review, analyzes structure systems and reporting – where conflicts of interest may be addressed, analyzes risk and characteristics of the portfolio, and samples client deliverables. Because of this, advisors are better able to manage client portfolios and expectations through education, reporting, and disclosure. 

“CEFEX is pleased to once again, include Petersen Hastings amongst an elite group of investment advisors who have demonstrated adherence to professional practices that define a standard of fiduciary excellence,” said CEFEX Managing Director, Carlos Panksep. “They have earned the right to use the CEFEX Mark which indicates the firm’s established practices are aligned with investors’ interests and worthy of trust and confidence.”

“Embracing the fiduciary standard has been and continues to be a pillar of the Petersen Hastings mission, and we are excited to be one of the few firms in the country that have been CEFEX certified as fiduciaries for over ten years,” said Matthew Petersen, Chief Compliance Officer. “We have been able to achieve this through our entire team’s dedication to putting the interest of our clients ahead of our own.”

The next seminar in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Community Science and Technology Seminar Series, “Size Does Matter! Testing with Simulated Hanford Tank Waste,” presented by Philip Schonewill, a senior chemical engineer at PNNL, will take place on Tuesday, January 12, 2021, at 5:00 p.m., via Zoom. 

On this webinar, you will learn how big is too big. When investigating ideas and refining design concepts, researchers often develop methods and systems at a reduced scale. For Hanford waste processes, the particularities of the situation demand a much larger size despite the increase in complexity and expense. The test system must be very large to properly capture the relevant physical or chemical processes controlling the behavior of interest. Through a series of recent case studies, learn why choosing the appropriate scale for Hanford waste process test systems is critical to obtaining meaningful results.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Community Science and Technology Seminar Series was launched to help the general public better understand and explore how science transforms our world. 

Those who are interested can register here.

Many of you have questions about when you will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. We are currently in Phase 1a of the rollout plan that has been developed with recommendations that closely align with the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). This includes risk stratification given the limited supply of the vaccine for COVID-19 for the first two months. These guidelines are provided by the CDC.

Phase 1a includes the following groups:

• High-risk workers in health care settings (clinical judgment should be applied to identify who is at greatest risk).
• High-risk first responders (clinical judgment should be applied to identify who is at greatest risk).
• Residents and staff of nursing homes assisted living facilities, and other community-based, congregate living settings where most individuals over 65 years of age are receiving care, supervision, or assistance. This is to avoid hospitalizations, severe morbidity, and mortality.

Phase 1b includes:

• People of all ages with comorbid and underling conditions that put them at significantly high risk.
• Older adults living in congregate or overcrowded settings.

Phase 2 includes:

• K-12 teachers and school staff and childcare workers.
• Critical workers in high-risk settings – workers who are in industries essential to the function of society and at substantially high-risk of exposure.
• People of all ages with comorbid and underlying conditions that put them at moderately high risk.
• People in homeless shelters or group homes for individuals with disabilities, including serious mental illness, developmental and intellectual disabilities s, and physical disabilities, or in recovery and staff who work in such settings.
• People in prison, jails, detention centers, and similar facilities and staff who work in such settings.
• All older adults not included in Phase 1.

You can visit the Department of Health’s website to learn more the vaccine rollout plan:
https://www.doh.wa.gov/Portals/1/Documents/1600/coronavirus/WA-COVID-19-Vaccination-Plan.pdf

For information on the community vaccination schedule, please call Prosser Memorial Health Chief Communications Officer Shannon Hitchcock at 509.786.6601 or connect@prosserhealth.org Additional COVID-19 resources can be found on our website at prosserhealth.org. We will notify the community when we begin the community vaccine clinics.

Prosser Memorial Health proudly announces Dr. Jared Clifford as the new Chief of Staff for 2021-2023. Prosser Orthopedic Center Podiatric Surgeon, Dr. Jared Clifford, DPM, FACFAS, has been caring for our patients for fourteen years. He is Board-Certified by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery and a Fellow of the American College of Foot & Ankle Surgeons.

“Every time I come in through the hospital lobby, I am amazed as I pass the ever-growing number of provider portraits hanging on the wall. I never would have guessed that we would eventually have such a diverse group of providers and specialists when I started here 14 years ago!

As chief of staff, I will be just one part of this team of physicians, healthcare providers, and Prosser Memorial Health coworkers, all of us striving to provide excellent patient care and a comfortable, personal experience for everyone who walks through the doors of our hospital and clinics. 2020 brought obvious challenges, and I am proud to have been a part of Prosser Memorial Health as we responded with our COVID respiratory clinic and measures in our hospital and clinics to keep our patients and team members safe.

 am optimistic as we begin 2021. Prosser Memorial Health is blessed to have a cohesive medical staff that works very well together. Our sights are set firmly on becoming a top-100 critical access hospital. It’s going to be a great year.” - Dr. Jared Clifford, DPM, FACFAS, and Chief of Staff at Prosser Memorial Health

The two-year term position was held by Prosser Memorial Health Emergency Room physician, Dr. Terry Murphy from 2019-2020. Board-Certified Pediatrician Dr. David Carl of Prosser Memorial Health’s Benton City Clinic will serve as the 2021-2023 Vice Chief of Staff. For questions, please contact Prosser Memorial Health Chief Communications Officer Shannon Hitchcock at 509.786.6601.

On Wednesday, January 13th at 1:30 p.m., the Port of Pasco will perform a dedication ceremony for the new Reimann Industrial Center.

The Port purchased the 300-acres of land in October of 2019 for development of a new industrial center in Franklin County. The land is available for purchase for new and expanding industrial businesses with parcel sizes ranging from 5 to 100 acres.

The Reimann Industrial Center was named in honor of Ron Reimann, a former Port of Pasco Commissioner. Ron served as a Commissioner for the Port from November 2011 until his passing in July of 2017. Ron was very active in the local agricultural community in both farming and industry advancement.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the dedication will be a small group and will be outdoors only with social distancing and masks required.
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The dedication ceremony will take place at Reimann site along Railroad Avenue, approximately ½ mile north of the Granite Northwest office at 7131 N Railroad Ave.

You can register for the free luncheon here.

Baker Boyer is pleased to announce the promotion of Rosendo Guizar to Chief Credit Officer.

“Rosendo’s dedication to small family businesses throughout our region makes him uniquely qualified to work with clients to find solutions for their business. We at Baker Boyer feel fortunate to have someone with such integrity and dedication represent us in our communities,” remarked Mark Kajita, Baker Boyer President and CEO.

Guizar is responsible for the Bank’s entire commercial and consumer lending portfolio. He will use his lending experience to assess and manage credit risk for the Bank and its clients, ensuring client success. Guizar began his career with Baker Boyer Bank in 1996. During his 22 years at the Bank, he has worked in all facets of lending, ranging from operational to direct lending responsibilities in both the consumer and commercial areas. He has held positions as a Commercial Loan Assistant and Loan Officer, Business Advisor, culminating in his most recent role as a Credit Administrator. Guizar has been instrumental in helping Baker Boyer serve and guide clients through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) with the rollout of $44 million in loans to businesses in Eastern Washington.

Guizar is a graduate of Whitman College with a degree in biochemistry. In 2003, he graduated from the University of Colorado School of Banking. Prior to working at Baker Boyer, he held several entrepreneurial roles, which were instrumental in providing a well-rounded banking and financing background. His understanding of the challenges facing the self-employed is an asset for Baker Boyer’s entrepreneurial customers.
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He is proud to call Walla Walla home and feels fortunate to have been able to raise his two daughters in Walla Walla’s great community. Rosendo enjoys giving back to the community through his involvement in various organizations. He has served as President of the Sunrise Rotary Club, Walla Walla Community Hospice Board President, member of the Workforce Development Council, and a member of the Walla Walla Community College Accounting Advisory Committee.

Heartlinks Hospice & Palliative Care has announced the addition of a new nurse practitioner, Christopher Monk, ARNP, in order to further expand its Palliative Care program in the Tri-Cities. The expansion follows the discontinuation of Chaplaincy Health Care’s palliative care program at the end of 2020. Heartlinks has provided palliative care to the community since 2007, and has increased their patient load by 35% since Chaplaincy discontinued their program in December. 
 
Heartlinks Palliative Care program is designed to enhance the quality of life and to help ease the difficulties associated with the disease process that is progressively worsening. Heartlinks is working closely with a broader coalition of community health providers to further expand its palliative care program to fit community need.
 
Patients who think palliative care would be helpful should discuss this with their primary care doctor. Patients remain under the care of their own physicians. Palliative care professionals can recommend ways to manage physical symptoms, discuss “next steps” and offer access to other professionals to address emotional and spiritual symptoms that can be a part of chronic and often life-limiting illnesses.
 
Medicare, Medicaid, Private Insurance, and Veteran’s Benefits mostly reimburse palliative care services, and the remaining amount is covered by community support and donations. As the only active provider of this service locally, donations are encouraged as they continue to provide this critical care for our communities. To learn more about palliative care, please visit: www.heartlinkshospice.org

Trios Health is pleased to announce that Christopher Ravage, MD, has joined Trios as a Cardiologist.

Dr. Ravage will see patients at the Trios Care Center at Southridge 4th floor clinic, located at 3730 Plaza Way in Kennewick. He treats patients for a variety of conditions, including cardiac catheterization, intercoronary stents and angioplasty, cardiac pacemaker implantation and management, heart disease assessment and prevention, valvular heart disease, hypertension, heart rhythm treatment, echocardiography, electrocardiography, and more.

“We are pleased to bring Dr. Ravage on board with Trios Medical Group full-time,” said Lorie Orozco, Director of Trios Medical Group Operations. “His expertise, experience and knowledge of the local healthcare landscape are of great value and worth to our patients and our community.”

Dr. Ravage has worked on a contract-basis with Trios since 2014 through CardioSolution. He has also been in private practice in Richland for more than 20 years. Prior to going into private practice, Dr. Ravage worked with Mid-Columbia Heart Institute. Over the last several years, he has also been affiliated with Trios Health, Lourdes Health, Kadlec Regional Medical Center, and Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center. He is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine in Cardiovascular Disease and Internal Medicine.
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“We are excited to have Dr. Ravage join our team full-time. We have already had the privilege of working with him through CardioSolution and are thrilled that he is with Trios Medical Group now,” said Cristal Trevino, clinic manager. “We have been impressed with Dr. Ravage’s approach to patient care and are looking forward to helping him continue to grow his practice here while serving our patients and community.”