Gribler scholarship invests in local health care workforce  

Excellent hospital facilities and first-rate medical equipment are vital to the health of our community—but if there isn’t enough qualified medical staff to use them, what are they worth? To help ensure that south Lincoln County maintains a strong health care workforce, the foundation awards the Gribler Loving Trust Nursing Scholarship each year.

The scholarship is dedicated to assisting local residents in their pursuit of nursing careers, and the hope is that quality nurses will stay in our communities and care for patients at the hospital and clinics.

Two outstanding students each received $2,000 Gribler scholarships this year. Maria Cristina Tamayo currently works at the hospital as a CNA, where she is able to use her fluency in Spanish to help patients who don’t speak English as their first language.

"I really enjoy my job and at the same time I am expanding my knowledge base," Tamayo said. "I am the first generation in my family to attend college and getting into the nursing program [at Oregon Coast Community College (OCCC)] is a huge accomplishment for me."

Christopher Scott is also a nursing student at OCCC. A former millworker, Scott’s life changed dramatically when his arm was caught in a piece of machinery at work and he was rushed to Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital.
 
"I had no idea what the future would hold for me aside from a long recovery," Scott said. "I had the pleasure of being cared for by some extraordinary nurses while I was there, and they gave me hope, inspiring me to follow their path in life."

To date, the foundation has given a total of $18,000 in Gribler scholarships.    

Foundation allocates more than $74,000 for hospital and clinic equipment  

Few things are more important to quality patient care than the tools that our physicians, nurses and technicians use every day. Ensuring Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital and our local clinics have the best tools available is one of the foundation’s most important goals. That’s why the foundation recently allocated $74,488 to purchase key pieces of equipment and to fund programs that benefit patients. Examples include:

• A software upgrade for the hospital pharmacy’s Omnicell automated medication dispensing machine
• New thermometers for the Samaritan Pacific Internal Medicine Clinic
• A magnetic light kit for the Depoe Bay Clinic
• An elliptical machine for the Cardiac Rehabilitation Department

 

In addition to equipment, these funds are helping to provide programs and services that couldn’t otherwise be offered to patients, such as live therapeutic harp music played for inpatient care areas throughout the hospital.