BEST OF JEWISH NEWS HEALTH CARE - Jewish News of Greater Phoenix

BEST OF JEWISH NEWS

HEALTH CARE

2021

YOUR GIVING, SMARTER.

Create one account for your charitable giving. Maximize your tax savings with a single year-end contribution. You make gifts when it's convenient for you and have peace of mind knowing funds will be there when they are needed most. We do all the administration, investment, and reporting, saving you the hassle.

Open a Donor Advised Fund with the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix

[2021, JONATHAN LEVINE]/THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF NORTH AMERICA. ALL OTHER RIGHTS RESERVED.

? Support your favorite charities from a single streamlined account

? Watch your professionally invested fund grow to increase the impact of your giving

? Contribute stock and avoid capital gains taxes

? Recommend grants or review your account online, anytime, anywhere

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT RICHARD KASPER 480.699.1717 ? rkasper@

2

HEALTH CARE 2021 BEST OF

JEWISH NEWS

FROM THE EDITOR

6 Our health care heroes

PROFILES

8 The unique art of creating beautiful smiles 10 Eyes in focus 12 Putting patients first 14 Reducing patients' pain 15 An unexpected vocation 16 Caring for hearts with chesed 18 Beating addiction 20 `Through thick and thin' 21 A natural path to balance

22 Readers Choice Winners 24 A personal journey 26 Love what you do 28 `Everything works together' 30 Helping those at home 31 Joys of a meaningful career 32 Knowledge is power 34 Compassionate care 36 Caring for generations 38 Emotion key to critical care 40 Communication is key 41 A family business 42 Knowing patients `inside and out'

Cover graphic: ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS / ELENABS; Below: ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS / CECILIE_ARCURS

4

BEST OF JEWISH NEWS 2021 / HEALTH CARE

STAFF

Publisher Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix

General Manager Rich Solomon

Managing Editor Shannon Levitt

Staff Writer Nicole Raz

Account Executive Jodi Lipson

Art Director Frank Wagner

EDITORIAL DEADLINE Noon Tuesday, 9 days prior to publication

ADVERTISING DEADLINE 11 a.m. Friday, 1 week prior to publication 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Ste. 206 Scottsdale, AZ 85254 Phone: 602-870-9470 Fax: 602-870-0426

?2021. Phoenix Jewish News, LLC. (ISSN 1070-5848) is published less than weekly by Phoenix Jewish News, Inc., dba Jewish News. A subscription is $48 per year, payable in advance to Jewish News, Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Ste. 206, Scottsdale, AZ 85254, telephone 602-870-9470. Periodicals postage paid at Phoenix, Arizona. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Jewish News, Ina Levin Jewish Community Campus, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Ste. 206, Scottsdale, AZ 85254

A Jewish Cemetery that cares about the Jewish Community

? Jewish Owned and Operated ? Sidewalks at Every Grave ? Caring Professional Staff ? Intermarried Families Welcome

(480) 585-6060

24210 N. 68th Street (off Pinnacle Peak Rd) Phoenix, AZ 85054

info@ ?

@ Arizona's Only Jewish Funeral Home

@ Arizona's Only Member of the Jewish Funeral Directors of America

@ Arizona's Only Jewish Owned & Operated Funeral Home

@ Arizona's Only Funeral Home Endorsed by the Entire Rabbinical Council

ESTABLISHED 1971

Jonathan Perlman

3rd Generation Jewish Funeral Director

(602) 248-0030

4538 NORTH SIXTEENTH STREET PHOENIX, ARIZONA 85016 WWW.

EMAIL: SINAIMORTUARY@

5

BEST OF JEWISH NEWS 2021 / HEALTH CARE

FROM THE EDITOR

Our health care heroes

Dear Reader,

We started 2021 hopeful that we would finally be able to turn the corner on the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccines became available in January to many of our seniors, and even though the process was initially complicated and frustrating for many, appointments became easier to find and more and more people were vaccinated. People started to feel that the worst might be over.

After a long, strange 18 months filled with social distancing, carrying masks everywhere and having to figure out Zoom calls, we are now able to gather in person again, albeit with precautions and, in some cases, still masked.

Through it all, we have turned to our health care professionals for answers, support and guidance. With every twist and turn of COVID, we knew how fortunate we were to have people who were working hard to make us safe and to shine light on the facts we needed to know.

Past issues of Jewish News' Best of ..., have highlighted arts and culture, home and design and seniors. This year we are honoring many of the health care professionals who have helped Greater Phoenix's Jewish community through this difficult and unique time. We received more nominations for this issue than ever before. It makes sense that many were excited to tell the stories of the people who were on the front lines throughout the pandemic and to honor their service in some way. In profiling our nominees, we hope we accomplished that. All of the interviews with our nominees were conducted in late spring as things were starting to look better.

Although every health care worker had a unique experience with COVID, there were several themes that cropped up again and again. Most people discussed the importance of soothing frightened patients with advice and up-to-date medical information. Most also pointed to telehealth as a great advance in technology. Even when the pandemic is over, technology will continue to be useful in caring for patients who are ill or out of town.

And many of our nominees said that even with the long hours and the constant stress, they found their jobs especially rewarding during this time. They, too, rediscovered how important it is to rely on and value one's family and friends and not to despair in the face of the unknown.

Every year, we put out a call for nominations. The people featured inside were nominated for their work in keeping us healthy and safe. In our pages, they share some personal stories, as well as some of the ways the pandemic shaped their professions and how Judaism and Jewish values feed their work.

There are so many more people and organizations that could have been included, and we hope to hear from you about them so they can be featured in future issues of Jewish News.

Thanks for reading! --Shannon Levitt, Managing Editor

6

BEST OF JEWISH NEWS 2021 / HEALTH CARE

The unique art of creating beautiful smiles

From left: Dr. Abraham Itty, Dr. Julie Anfinson, Dr. Danielle Goldstein and Dr. Timothy Wilson From left: Dr. Tal Masserman, Dr. Bruce Goldstein and Dr. Michael Feinberg

PHOTOS BY MARIRICK PHOTOGRAPHY

SHANNON LEVITT | MANAGING EDITOR

The doctors of Affiliated Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics in Scottsdale have a strong desire to help people. Their career paths have combined health care with running a small business; and they get to use their artistic sides to create beautiful smiles.

This group of doctors was nominated by Rochelle Thomas, who has been employed at the practice for 34 years. In her tenure she has worked with several generations of doctors, and is "constantly humbled by the professionalism, quality of care, ethics and commitment that the doctors in our practice show every day to patients and employees." Employees are treated with dignity and respect; patients are treated with care and offered an experience that makes them feel safe, she said.

Working in dentistry with children is both a challenge and an opportunity. These doctors get to teach kids the importance of caring for their teeth and also teach them not to be afraid to go to the dentist.

When COVID-19 hit and the office was closed for six weeks, the doctors spent every day making plans to reopen in a safe way. They took every possible precaution, going beyond CDC recommendations, to make employees and patients feel safe and confident. Many of the doctors

and staff are "lifers," committed to one another and the patients of the practice.

How does your office approach patient care? We take a very conservative approach to patient care. We have always been proud about only recommending treatment that is absolutely necessary. Our goal has always been to provide exceptional and efficient dental care while utilizing state-of-the-art technology. We strive to make each patient's experience in our office positive and memorable.

What's something you all love about what you do? We love creating beautiful smiles and boosting the self-confidence of our patients. We enjoy interacting with patients of all ages, personalities and cultures. We also love being so entrenched in our community -- we are all in this together.

What do you wish everyone knew about your jobs and what would people be most surprised by? It's the best job in the world. We are so lucky to have found a profession that brings health and happiness to so many. People would be surprised by the age range of our patients. Our practice sees

patients aged from 1 to 80 and even older. Also, many people are surprised when they hear about the amount of schooling required to be an orthodontist or pediatric dentist. Four years of undergraduate education, then four years of dental school followed by two to three years of the specialty program are required.

What were some of the biggest challenges your office faced during this past year amid the pandemic? For six weeks our offices were closed as many businesses were and our initial thought was for our team: We wanted to be sure they were provided for during this unprecedented time. Another huge challenge when preparing to reopen, was getting enough personal protective equipment to provide services. We worked with the ever-changing CDC recommendations to go above and beyond to create an environment where parents and patients felt safe while receiving dental care. We have gone to every length to ensure that anyone entering our office feels safe and comfortable including patients, family, team members and doctors.

How did COVID impact your day-today life as health care professionals?

8

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download