Reporter - Will Portello
Photos - Various
July 8, 2022
Présidente Meaghan! So President Meaghan’s first meeting began with a strange tinkling of small, non-approved bells. From small beginnings...
We had three visiting Rotarians: Cass Sylvia from the Woodland Luna Vista Club, as well as Dora Zuniga from Tampa Project Amigo. Later, Chuck of the Fairfield Rotary Club announced himself, glad to be out and about whilst evaluating clubs.
We were also honored with the presence of the inimitable Ralph Sparks, a former Sunrise Rotarian. Ralph was present because of a very special visitor, Natasha Berard. Nancy did the introduction of Natasha (and family!!):
Natasha came to the Davis Sunrise Rotary Club many years ago as an exchange student from Verdun, France. She returned to us with a husband and four lovely children in tow. For those of you who have not been to Verdun, do not mention it to the Reporter’s spouse, as he regrettably planned a honeymoon to Verdun that included such romantic spots as “La Ravine de la Mort,” “La Mort Homme,” and “Tranchée des Baionnettes.’ I’m not one to bring the readership up to speed on Great War history, but let’s just all agree that this little jaunt may not have been my finest hour.
Moving on….Mark Bartson introduced a guest Fernanda from Brazil, a post-doc researcher, along with Maria from Bolivia, doing a teaching Spanish exchange.
Brodie reminded all the slackers to pay for Demotion.
Marc Thompson reminded people that Meals on Wheels needs drivers.
Frances McChesney had a whole bunch of office supplies available for donation.
Our out-of-town visitors then had a few announcements. Dora thanked us for our support of Project Amigo.
Cass Sylvia announced a tequila event for people who won’t fall face-first into pools when drinking tequila. The reporter thought that dunking on Manny like that was a bit harsh.
Meaghan then attempted to correct a massive self-inflicted wound, a potentially catastrophic scenario where our little club would collapse because it couldn’t meet the minimal standards of oversight and management. So, a day late and a dollar short, we had a Board of Directors installed. Steve Streeter, Brodie, Roy Kroener. Justina, Rick Stromberg, David Copp, Lori, Tom Read, and Mark Pratt all were installed, whether present or in absentia.
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Which led to Sgt. Lori…
- Steve Streeter had happy bucks for Mt. Shasta.
- Chuck Snipes was happy-but Chuck is always happy.
- Duncan had happy bucks for Emily completing her firefighter training in Reno, NV.
- Dave Heard had misery rubles for a second round of Covid, but happy bucks for Paxlovid.
- Andrew Y and Chuck had birthdays. Larry Green had a 75th Birthday.
- Jay Brookman is off to the Tour de France (Notably, Stage 6 takes you right through the town of Sedan, where Rommel’s forces breached the French lines in 1940, then finishes in Longwy. Only 17 minutes outside Longwy is the Fort Fermont museum, a preserved Maginot Line Fort… and a quick 45 minutes down D-66 from Longwy will put you in the heart of the Verdun battlefields. Don’t ask me how I know this, and I’m sure that’s not why Jay is going….)
- Carolyn Stiver is making a free spot available in the Chamber of Commerce golf tournament.
- Lucas is both the Mayor and a Yolo County Supervisor.
- Meaghan was happy for her bell being returned.
Speaker of the Day!
Which led us to Jacque. Jacque introduced our speaker, his son’s former roommate, Dr. Michael Schick.
Dr. Schick has moved to Davis, and is the Director of International Ultrasound. He gave us an overview of the Uganda Ultrasound Project. Uganda has a unique type of medical provider- an Emergency Care Practitioner, or an “ECP.” ECPs provide local emergency care in small regional facilities. The goal of the ultrasound project in Uganda was to create a portable and sustainable program of using Point-of-Care ultrasound, essentially bedside ultrasound, in place of complex imaging equipment such as MRIs and XRays, as those are not typically available.
There are small portable imagers that work with tablet computers, allowing ECPs to quickly assess various conditions. The first use of ECPs was at a small hospital on the Congolese border. Once the government recognized
the potential, it was moved to a larger regional facility. The emergency departments in these facilities contain only a few medications, a limited supply of oxygen, and few facilities. Using a Rotary International Global Grant, the US personnel had the ability to travel and train ECPs.
the potential, it was moved to a larger regional facility. The emergency departments in these facilities contain only a few medications, a limited supply of oxygen, and few facilities. Using a Rotary International Global Grant, the US personnel had the ability to travel and train ECPs.
However, they quickly recognized that skills in the use of ultrasound would degrade, there was no local oversight, and a lack of supporting local expertise. That realization led to a “train the trainers” model,
where two “local champion” ECPs were identified, and intensely trained. Those two ECPs, Kansiime Glorious and Elizabeth Natukunda obtained degrees in ultrasound and began training regional leaders through a 2-week program.
Dr. Schick recognized that the District Grant had created a sustainable ultrasound program. We followed with a series of questions, including David Foos raising the issue through a very pointed question that ultrasound has a variety of medical imaging uses, is often far more accurate than x-ray, and can be used to detect more than “the hot dog sign.”
We had a draw of the day. I think it was $368 dollars. I also think Vanessa won a free breakfast. But I was pretty tired of taking notes at that point. Go figure.