Kaiser Permanente, Gilroy:
“I Saved a Life”
D
Written & Photographed By Craig Lore
own a main corridor of
Kaiser Permanente in
Gilroy, a large, multi-
trunked brown tree is
painted on a curved corner wall. Above
the tree is printed, “I Saved a Life,” and
beside the trunk, “Every leaf represents
a life saved by early intervention.”
Currently, the photographs, “leaves,”
of over two dozen of the Gilroy staff
adorn the tree. Their pictures serve as a
reminder to all Kaiser Permanente staff
that their efforts make a difference.
“I’m really excited because we
dreamed up the (I Saved a Life) tree
here in the South Bay,” said Ruma
Kumar, M.D., Physician in Charge, with
a large smile on her face.
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“And, now, it’s used all through the
system. When a patient comes in for a
routine visit, every Medical Assistant,
receptionist, physical therapy assistant,
or anyone else on our medical Care
Team has been empowered to check
whether they’re due for a cancer
screening for, say, a mammogram
or colonoscopy. They can book that
appointment right then and there, make
sure they tell them why it’s important,
and make sure they get to the appoint-
ment. Then, if we find a cancer, we say
to our staff member, ‘You saved a life.’
We make a big deal of it. Because it is a
big deal. We have a celebration, we give
them a nice plaque, and we put their
name up on the ‘I Saved a Life’ tree.”
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
FALL/HOLIDAY 2019
Kaiser Permanente Gilroy has been
a part of the community in Gilroy
for over thirty-three years. It is a
care facility with outpatient services,
not a hospital. However, there are
physicians, therapists, nurses, and
other care members, to treat adults,
children, and pregnant women. They
have the capability at the facility to
do basic emergency treatment, and if
more emergency services are required,
to transfer the patient to a hospital.
The ancillary services that the facility
conducts include radiology, labs,
physical therapy, optometry, optical
sales, and pharmacy. Dermatology
and podiatry services are offered on
a regular basis.
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