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6 Living Well
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Simi Valley Hospital
The children
say thank you
THE YOUNG
patients who
come to Simi Valley Hospital’s Child
Development Center (CDC) for various
therapy services have benefitted from
two recent donations to the center.
In December 2014, representatives
from Hope’s Haven, a Camarillo-based
non-profit children’s organization,
visited the CDC and brought with them
a gift of 10 iPad minis, along with cases
and a charging station.
Tablet computers such as the iPad
minis help CDC patients acquire and
practice particular skills that will benefit
them for the rest of their lives, said CDC
Manager Julie Wong. Among those skills
is handwriting.
“There are iPad apps that target
particular handwriting movement
through a game,” she said. “There is one,
for instance, where the child follows an
animal in and out of a tunnel. The child
doesn’t know this is therapeutic; for
them it’s just a fun game. But it works on
wrist and finger position, eye tracking,
scanning the screen and so forth.”
Along with handwriting and other
skills development, the iPads and apps
are used to enhance communication
skills for children who are non-verbal.
A cuddly new friend
Earlier this year, the CDC kids and their
siblings received huggable new friends
with an imagination-sparking backstory,
thanks to a generous donation from
United Airlines and the thoughtfulness of
United Airlines flight attendant and Simi
Valley resident Mary Shuster.
That new friend is Ben Flyin, a limited-
edition GUND® teddy bear created
specifically for the United Adventure Bear
program. With its mission “to bring smiles
to children in need across the globe,” the
program provides bears for children
around the world who are experiencing
health struggles or economic hardship.
The Adventure Bear program
includes a fundraising aspect that
enables United customers and
employees to give back to charities that
help people in need. Donations from
this year’s program go to the Happy
Hearts Fund, a non-profit foundation
dedicated to rebuilding schools and
restoring hope and opportunity in the
lives of children after natural disasters.
On January 6, Shuster and her
husband, Mark, joined Simi Valley
Hospital Foundation President Michelle
Foster and CDC staff members to escort
Ben to his final destination—the arms of
the young CDC patients. Shuster, who
was dressed in her flight attendant
uniform as an ambassador for
the United Adventure Bear
program, talked with each
child as she handed out
the teddy bears.
CDC children who
have young siblings at
home got extra Bens
to take home to their
brothers and sisters.
In all, about 50 United
Adventure Bears
were donated to
the CDC.
Shuster said it was exciting to see
CDC therapists immediately begin to
incorporate Ben into the children’s
therapy activities.
“That was something I wasn’t expecting,
and it was so neat to see,” she said.
The power of partnerships
The Simi Valley Hospital Foundation
facilitated the donation of the iPad minis
and the Adventure Bears.
“We are very grateful to Hope’s Haven
and United Airlines,” Foster said. “These
are great examples of what a positive
impact partnerships within the commu-
nity and beyond can make on the people
we serve here at Simi Valley Hospital.”
Simi Valley Hospital contracts with Aetna
As of November 1, 2014, Simi Valley
Hospital once again has a contract
with Aetna Health of California. The
contract covers all Aetna products,
including HMO, POS, PPO and
Medicare Advantage.
“Aetna members are able to obtain
services at the in-network benefit
level, and Aetna physicians can
refer patients to Simi Valley Hospital
for all services as an in-network
hospital,” said Yolanda Aviles,
the hospital’s senior director of
Managed Care.
Child Development Center patient Lily Fischer expresses her excitement at receiving
a United Airlines Adventure Bear from United flight attendant Mary Shuster.
Representatives from Simi Valley Hospital,
the hospital’s Child Development Center
and iPad donor Hope’s Haven show off
the new iPad minis.