Connections February 2024 - 7

Hooray!!! and Happy Holidays
to the Employees at Cheshire Medical Center
This time of year many people look back and reach out to those who have
been a game changer in their lives. Disabled for 18 months and hospitalized
seven times at 83 I was given the gift of health in November, when a long
battle had been won having learned how to walk, breath without the use of
oxygen, lose 50 lbs and turn a 60 year pack a day smoking habit into just three
cigarettes a day. My gratitude goes to the wonderful employees of CHESHIRE
MEDICAL CENTER.
I am grateful for Dr Nabi -Tremblay & APRN Nurse Practitioner Amaris
Weller and all the awesome nurses and support staff of Family Medicine. Ms.
Weller diagnosed an infection during an unrelated visit on a wound that had
healed. She took immediate action and prescribed medication that cured the
wound in one week. Amazing !!!
Dr Shomody & Nurse Ellen Slocum are two of the most positive and
realistic people in any profession that I have ever met. They are constantly
turning what looks like an ugly situation into something positive. In the end,
their diagnosis was correct and they , along with rest of the support staff make
Podiatry special.
I would also like to recognize Dr Silberstein, who was on duty all week
of my final hospital stay and worked with the team to extract thirty pounds
of fluid. Nurse Joan Fletcher has been my rock for the past thirteen years.
She is a great lady who is retiring this year. She will be missed as part of the
wonderful staff of Cardiology.
Dr Stableford, Physician's Assistant Sydney Allen and the doctors at
Dartmouth Health are also amazing. I told the doctors over the 4th of July
weekend that being a sports fan, I always enjoyed the team concept in lieu of
Dick Comerford holds the sign his wife, Sharon, made
while some of the team members he recognized in
the ad gather around him. From left: Joan Fletcher,
retired LPN; Cardiologist Todd Silberstein, DO; Amaris
Weller, MPAS, PA-C; Podiatrist Serena Shomody, DPM,
FACFAS; and Ellen Slocum, LPN; with Dick seated.
Advertising
his thanks
In December, Dick Comerford, a longtime
Cheshire Medical Center patient, contacted
the hospital about an advertisement in The
Monadnock Shopper News (MSN). It's not
unusual to hear from grateful patients, but this
was the first call about running an ad thanking
Cheshire staff.
It was a first for The Shopper News as well.
" All I can say is that, in my over 40 years of
being the publisher of the MSN, I have never
seen such an act of appreciation for any local
business or nonprofit, " said longtime publisher
Mitchell Shakour.
In the ad (shown at right), Dick thanks more
than 30 individuals by name, as well as other
departments and staff. Five of the employees
were pictured in a photo with him.
" I just wanted you to know that the
photoshoot was perfect in every way, " he said.
" Please tell everyone how much it meant to me. "
- Contributed by Heather Atwell, Communications
Manager, Cheshire Medical Center
individualism. Wow! What a great team in vascular surgery, including Technologist Jim Glinka and Kristen
Reed with a special thanks Nurse Jared Robbie of CMC who was always there.
A special thanks to the staff of Home Health Care and a special shout out to Nurse Scott Anderson who
was with us for 18 months. He not only provided wound care and nutrition guidance, but life changing
information as well. On his last visit he said " I hope I don't ever see you again " jokingly. " Except maybe out
in the community. "
I appreciate Dr Westlake & Medical Assistant Kayla Young and along with all of the support staff in
Pulmonary Care, who prescribed medication 5 years ago that greatly improved the quality of life.
I would also like to recognize the men and women of the KFD, who picked me up off the floor six times
and offered transport to CMC.
I am grateful for the doctors, nurses and all the great people at the Emergency Room & Hospital. They
have a really tough job, yet are always concerned only with the welfare of every patient, each of which had
their own special needs. This is truly remarkable considering the lack of space to perform their daily duties
24/7. It has to be seen to be believed, like watching the NFL,NHL and NASCAR play on the same playing
surface at the same time. What an amazing group!
I appreciate Dr. Kalpakian, Dr Jaeger and Recovery Nurses Nicole C., Jaime H., Miranda T. and my
daughter in law " Gretchens " C. along with all the other employees in the Ophthalmology Department.
This week I told Surgical Coordinator Joan Saltis to tell Dr. " K " that he is the greatest man in the world.
The sight in my left eye is special and Certified Opthalmic Medical Tech Mark Robinson has been a steady
assistant for a long time.
I am always impressed with the very busy Nurse Clinic and the staff of Stephanie V., Stephanie
F., Allison E., Michelle S., Catherine D., Christa B. and receptionist Darlene N. They are always a very
professional group.
I am also grateful for the Urgent Care unit open 24/7, helping no matter ow wild the situation may be.
Last but not least, my wife Sharon and step daughter Lynne Kingsbury of Windham N.H. have always
It started with Lynne in 2010, when her employer Cisco Systems of San Jose CA told her
supported me.
to take all the time she needed to care for her stepdad, following open heart surgery at Dartmouth. For
12 consecutive days, she made the trip to Lebanon arriving every morning to meet with the doctors to
formulate a plan for recovery. On the 12th day, we were told that it was alright to go home. We got in the
car and headed down 91. She got on the phone and told the family " I got Farley and we are headed home " .
In Keene, it was much the same, meeting with doctors and sorting thru my-DH trying to keep up with the
massive paper work. As usual, she was on top of her game. It is good to have a UNH grad around.
In the end I found that the employees of CMC are just like the rest of us with families of their own to
cherish and love. In addition at the conclusion of each visit, I offered a genuine smile, thank you and best of
all a fist bump to show appreciation. Try it after your next visit. Where would we be without such a facility
and the wonderful people to help us.
The gift of life is precious.
-Dick Comerford

Connections February 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Connections February 2024