Detroit Jewish News

16 June 30 • 2016 2064320 For Exceptional Stroke Care, Visit St. Joe's By Jack Weiner, President and CEO St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Pratik Bhattacharya MD A stroke occurs when blood flow to a part ofthe brain stops. A stroke is sometimes called a "brain attack" and is considered a medical emergency. When you or a loved one has a stroke, call 911 and get to an emergency room immediately. If blood flow is cut off for longer than a few seconds, the brain cannot get blood and oxygen, and can result in a stroke. A stroke can take two forms: a clot or a bleed in the brain and if not treated quickly, you can suffer brain damage or death. There is hope if you receive timely, specialized treatment. For the best, technologically advanced stroke treatment, come to the leader in stroke care—St. Joseph Mercy Oakland (SJMO). As the home base of the Michigan Stroke Network (MSN), SJMO has top stroke specialists—vascular and neuroendovascular specialists, a neurointensivist, neurosurgical and neuroscience nurses and other specialized clinicians or specialty clinicians—to treat your stroke and restore your quality of life. St. Joe's stroke specialists use the latest treatments to resolve a stroke. In some cases, a clot-busting drug can dissolve the stroke. In more severe cases, an interventional procedure is performed using the latest technology, such as stent retrievers, to remove the clot and restore blood flow to the brain. In 2004, SJMO, a member of the Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, became Michigan's first certified primary stroke center. This laid the foundation for the MSN, which was launched in October 2006 by Trinity Health and SJMO. The MSN provides technologically advanced stroke care not only at St. Joe's, but also to more than 22 partner hospitals throughout Michigan via telemedicine, using two-way, audio-visual robotics to provide remote clinical health care. The MSN provides remote access to stroke care, ongoing clinical trials and stroke education and support across Michigan "To prevent a stroke, follow a healthy diet, reduce your sodium intake, keep your cholesterol and blood pressure down, exercise and don't smoke," says Ramesh Madhavan, MD, DM, an SJMO vascular neurologist and Medical Director of Telemedicine. Dr. Bhattacharya, Stroke Program Director also advises for protection from a stroke, know your risk factors and the signs and symptoms of stroke. Visit www.michiganstrokenetwork.com to learn more. Ramesh Madhavan, MD, DM metro » continued from page 14 A 'WINWIN,' SAYS SCHOOL Repeated emails and phone calls to Cohen by the JN were not responded to for more than six weeks, starting April 18. Jeff Brodsky, FJA board president, also did not respond prior to his term expiring recently. On June 2, how- ever, Cohen spoke to the JN. "If a donor came to us and said I'm interested in fund- ing your school, and if funds from Federation can be reallocated to other needs or institutions, it's a win-win for everybody," Cohen said. "When it comes to donations or donors, unless it's a foundation grant, generally if they wish to be anony- mous, we respect that." He said he can't answer whether the allocation situation will continue, but stressed the need to meet the school's financial strategic giving plan. He also emphasized that the school's standing as a Federation agency and Annual Campaign beneficiary had not changed. "We have a relationship with Federation," he said. "It's a wonderful opportunity for Federation to reallocate where there's a need. We continue to partner wherever we can. I have a won- derful relationship with [Federation president] Larry Wolfe, who spoke at both our Annual Dinner and Commencement, and Scott Kaufman. We work very closely together." TRANSPARENCY ISSUES? Cohen did not explain why the alloca- tion situation was not conveyed to FJA parents. When told about the allocation returns, Jill Diamond Marx of West Bloomfield wondered why the school hadn't shared the news with parents. "Why not just say FJA is proud about giving back to Federation for other needs?" she asked. "The school should feel proud about that and that they did enough outside fundraisers to be able [to cover things]. They could have just kept the donor anonymous." Marx and her husband, Darrell, have had four children graduate from FJA, the most recent one in June. Thinking about the situation a bit more, she said, "I just wonder if it goes back to that whole thing several years ago when people were saying they were getting money from Federation and asking what kind of school it was. Maybe they wanted to be more inde- pendent to make the decisions they want to," said Marx, who says she was not involved in the internal politics of the school. On June 27, 2013, the JN covered a controversy about inclusiveness regard- ing Reform students and a Reform rabbi at FJA. At that time, the school maintained its stance not to have a Reform rabbi teach a Jewish studies class about denominational differences because he was not shomer Shabbat (following the traditional rules of Sabbath). The school has a significant Reform student population and, in 2013, some students had complained about being disrespected by more observant students. Since this 2013 article, FJA has declined to comment on this issue to the JN. Cohen says this issue did not drive the allocation decisions. "As far as I know, the Federation has never — not with me, and I've been [in this position] a year — dictated what our policies should be," he said. "We have a diverse school population and diversity among the teachers as well," he said. "There is no denomina- tional requirement for teachers. The same thing in Judaic studies. We expect teachers to have expertise and to devel- op positive relations with students. "I do not ask about personal prac- tice; I look at those qualifications I mentioned, including pedagogy, pas- sion and expertise in the subject mat- ter," Cohen said. "The goal in the school is to work with students, to inspire them to devel- op a Jewish identity meaningful for them. Because we have students from every background, it's different for each student. That's wonderful for the school. I want students to be inspired to be leaders throughout the school, the Jewish community and throughout the denominations. "What's really important is that we all have the same intention regardless of denominations. We want students to have a Jewish identity and com- mitment to Judaism that ensures the Jewish community stays strong." Former FJA parent Lisa Lis of Farmington Hills was vocal during the inclusiveness controversy that flared in 2013. "Frankel was meant to attract students from the whole commu- nity, to be pluralistic, and for years it offended many in the community who felt excluded because of the shomer Shabbat policy for teachers to teach Jewish studies and minyan," she said last week. "I am a little optimistic with Rabbi Cohen; he hasn't made any tacit steps to heal the rift, but he seems to cer- tainly be more open than the previous head of school." * Rabbi Azaryah Cohen

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