Latest news with #Corewell
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
'Not credible' bomb threat at Corewell in Troy, hospital says
TROY, Mich. (FOX 2) - A non-credible bomb threat was reported at Corewell Health Beaumont in Troy on Tuesday night. Just after 8 p.m., Oakland University sent an alert out that police were informed of a bomb threat at Corewell in Troy and is advising OU students, faculty and staff to evacuate in an orderly fashion. The threat was later deemed not credible by Corewell Health officials. The spokesperson for the hospital said an evacuation did not happen. Corewell released a statement, saying: "Law enforcement and security believe that the threat is not credible. The Troy Hospital and emergency center are open. Security, law enforcement and K9 teams remain onsite in an abundance of caution. Safety is a top priority, and we appreciate the swift actions of our team members and law enforcement." This is the same facility where a disgruntled employee allegedly shot a coworker in the parking garage in March.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Corewell Health Monroe North parking lot shuffle still a no-go
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Corewell Health's vision for its campus in the Monroe North neighborhood in Grand Rapids took a hit Thursday when the Grand Rapids City Planning Commission tabled approval to build more surface parking nearby. Corewell Health wants to pull off a bit of a parking lot shuffle over the next few years at its Corewell Health Place campus. On Thursday, it campaigned the Grand Rapids Planning Commission to get the process started, but commission members weren't sure it was necessary to start now. The health care system giant's idea begins with the proposed development of a new residential tower on Ottawa Avenue. If that tower goes up, Corewell's surface parking that's there now would be gone. The hiccup is that Corewell hasn't quite finalized plans for the tower development. 'The resident and fellow housing building is still working through design, so it has a little bit of a longer runway for us,' Rodney VanderZand, Corewell Health's director of planning and design, said. Grand Rapids amphitheater could open next spring. What acts could play it? Regardless, Corewell is asking for special land use permission to bulldoze a few empty buildings on its land across the street from the proposed tower, adjacent to the Corewell Health Place campus. It wants to build a 39-spot surface parking lot there to offset the loss of spaces if it builds the tower. 'We do spill over into the site, into the 166 spaces where the residential housing project is going to go. I can't speak to the frequency. We just as of first week of January had our parking control installed,' VanderZand said. The committee wasn't sold. 'If it was going to be allowed, I'm not sure why it would be allowed before the residential housing existed,' said commission member Brian Swem said. ''We're not sure if we need it. We're not sure if there is a different mode of transportation plan. We're not sure of much.' I almost forgot my last name,' commission member Lawrence Williams said. Racing simulator, indoor pool, 140 apartments: What's next for Fifth Third building in downtown GR Community feedback showed people like other things about the neighborhood in question: walking the river, playing in parks and participating in community engagement events. 'I realized that all these things are in locations that were parking lots. I invite our commission to maybe skip the parking lot phase and go to the community building and placemaking things,' one commenter said. 'The Monroe North plan specifies a pedestrian priority. The plan prioritizes access to the river… It also encouraged a 21st century mobility strategy, the use of public transportation. And I look at this map showing what is dedicated to parking — not mixed use, parking — and ask, 'Is that what we are building?'' another commenter said. Thursday's vote marked the second time at least parts of Corewell's parking proposal were tabled — the planning commission also . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Mother and kids navigate life with congenital heart disease
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Anyone with four kids usually has their hands full and Roseli Quakkelaar is no exception. But on top of the usual school and extracurricular schedules, she's also navigating the health system. 'I was actually adopted from Brazil at the age of 3. My adoptive parents knew when they got me that I had health issues,' Quakkelaar told News 8. 'When I was brought here to America, they did all the testing and realized that I had a congenital heart issue.' When Quakkelaar was 5 years old, she had open heart surgery to repair a ventricular septal defect, or VSD, which is a hole in the heart. 'When I started having children, I guess I didn't really realize that it could be passed on,' Quakkelaar explained. Her oldest, Everett, was born with a healthy heart. A week before her next child, Keagan, was born, she found out he also had congenital heart disease. Keagan had an atrioventricular septal defect — two holes in his heart. The defect was corrected with open heart surgery when Keagan was 6 months old. Quakkelaar's third child was also heart healthy. Then her youngest, Natalie, came along. 'Natalie had a lot going on, so we did a lot of testing and early on in the pregnancy, I was realizing that we were going to be dealing with heart issues as well,' Quakkelaar said. Natalie had chromosomal abnormalities and a complete VSD. She underwent open chest surgery when she was 4 weeks old and open heart surgery when she was 5 months old. 'We always say my kids liked to one-up me because they decided to have two holes in their heart instead of just one small hole,' Quakkelaar laughed. Griffins to honor heart transplant recipient She can joke about it now, but going through this with not one but two kids was far from easy. 'It was incredibly difficult. Emotionally, you struggle with, is this the right decision? What time is the right time to do it?' Quakkelaar reflected. She added that she's grateful for the team at Corewell Health Helen DeVos Children's Hospital in Grand Rapids for helping her navigate these decisions. Doctors with Corewell Health say congenital heart disease impacts 1% of births across the U.S. Though it seems like a small amount, it's the most common birth defect in the country, affecting roughly 40,000 babies each year. 'Life expectancy has gone dramatically upwards,' said Dr. Sarah Fahnhorst, an adult congenital heart disease cardiologist. 'Thinking kind of at my own personal practice, I generally care for individuals between the ages of 16, 18 all the way up to 84, so it spans the whole lifetime and people are living longer and longer.' Despite the Quakkelaars' situation, Fahnhorst said the majority of CHD cases are not genetic. When they are, they are called syndromic congenital heart diseases. Though she wouldn't have changed a thing, Quakkelaar said she wishes she had gotten genetic testing done so she could feel more prepared knowing what to expect. Corewell Health offers such testing as part of preconception counseling. Fahnhorst believes it's important for parents to be aware of all the outcomes. 'I very rarely will say, 'No, you cannot ever have children,' but we're all part of a team, and I want them to be as well informed as possible going into pregnancy,' she said. 'We talk about the risk of having a small baby or having a baby preterm, and those are kind of risks for baby, and then risks for mom would include things like heart failure or abnormal heart rhythms and sometimes even blood clots during pregnancy.' Despite the risks, Fahnhorst said many people with congenital heart defects are choosing to have children, with quickly growing support both professionally and communally. 'There are so many different Facebook or social media groups where people can meet other people who have hearts like them, which just really shows that people are becoming engaged. As you start the conversation with someone, usually you run into a person who knows someone who has congenital heart disease,' Fahnhorst said. Every disease is a little bit different, she added. While some people might not have any limitations, others might have advanced heart failure. Pennsylvania woman hears deceased son's heart beat inside Michigan transplant recipient Quakkelaar is grateful for her kids' outcomes. Keagan plays soccer and Natalie gets cleared by her doctor regularly. Their mother has also learned how to be a strong advocate and encourages other parents to do the same. 'These children can't speak for themselves, so we as parents have to speak on their behalf and give them their voice,' Quakkelaar urged. 'And sharing your experience because people aren't going to know what you went through unless you share it.' Quakkelaar and her two kids are in what they call the 'zipper club' because they all have scars from open heart surgery. 'Sometimes I think that the cardiac problems we have has kind of bonded us, because (Keagan) had such a good relationship with Natalie immediately, and I could see the compassion in his heart for her and it just kind of all stemmed together,' she said. She hopes to use her experience to help others. Despite having four kids, she's somehow managing to squeeze in full-time schooling at Grand Valley State University to become a cardiac intensive care unit nurse. She hopes to work at Helen DeVos. 'I really just have a passion for children, have a passion for the cardiac unit and now I kind of feel like I have a little bit of both of the sides as a mom and learning a lot about the medical aspect, and the ethics and all of the different things,' Quakkelaar said. 'It was definitely a hard journey, but it's put me on a right path.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Ferndale Pride will accept Corewell Health's sponsorship money
Ferndale Pride, which hosts an annual gay pride celebration in downtown Ferndale that draws roughly 30,000 people, will again accept sponsorship money from Corewell Health. Pride rescinded Corewell's sponsorship when the health system announced earlier this month it would limit new gender affirming hormone treatments for minor patients. Corewell has since reversed its stance and has resumed new treatments. Corewell's decision to limit treatments came after President Donald Trump issued an executive order threatening to strip federal funding from hospitals that provide gender-affirming hormone treatments to people under the age of 19. Trump's actions are being challenged in federal court and two federal judges have issued temporary pauses on Trump's ban. More: Corewell reverses decision on starting treatments for trans minors Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has said that limiting gender-affirming treatment to minors may be a violation of the state's anti-discrimination laws. More than 40 advocacy and civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan and Equality Michigan, sent an open letter to Corewell's board of directors and executives, imploring the hospital system to reinstate the treatments. 'After meeting with Corewell Health, it's clear that the programs have been restored," Julia Music, executive director of Pride said in a statement. "We are going to allow Corewell to participate as sponsors in the festival." Contact Georgea Kovanis: gkovanis@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Ferndale Pride will accept Corewell Health's sponsorship money
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Corewell reverses decision on starting treatments for trans minors
Corewell Health, reversing an earlier decision, will no longer limit hormone therapy for minor patients seeking gender-affirming treatment, the hospital system said. "We are lifting our pause on new hormone therapies for pediatric patients seeking gender-affirming care," Corewell Health said in a statement. "Care decisions are best made between physicians and their patients and families." Last week, Corewell became the first hospital system in the state to announce it would no longer allow transgender minors to start new gender-affirming hormone therapy regimens; minor patients already receiving hormone therapy were allowed to continue treatments. Corwell's moratorium came in the wake of President Donald Trump's executive order threatening to strip federal funding from hospitals that provide the treatments to people under the age of 19. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel last week warned that denying gender-affirming hormone treatments to minors could be a violation of the state's anti-discrimination laws. Trump's executive order is being challenged in federal court. Members of the LGBTQ+ community reacted to Corewell's decision last week with outrage. On Feb. 11, more than 40 advocacy and civil rights organizations, including the ACLU of Michigan and Equality Michigan, sent an open letter to Corewell's board of directors and executives, imploring the hospital system to reinstate the treatments. Ferndale Pride, which puts on an annual gay pride celebration in downtown Ferndale, revoked Corewell's sponsorship of the event. Corewell's decision this week to change course was met with praise. 'We see this decision as one that's family-centered, equality-centered, and science-centered," Erin Knott, Equality Michigan executive director, said in a statement. "... So we extend a thank you to the Corewell leadership team for righting the ship." Corewell consists of two divisions. Corewell Health East includes Corewell Health William Beaumont University Hospital in Royal Oak, Corewell Health Beaumont Troy Hospital and other former Beaumont facilities. Corewell Health West includes Corewell Health Helen DeVos Children's Hospital as well as Corewell Health Blodgett Hospital and Corewell Health Butterworth Hospital. Corewell East does not typically provide gender-affirming hormone therapy to minors. Corwell West does. For transgender minors, gender-affirming care typically involves puberty blockers followed by hormone therapy. A study by the Harvard School of Public Health found that gender-affirming surgery is rarely performed on minors. About 1.6 million people ages 13 and older identify as transgender, according to UCLA's Williams Institute, a research center focusing on gender identity, sexual orientation and public policy. In 2023, roughly 3% of high school students identified as transgender, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Contact Georgea Kovanis: gkovanis@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Corewell reverses decision on starting treatments for trans minors
