Guest Commentary by Heather Bernikoff 

May 10, 2026 – Hospital week is May 10 through 17. It is a time to remember and celebrate the individuals who choose to serve the community through hospital-based healthcare work.

In our community, we are incredibly fortunate to have the John C. Fremont (JCF) Healthcare District hospital with its 24-hour, 7-day-a-week emergency department, imaging, lab, and inpatient program. JCF saves lives every day.

Our hospital has been with us since 1951, serving the community’s needs and adding programs as those needs have changed. Over these 75 years, there have been many challenges and successes. This decade, for example, has brought many changes in federal and state policy, regulation, and consumer needs. We also had a pandemic that radically shifted the business of healthcare. All of this has had a tremendous impact on our rural health system. Yet, through all the changes and challenges, JCF Healthcare District as an entity, and its staff as the heart of this institution, have continued to be here, serving the public, comforting the sick and providing healing care.

As I move through our community and read letters to the editor or comments on social media, one thing is clear: everyone has an interest in our hospital. Some are unhappy with the service they received. Others are very satisfied. We sometimes see testimonials of people who share a profound trauma, and how their life, or the life of a loved one, was saved. These resonate deeply with me. My own father, who was undergoing cancer treatment in 2024 and became very ill, had his life saved at JCF’s emergency department. The beauty of healthcare, unlike many other businesses, is that they have a team dedicated to quality improvement. When I see complaints anywhere, I send them to the District so they have the information they need to improve. Whether you have shared a complaint or gratitude, thank you. They both inform how care is rendered.

Did you know that almost a third of Emergency Department visits are people who do not live in Mariposa County? It makes sense; with all our events, family visitors, recreation, and the millions of people who visit Yosemite, some people will become ill or sustain an injury. Last year, 11% of emergency visits were from our neighbors in Eastern Madera County. That JCF Healthcare District is here matters. It is a critical institution available to support us, our families, and those we love, during some of our most frightening and vulnerable times.

Access to quality healthcare is essential. I began volunteering as a JCF Hospital Foundation board member in 2010. Having a background in healthcare, I chose the Foundation as a nonprofit where my knowledge and skills might be helpful in support of their work. I am now the president. Over the years, I’ve enjoyed meeting many talented and compassionate people – both the community volunteers I have served with and Healthcare District staff. In all of this time, one thing has stood out the most: JCF Healthcare District staff are committed to our community. They have been here for us through good times, but, more reflective of character, they have been here serving us through the pandemic, changes in leadership, bad press, uncertainty, fiscal scarcity, and even a wildfire. JCF Healthcare District staff have remained by their patients’ sides, committed to a mission of care. Hospital Week is a good time to remember what we have and thank those who have chosen careers in healthcare.

Heather Bernikoff is president of the JCF Hospital Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to strengthening the rural communities of the John C. Fremont Healthcare District to maximize health. The Foundation’s philanthropic partnerships with John C. Fremont Healthcare District and the communities it serves span over 40 years.

To stay up-to-date with the Foundation, follow @JCFHospitalFoundation on Facebook and Instagram. To donate, go to secure.qgiv.com/for/jcfhospitalfoundation or send a check to PO Box 1093, Mariposa, CA 95338. Donations are tax-deductible

Source & photo: John C. Fremont Hospital Foundations