Kendal Physicians Honored for Excellence in Care

Kendal Silver Anniversary Award for 2018

As a founding medical partner, Georgia Newman has brought a passion for excellence in geriatric care and medical innovation to Kendal at Oberlin. Georgia has served as an attending physician from the day Kendal opened their doors in 1993. In all of these 25 years serving Kendal residents, she does not have another physician taking her calls – which is a remarkable commitment to patients and very rare today.She has been Kendal’s Medical Director since 2013. Georgia’s inquisitive spirit and thirst for medical knowledge helps Kendal to remain informed and updated on medical research trends and findings.  Her no-nonsense approach constantly pushes us to get to the heart of the matter where solutions are found that improve resident lives and clinical outcomes.

Georgia is not only a leader at Kendal at Oberlin, but in the greater community as well. Calling Oberlin home since 1982, she has served multiple times as President of the medical staff at Mercy Allen Hospital and currently serves as Vice President. She currently chairs the Clinically Integrated Oversight Council for Mercy Regional-Mercy Allen and has served with New Life Hospice, among many other medical endeavors.

Her practice, Oberlin Internal Medicine, has been selected as one of the few solo practices selected for Medicare’s innovative Population Health Program, “Comprehensive Primary Care Plus” (CPC+).

For Georgia Newman’s 25-years of service and partnership to Kendal at Oberlin and its residents and staff members, and in recognition of her leadership and focus on innovative medical practices, she was presented a Kendal Silver Anniversary Award for 2018.

Kendal Distinguished Service Award for 2018

Serving Kendal at Oberlin for 23+ years, many of these as Medical Director, P. Lal Arora led Kendal at Oberlin in establishing its reputation for excellence in person-centered health care. As a health care provider at Kendal at Oberlin, Lal Arora exemplified compassionate and skilled medical care. During his time as Medical Director, Lal instituted a number of practices and measures that focused on the effectiveness of quality of care delivery throughout the continuum of care. Lal’s personal attention to his own patients was admirable, including making calls and visits on weekends and nights to assure the new medications and/or treatments he prescribed were rendering the desired outcomes.

A consummate mentor and educator, Lal not only took extra time with his patients to educate and inform, but staff members as well.  Always the humanitarian, Lal has been active in many charitable medical causes locally, has served local hospice organizations and has served the ill back home in his native country of India. One of Lal’s recent focuses has been serving on the Advisory Board of LIFE, a Dementia Friendly Foundation in Vermilion.

Calling Kendal at Oberlin his home now, Lal has come full circle, as a trusted physician, teacher and friend, and now a resident of the community, shaping Kendal into a very special community.  Helping to put in place the building blocks of excellence in person-centered care, he was presented with the Kendal Distinguished Service Award for 2018.

The Kendal Board Also Recognized Barbara Thomas

The board also surprised CEO Barbara Thomas with a Kendal Silver Anniversary Award for her masterful skills and talents in opening and leading Kendal all these many years, her commitment to excellence in operations, strategic thinking and planning, and for nurturing an engaged and resident-driven culture. Barbara received this award with humility, also thanking residents, board members and every single staff member for making Kendal at Oberlin a vibrant community.