SOUTH RUSSELL - Family physician Mark Rood, owner of South Russell Family Practice on Chillicothe Road, is trying to understand why he is being targeted by HELP, a conservative religious group that twice picketed his office in March.

Rood has practiced medicine in Geauga County for 25 years and is celebrating his 20th year at his South Russell practice.

“We are an excellent family practice,” he said. “We’ve served thousands of patients and are one of a few primary care facilities in Northeast Ohio to be recognized for our quality of patient care by the National Committee on Quality Assurance.”

The NCQA is an independent accrediting organization used by the federal government under the new healthcare guidelines.

Of greater concern to Rood is the intrusion of the picketers on his patients and staff.

“We pride South Russell Family Practice with being a safe and welcoming place for individuals and families to receive high quality medical care,” he said. “But when 50 protestors show up in our parking lot, it creates a traffic problem and a safety problem for patients and for motorists along the busy state Route 306.”

With police intervention, the 50 protestors, which included State Rep. Matt Lynch, R-Bainbridge, were moved from the private property parking lot to a narrow grassy strip of land along the road.

On the second protest day, only 19 picketers showed up, creating less of a hazard, according to Rood.

Providing medical care to low-income women



The HELP group opposes Rood’s decision to lease part-time office space two Wednesdays a month to The Family Planning Association of Northeast Ohio, a federally-funded clinic that provides medical care to low-income women.

These services include typical OB/GYN examinations, according to TFPA’s Executive Director Mary Wynne-Peaspanen.

“The difference is we don’t turn anyone away because they don’t have insurance or can’t afford it,” she said.

Nurse practitioner Dianne Rafferty has worked with The Family Planning Association for 10 years.

Nurse practitioners conduct annual examinations, administer PAP tests, pelvic and breast exams, and provide testing and education about sexually transmitted diseases.

TFPA can also prescribe and administer birth control pills and devices.

Wynne-Peaspanen said the protestors have not made an attempt to talk with her and her staff about their services.

In fact, the protestors have not shown up during TFPA’s office hours, which are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. the second and fourth Wednesdays each month. Instead, she said, they are spreading incorrect information.

“While it is true teens can access the services without parental consent, most of the patients TFPA sees are accompanied by a parent,” she said. “They and their parents are doing the responsible thing by seeking professional help.”

If teens are going to the clinic, they have already made a decision to start having sex, Wynne-Peaspanen said.

“They’re not coming here to ask our permission,” she said.

Only about 10 percent of TFPA’s patients are teens, according to her.

“Rather than ignore the situation, we interview them to make sure the relationship with their partner is healthy and if they understand the risks and responsibilities of their behavior. We also ask questions to make sure it is their decision, rather than coercion by their partner.”

She said TFPA is required by law to report girls under age 13 who are sexually active. They are considered to be too young to make that decision. In those cases, it is considered abuse, she said.

Most patients are adults

The other 90 percent of TFPA’s patients are adults.

“We are being accused of steering pregnant women to have an abortion, but that is not true,” she said.

The majority of the women who seek treatment at TFPA have tested positive with a home pregnancy test and have already decided to have the child, Wynne-Peaspanen said.

“They come here for exams and prenatal care they cannot afford elsewhere,” she said. “We can refer them for specialized tests, if needed, and to doctors who can accept low-income patients. Most doctor’s offices cannot accept these patients.”

She said in the current economy, women may find themselves suddenly unemployed without health insurance. TFPA charges them for services based on a sliding scale based on their ability to pay.

Doctors also refer patients to TFPA, she said.

A woman with a lump on her breast went to the clinic for help and received it, she said. Another woman had a thyroid condition and needed medicine, but lacked insurance. She was also helped.

For those who choose to have an abortion, Wynne-Peaspanen said she trusts them to make the difficult decision.

“Until you’ve walked in their shoes, you shouldn’t judge them,” she said.

TFPA also operates clinics in Ashtabula, Andover and Painesville. Appointments are made through the Painesville office by calling 440-352-0640.

'Dr. Rood has a real heart for the poor'



Rood believes the service TFPA is providing is vital to the county. He said low-income and uninsured women have few options in Geauga County. He said he offered the office space to them because he felt it was important for them to operate in Geauga.

“The protestors say I am renting space to TFPA for the money, but the truth is I’m losing money because they only use it two Wednesdays a month,” he said. “I don’t think I can attract another tenant for the other two Wednesdays each month, so it sits empty.”

His medical building also includes a laboratory for blood tests, an X-ray laboratory, a weight-loss clinic, physical therapy clinic and doctors’ offices for several other medical specialties.

Frances Armbruster is a patient of Rood’s. She describes herself as a pro-life Catholic. She attends church at St. Helen’s, one of the churches connected to the HELP group along with St. Edward and St. Lucy parishes.

“Dr. Rood has a real heart for the poor,” she said. “I want to tell these protesters that they are misguided and could ruin his practice, which would be a loss to the community. I share their passion for the unborn, but their behavior is not loving. TFPA is not an abortion center. They need to see the whole picture.”

HELP's mission 'to protect all human life'



In a letter to the editor of the Chagrin Solon Sun, Michael Hollowell, co-chairman of HELP, said, "The mission of HELP is to protect all human life, from the moment of conception to the time of natural death. The issue is not freedom or rights or a woman's right to choose. The issue is whether we, as humans, value life and have the right to decide the fate of another human being, the right to live or to die.

He further wrote the organization “is not concerned about providing information to their clients to help them to make informed decisions about the value of life.”

He said TFPA should “use the federal funding they receive to purchase ultrasounds for all of their locations. If FPANEO is concerned about the value of life itself, they would provide ultrasounds to every pregnant woman who comes to them. They would show the mother the marvelous creation that exists within her womb and help her to understand the value of this life.”

Wynne-Peaspanen said she has guidelines she must follow on using federal funds.

“We cannot use federal dollars for ultrasounds in our clinics to do what he asks,” she said. “I wish HELP would come in and talk to us and be willing to learn the truth before they misinform the public,” she said.

See more South Russell news at cleveland.com/west-geauga.

216-986-5474 Twitter: @JoanRusek

