Pullman Regional Hospital’s Guardian Angel Grateful Patient Program provides patients and loved ones a way to say “thank you” to a caregiver. If a physician, nurse, staff member, or volunteer has brought comfort to you in your time of need, please consider recognizing them with a gift to the Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation. Gifts to this special program pay tribute to the outstanding caregiver while helping provide resources for the hospital’s highest needs.
Ken Casavant honored Jeffrey Ward, DO, 3rd year resident with the Family Medicine Residency Program, with a Guardian Angel award for the care he provided as Casavant's family doctor.
Ken Casavant is no stranger to the Pullman community; he and his wife Dorothy have lived and worked in Pullman since 1967. After earning his PhD in Agricultural Economics in 1971, he went on to teach and serve the WSU student body for over 50 years, even well into his retirement. In addition to his faculty role, Ken wore many hats for WSU Athletics as faculty representative, PAC-10 president, and NCAA liaison.
Currently, Ken serves on the Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation Board of Directors. He was a member of The Next Era of Excellence campaign cabinet, where he helped the Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation secure large gifts as well as committed his own to the Orthopedic Center of Excellence expansion. Ken also served on the 5th Quarter Rally event committee to support the Regional High School Athletic Training Program. "I feel a love for the city, for the hospital, and for the doctors we have" says Casavant regarding his altruism.
Ken reminds us that the importance of a local residency program cannot be understated. He remarks that "the Family Medicine Residency Program is important because the goal is to get physicians to stay and practice in rural Washington. There’s a hesitancy in picking a resident as your doctor, but this is a long-term solution to accessible care for family medicine." He also shares that he feels honored to have gifted the first Guardian Angel to a resident physician.
Jeffrey Ward, DO, is a native of Twin Falls, ID and joined the very first cohort of resident physicians for the Family Medicine Residency Program in conjunction with the WSU Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine in 2023. Dr. Ward shares that he has always felt drawn to family medicine. "Family medicine is filled with opportunities to develop relationships with patients," says Ward. "Not only is connecting with patients something I enjoy, I believe that it is necessary in order to provide optimal care."
Ken Casavant eagerly testifies to the optimal care he received from Dr. Ward. "Dr. Ward is thorough, well-trained, and full of experience," says Casavant. "He's the personification of what a family doctor should be." Ken also shares that, at his age, his doctor's visits have also become his wife's doctor's visits, so Dr. Ward is their family doctor in the truest sense of the word. "We can ask him about anything; he's like our friend."
Dr. Ward is set to graduate from the Family Medicine Residency Program this summer. Though he wishes Dr. Ward could stay in Pullman forever, as a professional educator Ken understands and supports Dr. Ward in the next steps toward his career growth.
If you’d like to learn more about the program or honor a Pullman Regional caregiver who impacted you, information is available on the Guardian Angel Program webpage.