Memorial’s expansion serves the community with better care and services page 6

Memorial’s expansion serves the community Memorial’s expansion serves the community Memorial’s expansion serves the community with better care and services

Cardiac services at Memorial Hospital

page 2

Attend the 5th annual Lights

of Life Gala page 3

Help for wounds that won’t heal

page 4

Taking a closer look at lupus

page 5

903-885-7671 ● November 2010

HEALTH@Memorial

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2 Health@Memorial November 2010 l For a physician referral, visit hcmh.com

W ith Memorial Hospital’s cardiac care program, people from Sulphur Springs and surrounding areas no longer need to travel to Dallas or Plano to get the care they need.

Jeffrey Gladden, M.D., Medical Director of Cardiovascular Services at Memorial Hospital, says that the program, launched in January 2009, has seen more than 1,000 people treated in the cardiac catheterization lab with excellent outcomes. The center is expanding to treat people suffering from acute heart attacks.

Now, Cardiologist Stephen Tann, M.D., is joining the team.

Dr. Tann brings a base of coronary train-ing plus a full complement of coronary services to the Advanced Heart Care practice. Dr. Tann attended medical school at The Ohio State University, completed his residency at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, received his car-diac training at the Medical University of South Carolina and completed his interventional cardiology training at Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix.

The Advanced Heart Care team also offers a full range of preventive cardi-ology services. For people with strong family history of heart disease, the team can perform in-depth cholesterol and genetic testing and customized therapy to help them avoid the fate of their family members.

The center also has a full range of noninvasive testing such as echocardiograms, stress tests and Holter monitoring.

People who have blockages in the blood vessels of their hearts or limbs can visit the center for interventional cardiovascular treatments such as stents and balloons. And, for many patients doctors can access the blockage via an inci-sion in the wrist rather than the groin. People generally prefer the wrist incision since recovery is typically easier. l   

By Stephanie Thurrott

Heart Matters Cardiac care close to home at Memorial Hospital

Hopkins County Memorial Hospital 115 Airport Road, Sulphur Springs, TX 75482

Chief Executive Officer: Michael McAndrew

Chief Financial Officer/Chief Operating Officer: Donna Geiken Wallace

Chief Nursing Officer: Terri Bunch

Marketing/Managed Care and Volunteer Coordinator: Sherry Moore

Memorial Hospital Main Number: 903-885-7671

Memorial Hospital Physician Referral: 903-439-4062

Memorial Hospital Volunteer Opportunities: 903-439-4062

Educational Programs: 903-439-4149

Hopkins County Health Care Foundation: 903-438-4799

Memorial Hospital Mission: The mission of Hopkins County Memorial Hospital is to maintain, improve and promote the health of the residents of Hopkins County and the surrounding area. Under the leadership of the Board of Directors, we will consistently exercise judicious stewardship of health care resources for the citizens of Hopkins County. In order to carry out our mission, we will provide an environment that fosters personal growth and satisfaction for our dedicated, high-quality employees, volunteers and medical staff.

Visit hcmh.com or call 903-439-4062 for information about Hopkins County Memorial Hospital services, upcoming

events, physician referrals, career opportunities and more.

Health@Memorial is published four times a year by McMurry. © 2010 Baylor Health Care System.

The material in Health@Memorial is not intended for diagnosing or prescribing. Consult your physician before under taking any form of medical treatment or adopting any exercise program or dietary guidelines.

Hopkins County Memorial Hospital is affiliated with but not controlled by Baylor Health Care System or its subsidiaries or community medical centers.

Physicians are members of the medical staff at one of Baylor Health Care System’s subsidiary, community or affiliated medical

centers and are neither employees nor agents of those medical centers, Hopkins County Memorial Hospital or Baylor Health Care System.

Photographs may include models or actors and may not represent actual patients.

If you are receiving multiple copies, need to change your mailing address or do not wish to receive this publication, please send your mailing label(s) and the updated information to Robin Vogel, Baylor Health Care System, 2001 Bryan St., Suite 750, Dallas, TX 75201, or e-mail robinv@baylorhealth.edu.

Heal Your HeartTo schedule a consulta-tion with physicians in the Advanced Heart Care group, please call 903-885-3059 or visit advancedheartcare.com.

Your Advanced Heart Care TeamJeffrey Gladden, M.D., FACCBruce Gordon, D.O., FACCManuel Cruz, M.D., FACCDon Wurzburg, M.D., FACCStephen Tann, M.D., FACCAdam Shapira, M.D., ElectrophysiologistGina Pritchard, Nurse Practitioner

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To make a donation, call 903-438-4799 ● November 2010 Health@Memorial 3

A Community that CaresExperience The Royal Touch at this year’s Annual Lights of Life Gala

The Hopkins County Health Care Foundation is hosting its fi fth Gala this winter and aiming to

raise $110,000. Some of the money will go toward purchasing a much-needed handicapped-accessible van for the Hospice and CARE units. “The van can provide transportation that eases the stress on patients and their fami-lies during diffi cult times,” says Jackie Thornton, the Foundation’s Director.

For example, one hospice patient wanted to see a movie with his family before he passed away, and it was a chal-lenge to get him and his extended family to the theater in several cars. “The van will be something that enables patients and their families to have lasting positive memories,” Thornton says.

Many of the CARE unit patients are recovering from broken hips, and trips into the community, such as grocery shopping excursions, help them prepare to return home and to independent liv-ing. The van will ease the transportation needs for these trips.

The theme of the fi fth Gala is “The Royal Touch.” Tom and Pam Sellers, Co-Chairs of the Gala, settled on the theme after being inspired by the castles they visited while on a trip to Germany. Tom Sellers says, “We know how impor-tant it is to have a strong medical center

in our community. Many communities are without essential medical care.”

Pam Sellers, who credits Memorial Hospital with saving her life after a bout with colon cancer in 2008, says she is thrilled with the success of the Gala over the past fi ve years. “The community has been so generous and supportive. We’ve been able to do so many things we just dreamed about at the beginning,” she says.

Thanks to last year’s Gala, a donation of $50,000 was made to the hospital to help purchase a digital mammogra-phy machine, which is now available at Memorial Hospital. Along with purchas-ing the van, a portion of this year’s funds will be added to the endowment that can be used for future projects. ● By Stephanie Thurrott

What You Need to KnowDate: Jan. 15, 2011Time: 6 p.m. to midnightLocation: Hopkins County Regional Civic CenterTicket price: $100 per personTo purchase tickets, call 903-438-4799

Above photo: Back row (left to right): Kevin Monk, Arvis Tanton, Sam Sevier, Tom Sellers, Ene Ashcroft, Lee Teetes, Craig Roberts. Front row (left to right): Patsy Johnson, Polly Swatsell, Wanda Galyean. Left photo: Tom and Pam Sellers.

“The community has been so generous and supportive. We’ve been able to do so many things we just dreamed about at the beginning.”

Pam Sellers, Co-Chair Annual Lights of Life Gala

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4 Health@Memorial November 2010 ● For the career of a lifetime, go to hcmh.com

People with diabetes can struggle with wounds that won’t heal. Because many people experience poor circulation as a complication of diabetes, they may have wounds, par-

ticularly on their feet, which they don’t realize are there.

“Someone could step on a nail and not notice because of a callus,” says Han Pham Hulen, M.D., a physician on the medical staff with Wound Care at Memorial. “By the time they notice, the infection has reached the bone.”

Many of these people face amputation, but Dr. Hulen recommends they come to the Wound Care Center fi rst for a sec-ond opinion. While bone infections are serious, they can often be healed.

“We do limb salvage,” she says. “Bone infection does not neces-sarily mean amputation.”

People can visit the center without a referral to see if their wound has the potential to heal. Advanced treatments that might help include skin substitutes, growth factor replacement, advanced dressing and hyperbaric oxygen therapy, which can help make antibiotics more eff ective at healing the wound.

Dr. Hulen recommends visiting the center if a wound hasn’t healed in four weeks. “We can’t prevent amputation 100 percent of the time, but when we can it really changes a person’s quality of life,” she says. ● By Stephanie Thurrott

Healing Wounds FasterHopkins County Memorial Hospital’s Wound Care Center off ers patients hope and healing

The Wound Care Center is not only for people with diabetes. Mike Barrett, 60, of Sulphur Springs, had surgery for colon cancer at another hospital in May 2009. The complications follow-ing left him with a sizable wound in his abdomen.

After months of treatments, the wound hadn’t fi nished healing. The home health company that was work-ing with him recommended the Wound Care Center at Memorial Hospital. “It’s been a slow process, but every time we had to try something diff erent,

Dr. Hulen would explain what was going on,” he says. “She could explain what was going on in terms a person could understand.”

Get ReliefTo see a specialist at the Wound Care Center, call 903-438-4670.

CARING FOR SURGICAL WOUNDS

Han Pham Hulen, M.D., recommends visiting the Hopkins County Memorial Hospital’s Wound Care Center if a wound hasn’t healed in four weeks.

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The work of researchers at Baylor Research Institute (BRI) could result in a different approach to treating people with lupus, a debilitating disease that affects more than

5 million people worldwide.In people with lupus, the body’s immune system begins

attacking healthy tissue, causing inflammation, pain and tissue damage. Lupus is commonly treated with large doses of corticosteroids, a class of steroid hormones, to suppress the overactive immune system by killing certain immune system cells. But steroids can harm organs and cause side effects including cataracts, high blood pressure and brittle bones.

Working with other researchers, BRI scientists discovered that two immune system proteins known as TLR7 and TLR9 actually activate the cells targeted by steroids, negating the effects of treatment.

“We were trying to understand why people with lupus need such high doses of corticosteroids, because if we understand that we might be able to find alternative therapies,” says

Virginia Pascual, M.D., investigator, Baylor Institute for Immunology Research (BIIR), a component

of BRI, and director of the Center for Personalized Medicine at Baylor.

According to Dr. Pascual, the research suggests that blocking TLR7 and TLR9 from activating the cells that steroids are intended to target could help steroid treatments do their job better. “That would mean we could significantly lower the dose of steroids, which is the ultimate goal,” she says.

The scientists whom BRI has been collaborating with have already developed blocking agents for TLR7 and TLR9. Dr. Pascual says the first step is to test the compound in healthy volunteers and then begin studies with lupus patients.

“It will be relatively easy to know if adding this compound to the baseline therapy with corticosteroids can keep the disease activity down,” she says. Although such a study is at least a year away, Dr. Pascual says that in the meantime, BRI researchers are pursuing their ongoing investigation into other aspects of lupus. This includes the study of certain elements of the immune system with a previously unclear relationship to lupus.

“A better understanding of the disease process could help us design novel therapies,” Dr. Pascual says. “This could mean the development of new ways of treating lupus that have not even been discovered yet.” l  By Amy Lynn Smith

The Search for a Shield Against LupusBaylor researchers continue uncovering new facts about the disease

The project described was supported by Award Number P50AR054083 from the National Institute Of Arthritis And Musculoskeletal And Skin Diseases. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute Of Arthritis And Musculoskeletal And Skin Diseases or the National Institutes of Health.The project described was supported by Award Number U19AI082715 from the National Institute Of Allergy And Infectious Diseases. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute Of Allergy And Infectious Diseases or the National Institutes of Health.

What’s Happening at BRIAlthough the next phase of BRI’s lupus research won’t begin until next year, you can learn more about other studies enrolling participants at BaylorHealth.com/AdvancingMedicine.

Visit us at hcmh.com l November 2010 Health@Memorial 5

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6 Health@Memorial November 2010 ● Sick? Click. Visit hcmh.com

Left to right: Tiff any Crenshaw, R.N., Andy

Hogin, R.N., LaTanya Porter-Unit Secretary,

Valerie Mathes, R.N.

Expansion PutsExperience the same great care in an even bigger and better hospitalPeople

First With its $36.5 million expansion and renovation complete, Hopkins County Memorial Hospital has a new look and a mod-ern feel. But all the changes are designed with one purpose in mind—to better serve the people of Sulphur Springs and sur-rounding communities when they need medical care.

Anitha Sanderson, Medical-Surgical Director, points out that the redesigned rooms and fl oors give nurses more opportunity to stay close to patients. Here’s how:● Every room has a computer, so nurses can update charts and

documentation at each patient’s bedside instead of in a cen-tral area.

● Secured cabinets in each room store backup supplies and routine medications. So, nurses don’t have to walk the halls to get blood pressure or diabetes medications, or items such as IV tubing or bandages. (Narcotics are still stored in a sepa-rate area.)“The design was made to keep nurses and staff at the bed-

side,” Sanderson says. “Being available at the bedside makes patients feel more comfortable.”

Adding to the comfort for patients and their families are fl at-screen TVs, sleeper chairs and wooden privacy blinds in every room. Plus, the overall layout of the fl oor is more open and inviting.

Along with the comfort of having nurses close by, there are new safety systems in place as well. For example, a scanning system matches patients to their medications. “We scan each patient’s armband and each medication. If someone has acci-dentally pulled the wrong medication the scanning process will catch it,” Sanderson says.

Care for Larger PatientsMany times, overweight and obese patients struggle with prob-lems in typical hospitals. Now, both the medical and surgical fl oors at Memorial Hospital have a bariatric room designed to support people weighing up to 700 pounds. Everything in

the room—the bed, shower, toilet, doorways and chair—is proportioned so the bariatric patient is comfortable. A

lift over the bed goes on a track to the bathroom, to help patients get back and forth. The lift also

helps the staff prevent injuries that can stem from lifting larger patients.

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Find Dr. Right. Visit hcmh.com ● November 2010 Health@Memorial 7

Helping the Youngest PatientsChildren, too, have special needs when they need medical care. One welcome addition is a pediatric playroom with a fl at-screen TV and toys. “As patients feel better they can go down there and play. A lot of times, kids start feeling better quickly but aren’t well enough to go home,” says Sanderson. Siblings of pediatric patients also appreciate the play space. Parents appreciate the sleeper couch in every room, so someone can stay overnight.

The pediatric rooms have monitors in every room as well as a bank of monitors at the main desk. “We used to have roll-around monitors,” Sanderson says. “This is much better and allows our staff to catch any problems more quickly.”

New Space for EmergenciesPeople who visit Memorial Hospital in emergencies will see major changes. Cheryl Pierce, Emergency Department Director, says the hospital renovation doubled the size of the department, from 10 beds to a 20-bed facility. “We’ve increased space and also increased staff , to help us as we grow into the

higher patient volumes.” Pierce says the Emergency Department (ED) sees 16,600 patients a year, with 46 patients on an average day and sometimes up to 60 patients on Sundays, the busiest day of the week. Wait times to be seen run consis-tently with wait times across the country, but because of

the economic conditions and families struggling fi nancially, people wait until they are sicker before seeking care or have no other options other than the ED.

Physician’s assistants are being added on weekends to help with the increased volume. A greeter meets people when they enter the ED and gets them registered, they also moni-tor patients, check vital signs and keep them informed if they have to wait. “We’re looking at processes to decrease door-to-doc time,” explains Tressie Cline, a nurse in the ED. The ED process has a fi ve-tier triage acuity system that allows the sickest patients to be evaluated by the doctor in a timely

manner. The department has also implemented bedside triage, and the bed ahead program assists with patient length-of-stay in the department.

The ED consists of a staff made up of all R.N.s who are cer-tifi ed in advanced cardiac care as well as pediatric and adult trauma care. ED nurses achieve continued education in not only these required areas but also on changes and updates in health care and treatments for injuries and disease processes. Several of the nurses in the ED belong to the Emergency Nurses Association and have achieved Certifi ed Emergency Nurse credentialing.

In the new ED, there are two dedicated trauma rooms and two cardiac rooms. All rooms have bedside monitoring with central monitoring at the nurses’ station. This enables us to continually monitor our patients’ vital signs and heart rhythms. All of the rooms are private, so patients and their families can be together when they are facing a traumatic situ-ation or serious illness.

The ED’s new equipment includes:● Four crash carts for adult lifesaving measures.● Two pediatric carts specifi cally designed for children from

birth to adolescents.● Two fl uid warmers that can also be used to rapidly infuse

fl uids when necessary.● Two patient warmers to increase low body temperature.● Trauma rooms are individually environmentally controlled

to help warm patients. ● By Stephanie Thurrott

Above: Volunteers Robert Carpenter, Billie Rushin, Kellene Dawson, Betty Tucker and Walter Reeder

Above: Suzanne Magee, R.N., John Sheeran, R.N., Kelly You, R.N.Above: Cheryl Pierce, Director of ED

Learn More About MemorialVisit hcmh.com to discover class information, a physi-cian directory, volunteer and employment opportunities and more!

Below: Tressie Cline, R.N., Doris Humphrey, R.N., Cassidy Cameron, R.N., Jessica Cooper, ER Greeter

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Hopkins County Memorial Hospital 115 Airport Road Sulphur Springs, TX 75482

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