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This week’s edition of Our Health takes a look at medical innovations, a son’s tribute to his mother, and a Heights organization getting milk to new mothers. BP MS 150 is special for one local resident 1B ¡ Breast milk bank in the Heights open 2B
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Saturday, April 11, 2015 • Page 1B
Advancing medicine through technology Memorial Hermann Northwest uses advanced technology to light the way on the path of healing
A presentation from Memorial Hermann Northwest
WHEN
April 20, 7:30 A.M. - 3:30 P.M. WHERE
Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital
Contributed photo Pictured are Ibrahim Garcia-Mowatt, MD, Board Certified Specialist in Wound Care and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, and Kwame Mensah, RN, BSN, with the LUNA Fluorescence Angiography System at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital Wound Care. This system allows both doctors and patients to see the blood flow as it is happening to help determine the best treatment options to promote healing. Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital, on the 610 service road just before Ella Blvd, is the only facility in the Houston area with the LUNA Fluorescence Angiography System.
to produce high-resolution images of the inside of blood vessels, organs and blood flow to extremities within two to three minutes. An imaging agent administered to the patient binds to the protein in the blood and naturally circulates throughout the body. The laser and camera capture images of the blood flow into and out of the wound, and displays them on a mobile unit. Those images are then processed and analyzed. “When physicians, therapists and nurses have this information, they can customize treatment plans to improve the blood flow in the wound,� Cauley said. “This system also allows physicians to evaluate the success of treatment and surgeries.� The advantages of an advanced imaging system to patients are nu-
merous: -Has the potential to save limbs and reduce healing time -Can help predict wound healing -Allows specialists to see blood flow to and from a wound in real time to determine the best treatment option -Can potentially reduce cost of care and therapy management through accurate data analysis Inwood Forest resident Robert Liska recently began treatment at Memorial Hermann Wound Care at Memorial Hermann Northwest. “I’m very impressed with the level of care here,� said Liska, who likes the fact that the LUNA system allows him to see the healing progress. “They show me what’s wrong with my body and it helps them to know how to heal me.�
Cycling for Hope
DireCtory
Assessment of the skin: All about wounds
For The Leader An advanced technology now available at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital in the Greater Heights area has the capability to drastically improve wound care for patients and greatly reduce the impact of chronic wounds, according to Ibrahim GarciaMowatt, M.D., a board-certified specialist in wound care and hyperbaric oxygen therapy affiliated with Memorial Hermann Northwest. Chronic wounds, a common side effect of diabetes and vascular disease, affect approximately 6 million people per year in the United States and result in an average of 73,000 non-traumatic lower-extremity amputations per year. The sometimes irreparable damage caused by chronic wounds occurs when there is insufficient blood flow to the wounds to facilitate healing. “The key factors associated with healing a wound are its vascular nature and blood flow,â€? said Shawn Cauley, director of the Wound Care Program at Memorial Hermann Northwest. “When wounds don’t heal because of lack of blood flow, that problem must be corrected.â€? The LUNA™ Fluorescence Angiography System is a revelation in this regard for the physicians at Memorial Hermann Northwest, the only facility in the Houston area with this system. “It is imperative for physicians to know whether it is an arterial or venous component of the blood flow that is preventing the healing,â€? Cauley said. “The LUNA system identifies the blood flow in the wound itself.â€? Fluorescence angiography works something like a GPS tracker, mapping the vascular system around a wound in real time. It combines fluorescence imaging, laser and camera technologies with advanced software
Preferred Health
There will be presentations by Jessie Dunn, BSN, RN, WCC, Shawn Cauley, MBA, CDFS, CHT, Patricia Leal-Mack, RN, BSN, CI, Ann Seymore, JD, CPHRM, Cathryn A. Schlesinger, JD, CPHRM, Special Content Expert - Ibrahim Garcia-Mowatt, Jr. M.D. Director Center for Wound Healing at Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital. There will also be a vendor fair of wound care products sponsored by Memorial Hermann Northwest Auxiliary. For more information or to register, contact Shannon Brown at 713-854-2504 or shannon. brown@restorixhealth.com. The $30 fee will cover the registration required to earn the 6.0 Nursing Contact Hours for completing the course. Memorial Hermann Health System is an approved provider of continuing education by the Texas Nurses Association, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. To schedule an appointment with a wound care specialist at Memorial Hermann Northwest, call 713-8672432 or visit them at 1635 North Loop West, Houston, TX 77008 on the 610 service road just before Ella Boulevard.
Provider Spotlight
Back to basics with Comfort Keepers
Dental Care
Lawton
Mark E. Lawton, D.D.S., P.A. General Dentistry 7938 Antoine Drive Houston, Texas 77088 Tel: 281-447-2186 Mark.LawtonDDS@sbcglobal.net
Major Hospitals
Memorial Hermann Northwest 1635 North Loop West Houston, Texas 77008 Tel: 713-867-2000 memorialhermann.org Physician Referral 713.222.CARE
Medical Suppliers
Complete Medical Supply 1714 W. 18th Street (At Ella Blvd) Houston, TX 77008 Tel: (713) 880-4000 www.CompleteMedicalSupply.net
Texas Medical Supply, Inc. 1906 W 18th St. Between Ella Blvd. & 610 N. Loop West Tel: 713-864-7636 www.txmedicalsuply.com
optical
By Jonathan Garris jgarris@theleadernews.com
Even after 12 years of cycling, Robert Pohl fully expects to have a teary-eyed finish with his family when he reaches the end of this year’s BP MS 150 bike ride. “My entire family, including my extended family, my brother, my sister – most of them come every year to the finish line for a huge celebration,� Pohl said. “But at the same time it’s also recognition for my mother.� The two-day fundraising bike ride, organized by the National MS Society South Central Region, is the largest of the 100 Bike MS events across the US with three official start locations in the Houston area. Each route has a total mileage varying between 160 to 180 miles to Austin and takes place on April 18 and 19. This year will mark Pohl’s thirteenth year bicycling in the MS 150, which helps raise funds and awareness regarding multiple sclerosis and
its treatment. Pohl’s mother died in 1991 after a battle with an aggressive form of the disease. According to the BP MS 150 website, multiple sclerosis is a “chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system� and can cause Robert Pohl’s mother. blurred vision, loss of balance, paralysis, blindness, tremors and more. Most are diagnosed with the disease between the ages of 20 and 50. “She was bedridden by the time I was in high school,� Pohl said. “I would tear up at times thinking about her when I first started riding [the BP MS 150]. She never gave up hope we would find
BOOK
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See BP MS 150, P. 2B
Advance H e
Pharmacy al
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st o n
By Jonathan Garris jgarris@theleadernews.com
1337B W. 43rd Street Houston, Texas 77018 Tel: 713-686-3221 www.TVOFH.com
H ou
Heights man rides in BP MS 150 in memory of mother
Today’s Vision
of
Contributed photos Robert Pohl (left) poses with fellow riders from last year’s BP MS 150 ride. Pohl is a member of the event’s Hall of Fame, having raised about $100,000 in donations for the National MS Society.
Providing medical care for older loved ones or those with a disability can take an enormous amount of time and effort – fortunately, for those looking to preserve a sense of normalcy with day-to-day life, companies like Comfort Keepers offer a range of services to make this possible. Selby Clark, who has been a franchise owner since late 2004, said his company offers services to essentially all of those living within Beltway 8 working through his third franchise in the Heights which he owns jointly. “We provide non-medical care, traditionally and typically, in people’s homes but that care could extend to hospital visits,� Clark said. “We do everything from comforting people who are going to have surgery in a day or two, to sitting with people in hospital rooms to make sure they’re calm and don’t panic or take their tubes out.� The focus is helping clients live sustainably in their homes when they would otherwise have to go to a facility, Clark said. This can include everything from fixing dinner, to housekeeping, to providing incidental transportation to places like doctor’s offices, banks and pharmacies. “On more of a fun level, we have taken people to Houston Symphony performances and others to the Houston Museum of Fine Arts,� Clark said. “We do what we can not only to allow them to be alive but to flourish.� Comfort Keepers does not accept Medicare or Medicaid and costs are usually covered by longterm care insurance, Clark said. Costs range from $19.50 and $20.50 an hour depending on the number of hours per week with a client. If a person has more than 20 hours a week, services are provided at the former cost of $19.50. Clark also emphasized the personal nature of receiving requests for help. “During the after hours, our phones ring straight to me,� Clark said. “We put a lot of energy into hiring good people who can help when the time comes.� For more information, visit www.comfortkeepers. com or call 713-974-6920.
AHS
Advance Healing Solutions of Houston 5740 W. Little York Houston, Texas 77091 Tel: 281-447-7648
Women’s Care
Sharon Smith, M.D. & Amber Dobyne, M.D. The Preserve 2010 N. Loop West, Suite 260 Houston, Texas 77018 Tel: 713-697-8555 www.obgyncaretx.com
Scheduling your next appointment just got simpler. Memorial Hermann’s online scheduling tool, ScheduleNow, lets you schedule and confirm your appointment with just a few clicks. Visit our website to choose the best time and reserve your spot today at the Memorial Hermann location near you.
PCP s • s P e C i a l i s t s • M a M M o g r a M s • C o l o n o s C o P i e s P h y s i C a l t h e r a P y • er s • h e a rt & s t r o k e s C r e e n i n g s memorialhermann.org L O C AT E D AT 610 A N D E L L A B LV D