ADVENTHEALTH

I’ve been here long enough now I know the patients — the parents and their kids. It’s getting to know people in long-term relationships with them and trying to keep them healthy that makes me happy.

— Dr. Alan Gasner

Gasner lives in Winter Haven with his wife, hats and there were lots of night calls, Susan, and has three grown daughters weekend calls,” he says. and a son. He moved to Polk County from Reflectively, Gasner adds there were parts New York in 1975 and first joined a group of those days he doesn’t miss.of three internal medicine doctors before they merged with Gessler Clinic in 1990. “I don’t miss the night calls and weekend During his medical tenure, Gasner has seen many changes – mostly for the better. When Gasner first came to the Winter Haven Hospital, he says there were no calls; I miss the continuity of care that we were able to provide via patients to the office, then to the hospital, then back to the office,” he says. From 1978 to 1992, Gasner was affiliated Your joints were made to lift you up. sub-specialists and internists did much with Winter Haven Hospital, where he more – dealing with cardiology, respiratory served as chief of medicine, chief of diseases, heart attacks, respiratory failures, cardiology, president of medical staff, diabetes, insulin care and other health served on the board of directors and the issues. ethics committee, where he was president. “We started off doing everything and then He worked at Internal Medicine Associates as these sub-specialists came to town, we of Winter Haven from 1987 to 1990 before had other people to rely on for some of joining Gessner Clinic in January 1991 those things. Back then, we wore many where he currently sees about 20 patients per day. Outside his office, Gasner says although he’s not affiliated with any area clubs or social organizations, he likes to spend time with daily exercise – biking, playing tennis, running, golfing or working out. He adds that although he has no current retirement plans, he will stay in Winter Haven and hopes to do more traveling. As for his medical career, Gasner says he has no regrets in choosing his profession. “The reason I’m glad I did it and the reason We’re here to do the same. I’m glad I still do it is I really love the Your joints allow you to do incredible things, but they’re vulnerable to social interaction with the patient, getting damage, inflammation and wear-and-tear. Trust your knees and hips to to know them, becoming part of their the specialized orthopedic experts of AdventHealth Heart of Florida and families,” he says. “I know their families AdventHealth Lake Wales — providing individualized care for even the … and I’ve been here long enough now I most complex conditions to get you back in motion, fast. 21-ORTHO-02043 know the patients — the parents and their kids. It’s getting to know people in longterm relationships with them and trying to keep them healthy that makes me happy.” IncredibleOrtho.com DR. ALAN GASNER HN

Stay Strong With Healthy Hips

Expert care can get you there.

We all hope to be able to walk, run and dance through life with healthy, natural joints. But when your hips become arthritic and painful, it’s not easy to keep moving like you used to. The good news is that hip replacement has come a long way, with advanced technology and cutting-edge surgical techniques that can get you back in stride.

Who Can Benefit from Hip Replacement Surgery

Patients over age 65 who have exhausted all other forms of treatment, maintained active lifestyles, and have chronic pain even while sitting or asleep are prime candidates for hip replacement surgery.

Most people who pursue hip replacement do so due to chronic pain that does not respond to other treatments such as anti-inflammatory medications, cortisone injections, physical therapy, viscosupplementation (gel injections), or weight loss. If you’ve tried these conservative treatments with no relief, it may be time to consider this next step.

What’s New

While the surgery used to require a lengthy, threeweek stay in the hospital Intensive Care Unit (ICU), hip replacement today takes just two days in the hospital – neither of them in the ICU. And, you can be home and ready to start your physical therapy very quickly. Physical therapy is essential to restore your joint to full strength and range of motion, and get you back on your feet with considerably less pain in just six to eight weeks. The complete healing process takes from 16 to 20 weeks.

Count on the AdventHealth Orthopedic Experts

The AdventHealth Orthopedic Institute is your source for whole-health care. If you’re being held back by intractable hip pain, talk to us about your options. Our experts can explain when hip replacement is needed, who can benefit from it, and what your recovery may look like.

To learn more, call 407-609-3740 or visit IncredibleOrtho.com.

AdventHealth Medical Group is Central Florida’s most comprehensive multi-specialty medical group practice. With nearly 600 boardcertified physicians, the group provides patients with a broad range of medical and surgical services across more than 40 medical specialties. For more information or to make an appointment, call 866-997-3627 or visit AdventHealthMedicalGroup.com/Polk-County. CFHN | 15

Central Florida Health Care Explains the Importance of the Health Information Exchange

by TERESA SCHIFFER

SHARING IS CARING

We are living in an age of miracles when it comes to medical science. Modern healthcare professionals have a wealth of tools at their disposal to help patients recover from diseases that were once almost always fatal and improve the quality of life for many more individuals. As technology advances, we are all becoming more closely connected, including physicians and other healthcare providers. Over the past few years, some big changes have been taking place in the way that healthcare providers communicate with each other. The Health Information Exchange (HIE) lets doctors and support staff quickly and accurately obtain a patient’s medical history, empowering them to make the best possible decisions for a patient based on all available information. Dr. Andrew Hein is the Chief Clinical Informatics Officer and Associate Medical Officer for Central Florida Health Care in Winter Haven. He has been closely following the development of the HIE. Currently, the term “Health Information Exchange” is used in a broad sense, encompassing many different platforms and methods of sharing information within the medical community. “It speaks to the fact that we continue to have problems of healthcare providers being able to have timely access to information about our patients, and technology is a good way to bridge that gap and enable us to see things that we need to see about our patients,” Hein describes. Almost every state in the U.S. is utilizing some type of HIE at this point, but the greater impetus is now to create a fully functional interface at the national level. The 21st Century Cures Act, which was signed into law in December 2016, helps to make this innovation in information sharing easier and sets up the framework for organizations to participate in the exchange. The term “Health Information Exchanges” refers to a variety of interfaces that allow patient information to flow through multiple channels and come back to a provider in real time. Central Florida Health Care participates with several of these platforms, including Florida SHOTS and Florida’s Encounter Notification Service.