July1 16 by Daniel Pearson

10th Anniv ersar y issu e!

MEDICAL EXAMINER recipe feature PAGE 7

HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS • HEALTH • MEDICINE • WELLNESS

AIKEN-AUGUSTA’S MOST SALUBRIOUS NEWSPAPER • FOUNDED IN 2006

JULY 1, 2016

THE BIG ONE-OH!

Hot enough for ya? Looking over ten years of back issues led us to this article from 2008 that, according to our thermometer, deserves a reread. Summer. It’s here, and it’s Augusta, and it’s hot. Are you cool with that? Yes or no, you need to read this article. If you say yes, you’re probably one of those who loves hot Hot weather kills weather, the hotter the better. As a result, you’re exposed. You’re out more people every in it, and there are a few things year than tornadoes, you need to know. hurricanes, And if you say no, I’m not cool with heat, then you need the expert lightning, floods information that follows even more and earthquakes because, after all, no one — at combined. least not in this town — can escape the heat completely. Sooner or later even the most hard core AC addicts will be out there in it. That can be downright dangerous. Even though heat-related deaths and illnesses are preventable, excessive heat exposure caused 8,015 deaths in the United States Oven knob graphic created for the Medical Examiner by Ginny Millar

Please see HOT page 2

es friends, your favorite newspaper — Aiken-Augusta’s Most Salubrious Newspaper, in fact — has hit the ripe old age of 10. Issue #1 was dated July 1, 2006. Back in those primitive times, we published on the 1st and 15th of every month, forgetting that those days would fall on Saturdays and Sundays from time to time. So within a few months we changed to 1st and 3rd Fridays and never looked back. Until this week, that is. Looking back on 240 issues, one thing is very clear: it’s a miracle this paper survived. Why? For one thing, many of our earliest issues could be described in a single word: boring. It’s a fear-inspiring task to fill up 16 jumbo-sized pages from top to bottom once a month, let alone twice. So back in 2006, if we got a press release from Hospital X announcing that Mildred Perkins of Dietary Services had been promoted from Assistant Tray Washer to Apprentice Jell-O Maker, we ran it — with a photograph. It didn’t always make for the most fascinating reading. It took some time to attract the likes of Bad Billy Leveau, Kim Beavers, Alisa Rhinehart, Trisha

Many of our earliest issues could be described in a single word: boring.

Whisenhunt, Clayton Quamme and Bill Cleveland, Ken Wilson, Chris Davidson, Dr. Darren Mack and Dr. Caroline Colden and a host of dietitians to grace our pages, not to mention the late great Cindy Crawford (of Cindy’s Catering), who inaugurated the recipe feature we still continue. Among her epic column headlines: “A Cautionary Tale of Fudge. And Failure;” “Did You Ever Have One of Those Dads?” and perhaps her all-time best, “If You Don’t Fry Food Are You Really a Southerner?” Other notable columnists who have graced these pages

Our Top Ten years so far are: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. Funny how that adds up to 11 years, isn’t it?

during our first ten years: past president of Augusta College William Bloodworth; WRDW anchorman and true gentleman Tom Campbell; mayoral candidate and all-round do-gooder Helen Blocker-Adams; world-famous comedian Dave Barry and celebrity chef Rachael Ray; and long-time columnist Cindy Elia, an experienced dietitian and loyal Examiner advocate. Of course, we fully realize that sometimes we’re still pretty boring. The trouble is, a lot of very important subjects don’t exactly make for gripping reading. It’s not easy to make eating vegetables not named french fries seem important. So if it sometimes seems like we’re deliberately trying to be cute or clever, it’s not your imagination. The most informative article of all time about preventing gout, let’s say, will do no one any good if the only people who read it doze off in the middle of paragraph two. So the goal is to attempt to entertain while we inform. It’s like putting sprinkles on broccoli. You might be tricked into actually eating the stuff. Have you ever stopped to think about the ratio of healthful and salubrious messages we receive compared to those urging Please see ONE-OH page 3

ARE YOUR SCRUBS COOL? We offer styles with cooling fabric technology. Stop by and try some on today!

(706) 364.1163 • WWW.SCRUBSOFEVANS.COM • 4158 WASHINGTON RD • ACROSS FROM CLUB CAR • M-F: 10-6:30; SAT: 10-4

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

JULY 1, 2016

HOT… from page 1 between 1979-2003 according to the Centers for Disease Control. During this period, more people in this country died from extreme heat than from hurricanes, lightning, tornadoes, floods and earthquakes combined. People suffer heat-related illnesses when ambient heat simply overwhelms their bodies’ ability to compensate and properly cool itself. Heat stroke is the most severe heat-related illness resulting from these cooling system failures. Body temperatures may rise to 106° or higher within 10 to 15 minutes. Symptoms include weakness, nausea, the inability to sweat, giddiness, dizziness, collapsing, fatigue and hot, dry,

red or flushed skin. If you suspect someone is experiencing heat stoke, call 911 immediately. Heat-related illnesses can stop a beating heart or cause permanent disability if emergency treatment is not provided quickly. Here are eight ways to beat the summertime heat provided by emergency room physician Dr. Larry Mellick of MCGHealth:

2. Pace yourself. If you don’t frequently exercise or work in a hot climate, begin slowly and gradually increase your pace. Avoid overexertion. If activities in the heat make your heart pound and leave you gasping for air, stop, move to a cool or shaded area, and rest – especially if you become light-headed, confused, weak or faint.

1. Schedule outdoor activities strategically. If you must be outdoors, try to limit activity to early morning or early evening hours. Take breaks regularly in shady areas so that your body’s thermostat will have a chance to recover.

3. Avoid too much sun. If you can, stay out of the sun. But always use sunscreen to reduce the heat absorbed and the moisture lost from the body. Additionally, wear lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing;take breaks from the sun in a cool place.

in the

LIVE HEART of Downtown AUGUSTA

Studio, 1 & 2 Bedroom Condos for SALE from $93,500 - $215,000

936 BROAD STREET, A UGUSTA, GA THEJBWHITESBUILDING.COM 706.723.9572 A de l l e D e nni s I R e a lt o r I 7 0 6 . 8 2 9 . 1 3 8 1 All information is believed to be accurate but is not warranted. See agent for details.

4. Drink plenty of fluids. Don’t wait until you’re thirsty to drink. During heavy exercise in a hot environment, drink two to four glasses of cool fluids each hour. A sports beverage can replace the needed salt and minerals you lose in sweat, but if you are on a low-salt diet, talk with your doctor before drinking a sports beverage or taking salt tablets. Avoid liquids that contain alcohol or large amounts of sugar. These cause you to lose more fluid. Avoid extremely cold drinks because these can cause stomach cramps. 5. Avoid hot foods. Do not eat a heavy or hot meal before going outside in hot weather. This will heat your body faster, making you more vulnerable to heat exhaustion. 6. Monitor those at high risk. If you are 65 or older, have a friend or relative call to check on you twice a day during a heat wave. Infants and children up to four years of age are sensitive to the effects of high temperatures and rely on others to regulate their environments and provide adequate liquids. People who are overweight or overexert themselves are also prone to heat exhaustion faster. So keep an eye

on your family, children, friends or co-workers, and have someone look out for you, too. 7. Stay cool indoors. If you don’t have to go outside, stay inside an air-conditioned place. If your home has no air conditioning, find a public place that does. A few hours spent in air conditioning can help your body stay cooler when you return to the heat. Taking cool showers or baths is also a good way to keep your body temperature cool if you don’t have air conditioning. Also, avoid using your kitchen stove or oven if your home has no air conditioning. 8. Don’t leave kids in cars. Never leave your infants, children or pets in a car for any amount of time. Heat exhaustion can occur at temperatures above 90 degrees and heat stroke can occur when temperatures rise above 150 degrees inside the car. Keep in mind that a car is basically a metal box that gets much hotter than the temperature outside. In the garden, at the lake or the baseball field, summertime activities should be balanced with measures that aid the body’s cooling mechanisms. Keep your heart and body healthy by taking precautions in the heat. +

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

ONE-OH… from page 1 us to do unhealthy things? We are bombarded by messages to act in ways that really don’t promote health. The fast food industry alone spends billions of dollars every year encouraging us to eat deep-fried, high-sodium, heavily sugarized foods and beverages. It’s nice to get a couple of reminders every month that lead us toward healthy habits. Speaking of those messages, how do you like yours delivered? Online or on paper? Print media is far from dead. The Examiner has plenty of loyal readers who like paper; we’ve met thousands of them, ranging in age from over a hundred down to teenagers and heavily tattooed twenty-somethings. They love this paper on paper. On the other hand, plenty of readers love the online edition. It has color on every page, it can be enlarged to make reading easier, and you

— Dan Pearson, Publisher

Everything you need.

Advice Doctor ©

+ Dear Advice Doctor, My child is overweight and according to her, the teacher pestered her about it all last year. I never had a conference with the teacher about it because I want my daughter to lose weight too. So the first time I met the teacher was at the end-of-school-year-party — and guess what??? She’s practically obese herself. I let my temper get the best of me and I told her she was fat. Personally, I think she got her just desserts, but I still wonder if I should apologize to her or expect an apology from her. What do you think? — Dealing with the aftermath Dear Dealing, At the risk of stating the obvious, I definitely think the teacher got just desserts, but it sounds like maybe your daughter did too. After all, no one gets to be overweight, obese or fat — these are all your words, not mine — by eating carrots and celery. It cannot be done. But I believe your direct quote about the teacher at the party was that she got “just desserts.” Well no wonder she’s fat! Let me ask you: what comes to mind when you think of desserts? Lettuce? Broccoli? No! It’s cakes and cupcakes, cookies, fudge, brownies and pie. By no coincidence, these are all significant contributors to weight gain. If she got only desserts, as you claim, and she was fat too, I’m not sure why you’re asking me what I think. It’s pretty obvious. Of course, the bigger picture is that you have no control over the teacher, but you do have control over your own child’s diet. If she is overweight, you have the opportunity to adjust her diet to reduce dietary salt, fat content, and sugars. That means sugary beverages and yes, keeping desserts in check too. Best wishes on your mission. + Do you have a question for The Advice Doctor about love, life, personal relationships, career, raising children, or any other important life topic? Send it to News@AugustaRx.com. Replies will be provided only in Examiner issues.

AUGUSTA

One family of providers.

The

don’t have to leave the house to get it. Just visit augustarx.com/news on 1st and 3rd Fridays, or go any time to issuu.com/medicalexaminer. Another advantage of the digital edition: sometimes we find typos after the print edition comes off the presses but before the digital edition goes up. So while the print edition may have, say 50 typos, the online edition might have a mere 48. Other than typos, the bane of our existence, what would you like to see change in our upcoming ten years? Your comments, complaints and suggested are warmly welcomed. Contact information for phone, website, mail and email is in the box below The Advice Doctor. Thanks for reading! +

MEDICAL EXAMINER

AUGUSTA’S MOST SALUBRIOUS NEWSPAPER

2541 Milledgeville Road, Augusta, GA • (706) 738-2581

Services oﬀered in the Augusta area: • • • • • • • •

Short-Term Rehabilitation • Physical Therapy Long-Term Care • Occupational Therapy Inpatient Rehabilitation • Speech Therapy IV Therapy • Private, Semi-Private Wound Care Rooms Pain Management • Trach Care Provided 24 Hour Nursing Services • VA Contract Facility Oxygen Therapy pruitthealth.com

www.AugustaRx.com The Medical Examiner’s mission: to provide information on topics of health and wellness of interest to general readers, to offer information to assist readers in wisely choosing their healthcare providers, and to serve as a central source of news within every part of the Augusta medical community. Submit editorial content to graphicadv@knology.net Direct editorial and advertising inquiries to: Daniel R. Pearson, Publisher & Editor E-mail: Dan@AugustaRx.com AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER P.O. Box 397, Augusta, GA 30903-0397

(706) 860-5455 www.AugustaRx.com • E-mail: graphicadv@knology.net Opinions expressed by the writers herein are their own and their respective institutions. Neither the Augusta Medical Examiner, Pearson Graphic 365 Inc., or its agents or employees take any responsibility for the accuracy of submitted information, which is presented for informational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnosis and treatment, consult your doctor. The appearance of advertisements in this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the products or services advertised. © 2016 PEARSON GRAPHIC 365 INC.

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

#24 IN A SERIES

Who is this?

OLD NEWS +

POINTS OF INTEREST TO FORMER KIDS by Trisha Whisenhunt, Senior Citizens Council

ONCE A SOLDIER, ALWAYS A SOLDIER

f you have ever taken and benefitted from sulfa drugs, this is the man to thank. His name was Gerhard Domagk, and his biography is full of triumph as well as tragedy, not all of it of his own making. Domagk was born in October of 1895 in Brandenburg, a Prussian province that today lies partly in Germany and partly in Poland. Domagk began his advanced education studying medicine at the University of Kiel, but left to volunteer as a soldier during World War I. In December 1914 at age 19, he was wounded, and served as a medic for the remainder of the war. Resuming his studies at the University of Greifswald in Germany, Domagk focused on bacteria and infections. In 1925 he joined the faculty of the University of Münster, becoming a professor, which led to a job with Bayer and appointment as director of its Institute of Pathology and Bacteriology. It was here that after five years of testing and experimentation he discovered the effectiveness of sulfonamide against infections caused by streptococcus. The drug was patented as Prontosil on December 25, 1932, the first systemic drug (not topical, like powders and ointments) that was effective against bacterial infections. It saved countless lives before being replaced by the superior effectiveness and reduced side effects of penicillin, and in fact, saved the infected arm of Domagk’s daughter, preventing its amputation. For his discovery, Domagk was awarded the 1939 Nobel Prize in Medicine, but because the 1935 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to a sharp critic of Nazi rule, the Hitler regime forced Domagk to refuse the prize. After the war he received the Nobel medal, but not the monetary portion of the prize. Domagk’s work led to other developments, both good and bad. His work with sulfonamides helped pave the way for antituberculosis drugs, in great demand when a TB epidemic swept Europe following World War II. His discovery also led to an explosion of sulfa drug consumer products at a time when oversight was not what it is today. The sulfa craze hit its low point with a mass poisoning in 1937 that killed more than 100 people in 15 states. Tennessee-based S. E. Massengill Company created a product called Elixir Sulfanilamide. Its active sulfa ingredient was delivered in a syrup of DEG (diethylene glycol) and raspberry flavoring. Harold Watkins, Massengill’s chief chemist, was unaware that DEG is toxic to humans. The public outcry led to the creation of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act in 1938, requiring companies to test the safety of products and submit the data to the FDA before marketing to the public. Amazingly enough, Massengill was legally guilty only of mislabeling, not poisoning: by definition, an “elixir” had to contain alcohol, and the product had none. Company founder Samuel E. Massengill infamously said, “...there was no error in the manufacture of the product... I do not feel there was any responsibility on our part.” Harold Watkins didn’t feel quite the same: he committed suicide upon learning the effects of his actions. +

erhaps you have heard this news story: a 70-yearold Vietnam veteran was having breakfast in a Waffle House in Fayetteville, North Carolina. He was enjoying his meal when a man came in with an AK-47 assault rifle and demanded money. All the customers and employees had the expected response. Except for Phillip Brooks, the Vietnam veteran. He kept his seat and his cool as he observed parts of the gun appeared to be either made of wood or missing altogether. Most outstandingly, there was no trigger. Brooks told the staff the gun wasn’t real and not to give him any money. Then he smacked the robber in the face with his cane and a duel ensued between the two; fake gun against cane. The cane won. The thief ran with employees giving chase. He got away and I don’t know if he was subsequently arrested. It made me proud to hear this story, proud to know we still have everyday heroes and not all of them are active duty or in the early portion

of their lives. We have many seniors who’ve still “got it,” who are sharp mentally and physically, and are involved in their community. I believe for those who serve in the military there are aspects of that experience that never leaves them. Much of what the military offers carries over into civilian life and enhances the quality of whichever lifestyle the veteran chooses. This was clearly the case for Mr. Brooks. It was lucky he was in that Waffle House that day. The military is the backbone of our nation and as

such deserve our respect and gratitude. They do what most of us can’t do, going places we don’t have the courage or training to go and doing the unthinkable to keep us safe and able to enjoy our freedom. It is a huge sacrifice from them and their families. It isn’t our fighting force only that we should honor and respect but all our servicemen and women; even those who cook, type, repair, heal and teach are an important part of the whole. This 4th of July as well as this election year, we need to consider our military personnel past, present and future. We can’t move forward as a nation without a strong fighting force. Many are of the opinion that we don’t need our military any longer; there are other, more pressing issues upon which we should be spending our financial resources. We are all entitled to our opinion. It’s one of the things that makes us unique, one of the freedoms our military won for us with their blood. If you believe we can do without a fighting force for our country, then by extension we don’t need to protect our homes. Should we do away with having a protective pet, personal weapons, alarm systems, fences, locks, or insurance? Lose the former and we may not even be allowed to have the latter. +

MYTH OF THE MONTH Does drinking water help cure dry skin? We have probably all heard this, and it seems logical: dry skin comes from the inside out, and someone chronically dehydrated is also a dry skin sufferer. However, dry skin is actually an external problem and its solution is also. This time of year, low humidity — indoors and out — can be one of the main factors in dry skin. Chemicals can also take away natural skin oils, leading to dry skin. If you’re thinking you don’t interact with many chemicals, cleaners and detergents qualify as chemicals. Perfumes also qualify.

Applying a lotion or moisturizer helps form an effective barrier to moisture loss through the skin during bone-dry winter weather. A good cream or lotion is best applied soon after bathing, when skin is still damp. And by the way, even though water doesn’t cure dry skin, most of us could still stand to drink more of it. + — by F. E. Gilliard, MD, Family Medicine 4244 Washington Road, Evans, GA 30809 706-760-7607

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

WHAT EVERYBODY OUGHT TO KNOW res? ABOUT FIRST DATE DON’TS

k good eno r skin can ugh cer? son.”

o k

ociety has changed over the years. Today, longer lifespans combined with high levels of divorce, and unmarried significant others and life partners, have all combined to dramatically increased the need for first dates. So what should you do — or not do — on a first date? What should you not say? Here are a few things you should never say on a first date: • You sweat less than any fat girl I’ve ever met. • I’ve always wanted to meet a woman that was tougher and meaner than me. • If your eye makeup was any darker, I would think you were Cleopatra. • Your slacks look like you were born in them ... and grew considerably thereafter. • I’m glad they turned up the lights. For a minute there I thought you were a cross dresser. • I have always thought women who were a little bit on the plain side make great lovers.

• How often do you use Nair on your top lip? • You know, I bet if you shaved your legs more often you wouldn’t get as many runs in your panty hose. • I think your jeans are the same size as mine. • Let’s move to a booth so you’ll be more comfortable. These restaurant chairs are just too narrow. • Do you have a younger sister ... who is not married? • You look just like your mother. I hope she gets out of the hospital pretty soon. • Bruce Jenner makes a nice looking woman. • Some friends of mine are at the registration desk. Wait here. I’ll go say hello so they won’t have to walk all the way over here. • Is it really true that your inseam is less than your waistline? • In case you wondered about what we might do later tonight, they tell me two more trips to the clinic and I’ll be cured. The nurse said I’m not contagious right now anyway. • Do you have any tattoos F REE T AKE-HO ME CO PY!

MEDICAL EXAMINER JULY 1, 2016

This newspaper is delivered to more than

856 private practice doctor’s offices and to 14 area hospitals.

We are Aiken-Augusta’s Most Salubrious Newspaper

Clinically proven. Doctor recommended.

t s e B or outstanding warrants I ought to know about? • I hate it when waitresses ask if you want dessert. They are just trying to run the bill up so I have to pay a bigger tip. • Do you mind taking the bus home? I know it’s only 9:30, but I have to get up early in the morning.

e n i c i d ME

• How long have you been doing your own hair? • Have any cousins married cousins in your family? • I am a marriage expert. I already had 3 wives. • My last wife just left me. Took off with another woman, if you can believe that. Damn if I can understand why. • Your purse looks full. Got

Bad Billy Laveau is a formerlyretired MD who wields a pointed sense of humor - and now, tongue depressors too. He speaks and entertains at events for audiences not subject to cardiac arrest secondary to overwhelming laughter and glee. BadBilly@knology.net or 706306-9397.

WE’RE #2!

The Augusta Medical Examiner’s publisher, Daniel Pearson, has continuously published a newspaper in Augusta since 1990, longer than any other publisher in Augusta except the gentleman to the right, publisher of The Augusta Chronicle, “The South’s Oldest Newspaper,” founded in 1785.

AIKEN-AUGUSTA’S MOST SALUBRIOUS NEWSPAPER • FOUNDED IN 2006

anything interesting in it? Like a gun ... or bottles of scotch? • Didn’t I see you down at the probation office the other day? • How many times have you been in The Jail Report? I’ve only been in 3 times. +

We’re still wet behind the ears, but proud to have served Augusta area readers for more than a quarter of a century.

MEDICAL EXAMINER

Augusta’s only independent publication dedicated to medicine, health and wellness

William S. Morris III Founder, chairman and CEO of Morris Communications and publisher of The Augusta Chronicle.

MEDICAL EXAMINER IS ONLINE • issuu.com/medicalexaminer • or • AugustaRx.com/news • •

THANKS FOR SUPPORTING OUR ADVERTISERS!

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

2006 2006 +

MILESTONES

2007

ALONG THE WAY, 2006-2010

• July 1: the Premier Issue was prepared on a smaller format similar to today’s Metro Spirit, with pages that are essentially square. • August 1: A cover article entitled “Eating by the Ton” reported on statistics compiled by the US Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. It found that between 1970 and 2003, the average American’s diet increased by 523 calories per day. On average, Americans ate 1,675 pounds of food per year in 1970 and 1,950 pounds per year in 2003. • September 1: the debut of the tall format we still use.

2007 • January 1: Our Sudoku made its debut. At the time,

2008

Sudoku puzzles were still a new phenomenon. • March 15: We passed 100,000 copies printed and distributed. • April 1: the fi nal issue on the “1st and 15th” schedule. • April 20: Fittingly, we had a cover story about marijuana and the 411 on 420, and a guest columnist: Dr. William Please see MILESTONES page 10

2009 2010

WE’RE BEGGING YOU We’re never too proud to beg. What we’re begging for is Medicine in the First Person stories. With your help, we’d like to make this a feature in every issue of the Medical Examiner. After all, everybody has a story of something health- or medicine-related, and lots of people have many stories. Send your interesting (or even semi-interesting) stories to the Medical Examiner, PO Box 397, Augusta, GA 30903 or e-mail to Dan@AugustaRx.com. Thanks!

“The cause was a mystery for a long time.” “And that’s when I fell.” nearest hospital “He doesn’t remember a thing.” “The was 30 miles away.” “I was a battlefield medic.” “He was just two when he died.”

“OUCH!”

“It was a terrible tragedy.” “She saved “I sure learned my lesson.” “I retired from medicine my life.” “It seemed like a miracle.” seven years ago.” “We had triplets.” “It was my first year “I thought, ‘Well, this is it’.” NOTHING SEEMED of medical school.” “They took me to the hospital by helicopter.” TO HELP, UNTIL. . “It took 48 stitches.”

ambulance crashed.” “Now THAT hurt!” “The “My leg was broken “I’m not supposed to be alive.”

“This was on my third day in Afghanistan.” in three places.” “I lost 23 pounds.” “Turned out it was just indigestion.” “At first I thought it was something I ate.” “The smoke detector woke me up.”

Everybody has a story. Tell us yours. Here’s our “No Rules Rules.” We’ll publish your name and city, or keep you anonymous. Your choice. Length? Up to you. Subject? It can be a monumental medical event or just a stubbed toe. It can make us laugh or make us cry. One thing we’re not interested in, however: please, no tirades against a certain doctor or hospital. Ain’t nobody got time for that.

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

Southern Girls Eat Clean

Daniel Village Barber Shop

Ten Reasons to Eat a Healthy Popsicle

2522 Wrightsboro Road

Pina Colada 1 cup of light coconut milk, 1 cup of pineapple chunks, 1 banana, 2 tsp. of maple syrup or honey, 2 Tbsp. of fresh coconut. Watermelon 4 cups of seedless watermelon chunks, a splash

I got a haircut, then got the job, the girl, the raise and the promotion - all in one day. Your results may vary.

DANIEL VILLAGE BARBER SHOP

Medical Complex

76 Circle K former Smile Gas

Highland Ave.

Try some of these delicious, refreshing recipes for healthy and clean popsicles. Simply add the ingredients shown to a high speed blender and blend until smooth.Pour into popsicle molds and freeze. Another idea is to make extra of your favorite morning smoothie and use the extra to pour into popsicle molds. It’s a great way to keep a nutritional summer treat on hand with very little effort. Enjoy! :)

TUE - FRI: 8:00 - 6:00; SATURDAY: 8:00 - 2:00

Ohio Ave.

1. Popsicles make you happy and transport you back to childhood. 2. You can actually get in a fruit serving while having a treat. 3. Popsicles made with fruit are a source of many essential nutrients including potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin C and folate. 4. The kiddos will love them. 5. The natural sweetness of fruit will satisfy a sugar craving. 6. They will cool you off on a hot summer day. 7. Less calories than ice cream and without dairy. 8. Popsicles made with coconut milk, almond milk or coconut water add more nutrition to your body and are non-dairy alternatives. 9. The potassium in fruit can reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. 10. Popsicles are yummy and make you smile.

736-7230

Wrightsboro Road

Daniel Field

Augusta Mall

We’re on Wrightsboro Rd. at Ohio Avenue.

Healthy Popsicles of organic pomegranate juice and 4 mint leaves. Peach Ginger 2 to 3 peaches peeled and seed removed, a small knob of fresh ginger, and 1/4 to 1/2 cup of fi ltered water. Blueberry Cream 1 to 1 1/2 cups of blueberries, 1 cup of almond

milk and 2 tsp. of honey. + Alisa Rhinehart is half of the blog southerngirlseatclean. com She is a working wife and mother living in Evans, Georgia. Visit her blog for more recipes and information on clean eating.

DOGS BARKING?

LET US SLIP THOSE PUPPIES INTO SOMETHING COMFORTABLE

SOUTHERN COMFORT SHOES 1001 WALTON WAY (in the former Integrity Medical location)

(706) 434-0129 • MON-THUR: 9-4 • FRI: 9-2 www.southerncomfortshoes.com

Comfort & therapeutic shoes and boots • Diabetic fittings • Custom orthotics • 20 major shoe brands • Board-certified Pedorthist • MD, PT, Podiatrist and Chiropractor referrals welcome

WALK-INS WELCOME!

Read online at issuu.com/medicalexaminer

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

Looking for Likes in all the right places.

Pharma cy 4 11 Very little if anything about healthcare is inexpensive, and that includes medicine. Tiny pills can command large prices. Over-the-counter medications may be less expensive, but are they also less effective? Find the answers to lots of your drug store questions in this column written by Augusta pharmacists Chris and Lee Davidson exclusively for the Medical Examiner.

HELP US HELP YOU AVOID MISTAKES

Please Like the Examiner at facebook.com/AugustaRx

Thanks for reading the Medical Examiner!

here are many ways errors can be introduced into the healthcare system. In this issue we will focus on relaying clear messages. This applies to patients, family and caregivers as well as healthcare professionals who communicate with pharmacies. I had a couple of instances lately where I would end up with three versions of the same prescription ordered the same day for the same peson, all because of lack of clear communication. What happened? We will go over the cause as well as suggest a way that the patient and/or caregiver can help the pharmacy and ultimately themselves. A prescription was called in for a patient for her inhaler. Drug A was ordered, but it had instructions and a memo that seemed to indicate Drug B. I called to clarify and within an hour the doctor’s office called in two other versions of this prescription. The second was for Drug A, but at a different strength and different directions than the original, while the third was for what the doctor had actually intended the first time. The whole controversy was that the office mistakenly thought that our call about which inhaler was intended to be dispensed was actually a call saying an inhaler was not covered by insurance. This almost completely changed what the patient received due to a lack of clear message taking. Another prescription was for a very strong anti-inflammatory with instructions to take once daily for thirty days. That is not how this drug is normally administered. The patient said the doctor told her four times a day, which is right as far as the number of times per day, but the duration was too long and would cause stomach irritation. A phone call to the doctor results in a change to twice a day for five days. The five days is textbook duration, but only twice a day? Maybe he was just being cautious, so OK. Who knows? Both of the above situations could have been avoided and the patient would have their medication sooner if the original prescription had been written correctly. This may have been due to unclear messages through the healthcare provider’s team. The other issue we want to discuss in this issue is the patient/pharmacy conversation

ARE THE KIDS TERRIFIED OF YOUR NOISY GARAGE DOOR?

and how it can be improved. Numerous times every day we get a phone call from a patient or caregiver who says, “I need my white pill refilled,” or something very similar. Did you know that one-third to one-half of all the tablets in the pharmacy are white? It makes it pretty tough to know what the patient is talking about. They might be taking three different pills that are all white. To get the right medicine refilled, your pharmacy must know exactly what you need. That means that the patient should know the name of the medicine and what it is used for, instead of just, “It’s white and round.” Also different manufacturers of the same medicine will have different looking tablets both in size, color and/or shape, so what is white today might be purple next month. Please protect yourself and know what your medicines are used to treat. If you need help, talk to your pharmacy or doctor about getting prescriptions that are labelled with the indication. Your doctor can write your prescriptions to say “one tablet daily for blood pressure” instead of just “Take one tablet + daily.” This will help you if you will call in your refills by looking at your pill bottles or if you take them to your doctor’s appointments and to your pharmacy when you have questions. This way messages to and from the pharmacy can be about the same medicine. There is nothing worse than finally realizing that you and the patient have been carrying on two different conversations due to the fact that all they knew was that it was a white tablet.

Do you like big box pharmacies?

Questions about this article or suggestions for future columns can be sent to us at cjdlpdrph@bellsouth.net Written for the Medical Examiner by Augusta pharmacists Chris and Lee Davidson (cjdlpdrph@bellsouth.net )

We’re more of a small bag pharmacy.

WE CAN FIX THAT

ARKS

HARMACY

Hometown. Not big box.

OVERHEAD DOOR COMPANY OF AUGUSTA/AIKEN (706) 736-8478 / (803) 642-7269 WWW.OHDAUGUSTA.COM

437 Georgia Avenue, North Augusta, SC

803-279-7450 parkspharmacy.com

2006 — 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

Ask a Dietitian

Security Federal Bank

SUMMER FOOD SAFETY

Newly established Doctor or Resident looking to purchase a home? GIC

foods that you may be taking on your picnic, and place the raw food containers on the bottom of the cooler so if you have a leak or spill, cooked food won’t be affected. Also pack extra plates so that you don’t place cooked meats on the same plate that the raw meat was on. 3. When grilling those burgers or chicken breast, make sure they are thoroughly cooked. It may not be possible to carry a chart with you but that is another reason cell phones are so amazing. Check out the food temp chart for cooking meats at the USDA web site. 4. Pack a small food thermometer. Several types of food thermometers can be found at your local big box stores for between $7-$17 and worth the very modest investment. 5. Keep cold foods cold and pack the ice chest full. A full chest will hold the cold longer than one half-filled, so fi ll it up with ice! Keep the chest out of sunlight and if possible, inside your vehicle where the air temp is much cooler than in the trunk. 6. Pack a separate cooler just for beverages since you need to stay hydrated and will be in and out of that cooler throughout the event. Not only will packing the foods in a separate cooler keep the temperature from fluctuating so much, but most likely, fewer hands will be in and out of it. 7. Not completely sure if a picnic food or leftovers are ok? When in doubt, throw it out! Ideally food should not be left out of the fridge for more than 2 hours. A cooler may not keep the foods below the ideal

40 degrees but it should keep foods safe for a few hours. If that potato salad or sliced turkey sat out on a picnic table all afternoon, to be safe, throw out leftovers. Hint: don’t take more than your party can consume and it won’t be wasted! Back to the subject of handwashing. By using a special light at the story time event, we could show the children that germs are all around on things like money, light switches, countertops that haven’t been cleaned recently, even on their clothes! Taking time to wash hands often and thoroughly this summer may help prevent the spread of germs. Washing food and then keeping it as cool as possible before you eat or cook them on the grill during your summer outings will help decrease the risk of bacteria growing, and hopefully prevent food borne illnesses. Enjoying the sun and outdoor activities while practicing cleanliness and food safety will ensure a fun summer for all! +

LER

Recently I assisted with a story time for a group of younger children and our lesson included teaching them the proper way we wash our hands. You probably have heard one of the many things to recite that will give you the perfect length of time that will help rid hands of any germs: sing “Happy Birthday” all the way through. Or maybe you learned that singing ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” would do the trick! Not into singing? Just recite the alphabet one time. The point is that it takes a good 20 seconds of washing hands with soap and warm water — vigorously scrubbing between fingers and making sure to get the back of the hands as well as the front — to get rid of most unwanted bacteria or germs. What does washing hands have to do with nutrition? Part of the job of a dietitian is to teach food safety alongside learning what foods are best to eat. What better time to teach food safety to children than when they are young, and what better time to remind ourselves that food safety is important than summertime! Summer for many of us may include a trip to the beach, a picnic in the park, a tailgate mini-meal at a baseball field or just outdoor patio fun. This means refrigeration and hand-washing sinks may not be nearby. Do you have a good ice chest or cooler? Did you remember to pack the hand sanitizer? To get a good visual picture along with more detailed instructions on food safety for summer you can check out www.Realsimple.com article called Food Safety Tips for Summer. But since you would rather be out by the pool, to save you from a Google search, the tips are summarized below. 1. Wash hands before preparing food and before eating. Common sense, right? But if a restroom is not near by, use a hand sanitizer. Also be sure to wash the foods carefully before you pack them. 2. Separate raw and cooked

by Jeanne Lee, MS, RD, LD.

Local Underwriting Local Decisions Local Branches in Evans, North Augusta and Aiken APPLY ONLINE TODAY! www.securityfederalbank.com

803.641.3000 NMLS #456430

VISIT THE MEDICAL EXAMINER BLOG DAILY • www.AugustaRx.com/news •

FREE DIABETES EDUCATION 2nd Mondays

5:30 pm at rr y Rd Fur ys Fe 6 63-345 (706) 8

Last Tuesdays

t 10 :30 am a rchard Pe a c h O 5 9 8 - 56 4 (706) 7

Last Fridays

2:00 pm at n Grovetow 5 69 - 8 5 3 (706) 8

barneysrx.com CLIP & SAVE!

JULY 1, 2016

Peach Orchard • Furys Ferry • Grovetown • Louisville • Serenity • Wrens • barneysrx.com

+ 10

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

MILESTONES… from page 6

A Dietitian, still going strong thanks to the large and active community of registered dietitians (RDs) in the Augusta area. • April 4: A milestone issue unto itself, the front page contained a hilarious and

MEDICAL EXAMINER

KE-HO ME CO PY! TM

DOCTORS HOSPITAL • EISENHOWER ARMY MEDICAL CENTER • EAST CENTRAL REGIONAL • GRACEWOOD • MCGHEALTH • MEDICAL COLLEGE OF GEORGIA • PRIVATE PRACTICE • SELECT SPECIALTY HOSPITAL • TRINITY HOSPITAL • UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL • VA HOSPITALS • WALTON REHABILITATION HOSPITAL

JUNE 20, 2008

NEWS • PEOPLE • EVENTS • TRAINING & EDUCATION • EMPLOYMENT

Terror on Two Wheels

Hot dogs ost of us have probably done that slightly embarrassing dance at the beach when tender feet meet red hot sand. We start to do the old Hot Sand Hop, then quickly drop something to stand on— beach towel, frisbee, ice cream cone — anything to get some instant relief. If you mentally replayed the last time that happened to you and how it felt, now imagine having to walk across a huge shadeless asphalt parking lot or down a long, sun-baked street, — and doing so barefoot. Torture, right? Well, that’s exactly what man’s best friends often do this time of year in hot, sunny Augusta summer weather. Cats are significantly less likely to be led anywhere on a guided tour, but dogs are a different story. A different story, indeed: “I’ve never treated a dog for burned paws caused by walking on hot pavement,” says Columbia County veterinarian Craig Osborne. “They have a means of regulating the

One of the good things about gasoline in the $4 per gallon price range is the fact that many of us are actually practicing a little conservation, maybe for the first time ever. Eliminating needless trips and consolidating errands, accelerating more slowly, driving more cautiously, taking the 184 pounds of junk out of the trunk of the car, are all practices that contribute to fuel conservation and perhaps ultimately a better environment. Another fuel saving tactic being employed in Motorcycle ever-increasing numbers is motorcycles and scooters, Safety Myths some of which get better than 100 miles per gallon of gas. And they can be a lot more fun to drive than a See p. 5 car. That’s the plus side. The down side is danger, and quite a bit of it. According to the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, about 20 percent of all crashes involving cars (and cars only) result in injury or death, but about 80 percent of all motorcycle crashes result in either injury or death. That’s a little sobering. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s latest motorcycle statistics are nothing less than shocking: motorcyclists are 6 times more likely to be injured in a traffic accident than are “cagers,” people driving cars. That’s bad enough, but it gets worse. Much worse. Motorcyclists are 35 times more likely to die in a traffic accident compared to occupants of passenger cars, according to 2006 NHTSA reports. Yikes. Those are serious numbers. For the second consecutive issue, we’re tempted to say “Do not adjust your Medical Examiner.” As bad as such statistics are, they could be even worse in the Augusta area, since on one side of a watery line bisecting the metro area (called the Savannah River) it’s perfectly legal to ride without a helmet. An added factor here (as everywhere) is that many of those taking to the roads on two wheels, with or without helmets, are inexperienced riders, whether they’re operating a thundering Harley or a sputtering little Vespa. An inexperienced rider without a helmet could be a recipe for disaster. Of course, a sane cyclist (of any kind) will wear a helmet even if the law says they aren’t required. And he’ll be extra cautious, knowing that driving a car and riding a motorcycle are two different animals altogether. Decades of

Please see TWO WHEELS page 7

Please see HOT DOGS page 4

blood pressure kits, accessories

•RESTAURANT Chef coats & hats, aprons linens, bar mops gloves, jackets

•CHURCH Usher dresses, shoes, hats •SCREENPRINTING & EMBROIDERY

You think a scooter that gets 100 m.p.g. is saving a lot of gas? It is until you compare it to a bike. “A bike gets the equivalent of 3,000 miles per gallon,” says Andy Jordan of Andy Jordan’s Bicycle Warehouse in Augusta, citing a research study that converted calories expended to automotive octane. • A DOT study of the cost of building municipal parking decks (the kind our hospitals have) pegged the average cost at roughly $20,000 per parking space, says Jordan. “You could park a dozen bikes in the space needed for one car.” Aside from the parking problems bicycle commuters would prevent, traffic congestion would be greatly lessened. One has to wonder how many bike racks or bike lockers could be purchased for the price of a single parking space. • Americans spend one-fourth of their total income on cars, says Jordan, citing yet another article he’s read. “And the #1 seller is the Ford F-150, which gets an EPA-worst 14 m.p.g., and costs about $20,000. A person who takes a bike to work could save tens of thousands of dollars in vehicle costs the very first year.” •

experience in one doesn’t mean much in the other. For anyone who has been driving a car for years, certain “Thirty-one percent of Ameractions become automatic. A safe driver doesn’t take the Please see time to analyze which turning situations warrant the use of a

•MEDICAL Scrubs, stethoscopes, lab coats,

•INDUSTRIAL Work shirts, pants, hats,

THE SKINNY ON BICYCLE RIDING

OUTLET STORE

1216 Broad Street • Downtown Augusta Since 1930 - 706-722-4653 - 76 Years HOURS: Mon - Fri 9 a.m. - 6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

HOME OF THE WORLD FAMOUS $ 19.95 SCRUB SET

SKINNY page 7

$5.00 OFF any purchase of $25 or more NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER OFFER OR $19.95 SET

$15.00 OFF any purchase of $75 or more NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER OFFER OR $19.95 SET

The June 20, 2008 issue focused, in part, on pet health during hot summer months educational article about colon cancer and colonoscopies by world-famous comedian Dave Barry as well as the best article ever written about springtime pollen. Just inside was the Augusta National Inquirer, our take on sensational tabloids. It was and is a collector’s item. • May 16: Our fi rst Swimsuit Issue.

• June 20: Speaking of milestones, this issue launched the most epic Medicine in the First Person ever. Entitled “The Chronicles of Hernia,” it was one for the ages. If you read it, you still can remember it. And it was so long it came in three installments, so the hilarity lasted a while. • August 15: We profi led Nobel and Pulitzer Prizewinning author Pearl S. Buck. Do you know what the “S” stands for? Sydenstricker, as in the Sydenstricker Wing of the MCG/AU Hospital • September 19: We profusely congratulated University Hospital for following other area hospitals’ lead and enacting a complete and total tobacco ban on its campus. So we have to wonder why for the past several years we still see official Designated Smoking Areas around University Hospital. We hereby belatedly retract our congratulations. • November 7: Part I of a

ROLLED SANDWICHES • SOUPS • SALADS

EAT AND YOU WON’T BE

MAKERSON DENTAL 3626 Walton Way Extension (Walton’s Corner) Phone: 706.736.1099 Fax: 706.736.4401

OrderRolyPoly.com

Cosmetic Dentistry • Endodontics • Implants Invisalign Orthodontics • In-Office Bleaching And more Most Major Insurances Accepted Call for an appointment today 706-73-SMILE (737-6453) Drmakerson.com

GREAT HOURLY RATES! PER DIEM AVAILABLE FOR HOSPITAL RNs - ALL UNITS, ALL SHIFTS • DAILY PAY IF DESIRED • ASK ABOUT OUR REWARDS PROGRAM! LET’S MEET! atchealthcareaugusta.com or call 706-651-9159

2-part interview of Columbia County coroner Vernon Collins, “Meet the Coroner.”

MEDICA

L EXAMINER

• December 4: In remembrance of the Dec. 4, 1864 Battle of Waynesboro, the Medical Examiner cover went full retro and reported on the vagaries of Civil War era medicine (left).

AUGUSTA, GA.

ILLUSTRATED PERIODICAL

DECEMBER 4, 1864

SHERMAN NEARS WAYNESBORO

n this day in 1864, 6,000 Union troops, fresh from the successful conquest of Atlanta, were bearing down on Waynesboro., defended by 4,000 Confederate troops under the command of Gen. Joseph Wheeler (see page 2). The battle there, which resulted in approximately 440 combined casualties, was part of Sherman’s

infamous March to the Sea, and was thought at the time to be a mere prelude to an attack on Augusta. Although that was evidently never part of Sherman’s strategy, the anniversary does provide an occasion to reflect on the advancements made in medicine over the past 145 years, including practices from the Civil War that are still in active use today. +

Medical Improvements in the Civil War and Their Affect on Modern Military Medicine

by Terry Reimer

Most of the major medical advances of the Civil War were in organization and technique, rather than medical breakthroughs. In August of 1862, Jonathan Letterman, the Medical Director of the Army of the Potomac, created a highly organized system of ambulances and trained stretcher-bearers designed to evacuate the wounded as quickly as possible. A similar plan was adopted by the Confederate Army. This system was a great improvement on previous methods. He established a trained ambulance corps, consolidated all the ambulances of each Brigade, and created a system of layered levels of care for the wounded on the battlefield. The levels of care were small field dressing stations (usually directly on the battlefield), field hospitals (located in a safer place just beyond the field of battle), and a system of general hospitals in most large cities. Transporting the wounded men from one hospital to another was also coordinated. The Letterman plan remains the basis for present military evacuation systems. A system of triage was established that is still used today. The sheer number of wounded at some of the battles made triage necessary. In general, the wounded soldiers were divided into three groups: the slightly

J. Letterman

wounded, those “beyond hope,” and surgical cases. The surgical cases were dealt with first since they would be the most likely to benefit from immediate care. These included many of the men wounded in the extremities and some with head wounds that were considered treatable. The slightly wounded would be tended to next; since their wounds were not considered life-threatening, they could wait until the first group was treated. Those beyond hope included most wounds to the trunk of the body and serious head wounds. The men would have been given morphine for pain and made as comfortable as possible. After all others were treated, the surgeons would attempt to treat any of these hopeless cases that were still alive. Many did indeed survive. Remember, these were the days before antibiotics or the knowledge of germ theory, so abdominal surgery was rarely attempted since there were almost always fatal complications. Hospitals became places of healing rather than places to go to die, as they were widely considered before the war. The

large-scale hospitals set up by the medical departments had an astounding average death rate of only 9%. Large hospitals became much more accepted by the public after the war. Also, the introduction of women into the nursing profession had a great impact on medical care. Women nurses were first truly accepted during the war, mainly out of necessity. Although there was a great deal of prejudice against them, especially early on, surgeons came to see that their contributions went a long way in aiding the patients. Once they had an established place in medical care they would not give it up. Nursing as a profession was born. Due to the sheer number of wounded patients the surgeons had to care for, surgical techniques and the management of traumatic wounds improved dramatically. Specialization became more commonplace during the war, and great strides were made in orthopedic medicine, plastic surgery, neurosurgery and prosthetics. Specialized hospitals were established, the most famous of which was set up in Atlanta, Georgia, by Dr. James Baxter Bean for treating maxillofacial injuries. General anesthesia was widely used in the war, helping it become acceptable to the public. Embalming the dead also became commonplace. Medical technology and scientific knowledge have changed dramatically since

the Civil War, but the basic principles of military health care remain the same. Location of medical personnel near the action, rapid evacuation of the wounded, and providing adequate

supplies of medicines and equipment continue to be crucial in the goal of saving soldiers’ lives. As has been the case throughout the history of military medicine, the lessons

2010 • January 8: Just in time for

learned and the technical developments made by the military rapidly find their way into civilian applications. To this end, these medical breakthroughs eventually benefit all of society. +

New Year’s resolutions we ran “93 small steps to better health.” Little stuff can have a big impact. • January 22: We launched a temporary series called “The Dictionary,” exploring related groups of words, their meanings and origins. One example: an installment that set the record straight on three frequently confused words: etiology, etymology, and entomology. • February 19: The debut of “The Skinny,” a tall, skinny column of useful facts that ran on page 1 in many subsequent issues. • August 6: “Seconds Count,” a cover story on the eyepopping distances cars cover while we look at our phones — even for one second.

The Civil War and the birth of Augusta’s medical center The real birth of Augusta’s medical complex, says MCG professor Russell Moores, came as a direct result of the Civil War Battle of Chicamauga. Fought over two days in NW Georgia in Sept. 1863 near Chattanooga, the Confederacy’s last major victory came at the cost of 18,500 Confederate casualties. “There were horrendous casualties,” says Dr. Moores. The triage system both sides had implemented took full advantage of cities like Augusta, which boasted a major Confederate hospital complex.

Author Anne Osborne’s research on Augusta hospitals between 1862 and 1865 for the Women’s Auxiliary to the Richmond County Medical Association found a location far from today’s Walton Way complex of UH, VA, MCG, and CMC. The present day complex would have been too far from the railroads. Instead, the area near the Old Medical College on Telfair Street was by 1863 the bustling center of activity for the Third Georgia General Hospital. The complex, says Osborne, comprised the Medical College building

flanked on one side by Richmond Academy, and the commandeered Presbyterian Church on the other. When additional space was needed, the old Holy Trinity Catholic Church and the Greene Street Methodist Church were also pressed into service. Third Georgia also included St. Paul’s Church on Reynolds Street and its neighbor (on the river at 5th Street), the Wayside House, as well as St. Mary’s Catholic Church (also on Telfair), a “contagion ward” at the Augusta Arsenal. Aside from these

2009 • March 20: What not to say. Readers dish on all the ways people have been rude, nosy, insensitive or callous in comments about the medical conditions of others. • April 17: Cindy Crawford’s column title: “If you don’t fry food are you really a Southerner?” • May 15: The inaugural column by a character known to the world as Bad Billy Laveau. The world has never been quite the same. • June 19: Bill Atkinson, former St. Joseph Hospital CEO and one of the shakers and movers behind the founding many of the Augusta area’s healthcare institutions, begins a lengthy series on the behind-the-scenes stories that few of us knew before the series. In many cases, Bill was right there in the midst of the foundings. The series included Doctors Hospital, St. Joseph, Talmadge Hospital, Walton Rehab, University Hospital, the Georgia Radiation Therapy Center, Brandon Wilde, the Children’s Medical Center and the Charlie Norwood VA, among others. The series has been made into a book available on Amazon. • July 17: Reader Bionca Davis sent us her report from a healthcare trip to Machu Picchu. Fascinating stuff. • October: For a recipe for Pumpkin Bisque, Cindy Crawford’s headline was, “Cinderella Had Pumpkin Issues Too.”

FREE TA

AUGUSTA

2008 • March 7: The debut of Ask

FREE TA

AUGUSTA

Bloodworth writing about TV and literature’s Dr. Kildare and the romanticizing of American medicine • August 3: The debut of Medicine in the First Person, our occasional series inviting readers to share their medical stories. Ten years later, we’re still begging for stories. • September 21: an article entitled “What is pus?” Good times. • October 5: in observance of Breast Cancer Awareness month, we presented “The 10 Commandments for Happy Breasts.” Like we said, good times.

KE-HO ME CO PY! TM

AUGUSTA’S MOST SALUBRIOUS NEWSPAPER • FOUNDED IN 2006

AUGUST 20, 2010

THE SKINNY

THETenYEAR MAN OTwoFThousand

o you know who this man is? If you live anywhere within several hundred miles of Augusta and you have no idea, well, that’s just a truly sad and pitiful state of affairs. Why? Not because this man ever lived here or to our knowledge even visited Augusta. But we can safely say that, without this man, chances are you and I wouldn’t be living in Augusta either. Who was he? Here’s a clue or two. He was born and died in Angola, New York (1876 - 1950). At age 19 he was awarded a scholarship to Cornell University and graduated in 1901 with a degree in mechanical engineering. Before the end of 1902, he had already invented — and installed within the premises of a customer — the invention that changed the world. Not to mention your life and mine. Today. Yesterday. Last week and last month, too. This very second, in fact. It’s not the heat It really isn’t. It’s the humidity. And that was one of the Àrst strokes of genius for which our hero was responsible. And by the way, our hero is one Willis Haviland Carrier. If by chance his name doesn’t sound familiar, it might if you remember that his Àrst and middle names are silent. Yes, Mr. Carrier is the man who invented air conditioning! His brand name continues to appear on air conditioners to this day. Why there isn’t a national holiday in his honor — or at least across the Southern states as a bare minimum — is completely beyond us. It’s a national outrage and a complete travesty that should be rectiÀed immediately. But back to the subheading.

ON THE CARRIER FAMILY IN THE NEW WORLD The Carriers made their start in the New World, according to one biography, when Thomas Carrier, age 41, emigrated from Wales in 1663, settling in what would become Andover, Mass. He there met Martha Allen and they soon became man and wife, but the story didn’t end well at all. Margaret Ingels’ 1952 biography of Willis Carrier relates this: “After standing up against the Andover town fathers in a boundary dispute, [Martha] was accused of being a witch. Two of her sons, aged 13 and 10, were hung by their heels until they, too, testified against her. Cotton Mather denounced her as a ‘rampant hag’ whom the Devil had promised ‘should be the queen of Hell.’ She was arrested, convicted and, on August 19, 1692, hanged on Salem’s Gallows Hill. [Editor’s note: if you’re reading this on Thursday, that was exactly 318 years ago today.] Later it was recorded that of all the New Englanders charged with witchcraft, ‘Martha Carrier was the only one, male or female, who did not at some time or other make an admission or confession.’” About a hundred years later — in 1799 — the Carriers migrated to Western New York. Willis was born in 1876, and married three times and was widowed twice. All four are buried in the Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, NY. For his contributions to science and industry, says Wikipedia, “Willis Carrier was awarded an honorary doctor of letters from Alfred (N.Y.) University in 1942, was awarded the Frank P. Brown Medal in 1942, was inducted posthumously in the National Inventors Hall of Fame (1985) and the Buffalo Science Museum Hall of Fame (2008)” and was named the Augusta Medical Examiner’s Man of the Year (2010). +

It’s one of the most important documents in terms of the physical health of billions of people.

The King of Cool The ground Áoor of Carrier’s world-changing invention, air conditioning, was the realization that controlling humidity was the Àrst principle of what we’ll call indoor comfort — although his Àrst customers were all in industrial settings. He was hired to attack humid air in printeries and pasta factories, but along the way new applications evolved. A bank had a patented Carrier “Apparatus” installed in 1906. Later that year, he came to the Palmetto State to help control heat generated by 5,000 whirling spindles in a cotton mill.

But it was in 1911 that Willis Carrier presented a paper at the 1911 annual meeting of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Entitled “Rational Psychometric Formulae,” the paper became known as the Magna Carta of Psychometrics. The Magna Carta, let us remember, is widely considered to be one of the most important legal documents in the history of democracy. Carrier’s Magna Carta likewise is perhaps the most important document in the history of conditioned air. Strike that.

Why it matters Among the ills prevented by Carrier’s epic invention are various afÁictions with lifethreatening implications: • heatstroke, in which the body temperature rises rapidly to 106° or higher, resulting in dizziness, strong rapid pulse, dry skin and even death. • heat exhaustion, a condition marked by profuse sweating, rapid respirations and a rapid, weak pulse., which often leads immediately to heatstroke. • heat cramps are painful muscle spasms that occur from chemical changes and earlystage dehydration during heavy exercise and perspiration. • heat rash: who even remembers heat rash, thanks to Willis Carrrier? It is (or was) skin irritation as the result of excessive sweating and often afÁicted babies, making their lives — and everyone withn earshot — miserable. Aside from babies, all of these miserable conditions particularly victimized the elderly and people sick or overweight. According to the CDC, in temperatures in the high 90s — exactly what we’ve been having for weeks — even sitting in front of a fan will not prevent heat-related illness. Yes, each and every one of us owes a tremndous debt of gratitude to Willis Haviland Carrier, our Àrst Medical Examiner Man of the Year. + Editor’s note: the other Man of the Year candidates competing against Willis Carrier each earns an Honorable Mention: Jonas Salk, Albert Einstein, Mother Teresa and Linus Pauling.

•MEDICAL Scrubs, stethoscopes, lab coats, blood pressure kits, accessories

•RESTAURANT Chef coats & hats, aprons linens, bar mops

•INDUSTRIAL Work shirts, pants, hats, gloves, jackets

•CHURCH Usher dresses, shoes, hats •SCREENPRINTING & EMBROIDERY

OUTLET STORE

1216 Broad Street • Downtown Augusta Since 1930 - 706-722-4653 - 80 Years

HOME OF THE WORLD FAMOUS 19.95 SCRUB SET

HOURS: Mon - Fri 9 a.m. - 6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

$5.00 OFF any purchase of $25 or more NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER OFFER OR $19.95 SET

$15.00 OFF any purchase of $75 or more NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER OFFER OR $19.95 SET

• August 20: Our fi rst-ever Man of the Year, although he really should be the Man of the Century. Who? Willis Carrier, the man who invented air conditioning (above). Sir, thank you, thank you, thank you times infinity. • October 15: “Flossing: A Metaphor for Life Itself.” Yes, really. • October 15: Also in that issue, an interview with a centenarian in honor of the Medical Examiner’s 100th issue. +

NEXT ISSUE: A few steps down memory lane from 2011 to the present. Don’t miss it! +

JULY 1, 2016

11 +

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

The blog spot From the Bookshelf — posted by Vanita Braver, MD on Feb. 6, 2016 (edited)

5 PARENTING TIPS FROM A CHILD PSYCHIATRIST Without a doubt, parenting is simultaneously the most rewarding and difficult job we have as adults. As a child psychiatrist and mom, I am often asked if I find it easier to parent given my profession. I respond by saying, “I was the perfect parent until I had children!” I am also universally asked about how to raise happy children. I always pause before I attempt to answer this question. Happiness is fleeting and one of the best things we can do as parents is to allow our children to experience and cope with negative emotions such as sadness, anger, disappointment, and frustration. The real question, I believe, is how to raise successful children with a good sense of self-worth. Here are my top five tips for raising a successful child. 1. Ensure that your child feels loved and valued. Give hugs generously. Be patient. Be attentive. Have a warm attitude. Appreciate the uniqueness of your child. Offer support and structure to provide security. A child that feels loved and valued is a child that feels understood, acknowledged, and respected. This creates a connected child who will be able to foster relationships which provide the foundation for a child’s healthy emotional well-being. 2. Lead by example. Studies have shown that parents are the most significant influence on the emotional and moral development of their children, and our children listen and observe all that we do. We have all had the experience of having a private phone conversation, only to find our child repeat it verbatim, often at the most inopportune time. Be the best person you can be as a parent. Model integrity. Show empathy. Your child’s capacity for empathy and ability to effectively communicate feelings will be invaluable for future success. 3. Focus on building resilience in your child by allowing for success and failure. When your child does something well, praise something within the child’s control. Compliment your child’s effort and perseverance, as opposed to the achievement itself. Mastery of new skills builds more self-esteem than praise. Allow your child to fail, and even to feel disappointment. Mistakes provide your child with the opportunity to learn creative solutions, have the courage to face problems, and the confidence necessary to take risks. Ultimately, experience with failure leads to skills that are essential for future success. 4. Focus on your child’s physical health. Healthy eating habits and physical activity are essential components of a healthy, successful lifestyle. As a parent, be a role model of healthy eating and physical activity. Good nutrition that includes fresh fruits and vegetables is a must. Limit sugar and processed foods as well as fast food. Eat together as a family whenever possible and encourage exercise by participating in physical activities as a family. The future success of your child includes healthy physical development. 5. Encourage creative play. Kids of all ages love to play, and play is vital for healthy brain development. Young children learn best through meaningful play experiences. These experiences promote creativity, problem solving, and communication. Play also helps strengthen relationships, and motor development can be improved by playing. Play time helps emotional development, providing an outlet for expressing and coping with feelings. For older kids and teens, play is important for promoting independence, developing competence, and relieving stress. Playing is also fun, and fun is essential for true success. Happy and successful parenting! +

“I was the perfect parent until I had children.”

Vanita Braver is a child and adolescent psychiatrist and author

This installment of From the Bookshelf doesn’t set a record for the oldest book we’ve discussed in this space (we recently featured Louisa May Alcott’s 1863 book Civil War Hospital Sketches, after all), but it’s defi nitely not a new release: its original publication dates all the way back to 1940s. It is a father’s moving tribute to the all-too-brief life of his son, Johnny, who succumbed to a brain tumor in 1947 at the tender age of 17. What is amazing about this sad tale is that it ultimately doesn’t read as a sad tale. To be sure, it has plenty of heart-wrenching moments. As anyone who has experienced serious illness can attest, the experience is a roller coaster ride in many ways. There is the inevitable roller coaster of emotions, and they are experienced (and visited and often repeatedly revisited) differently by each person involved. Many times medical treatment itself offers another wild ride: will this work? Yes, it was successful! No, it wasn’t after all. The condition has

returned or reappeared. As you already know, this book doesn’t have a happy ending. But it has remained popular for many decades because its message rings true for so many people. Readers facing a lifethreatening illness will be inspired by the tremendous strength and courage and optimism of Johnny Gunther as he faced a diagnosis that from Day One he knew to be terminal. That didn’t stop him, however, from working diligently to keep up with his high school studies. It didn’t

stop him from continuing to prepare for the start of fall classes at Harvard, where he had been accepted prior to the discovery of his tumor. His determination and fight in the face of all the indignities and setbacks a serious illness can throw at a person is food for thought for those days when we moan about burnt toast or hitting a red light when we’re late. The message of Johnny’s parents is also powerful and important. Although divorced, they were both intimately involved in his care during the entire saga of his treatment. Although John Gunther wrote the book, his ex-wife, Frances, adds some of its most memorable content. This may not be a book for everyone, but those who read it often say it is one of the most unforgettable and powerful books they have ever read. + Death Be Not Proud by John Gunther; 224 pages, originally published in 1949 by Harper & Row; edition shown above published in April 2007 by Harper Perennial Modern Classics

Research News Another smoking gun It seemed suspicious from the start: inhaling the toxic chemical nicotine without including tobacco in the equation — familiarly known as vaping — was supposed to be harmless, a safe alternative to smoking cigarettes. Granted, it did remove the countless chemicals contained in tobacco from the mix, but the poisonous and addictive active ingredient in cigarettes remained. All along, however, clinical evidence has been mounting against vaping. Among the latest is the June 20 release of a study by University of North Carolina researchers. Tobacco has long been known to alter dozens of genes important for immune defense in epithelial cells of the respiratory tract, alterations that increase the risk of bacterial infections, viruses and inflammation. The UNC study found that e-cigarettes alter hundreds of genes, including the same ones affected by cigarettes. Researchers caution the

findings don’t mean that ecigarettes affect people in the same ways regular cigarettes do. The product is still too new (only since 2006) to gauge their long-term effects. The evidence so far clearly suggests, however, “that longterm e-cigarette use will not be harmless.” Good news Deaths caused by cancer are dropping. The American Cancer Society reported earlier this year that 1.7 million cancer deaths were averted between 1991 and 2012. Steady reductions in smoking combined with advances in prevention, treatment, and early detection get the credit. Women live longer than men This is not breaking news. Even casual observers of humanity suspect this, and people who work in nursing homes know it as fact: their population can sometimes be almost exclusively female. Over 95 percent of people who live to at least 110 are women.

University of Alabama at Birmingham researcher Steven Austad, Ph.D. find this to be “a tantalizing riddle.” For starters, it’s puzzling that no other species has one gender with a significant survival advantage over the other. As measured in the Human Mortality Database, women in every country in the database, 38 nations in all, have a longevity advantage over men. It’s also a lifelong advantage. In other words, females of every age group, from infancy to old age, have a better expectation of survival than males at the same age. Women are also resistant to 13 of the 15 major causes of death, being at higher risk than men only for Alzheimer’s disease; for stroke, both genders are at equal risk. To add one final wrinkle to the mystery, women on average are “in poorer health than men through adult life.” Solving the riddle of why women live longer could lead to advancements that may translate to longer life expectancy for men. +

+ 12

THE EXAMiNERS +

How was your vacation?

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

The flight was miserable.

by Dan Pearson

Well apparently it’s I was sitting next to a That doesn’t sound not allowed when screaming baby, it’s your baby. so bad. What happened? so I switched seats.

The Mystery Word for this issue: BLEATT

EXAMINER CROSSWORD

PUZZLE

All Mystery Word finders will be eligible to win by random drawing. We’ll announce the winner in our next issue!

Click on “READER CONTESTS”

QUOTATION PUZZLE

L W M D

’ W P V I I H O T W E B P E H E M D W G U P O T E O S N W Y S N E O L R T O N U I

E N E E

— Jean Rostand

DIRECTIONS: Recreate a timeless nugget of wisdom by using the letters in each vertical column to fill the boxes above them. Once any letter is used, cross it out in the lower half of the puzzle. Letters may be used only once. Black squares indicate spaces between words, and words may extend onto a second line. Solution on page 14.

X A M I N E R

1 8

3 1

6 3

U D O K U

DIRECTIONS: Every line, vertical and horizontal, and all nine 9-square boxes must each contain the numbers 1 though 9. Solution on page 14.

Use the letters provided at bottom to create words to solve the puzzle above. All the listed letters following #1 are the first letters of the various words; the letters following #2 are the second letters of each word, and so on. Try solving words with letter clues or numbers with minimal choices listed. A sample is shown. Solution on page 14.

1 2

1 2 3 4

B 1 2 3 4 5 6 W 1 2 3 4

1 2

1 2 3 4

1 2 3 1 2 3

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 2 3 4

1 2 3

1 2 3 4

1 2 3

1.WAAYYLIBISOFTT 2.VOOOOSTEWERHAL 3.AALLUUMOTTE 4.TEMKNRY 5.OE 6.RN 7.E

SAMPLE:

1. ILB 2. SLO 3. VI 4. NE 5. D =

L 1

O 2

V 3

E 4

I 1

S 2

B 1

L 2

I 3

N 4

D 5

Simply unscramble the letters, then begin exploring our ads. When you find the correctly spelled word hidden in one of our ads — enter at AugustaRx.com

VISIT WWW.AUGUSTARX.COM 1

ACROSS 1. Former Augustan Tyrus 5. Republic in W. Africa 9. Floating platforms 14. Foretell (Scottish) 15. Screen symbol or graphic 16. Give or apportion 17. Spawning area of salmon 18. True ____ 19. Secreting organ 20. General (or local) branch of medicine 23. ___ A Wonderful Life 24. Crow call 25. Narrow-brimmed hat 29. Daniel, once MCG’s head 31. Brain activity abbrev. by Daniel R. Pearson © 2016 All rights reserved. Built in part with software from www.crauswords.com 34. Capital of Vietnam 35. Cover with wax DOWN 32. National symbol 36. Jewish calendar month 1. Area abbrev. 33. Avarice 37. Super-high-speed rotating 2. Unlock 35. _____ block lab machine 3. Past tense of bid 36. From a distance 40. Just; only; no more than 4. Flower planting areas 38. Grady County (GA) seat 41. Word of regret or sorrow 5. Huge; powerful 39. Idealized concept of a 42. Twinned crystal 6. Green _____ loved one 43. Ad in the public interest 7. Clark’s girlfriend 44. Hound 44. Augusta section (with 8. Former Peruvian currency 45. Roof of the mouth “The”) 9. Sleeve style 46. Vast body of water 45. ______ ways 10. Permit 47. It comes before gone. 46. Scull power 11. A subject of vexillology Twice, usually. 47. ____ reflex 12. Classy; exclusive 48. _______ nurse 48. Louis Pasteur, for one 13. VD 49. Hip bones 56. Helmet-shaped part 21. Shin bone 50. Uncover (botany) 22. Yellow or brown earth 51. Apple tablet 57. Capital of Western Samoa pigment 52. Type of pool 58. Fencing sword 25. Thud 53. Apple music player 59. Assumed name 26. Breath sound 54. Bristle (Zoology) 60. Rave partner 27. Venous starter 55. Abound 61. Brief letter 28. Traditional knowledge 56. Go about from place to 62. College list 29. Kidney-related place 63. Advantage 30. It’s in the Heart annually 64. Yellow cheese coated with 31. Something educed Solution p. 14 red wax

WORDS NUMBER

THE MYSTERY WORD

JULY 1, 2016

13 +

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

THE BEST MEDICINE ha... ha...

wo windmills are standing around in a cornfield — another long, boring day. Just to pass the time one asks the other, “So what kind of music do you like?” The other says, “I’m a big metal fan.” Moe: Where do you see yourself in 4 years? Joe: Do I look like somebody with 2020 vision? A man jumps into a taxi and yells at the driver, “To the airport! Now! I’m late for my fl ight!” The driver asks, “What time is your flight?” “Not when is. When was,” says the man. “I was supposed to board 30 minutes ago!” Upon hearing this, the driver lets off the gas pedal and tells the man, “There’s no rush, my friend. There’s no way your flight waited for you.” The man immediately yells back, “You don’t understand, pal! I’m the pilot!” Moe: Who is the Hamburglar’s accomplice? Joe: I’m guessing maybe Hamburglar Helper? This blonde wants to learn how to fly, so she

goes to a flight school to sign up. “All of our planes are up right now,” he says. “The only thing we have available is that helicopter, but it’s a one-seater. For a plane you can come back later, though.” “No, I want to start now,” says the blonde, so they go over to the helicopter. The instructor teaches her about all the buttons and knobs, all the levers and pedals, and finlly she’s ready to try a simple test fl ight. The instructor tells the woman to gradually fly straight up to 2,500 feet then back down to the ground. “I’ll be checking on you every 500 feet to see how you’re doing,” he says. She lifts off and before long she’s 500 feet up. “How’s it going?” the instructor radios in. “Great!” she says. 1,000 feet came quickly afterwards. “Status?” asks the instructor. “Everything is A-ok!” says the woman. At 1,500 feet comes another check and another A-ok, but then with no warning at 2,000 feet the helicopter drops like a rock and crashes into the ground. Miraculously, the woman survives. “What happened?” asks the frantic instructor. “Well, at 500 feet it was going great. Same at a thousand. But at 1,500 feet I started getting cold. Once I got to 2,000 feet I was freezing, so I turned the big fan off.” Moe: Can you spell the word candy using only two letters? Joe: No. And neither can you. Moe: Yes I can. Joe: I’ll bet you a Mars bar you can’t. Moe: C and Y. +

Why subscribe to the Medical Examiner? Because no one should have to make a trip to the doctor or the hospital just to read Augusta’s Most Salubrious Newspaper.

+ +

SUBSCRIBE TO THE MEDICAL EXAMINER By popular demand we’re making at-cost subscriptions available for the convenience of our readers. If you live beyond the Aiken-Augusta area or miss issues between doctor’s appointments — don’t you hate it when that happens? — we’ll command your mail carrier to bring every issue to your house! NAME ADDRESS CITY

STATE

ZIP

Choose ____ six months for $20; or ____ one year for $36. Mail this completed form with payment to Augusta Medical Examiner, PO Box 397, Augusta GA 30903-0397

ON THE ROAD TO BETTER HEALTH A PATIENT’S PERSPECTIVE Editor’s note: Augusta writer Marcia Ribble wrote a long-time column in this paper entitled The Patient’s Perspective reincarnated in this new format. Feel free to contact her at marciaribble@hotmail.com One activity that can help seniors to maintain good mental health is to decide to leave for our families a memoir detailing things we’ve experienced since we were children. When we write down our observations of our lives, it validates those experiences, and it helps our families to better understand the people we have become. Things which to us were commonplace can be heroic in the eyes of our children and grandchildren. We all know the classic story of walking miles to school and home, but what did those walks mean to us? Well, on my childhood walks I was a real lover of chestnuts, the big, spiny-covered horse chestnuts in their little fuzzy chambers. I could make my way to school without being too delayed by chestnuts (although there were plenty of other things that could delay me), but on the way home in the fall, those chestnuts simply bedazzled me. I loved to find unopened shells and stomp on them to access those beautiful auburn chestnuts. I had found them before those big, fat, Michigan, gray squirrels had bitten into them, or buried them for a tasty winter snack. They were mine, all mine, and I felt so wealthy with them. So I naturally had to fill fi rst my pockets, then my lunchbox, with as many of them as I could find and steal from the squirrels. Time must have passed on one particular day, but I was unaware of it, being so entranced with my gathering duties. I was several hours late arriving home, so my mother, without a car and with babies to look after, called the police to find me. Soon enough a police car pulled up near the chestnut tree, and one of the policemen asked me, “Little girl, are you Marcia Gase?” I admitted that I was the child they had been looking for. “Get into the car,” they ordered. I complied, scurrying to secure my chestnuts. “Do you know your mother is worried about you?” I shrugged me shoulders. My mother was always worried about me, so no new news there. I found her worrying to be an interference in my amazing adventures. I wanted to play in the woods. She worried about hobos. Sad to say, in all of my explorations of the woods, over a number of years, I found lots of neat flowers and critters, but I did not ever find even one hobo. To me, hobos were akin to meeting Huckleberry Finn, so I was chagrinned when I never met one. I was naïve and it was probably youthful indiscretion; however, it did foretell the woman I was in the process of becoming. The officers scolded me and told me that if they had to come and find me again, they would spank me. There was never a need for that, but I lived a life in which I sought out adventure and achievement, even when it was a little frightening to do that. That attitude helps to explain the kind of persistence that made it possible for me to continue toward my goal of a bachelor’s degree, even though it took me 21 years from start to finish. That’s a story for another day. +

www.AugustaRx.com/news

+ 14

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

THE MYSTERY SOLVED

M E D I C I N E

...very cleverly hidden in the p. 7 ad for DANIEL VILLAGE BARBER SHOP

The Celebrated MYSTERY WORD CONTEST ...wherein we hide (with fiendish cleverness) a simple word. All you have to do is unscramble the word (found on page 12), then find it concealed within one of our ads. Click in to the contest link at www.AugustaRx.com and enter. If we pick you in our random drawing of correct entries, you’ll score our goodie package! SEVEN SIMPLE RULES: 1. Unscramble and find the designated word hidden within one of the ads in this issue. 2. Visit the Reader Contests page at www.AugustaRx.com. 3. Tell us what you found and where you found it. 4. If you’re right and you’re the one we pick at random, you win. (Winners within the past six months are ineligible.) 5. Prizes awarded to winners may vary from issue to issue. 6. A photo ID may be required to claim some prizes. 7. Other entrants may win a lesser prize at the sole discretion of the publisher.

USE THE FORM BELOW AND MAIL IT IN, OR GO TO WWW.AUGUSTARX.COM AND PLACE & PAY CONVENIENTLY AND SAFELY ONLINE. THANKS!

Augusta Medical Examiner Classifieds

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING FORM Name Address Work number (if applicable) ( ) Home phone ( ) Category of ad (leave blank if unsure):

In case we need to contact you. These numbers will not appear in the ad.

AD COPY (one word per line; phone numbers MUST include the area code): .25

.50

.75

1.00

1.25

1.50

1.75

2.00

2.25

2.50

2.75

3.00

3.25

3.50

3.75

4.00

4.25

4.50

4.75

5.00

5.25

5.50

5.75

6.00

6.25

6.50

6.75

7.00

7.25

7.50

7.75

8.00

8.25

8.50

8.75

9.00

(Copy this form or continue on additional sheet if more space needed.)

Send this form with payment to:

AUGUSTA MEDICAL EXAMINER, PO BOX 397, AUGUSTA, GA 30903-0397

F I R S T

“Take a shower,” she said, “and get ready, then ease on into this sack.” But what she was really talking about was the gown with the split down the back. “We’ll need to do some tests,” she said. Will they stretch me out on a rack, With nothing twixt me and the cold, cruel world but a gown that’s split down the back? In the front I’m barely decent. In the sides there’s also a lack. But by far the greatest shortcoming is that doggoned split down the back! The guy had some sense of humor who designed this little strip tease, But I fail to see anything funny when it’s my fanny feeling a breeze! I hear them coming to get me, the wheels going clickety-clack, I’ll ride through the halls on a table, in a gown with a split down the back. When I get to heaven I won’t really care, if my robe is white, red or black, But I’m down on my knees and prayin’ for one with no split down the back! + Author unknown Submitted by Roy K. Wilson Evans, Georgia

The above article first appeared in the August 1, 2008 issue of the Medical Examiner.

EXAMINER CLASSIFIEDS HOMES, APARTMENTS, ROOMMATES, LAND, ETC. FOR SALE 3 bedroom/2 bath, single garage Townhouse in Martinez. Master/ bath down, 2 upstairs bedrooms share bath, large loft for office, playroom, den; wood-burning fireplace, covered back porch. Freshly painted with new flooring, lighting and ceiling fans. Easy access to Riverwatch Parkway, Washington Rd, I-20,Augusta. 1987 sq.ft. $147,900. 706-836-7001. ROOM FOR RENT 1 room, private bathroom, 2bdrm MH on private lot. Clean quiet neighborhood. Non-smoker. $600 monthly. Must be stable, verifiable references and income. Cable and Internet included. Warrenville, 5 min from Aiken, 20 min to Augusta. (803) 270-2658 POND VIEW! Evans all-brick 2-story with solar panels. Avg. electric bill $170 in Northwood, 3,400 sqft. Call 1-800401-0257, ext. 0043 24/7 for price and details. AUGUSTAGAHOMESEARCH.COM Foreclosures • MLS • Builders • Rentals (706) 564-5885

MISCELLANEOUS SUNSET MEMORIAL GARDENS Opening and closing at Sunset Mem. Gardens in Graniteville. Sale: $760 (Value: $1520+) Call 706-736-0596 ANTIQUE maple dinette set with buffet corner cabinet table with pull-out leaves. Four chairs with two captain’s chairs. Excellent condition. $300. Double bed early 1930s with mattress spring coverlet shams $150. Call (706) 860-2170

THE PUZZLE SOLVED

WANT TO BE HEALTHY? (Energy, weight loss, mental clarity) Go to gethealthyat.le-vel.com See video and Facebook. Sign free as customer. BEING PAID WHAT YOU ARE WORTH? Then make more money! Watch movie all out interview: ExtraMoneyInterview.net CEMETERY SPACES (2) Sunset Memorial Gardens, Graniteville SC adjacent to lighted military flagstaff, includes granite bench with urn space, installation and inscription. All $4700 ($8600 value). Spaces only: $2700. Call (803) 2953033 FISHING CLUB wants more grey-haired members. Meet 2nd Thurs of month at Harbor Inn Restaurant, 12 noon. “Adventure Before Dementia” Info: (706) 736-8753 or (706) 829-1729 PET CARE in Martinez-Evans area. Dogs to 40 lbs, $9.00. Cats (1-3), $9.00 For interview/information, phone 706-8291729

SERVICES

SEE PAGE 12

QUOTATION QUOTATION PUZZLE SOLUTION: “We spend our time envying people whom we wouldn’t wish to be.” — Jean Rostand

The Sudoku Solution

HOUSE CLEANING Your house, apartment, rental move-outs. Thorough, dependable. Weekly, or whatever schedule you prefer. References. 706-267-9947 BIBLE BY PHONE - Free daily Bible readings; for Spiritual Encouragement and Growth. Call 706-855-WORD (9673) F. E. GILLIARD, MD FAMILY MEDICINE Acute & Chronic Illnesses Occupational Medicine PROMPT APPOINTMENTS 706-760-7607

Total ad cost by number of words as shown above: $ Multiply by number of times ad to run: x Total submitted: $

The Augusta Medical Examiner publishes on the 1st and 3rd Friday of every month. Your ad should reach us no later than 7 days prior to our publication date.

P E R S O N

was sitting here minding my business, just letting my brain go slack, When in comes a nurse with a smile on her face and a gown that was split down the back,

The new scrambled Mystery Word is found on page 12

SENDING US A CLASSIFIED?

T H E

The Gown with the Split

The Mystery Word in our last issue was: SINUS

Congratulations to JOHN TSOPANARIAS, who scores the current contents of the Medical Examiner goody bag. Sweet! Want to find your name here next issue? The new Mystery Word is on page 12. Start looking!

I N

Our next issue date: July 15

WORDS BY NUMBER “ It is better to let someone walk away from you than all over you.”

— Author unknown

JULY 1, 2016

Calling all teen drivers! Congratulations! Another year of school is over — and sometimes that means wheels! Mom and dad have been driving you around for years. It’s about time they get a break from taxi duty. Some kids have gotten the ultimate graduation or Sweet 16 present: a new car. Is there a more awesome gift? It makes going off to work, to college this fall, or just to have fun with friends a spontaneous pleasure. Summer stretches ahead like a wide open highway. Freedom! There’s always a down side Funny how that works, isn’t it? And you know what stinks when it comes to driving? Traffic. Other people. People who get in the way — in your way, specifically. Especially old

15 +

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

people. Aren’t old people behind the wheel — all slow-pokey and over-cautious — aren’t they really annoying sometimes? As a teen driver, do you ever think maybe they should do something about old people who drive? I mean, it’s for the safety of everyone. It’s nothing personal against old people. There oughta be a law. Really. As proof, consider this statement we ran across on a motoring safety website: “The fact is that drivers aged 65 and older have higher crash-death rates per mile driven than all other age groups except teen drivers.” See the point? You were right. Clearly, those older drivers — no disrespect intended, mind you — they have the highest accident rate there is. It’s higher than every other age group

— everybody except... wait, wait ... huh? What did that say again? Everybody except teen drivers? Hold up. Are they saying that... there’s no way... teenagers are worse drivers than old people? They are better drivers than you are? Are they serious? If that’s true, that is brutal.

reaction time, a little flexibility, and maybe their hearing and vision aren’t quite what they used to be. But for all their faults, older adults are, on average, better drivers than teenagers. As you’ve noticed, they’re usually cautious and aware of their limitations: they may not drive at night or in bad weather. By contrast, teenagers are blessed with an amazing sense of invulnerability. No matter what the statistics may

The awful truth Kids, it may be a bitter pill to swallow, but yes, it is true. Here’s something to chew on to get you started, and you’d better be sitting down when you read this: 16-year-old drivers have a crash rate exactly double that of 85-year-olds. Ouch. Yes, those highway menaces you call geezers are actually better drivers than you are. They may have lost a little

say, it’s not going to happen to anyone you know — and definitely not to you. Oh, if only that was true. Let’s pretend If we want to start relying on statistics, we’re probably all pretty safe. After all, if 10,000 teenagers die in car crashes every year and there are a million teenagers, there’s not a lot to worry about, right? So let’s agree: the odds are in Please see TEENS page 16

Boardwalk to Bark Place Kennnel & Daycare welcoming dogs 30 lbs and under 5873 Huntington Drive Grovetown, Georgia (706) 840-3141 www.boardwalktobarkplace.com

PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY ALLERGY

Tesneem K. Chaudhary, MD Allergy & Asthma Center 3685 Wheeler Road, Suite 101 Augusta 30909 706-868-8555

CHIROPRACTIC Evans Chiropractic Health Center Dr. William M. Rice 108 SRP Drive, Suite A 706-860-4001 www.evanschiro.net

COUNSELING Resolution Counseling Professionals 3633 Wheeler Rd, Suite 365 Augusta 30909 706-432-6866 www.visitrcp.com

DENTISTRY

DERMATOLOGY

Georgia Dermatology & Skin Cancer Center 2283 Wrightsboro Rd. (at Johns Road) Augusta 30904 706-733-3373 www.GaDerm.com

DEVELOPMENTAL PEDIATRICS Karen L. Carter, MD 1303 D’Antignac St, Suite 2100 Augusta 30901 706-396-0600 www.augustadevelopmentalspecialists.com

DRUG REHAB Steppingstones to Recovery 2610 Commons Blvd. Augusta 30909 706-733-1935

FAMILY MEDICINE

F. E. Gilliard MD, Family Medicine 4244 Washington Road Evans, GA 30809 706-760-7607 Industrial Medicine • Prompt appts. Urgent MD Augusta: 706-922-6300 Grovetown: 706-434-3500 Thomson: 706-595-7825 Primary Care Rates

OPHTHALMOLOGY Roger M. Smith, M.D. 820 St. Sebastian Way Suite 5-A Augusta 30901 706-724-3339

PHARMACY

YOUR LISTING HERE

SENIOR LIVING

Augusta Gardens Senior Living Community 3725 Wheeler Road Augusta 30909 SENIOR LIVING COMMUNITY 706-868-6500 www.augustagardenscommunity.com

SLEEP MEDICINE Sleep Institute of Augusta Bashir Chaudhary, MD 3685 Wheeler Rd, Suite 101 Augusta 30909 706-868-8555

TRANSPORTATION Caring Man in a Van Wheelchair-Stretcher Transports • Serving Augusta Metro 855-342-1566 www.CaringManinaVan.com

VEIN CARE

Medical Center West Pharmacy 465 North Belair Road Evans 30809 Vein Specialists of Augusta Dr. Judson S. Hickey Your Practice 706-854-2424 Periodontist And up to four additional lines of your www.medicalcenterwestpharmacy.com G. Lionel Zumbro, Jr., MD, FACS, RVT, RPVI 501 Blackburn Dr, Martinez 30907 Floss ‘em 2315-B Central Ave choosing and, if desired, your logo. or lose ‘em! Keep your contact information in 706-854-8340 Augusta 30904 Parks Pharmacy www.VeinsAugusta.com 706-739-0071 this convenient place seen by tens of 437 Georgia Ave. thousands of patients every month. N. Augusta 29841 Jason H. Lee, DMD Literally! Call (706) 860-5455 for all 803-279-7450 116 Davis Road the details www.parkspharmacy.com Augusta 30907 Medical Weight & Wellness 706-860-4048 Specialists of Augusta THE AUGUSTA Maycie Elchoufi, MD MEDICAL EXAMINER Steven L. Wilson, DMD 108 SRP Drive, Suite B Psych Consultants Family Dentistry Evans 30809 • 706-829-9906 AUGUSTA’S 2820 Hillcreek Dr 4059 Columbia Road MOST SALUBRIOUS YourWeightLossDoctor.com Augusta 30909 Martinez 30907 NEWSPAPER (706) 410-1202 706-863-9445 www.psych-consultants.com

WEIGHT LOSS

I+

M.E.

PSYCHIATRY

+ 16

JULY 1, 2016

AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER

TEENS… from page 15 your favor. Surely nothing bad will happen to you connected to driving. But statistically speaking, 15- to 17-year-old drivers in fatal crashes kill someone in the other car one-fourth of the time; a bicyclist, pedestrian or other non-motorist 7.5 percent of the time; and one of their own passengers, no doubt a best friend, a parent, or maybe a brother or sister, in about onethird of fatal crashes. Even if the teen driver in one of those crashes doesn’t suffer a scratch, there’s still a terrible burden to bear, to say nothing of the possibility of prosecution and imprisonment. What’s the problem? Why can everybody, even 85-year-olds, drive better than the average teenager? Well, look at it this way: have you ever tried anything that you were instantly good at? Maybe. But odds are you fell a few times learning to ride a bike or water ski. It isn’t likely you picked up a watercolor brush or guitar for the first time and brought forth a masterpiece. Practice makes perfect. That’s why new drivers are at risk: 20 percent of 16-year-old

guys and 10 percent of 16-yearold girls have a wreck in their first year of driving. The risk drops by two-thirds after the initial 1500 hours of driving experience are under your belt. Even so, one study found that even a 20-year-old driver who is driving while distracted has the same reaction time as a focused 70-year-old driver. After years of driving, certain actions and reactions become almost automatic, but that’s not the case for new drivers. At this stage, driving demands your total attention. Talking on your phone and texting can be lethal distractions. If you look away from the road for two seconds while driving 35 mph, you’ve traveled 100 feet. It’s far better to switch CDs, send a text, make a call, or look for a song on your music player while at a red light or stopped in a parking lot. Speaking of distractions, isn’t that what fun is — something to distract us from an otherwise boring day? Well, it turns out there are good distractions and there are bad distractions. It’s all about time, time, time, and location, location, location.

Your best friend is a great distraction: friendly, fine and funny. But place him or her in the same moving car as you and, believe it or not, that’s risky business. The facts are this: “The incidence of teen fatalities goes up 50% for the first teen passenger and increases with additional teen passengers. Forty-five percent of the teens involved in fatal accidents were carrying a teen passenger.” Safety experts say the best idea for the first year of driving is to limit your passengers to either mom or dad. In Georgia,

it’s the law. Other than your parents, the best idea when you’re a brand new driver is to fly solo: no friends, no music, cell phone off. That might sound extreme, but can you imagine learning to fly a light plane (or being a brand-new licensed pilot) and bringing along your iPod, favorite CDs, a couple of friends, and then also talking and texting in the middle of all that? That wouldn’t happen, which might be why there are hundreds of thousands of car crashes every year and a

handful of plane crashes. The bottom line is not to suggest that you are a terrible driver. You very well may be the best teenage driver since the invention of the steering wheel. Even so, you’re still new. Take it easy. Play it safe. If you’re careful, you’ll eventually get to be one of those 85-yearold drivers. Wonder what you’ll think of teenage drivers then? + Editor’s note: This encore presentation is an article that originally appeared in the May 2, 2008 isssue of the Medical Examiner

Collect OVER 98% in less than 30 days. What would that do for your practice?

CASH CASH TURN CRUNCH INTO FLOW

PhysiciansBillingRX.com • (706) 910-7279 The Next Generation In Revenue Recovery For Medical Providers

SAVING MONEY NEVER LOOKED SO GOOD!

N I E V MO L: FREE! A I C E P S APPLICATION WAIVED FOR STUDENTS YOUR FIRST MONTH’S RENT IS Some restrictions may apply. Call or visit us for details!

TABLET

Convenient to Hospitals and Augusta University

CALL US TODAY! Energy efficiency upgrades save you $$$ every month! 2 bedroom, 1-1/2 bath just $750/month

706-305-1551 1918 Central Avenue www.aubenrealty.com