WV Physician Magazine Volume 1, Issue 1

The Magazine for Healthcare Professionals

HIMG Allowing Doctors To Be Doctors

Premiere Issue 2010

Providing Comprehensive Diagnostic and Therapeutic Treatments in the Field of Heart Rhythm Care

Esam Baryun, MD Cardiac Electrophysiologist

Mark Adkins Nurse Practitioner

Symptoms: ❑ Palpitations ❑ Fainting ❑ Heart racing ❑ Irregular heart beat

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

Diseases: ❑ Tachycardia ❑ Bradycardia ❑ Syncope/Presyncope ❑ WPW Syndrome (Pre-excitation) ❑ Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT) ❑ Atrial Fibrillation/ Flutter ❑ Ventricular Tachycardia

Procedures: ❑ Electrophysiology Study ❑ Implantation and management of: ❑ Ablation of : a. Permanent Pacemaker a. Supraventricular Tachycardia b. Cardioverter-Defibrillator c. CRT (Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy) d. Event Loop Recorder ❑ Extraction of Pacemaker/ICD leads ❑ Electrical Cardioversion ❑ Tilt Table Test ❑ Holter Monitors/Event Monitors

Long QT Syndrome Brugada Syndrome Sudden Cardiac Death Congestive Heart Failure

b. Atrial Fibrillation/flutter c. Ventricular Tachycardia d. Frequent Symptomatic PVCs e. Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia

The Hands of Experience® in Heart Rhythm Care Premiere Issue 2010

Page II • WV Physician

To send a patient by referral, call 304.399.7530 or 800.9ST.MARY ext. 7530 • www.st-marys.org

Contents

Cover Story

Outstanding Physicians, Extraordinary Care, Incredible Team:

Photo Courtesy of HIMG

Operational Efficiency at HIMG

2 Dr. John Eastone, Gastroenterologist and a patient.

Also in this issue Maier Foundation Gift.................5 New Technology Used To Diagnose Lung Disease..............9

At the Huntington Internal Medicine Group, or HIMG, the focus of the entire organization is on the patient. To be able to satisfy that singular focus, the management of the multi-specialty group practice, along with the providers, health care professionals and support team have all engaged in effective practice management techniques and systems that allow the patient to receive the level of care they deserve from their physicians.

West Virginia University Charleston Division One of the Nation’s Oldest Regional Medical Education Campuses Continues to Set Trends By: Jeff Driggs

Mon General receives HealthGrades Patient Safety Excellence Award.....................10 News ....................................... 11 How Interest Rate Changes May Affect Your Investments............................20

6

CHH/MU Lung Nodule Program provides fast diagnosis and plan for treating lung disease

8 Volume 1 • Issue 1 Although every precaution is taken to ensure the accuracy of published materials, WV Physician Magazine cannot be held responsible for opinions expressed or facts expressed by its authors. Copyright 2010, Austin Development Company, LLC dba WV Physician. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited.

Send press releases and all other related information to: WV Physician Magazine Post Office Box 11311 Charleston, WV 25339 Or submit via email to: info@wvphysician.net Visit us on the web at: www.WVPhysician.net

Cover Story

Outstanding Physicians, Extraordinary Care, Incredible Team: Operational Efficiency at HIMG

By Andy Jackson

he demands of a medical practice in today’s environment are daunting. Today, providers must be multitalented in many areas to be able to run a successful operation. The requirements of the administrative and clerical functions, the ability to create efficient schedules, the successful marketing of a practice, interaction between providers and institutions, the challenges of the latest technologies and health care delivery must be balanced with the attention patients deserve.

Without a flowing and efficient support system, it is too often that today’s small medical practices become either stagnant or inefficient due to the amount of time and investment that is not just needed, but required by the demands of the health care industry.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, “The structure and financing of healthcare are changing rapidly. Future medical and health services managers must be prepared to deal with the integration of healthcare delivery systems, technological innovations, an increasingly complex regulatory environment, restructuring of work, and an increased focus on preventive care. They will be called on to improve efficiency in healthcare facilities and the quality of the care provided.”

At the Huntington Internal Medicine Group, or HIMG, the focus of the entire organization is on the patient. To be able to satisfy that singular focus, the management of the multi-specialty group practice, along with the providers, health care professionals and support team have all engaged in effective practice

management techniques and systems that allow the patient to receive the level of care they deserve from their physicians.

“Before I joined HIMG in 2008, I came from a background that allowed me to review a multitude of differing philosophies and management styles. I can say that I was most attracted to the ability of the HIMG physician to actually focus his or her attention on the patient, letting a “doctor be a doctor” if you will,” said Floyd Metzger, CEO of HIMG. The early physician leadership of HIMG, recognized that professional management was the best way to allow the physician to be a physician, The group founded in 1970, first engaged that leadership in 1978 after the group had grown from 4 physicians to 10. Each physician was responsible for one piece of the management function, such as employees or building and grounds. “We determined that these administrative tasks were taking too much of our valuable physician and or personal time. Thus we hired our first practice administrator in 1978. That decision was one that we have never regretted and it allowed our group to grow to what it is today,” stated Dr. Charles Turner, one of the founding members of the group.

“We have made the conscious decision to minimize, or in most cases remove, all the responsibilities of running a practice

from the provider and put those in the hands of the operational team. This allows our providers to be focused on the delivery of medicine and improves the level of care our patients receive,” said Mark Morgan, Chief Administrative Officer of HIMG. Continual process improvement throughout the entire group practice has led the operation to achieve strong results in many areas. The scheduling process has been one that has seen leaps in efficiency in a relatively short period of time. HIMG has integrated a secure network amongst all its providers and practice groups that allows for support personnel to create patient appointments and consults across the entire group. The ability for a patient to be seen by their primary care provider and receive immediate referrals and scheduling for their ancillary and specialty care needs greatly improves not only the patient experience but also the workflow challenges of any practice.

For the physician, this model allows for greater impact on the ratios of patients seen in a typical workday, an increase in revenue through managed patient load and

Photo Courtesy of HIMG

T

(L) HIMG CEO Floyd Metzger and (R) Interventional Cardiologist Dr. Skuli Gunnlaugsson

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Premiere Issue 2010

“In order to attract and retain the best physicians available we know how important it is for HIMG to provide a comfortable and efficient workplace. We work very hard to attract the highest levels of talent in not only our provider base but also in our management and support teams to be able to do that,” said Dev Rellan, M.D., President of the Board of Directors at HIMG. One of the most beneficial advancements implemented by HIMG has been the integration of the Electronic Health Record (EHR) system within the group practice. HIMG has taken the implementation of the increasinglypopular EHR system a step further by becoming a self-sufficient resource for the successful operation of the same.

An intensive review of available EHR systems was conducted by an ad-hoc committee of providers, management and support personnel over a relatively short period of time to make a purchasing decision. That challenge was to meet the needs of all the stakeholders in the implementation of the system. The wants and needs of the individual practitioner, the management team, the support personnel, and the patient were all considered. In the end, it was determined that the EHR system that was to be implemented must be accurate, adaptable and flexible for the group. Most qualified vendors were up

Photo Courtesy of HIMG

a decrease in the “in-office” hours required of the physician for many operational concerns. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, forty-three percent of all physicians and surgeons worked fifty or more hours per week in 2009, with only nine percent of physicians and surgeons working part-time, or less than forty hours per week. At HIMG, through the review and improvement of multiple levels of operational processes, the number of hours worked by physicians is lower than the national average and the compensation levels exceed national averages published by the U.S. Census Bureau. to the challenge and the system that was selected used a combination of Panasonic scanning technologies along with Sage Software’s Intergy System.

The team at HIMG went about implementing the system by again, removing the responsibility for the system away from the provider. The vendor team was given the responsibility of adapting their typical training scenarios to train HIMG personnel to be trainers rather than train the end users. A selected group of HIMG professionals was chosen from strategic areas throughout the practice to be able to provide training and support on the new system. These individuals, along with the vendor team, then provided short and succinct training modules to the provider teams that enabled them to utilize the system and gave them the confidence in the local personnel to provide them support should they need it.

“The entire team recognized the positive impact that a high-end EHR system would make on the operation.

They continually push the system in many areas and the benefits have been noticeable,” said Jonna Hughes, Director of Clinic Operations.

HIMG received the Association for Information and Image Management 2009 Carl E. Nelson “Best Practices” Award for Enterprise Management

Premiere Issue 2010

(ECM) excellence. AIIM is made up of over 65,000 professionals from all industries and government, in over 150 countries, and within all levels of management.

HIMG was recognized for excellence in the area of ECM as a result of the major transition from a paper documentedmanagement system to their 21st century digital EHR system. HIMG’s digital medical record keeping and billing creation and workflow solution was implemented and resulted in more than 400 percent reduction in documenthandling time and a net bottom-line gain of almost $500,000 per year.

EHR, along with the HIMG technology network, allows the providers, management and operational team to increase efficiency through the delivery and retrieval of instantaneous and realtime data for all areas of the operation.

The EHR system went through additional expansion in late 2009 by giving the patient base access to critical areas of their health care experience. The HIMG Connect patient portal is a secure online system that allows a patient to communicate with their providers, review available appointment schedules, access patient information and conduct business with the group practice on their schedule, without tying up phone lines.

WV Physician • Page 3

Photo Courtesy of HIMG

Another area where HIMG has excelled has been in the recruitment of

as insurance companies and Medicare demand higher levels of accountability.

Managers also will be needed to oversee the computerization of patient records and to ensure their security as required by law.

Additional demand for managers will stem from the need to recruit workers and increase employee retention, to comply with changing regulations, to implement new technology, and to help improve the health of their communities by emphasizing preventive (L) HIMG CEO Floyd Metzger (R) HIMG CAO Mark Morgan care.” highly-qualified individuals to assist the The HIMG management team group in the areas of management and takes complete responsibility for the support. The Board of Directors of the entire administrative function of the practice recognized that efficiency comes group practice. All personnel decisions as a result of strong leadership. With that (including physician personnel issues), all in mind, the practice set out to hire the patient management, marketing, billing, best talent. contract negotiation with the payors, Office management in many group and hands-on administration is handled practices throughout the United States within the management team. While some typically includes an individual that has outsourcing does occur, most of these been trained in a specific skill set for functions are managed and produced by medical management such as coding, internal members of the HIMG team. By transcription or even demonstrated skill in tapping the expertise of existing personnel one area of management from a medical and recruiting individuals that have crossprofession. Many office managers don’t training in many areas of a health care have a college degree or training beyond operation, the HIMG team can control high school but have demonstrated a skill costs and realize increased productivity. that allowed for promotion from within.

The accountability for these functions At HIMG, over 90% of the management also lies with the management team of team has a college degree with another HIMG. The flow of communication with 25% having advanced degrees such as the providers in these areas is open and CPA or MBA designations. direct. Providers can withdraw from “Education, experience and training concerns of issues related to hiring, lead to innovative thinking. Our team performance and compliance of the is comprised of well-qualified and individual employee, or area of the experienced individuals that are carefully organization, and direct their focus to the considered for their ability to provide delivery of quality health care. growth and opportunity for the group,” The HIMG model is one that has said Rellan. been reviewed on multiple occasions and The U.S. Bureau of Labor Management copied in many forms throughout the noted that “Managers in all settings will be United States. As an example, a group needed to improve quality and efficiency of medical managers recently visited the of healthcare, while controlling costs, HIMG operation from Iowa. The group Page 4 • WV Physician

was interested in the evolution of HIMG in both the physical and operational areas.

The group from Iowa was treated to an intensive review of the physical plant

by HIMG executive management. Details from the architectural planning, workflow review and implemented technologies were shared so that they could evaluate their own facilities and positively affect efficiencies in their own operation.

Following that tour, individuals from the Iowa group met with groups and individuals from HIMG’s team to discuss operational efficiencies and best practices.

The exchange of information, ideas and motivations from both sides has lead to the implementation of many strategies in another part of the country and ideas from the Iowa group will be implemented into the HIMG model.

“Any time we can share information with another group of similar professionals, we are going to pursue it. If we can not only affect the improvement and delivery of health care in our own region but others, we feel it is our obligation to do so. Typically we also learn something from their operational methodologies not just from a patient care perspective but also from a business perspective,” said Morgan.

HIMG is a growing, progressive multi-specialty group practice. Increased efficiency and productivity have resulted from intense focus on the structure and management of the group. Allowing a “doctor to be a doctor” has been a beneficial mantra in the HIMG model and others, leading to having outstanding physicians that provide extraordinary care for all those that chose HIMG physicians as a their health care providers. ■

Regular hours of operation are Monday - Friday 7:00am to 6:00pm HIMG is located at: 5170 US Route 60 East Huntington, WV 25705 (304) 528-4657 www.himgwv.com Premiere Issue 2010

Maier Foundation Gift to Launch Major WVU Charleston Research Initiative CHARLESTON,W.Va. – The Maier Foundation has pledged $1 million to establish the William J. Maier, Jr. Chair of Research at West Virginia University’s Charleston Division School of Medicine.

The gift has been matched under the “Bucks for Brains” program with an additional $1 million from West Virginia Research Trust Fund, creating the largest endowment ever to advance biomedical research in the Kanawha Valley.

“The William J Maier Endowment will bring the West Virginia University Charleston Division, in partnership with the Charleston Area Medical Center’s Health Research and Education Institute and our colleagues in Morgantown, to a higher level of achievement in health care research on issues affecting West Virginia communities,” said Dr. L. Clark Hansbarger, associate vice-president of the Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center and Dean of the WVU Charleston Division School of Medicine.

private investments to support research and infrastructure projects linked to economic development, health care and job creation.

“The “Bucks for Brains” matching grant component was a compelling aspect of the request from WVU,” said Ed Maier of the Maier Foundation. “This major gift for the Charleston Division of the WVU School of Medicine, which continues to do an outstanding job of fulfilling its mission for all of West Virginia, would not have happened now were it not for the matching funds from the State of West Virginia.”

West Virginia Governor Joe Machin, III, who proposed “Bucks for Brains” in his 2008 State of the State address, is pleased to see the collaborative initiative fulfilling its mission.

“Thank you so much to the Maier family and the Maier Foundation for their generosity and investment in our

Medicine doctors for their diligent work in partnering with Maier Foundation.

“The state continues to expand its research capabilities because we have people who believe very strongly in what those investments will yield in return,” said the governor.

This endowment will fund a faculty position dedicated to basic, applied and transitional research projects. Researchers look for ways to prevent and treat diseases, studying processes and diseases with the ultimate goal of developing effective treatments and cures, and evaluating these new treatments for both safety and efficacy. Through its affiliation with Charleston Area Medical Center as its teaching hospital and research partner, West Virginia University’s Charleston Division School of Medicine benefits from a synergy of resources and cutting edge technologies in this effort.

“WVU is extremely grateful to the Maier Foundation for this gift, and to Governor Manchin and the Legislature for providing the matching grant that will allow us to create a $2 million endowment for Charleston research activities,” said Christopher C. Colenda, M.D., M.P.H., West Virginia University Chancellor for Health Sciences. “This will provide a permanent base of support for academic research on the Charleston campus, and solidify the role of our faculty here as vital members of our academic health system.”

Hansbarger described the collaboration of public and private funding in this research advancement effort as a “New Year’s resolution” for those in academic medicine in the Kanawha Valley.

“For the WVU Charleston Division, the name Maier has become synonymous with benefactor, infrastructure, cutting Clark Hansbarger, Associate Vice President and School of Medicine Dean for WVU edge, future and academic,” Hansbarger Charleston Division, WVU Health Sciences Chancellor Christopher C. Colenda, WVU said. “Over the last 40 years the influence President Jim Clements, WV First Lady Gayle Manchin, WV Governor Joe Manchin, of William J. Maier and his son Ed Maier Susan Maier, Ed Maier, WVU Foundation President Wayne King, WV Higher Education on health care education have been visible, Policy Commission Vice-Chancellor for Science and Research Paul Hill palpable and essential. From the concept of this Regional Medical Education The Charleston-based Maier Bucks for Brains program,” Manchin said. Center in Charleston -- the first in the Foundation, Inc. was established in “The Maiers have shown time and again country -- through the building of the 1958 by philanthropist William J. Maier, their commitment to West Virginia and WVU-Charleston Health Education building, to today’s endowment of a Jr. to further higher education in West its economic growth.“ research chair, the Maier Foundation Virginia. The gift is designed to meet The governor also commended the matching requirements established by WVU President James Clements and the has displayed their commitment to West the Research Trust to leverage public and WVU Charleston Division School of Virginians again and again.” ■ Premiere Issue 2010

WV Physician • Page 5

West Virginia University Charleston Division One of Nation’s Oldest Regional Medical Education Campuses Continues to Set Trends By: Jeff Driggs

As baby boomers age and a shortage of physicians is projected to occur within a decade, many medical schools are posing the question of how to increase student capacity while maintaining or even improving the quality of the educational experience they deliver.

Institutions around the globe are following the lead of West Virginia University by establishing separate branches or regional campuses remote from the central campus.

Charleston, West Virginia has the distinction of being home to one of the oldest regional medical education campuses in the United States with the West Virginia University Health Science Center-Charleston Division. Located on the Charleston Area Medical Center’s Memorial Hospital campus, the education complex of classrooms, medical library, and student services is both literally and figuratively “bridged” to the hospital, as designed by the Maier family as symbolic of the relationship between medical education and patient care. The WVU Charleston Division building now contains many health science schools and educational technology that represent the foresight of the original Charleston hospital boards and West Virginia University.

These intentions culminated in an affiliation agreement in 1972 that still is strong today. The establishment of the WVU Charleston Division

was the first step in a federal rural health initiative to expand medical schools beyond the traditional campus.

"As a regional medical education campus, we consolidate the existing strengths of the experience students gain in Morgantown with new ones,” said Clark Hansbarger, associate vice-president of health sciences for the Charleston division. “By having third and fourth year medical students come to the population center of our capital city of Charleston, it gives them a great variety of experiences here as well as in the rural areas of our region.”

The most admirable feature of this affiliation is the presence of multiple institutions working harmoniously to benefit the educational needs of the West Virginia communities. There are the WVU Schools of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy and Social Work (students); the Charleston Area Medical Center Schools of Nurse Anesthesia, Continuing Medical Education, Graduate Medical Education (residents) ; the South Central Regional Campus of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine Osteopathic; as well as multiple conferences sponsored by WV organizations dealing with health care issues.

There are other organizations that have an educational component that are primarily devoted to community needs. These are organizations whose only office is located in the Charleston Division such as the Area Health Education Center (AHEC),

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Premiere Issue 2010

the Geriatric Education Center (GEC), the West Virginia Poison Center (a 24hour service).

The affiliation has produced another interesting relationship in the area of research. In the 1990’s, CAMC developed the CAMC Health Education and Research Institute (CHERI).

CHERI has become the infrastructure of the education and research interest and career needs of the West Virginia University Health Science Center faculty in Charleston. This has resulted in having invaluable support for the faculty dedicated to the service mission but dependent upon such an infrastructure to assist in the career of an academician in achieving professorships.

The resulting research in endovascular surgery, pediatric oncology, trauma, diabetes, geriatric care, phobias and much more has produced as many as 30 publications and presentations a year.

The education mission is dedicated to over 200 students in the various health science schools as well as over 180 graduate medical education medical residents, PhDs and other advanced studies in medicine, pharmacy and nursing in the WVU/CAMC campus. All of these students are served by the collaboration and synergism of West Virginia University, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, Marshall University and Charleston Area Medical Center dedicated to education of health science professionals for West Virginia.

The regional campus has lasting effects on the community that are felt both in the economy and in the workforce. WVU faculty physicians

caring for patients at CAMC generate direct, indirect and induced business volume, as well as providing much needed uncompensated care for West Virginia’s underserved populations. Of forty-five interns and residents graduating from CAMC sponsored programs in 2009, twenty-two stayed in West Virginia to practice and eight continued in a residency or fellowship training program in the state. This ability to retain graduates to practice within the state is a testament to the flexibility and innovation in the design and delivery of clinical education provided there.

While schools around the world look to this model, the regional medical education campus in Charleston continues to broaden the clinical training of students so that they are thoroughly prepared to practice medicine in today's health care environment. ■

WVU Charleston Division Student and Resident Info, 2009 ➣➣

80 Medical Students

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235 Nursing Students (FNP, RN-BSN, RN-MSN, MSN-DSN)

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80 Social Work (MSW includes all Southern region campuses)

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25 Pharmacy

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151 Residents/interns in educational programs at CAMC Last Residency Class information:

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45 Interns & Residents Graduated From CAMC Sponsored Programs

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22 Stayed in West Virginia to practice

➣➣

8 Continued in a Residency or Fellowship Training Program in WV

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22 Relocated Outside of West Virginia

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7 Accepted a position in a Clinical or Faculty Practice

➣➣

15 Continued in a Fellowship Training Program out of state

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WV Physician • Page 7

CHH/MU Lung Nodule Program provides fast diagnosis and plan for treating lung disease When a small round or oval-shaped mass known as a lung nodule is spot­ted during a routine health checkup, more and more patients are taking them seriously as potential signs of lung disease or cancer.

In just more than a year, the Comprehensive Lung Nodule Program, a shared program between the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, Cabell Hun­tington Hospital and the Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center, has pro­v ided numerous patients a fast diagnosis and treat­ ment plan when a nodule is discovered.

Dr. Alejandro Lorenza­na, director of the Com­prehensive Lung Nodule Program, said the patients are experiencing great results with the program.

“I think this has been a complete success because if patients have nodules that are cancerous, they are being taken care of and treated immediately,” Dr. Lorenzana said. “And if it is benign, they don’t have to wait and worry.”

Patients are seen within 48 hours of making contact with the staff of the Com­prehensive Lung Nodule Program.

“There isn’t that delay of weeks or months be­t ween the time a nodule is found and when they receive news about what that nodule means,” Dr. Lorenzana said. “This is extremely important be­cause if we find lung cancer in an early stage, the cure rates are between 70 and 90 percent as opposed to a stage 4 cancer that has a poor prognosis.”

Experienced pulmo­nologists who specialize in caring for patients with lung disease are able to work with a wide range of technologies and special­ists at Cabell Huntington Hospital and the Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center to plan the most ap­propriate treatment plan.

Using state-of-the art diagnostic tools including the recently added in­Reach® System for Elec­tromagnetic Navigation Bronchoscopy™, physi­cians with the Comprehen­ sive Lung Nodule Program can now diagnose and plan treatment for lesions or nodules located deep inside a patient’s lung.

“We are an integrated group that has set a goal of finding the quickest and most efficient methods for diagnosis and treatment,” Dr. Lorenzana said. “Ad­vances to technology have increased the likelihood a lung nodule will be found, even during a routine exam for another purpose. What we see happening is that lung nodules are being detected more often inci­dentally because of the ad­vances to imaging technol­ogy.

What we don’t want to happen is for people to not take these spots seriously. A patient should know what it is.”

For more information about the Comprehensive Lung Nodule Program, please call (304) 691-1689 or visit www.cabellhunting­ton.org/services/lung_nod­ule_ program

Lung nodules are small round or oval-shaped masses found during routine X-rays or CT scans. They can be a sign of lung disease and sometimes can be cancerous. The Comprehensive Lung Nodule Program at the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, Cabell Huntington Hospital and the Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center was created to provide an efficient evaluation for patients with lung nodules.

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Physicians at CHH can diagnose disease deep inside lungs with new technology Physicians at Cabell Huntington Hospital are now using an innovative tool to help them diagnose and plan treatment for lung disease and lung cancer, even if it is located deep inside a patient’s lung.

The recent addition of the superDimension® inReach® System gives lung special­ists at Cabell Huntington Hospital the ability to use GPS-like technology and a catheter-based system to reach to the farthest point of a patient’s airways.

Once there, a lesion or nodule can be removed and examined without a major procedure.

The tiny tube can go to farthest areas of the lungs and provide a faster and safer alternative to a more invasive method such as surgery.

“A lot of lung nodules are very peripheral and the bronchoscope could not reach beyond the central part of the lung,” Dr. Lorenzana said. “Therefore, with this naviga­ tional bronchosopy, we can reach to anywhere within the lungs safely.”

New technology available at Cabell Huntington Hospital, called the inReach System, gives physicians an innovative tool to reach lesions and nodules located deep inside a patient’s lung. This tool reduces the need for invasive surgery or procedures often needed to diagnose some cases of lung disease.

A tiny camera helps guide physicians through maze of a patient’s airways and provides a clear view for physicians on the search for lung disease.

Their comfort.

Your security.

Nothing is more important than your child’s health. Which is why CAMC Women and Children’s Hospital provides more than 30 pediatric specialties and the highest level of pediatric intensive care.

Benefits of inReach System for patients at CHH: •

•

•

•

•

Extends beyond the reach of the bronchoscope and guides endoscopic tools and catheters deep into the lung Provides physician additional options for diagnosis and treatment of lung disease Enables bronchoscopy to find positive lesions or nodules sooner and enables treatment earlier and potentially expanding treatment options Allows less invasive procedures than traditional open chest procedures Reduces need for invasive, high risk alternative procedures For more information, please visit www.cabellhuntington.org

Premiere Issue 2010

WV Physician • Page 9

Patient Safety at Mon General Hospital in the Top 5% of All Hospitals in the Nation for fifth Consecutive Year Mon General is the Only Hospital in West Virginia to Receive the 2010 HealthGrades Patient Safety Excellence Award™

2007 and 2008. The study was objectively and independently conducted, using a methodology developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, a federal agency, and with data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Morgantown, WV (March 31, 2010) – An annual study of patient safety at 5,000 U.S. hospitals found Mon General Hospital to be in the top 5% in the nation. The study, conducted

by HealthGrades, the leading independent healthcare ratings organization, named Mon General Hospital as one of 238 hospitals nationwide to receive the 2010 HealthGrades Patient Safety Excellence Award™.

For hospitals that were identified as being in the top 5% in the nation, Medicare patients, on average, were 43% less likely to experience a patient safety event over the years 2006 to 2008.

This is the fifth consecutive year that Mon General has been a recipient of the HealthGrades Patient Safety Excellence Award and Mon General is the only hospital in West Virginia to receive the 2010 award.

“To be the only hospital in the state of West Virginia to receive this award is a testament to the high standards our medical staff, nurses, and clinicians place on patient care,” said Mon Health System President/CEO Dave Robertson.

“More importantly, this is not a one time award,” Roberston said. “This is the fifth consecutive year that Mon General has attained this recognition. Patient Safety has become ingrained into our caregivers’ daily routine. It is a way of life at Mon General.

HealthGrades conducts the largest annual studies of hospital quality in America, in part to identify hospitals that set quality benchmarks to which others can aspire. If all hospitals performed at the level of those receiving the Patient Safety Excellence Award™, like Mon General Hospital, more than 200,000 patient safety events and nearly 23,000 Medicare deaths could have been avoided over the three years studied.

In the HealthGrades study, the following patient safety indicators were studied:

◊ Complications of anesthesia ◊ Death in low mortality Diagnostic Related Groupings (DRGs) ◊ Decubitus ulcer (bed sores) ◊ Death among surgical inpatients with serious treatable complications ◊ Iatrogenic pneumothorax (collapsed lung)

“Receiving an award like this is not something that is accomplished by an administrative directive,” he said. “It is accomplished by our front line caregivers and employees. Our staff continually strives to ensure that the safety and well-being of our patients is the top priority in every decision and action they take. To be continually ranked in the top 5 percent of hospitals in the nation for patient safety five consecutive years is an extraordinary accomplishment.”

◊ Selected infections due to medical care

“Mon General Hospital is among the hospitals that is setting the benchmark for excellence in patient safety, something that the people of Monongalia County should take great pride and comfort in,” said Rick May, MD, a vice president at HealthGrades and co-author of the study. “To achieve this level of patient safety, hospitals like Mon General tend to have a culture of quality that drives vigilance and continuous improvement, and they should be congratulated.”

◊ Post-operative sepsis

◊ Post-operative hip fracture ◊ Post-operative hemorrhage or hematoma ◊ Post-operative physiologic and metabolic derangements ◊ Post-operative respiratory failure ◊ Post-operative pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis ◊ Post-operative abdominal wound dehiscence ◊ Accidental puncture or laceration ◊ Transfusion reaction The full study can be found on HealthGrades’ Web site at: www.healthgrades.com. ■

In the study, 40 million hospitalization records from nearly 5,000 hospitals were analyzed to understand the incidence rates of 15 different patient safety events, from post-operative sepsis to complications from anesthesia, over the years 2006, Page 10 • WV Physician

HealthGrades Media Contact Scott Shapiro (720) 963-6584 sshapiro@healthgrades.com Premiere Issue 2010

News WVU Health Sciences Launches New Magazine The health professions schools, hospitals, medical practices, and research laboratories associated with West Virginia University are the largest forces for health in the state. This inaugural issue of WVUhealth focuses on the education of our students, the care of our patients, the advancement of science, and our close ties with people and communities. The inaugural issue contains a story about WVU Charleston’s

Dr. Steven Artz and his ongoing work with the children effected by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

You can access an interactive version of the magazine or download a PDF by visiting the web at: http://www.health.wvu.edu/news/hsc.aspx

Joel Levien To Become Medical Director of CAMC Weight Loss Center Dr. Joel Levien, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine and Section Chief of Gastroenterology at WVU’s Charleston Division, has accepted the position of medical director of the

Charleston Area Medical Center Weight Loss Center.

Dr. Levien is board certified with the American Board of Internal Medicine and American Board of Gastroenterology and fellowship trained in gastroenterology.

The CAMC Weight Loss Center offers a comprehensive approach to your weight loss, offering both medical and surgical programs in a multidisciplinary approach to weight management that encompasses all aspects of weight loss - nutrition, exercise and medical components.

Specializing in facial surgical procedures for 13 years

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WV Physician • Page 11

News WVU Eye Institute acquires new retinal camera; Gift from Atkinson family will help young children MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University Eye Institute now has a new tool to help infants and children with vision problems. A miniature camera, called a RetCam, takes pictures of the retinas of infants and children for viewing on a computer screen.The purchase of the retinal camera was made possible by a recent donation of $60,000 from Bill and Erna Atkinson.

As the only center for pediatric vision care in West Virginia, the WVU Eye Institute plays a critical role in providing specialized vision care for babies and children from all 55 counties of the state, as well as neighboring states.

For More Information contact Amy Johns, HSC News Service 304-293-7087 johnsa@wvuh.com or visit: www.wvueye.com

The RetCam greatly enhances the ability of the Eye Institute to treat eye problems such as retinopathy of prematurity, a potentially blinding disorder affecting premature babies, and trauma to the eye caused by child abuse.

“We are so honored and thankful for Bill and Erna’s gift,” Judie Charlton, M.D., chair of the WVU Department of Ophthalmology, said. “The RetCam allows us to deliver more advanced care to babies and children. WVU is the only place in the state that treats retinopathy of prematurity.”

The Atkinsons grew up in West Virginia and recently returned to the state.They were eager to support vision care for children. “Dr. Charlton showed us the eye problems of preemies and that sort of got to us. We just wanted to help the children,” Bill Atkinson said.

(left to right): Geoffrey Bradford, M.D., Lionel Chisholm, M.D., Mr. and Mrs. Atkinson, Cris Larzo, M.D., and Judie Charlton, M.D.

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WVU medical training programs get five-year OK Graduate medical programs earn highest national accreditation MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University has earned reaccreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

The five-year credential is the longest offered by the organization, which reviews residency training programs for physicians who have graduated from medical school.

WVU School of Medicine faculty members supervise 54 residency programs at six West Virginia hospitals. Thirty-eight of those are in specialties for which ACGME accreditation is possible, and all are fully accredited. In addition to the programs at WVU Hospitals in Morgantown, WVU sponsors training for physicians at City Hospital in Martinsburg, Jefferson Memorial Hospital in Ranson and the Veterans Administration Medical Centers in Clarksburg and Martinsburg. In Charleston, WVU faculty physicians supervise training of residents in programs sponsored by Charleston Area Medical Center.

“We take our responsibility to train physicians for West Virginia very seriously, and that means training physicians in multiple specialty areas to better serve the needs of the state,” said Norman Ferrari, M.D., senior associate dean for medical education in the School of Medicine.

About 380 residents are currently in training in the WVU-sponsored programs.

The largest programs are in internal medicine and psychiatry. About half of WVU’s specialty training programs are the only ones of their kind in the state, including emergency medicine, infectious diseases, neurosurgery, neurology, ophthalmology and many others.

“From a resident’s perspective, having an institution that supports its residents and fellows to the extent that WVU does is very valuable for those facing the decision of where to do their residency,” said Justin T. Kupec, M.D., who recently completed internal medicine training at WVU and is now a postgraduate fellow in digestive diseases. “I am very proud of being from West Virginia and training at WVU.” The training of physicians for primary care and specialty careers has a direct impact on healthcare in West Virginia, according

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to Mahreen Hashmi, M.D., who leads WVU’s obstetrics and gynecology residency program. “The five year accreditation cycle means that we’re not just meeting expectations, we’re exceeding them – our programs are a model for the whole country,” she said. “When we send our residency graduates out into the state, they’re taking the quality care we offer here and bringing it to the communities where they will practice.”

Christopher C. Colenda, M.D., M.P.H., WVU’s chancellor for health sciences, also serves on the Board of Directors for ACGME. “It is incredibly gratifying for my home institution to do so well,” he said. “I know that each of the graduate medical education competencies are designed to provide high quality and safe patient care, and to promote life-long learning among our residents and fellow physicians.”

ACGME has about 800 sponsoring institutions and regularly reviews 8,750 programs in 132 specialty programs. About 110,000 residents nationwide are training in ACGME-accredited programs.

For More Information contact Amy Johns, HSC News Service, 304-293-7087, johnsa@wvuh.com

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WV Physician • Page 13

News

New Officers Installed April 24th during the WV Academy of Family Physicians 58th Annual Scientific Assembly

WVUH recognized for highquality obesity surgery Named Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence

The following officers were installed during the WV Academy of Family Physicians 58th Annual Scientific Assembly: Chair of the Board • Carmen Rexrode, MD, Franklin, WV President • Sidney Jackson, MD, Clarksburg, WV President Elect • Michael Gibbs, MD, Huntington, WV Vice President • Sarah Chouriard, MD, Huntington, WV Secretary • John Parker, MD, Huntington, WV Treasurer • Steve Sebert, MD, Huntington, WV Executive Vice President • Gerry D. Stover, Hurricane, WV Delegate 2011 • David Avery, MD, Parkersburg, WV Delegate 2013 • Anne Cather, MD, Morgantown, WV Alt. Delegate 2011 • Kelly Pitsenbarger, MD, Beckley, WV Alt. Delegate 2013 • Brian MacAulay, MD, Wheeling, WV

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University Hospitals’ Ruby Memorial has been named a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS).The designation

WVAFP Physician of the Year

Dr. Loretto Auvil (private practice in Parkersburg, WV) 2010 Family Doc of the Year & Dr. Linda Kessinger (Harts, WV) 2009 Family Doc of the Year

recognizes surgical programs with a demonstrated track record of favorable outcomes in surgery for obesity.

“We’re very proud of this recognition,” Bruce McClymonds, president and CEO of WVUH, said. “The bariatric team worked diligently with people from across the hospital to achieve the Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence designation. It recognizes our commitment to providing the highest quality of care to our patients.”

According to a report released in 2007 by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the number of bariatric surgeries grew from 16,000 procedures in 1992 to 170,000 in 2005. At WVUH, Ehab Akkary, M.D., director of bariatric and advanced laparoscopic surgery, has performed approximately 250 procedures since taking over the program in June 2008.

He has a roster of nearly 300 patients in various stages of completing pre-operative requirements for surgery.

Armed with clinical evidence that the most experienced and best-run bariatric surgery programs have the lowest rates of complications, the ASMBS Bariatric Surgery Centers of Excellence program was created to recognize bariatric surgery centers that perform well and to help surgeons and hospitals continue to improve the quality and safety of care provided.

To earn a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence designation, WVUH underwent a series of site inspections during which all aspects of the program’s surgical processes were closely examined and data on health outcomes was collected. During these visits,

Page 14 • WV Physician

surveyors held discussions with WVUH leadership and conducted interviews with Dr. Akkary, the bariatric team, nursing staff and patients and families.

“Our team’s mission in achieving this designation was to make sure WVUH could provide the highest level of care not only to bariatric surgery patients but to bariatric patients in general,” Akkary said.

“To accomplish that, we made sure that we had the necessary equipment as well as a highly trained and dedicated nursing staff.”

Surgical Review Corporation (SRC), an organization dedicated to pursuing surgical excellence, formulates and establishes the rigorous standards with which Bariatric Surgery Centers of Excellence must comply, and inspects and evaluates each candidate for designation.

Upon review, it recommends approval of designation for physicians and facilities whose practices and outcomes meet the stringent demands set forth by SRC for ASBMS. Bariatric surgery, when performed correctly, can help obese patients manage various chronic conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.

“This is a life-changing surgery,” Akkary said. “It isn’t about losing weight.

It’s about improving overall health.”

For more information on bariatric surgery at WVUH, contact Angela Jones, HSC News Service, email jonesan@wvuh.com or visit http://health. wvu.edu/services/bariatric-surgery/index.aspx

Thomas Wound Care Center Recognized For Healing Wounds And Changing Lives South Charleston, WV – Thomas Memorial Hospital physicians, leaders, and clinicians gathered on April 26th to celebrate the Center of Distinction award, given to the Thomas Wound Care Center in recognition of its high patient satisfaction rates, exceptional healing results, and outstanding clinical outcomes over the past twelve months.

This prestigious honor was awarded by the Wound Care Center’s partner in wound healing, Diversified Clinical Services (DCS), the nation’s leading wound care management company.

For twelve consecutive months, the Thomas Wound Care Center has achieved success in treating and curing chronic Premiere Issue 2010

or non-healing wounds and in providing excellent care to over 2,400 patients since the Thomas Wound Care Center’s opening in 2002.

Steve Dexter, President and CEO of Thomas Health System commented on the award, “DCS brings our hospital’s Wound Care Center enormous resources and expertise, enabling us to meet the increasing need for specialized wound care. We are thrilled to accept this award, and proud to offer this quality Center to our community.”

“We’re honored,” said Sara Cloer, Director of the Thomas Wound Care Center. “It’s a privilege to be part of a great collaborative effort between the hospital and Diversified Clinical Services.

Together, we are able to heal patients in our community, getting them get back to living their lives happy and healthy.”

Paige Johnson, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Thomas Health System (304) 766-3707 - direct paige.johnson@thomaswv.org

WVU School of Medicine ranked in U.S. News “Top Ten” for rural medicine High marks also for Primary Care and for School of Nursing MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University School of Medicine has been recognized as one of the top ten schools of medicine in the country for rural medicine, and placed in the top 50 for primary care. WVU made the top ten list in U.S. News & World Report’s 2011 edition of “America’s Best Graduate Schools.”

The rankings are based on ratings by medical school deans and senior faculty in the nation’s 126 accredited medical schools and 20 accredited schools of osteopathic medicine.

“We have been working very hard for decades to address the unique health care needs of West Virginia,” WVU School of Medicine Interim Dean James Brick, M.D., said. “It’s gratifying that our colleagues across the country recognize our leadership in rural health and primary care.”

School of Medicine students learn and care for patients in rural areas of West Virginia as part of the requirements for

News

L-R - Chancellor Christopher Colenda, Interim Dean James Brick, and Dean Georgia Narsavage celebrate high rankings for School of Medicine and School of Nursing

graduation. They work in partnerships with rural communities and with other health care providers in rural clinics across the state.

About 50 percent of WVU School of Medicine graduates choose to practice in primary care areas, such as family medicine, internal medicine, emergency medicine, and pediatrics.

The number of physicians who practice in rural, underserved communities has increased by 200 percent in recent years.

The WVU School of Nursing received high marks for its Masters of Science in Nursing (MSN) program, as judged by nursing deans and faculty at schools across the country.

“We are very proud of our faculty, our programs, and especially, our students,” School of Nursing Dean Georgia Narsavage, Ph.D., said. “An education from the WVU School of Nursing can take them anywhere they want to go. Our graduates, whether they choose to stay in West Virginia, or work in facilities across the country, become leaders in healthcare.”

Health Sciences Chancellor Christopher Colenda, M.D., M.P.H., thanked faculty, staff and students in Morgantown, and at the campuses in Charleston and Martinsburg, for their dedication.

“We are the largest and most powerful force for health in this state,” Colenda said. “It is an honor to be associated with the School of Medicine and the School of Nursing today.”

The U.S. News & World Report 2011 edition of “America’s Best Graduate

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Schools” is available in bookstores now, or online at www.usnews.com.

For more information about the WVU School of Medicine, visit www.hsc.wvu.edu/som/ For more information about theWVU School of Nursing, visit www.hsc.wvu.edu/son/ Or contact Amy Johns, HSC News Service at: johnsa@wvuh.com

WVU offering single-incision laparoscopic surgery MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Ehab Akkary, M.D., director of bariatrics and advanced laparoscopic surgery at West Virginia University, is providing what he calls the “most minimally invasive of minimally invasive surgeries” – singleincision laparoscopic surgery (SILS).

Traditional laparoscopic procedures require a minimum of three small incisions.

With the SILS procedure, a single incision is made inside the belly button and is used as the access point for all needed Ehab Akkary, M.D., director of bariatrics and equipment. advanced laparoscopic Because of the surgery at West Virginia location of the University incision, any scar that occurs as a result of the procedure is completely hidden.

Continued on Page 16 WV Physician • Page 15

News Dr. Akkary began performing SILS

procedures in the summer of 2009. WVU was one of the few institutions across the nation that adopted this unique approach early on.

Most of the SILS surgeries Akkary performs are gall bladder and appendix procedures. To date, he has done about 50 of those cases using SILS. “This approach can be implemented selectively in various abdominal operations, including weight loss surgeries,” he said.

Akkary advises that the SILS procedure does take slightly longer than traditional laparoscopic surgery. There is also no significant decrease in post-surgical pain or recovery time. However, for those who are concerned about multiple incisions and scars, this procedure may be the answer.

“This is the natural evolution in advanced laparoscopic surgery,” Akkary said.

For more information on minimally invasive surgery atWVU contact Angela Jones, HSC News Service 304-293-7087, jonesa@wvuh.com or visit http://www.hsc.wvu.edu/som/Surgery/ MinimallyInvasive

WVU School of Medicine presents 10th annual Dean’s Awards for Excellence MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – James Brick, M.D., interim dean of the West Virginia University School of Medicine, presented the 10th annual Dean’s Awards for Excellence April 19.

The awards recognize individuals who have contributed significantly to the school in the areas of clinical service, research, educational innovations, community service and service to the school.

The event also includes the presentation of Distinguished Teacher Awards.

This year’s winners are: Award for Excellence in Clinical Service Jame Abraham, M.D., section chief of Hematology and Oncology and the Bonnie Wells Wilson Distinguished Professor and Eminent Scholar in Breast Cancer Research Section of Pulmonary and Critical Care Award for Excellence in Education Holly G. Ressetar, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy Award for Excellence in Research Robert L. Goodman, Ph.D., professor and chairman of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology George A. Kelley, D.A., professor in the Department of Community Medicine Award for Excellence in Service to the Community Mark Cucuzzella, M.D., associate professor with Harpers Ferry Family Medicine Human Performance Laboratory Faculty and Staff Award for Excellence in Service to the School Stanley D. Yokota, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology Distinguished Teacher M.D. Degree Program – Senior Level James E. Coad, M.D., professor in the Department of Pathology Christopher J. Martin, M.D., associate professor in the Department of Community Medicine M.D. Degree Program – Junior Level H. Wayne Lambert, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy Award for Dedication to the Profession of Medicine Bruce G. Freeman, M.D., former professor in the Department of Surgery (award presented posthumously) “Each year, it becomes increasingly more difficult to choose the winners for these awards because there are so many dedicated, hard-working individuals here at the WVU School of Medicine,” Dr. Brick said. “This year’s winners are those who really strive to make WVU a worldclass healthcare institution through their teaching, research and clinical service to

Page 16 • WV Physician

improve the health of the people of West Virginia.”

The awards were presented in the Okey Patteson Auditorium in the WVU Health Sciences Center.

For More Information contact Amy Johns, HSC News Service 304-293-7087, johnsa@wvuh. com

WVU cancer doctor appointed to national organization MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Jame Abraham, M.D., section chief of hematology/oncology at the West Virginia University School of Medicine, will help lead the national organization that designs and conducts promising new clinical therapies for breast cancer treatment and prevention.

T h e National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP) has invited Dr. Abraham to serve on the group’s working committee. He joins a core group of 20 cancer specialists from major medical centers in the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, Australia and Ireland.

“I am honored to be selected to join this prestigious group and am excited about working with my colleagues to continue advancing medical science that will benefit breast cancer patients,” Abraham said.

Abraham leads the Breast Cancer Research Program with Mike Ruppert, M.D., Ph.D., at WVU’s Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center. He is also the Bonnie Wells Wilson Distinguished Professor and Eminent Scholar in Breast Cancer Research. Since joining WVU, Abraham has been the principal investigator of more than 25 breast cancer clinical trials and currently leads an effort to develop a statewide clinical trials network. His research in chemotherapy induced cognitive dysfunction has earned him the reputation as a national and international expert on “chemobrain.”

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“Jame is an outstanding physician and a dedicated researcher whose work has made a profound impact on breast cancer treatment,” said Scot C. Remick, M.D., director of the Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center. “His appointment to the

NSABP is a testament to his expertise and is a reflection of the Cancer Center’s high standards for providing top quality care.”

Abraham’s initial research at the National Institutes of Health focused on developing new drugs to overcome drug

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resistance in patients with cancer. He was the study chairman of one of the first human trials on the novel drug, ixabepilone, which was approved by the FDA for treatment of advanced breast cancer in 2007.

The NSABP has 50 years of clinical trial history. The group’s studies led to the establishment of lumpectomy plus radiation over radical mastectomy as the standard surgical treatment for breast cancer. Largescale NSABP studies in the prevention of breast cancer have demonstrated the value of the drug tamoxifen in reducing the incidence of breast cancer in women with increased risk for the disease.

For More Information contact Amy Johns, HSC News Service 304-293-7087, johnsa@wvuh.com

New Marshall center for Chapmanville called asset to health, education, economy HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall University and the Chapmanville community broke ground in April on a new Rural Health & Clinical Education Center that will expand both health care services and career training opportunities in the region.

The new facility, which will be the permanent home of Chapmanville’s Coalfield Health Center, was made possible by $2.73 million secured by United States Sen. Robert C. Byrd and a strong collaboration among community leaders, the Logan Healthcare Foundation and Marshall’s Robert C. Byrd Center for Rural Health.

“When Marshall University officials approached me about funding this project several years ago, it was an easy decision,” Byrd said in a letter read during the groundbreaking. “For years I have worked diligently to improve health care infrastructure throughout West Virginia, and it was clear to me that this health care project had the potential to make a lasting difference in improving the wellbeing of the residents of this region!”

Senate President Lieutenant-Governor Earl Ray Tomblin was the keynote speaker.

Also on the program were the Rev. Doug Craven of Logan’s First Presbyterian Church; Roger McGrew, chairman of the Logan Healthcare Foundation; Dr. Charles McKown, vice president and dean of Marshall’s Joan C. Edwards School Continued on Page 18 WV Physician • Page 17

N ews of Medicine; and

Marshall University President Stephen J. Kopp, Ph.D. Congressman Nick J. Rahall and state senator Ron Stollings, M.D., spoke briefly as well.

Tomblin, who worked to develop the infrastructure essential for the center’s success, said before the event the facility will benefit the area economically.

“Not only will the center provide much-needed primary care services for the area, but it will also serve as an economic development engine for the area with jobs, a new high-tech facility, and cooperative partnerships with businesses, higher education and other providers in the area,” he said.

The new center’s educational opportunities will yield long-term benefits for the region, said Jennifer Plymale, an assistant dean at Marshall’s medical school and the director of its Center for Rural Health.

“Creating this hub for a rural teaching center will draw students from many health disciplines to the heart of the coalfields for education, and that significantly increases the possibility of recruiting healthcare providers to this area and retaining them,” Plymale said.

On the first floor, the new center will have a family medicine and pediatrics clinic, complete with satellite X-ray and blood/draw/laboratory facilities. Later, specialty clinics will occupy the second floor, providing permanent or rotating services. The center will incorporate support spaces needed for training medical students and resident physicians, as well as students training in other health professions.

Electronic linkages will give the Chapmanville center’s staff and students access to the extensive education, research and public service programs of Marshall’s Center for Rural Health and medical school. The new facility also will be a satellite location for the Center for Rural Health’s mobile medical unit, which provides health screening, education and direct service programs throughout southern West Virginia.

The Logan Healthcare Foundation provided the site at no cost and has made a direct grant of $180,000 for operating and start-up assistance, and Marshall’s

Center for Rural Health has committed $150,000 in start-up support.

WVU Hospitals designated Blue Distinction Center for Cardiac Care MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University Hospitals (WVUH) is now a Blue Distinction Center for Cardiac Care. Mountain State Blue Cross Blue Shield (MSBCBS) made this designation after a thorough evaluation of the cardiac care program. To date, only about 400 facilities nationwide have received a Blue Distinction Center for Cardiac Care designation.

Blue Distinction is a designation awarded by Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies to medical facilities that have demonstrated expertise in delivering quality healthcare. The designation is based on rigorous, evidence-based selection criteria established in collaboration with expert physicians’ and medical organizations’ recommendations.

“West Virginia has a very high rate of heart disease, which makes it imperative that high-quality cardiac care is available,” WVU Heart Institute Director Robert Beto, M.D., said. “Blue Distinction recognizes our success in developing the WVU Heart Institute into the regional leader in excellent heart care.”

The WVU Heart Institute offers comprehensive cardiac care services, including inpatient cardiac care, cardiac rehabilitation, cardiac catheterization and cardiac surgery.

“We are pleased to be able to designate WVUH as a Blue Distinction Center for Cardiac Care,” said Fred Earley, MSBCBS president. “The commitment and quality of care demonstrated by this hospital in treating patients with various cardiac health issues is truly an example of the exceptional healthcare the citizens of West Virginia can feel confident in receiving right here in their own state.”

“Blue Distinction puts a high value on research and evidence-based health and medical information,” Allan Korn, M.D., Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association chief medical officer, said. “Blue Distinction Centers show our commitment to working with doctors and hospitals in communities across the country to identify leading

Page 18 • WV Physician

institutions that meet clinically validated quality standards and deliver better overall outcomes in patient care.”

To be designated as a Blue Distinction Center for Cardiac Care, WVUH met the selection criteria posted at www.BCBS.com, which include:

✔✔ an established cardiac care program, performing required annual volumes for certain procedures (for example, a minimum of 125 cardiac surgical procedures annually) ✔✔ appropriate experience of its cardiac team, including sub-specialty board certification for interventional cardiologists and cardiac surgeons ✔✔ an established acute care inpatient facility, including intensive care, emergency care and a full range of cardiac services ✔✔ full facility accreditation by a U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services-deemed national accreditation organization ✔✔ low overall mortality rates

complication

and

✔✔ a comprehensive quality management program To date, more than 1,600 Blue Distinction Center designations have been awarded to facilities nationwide, providing consumers with a framework for making informed decisions on where to go for specialty care in the areas of bariatric surgery, cardiac care, complex and rare cancers, knee and hip replacement, spine surgery, and transplants.

For more information about the WVU Heart Institute contact Kim Fetty, HSC News Service 304-293-7087, fettyki@wvuh.com, or visit http:// www.health.wvu.edu/services/heart-institute/index.aspx

New study links stream quality and human cancer rates MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – A new study demonstrates that the health of streams can help predict human health in nearby areas. This research provides a new screening tool for human cancer Premiere Issue 2010

in Appalachia and demonstrates the importance of environmental quality for public health.

The first-of-its-kind study, published this month in the peer-reviewed journal “EcoHealth,” evaluated the relationship between human cancer mortality rates and the organisms that live in streams known as benthic macroinvertebrates. This study provides the first peer-reviewed analysis of the relationship between stream ecosystem integrity and human health.

The authors of the study, Nathaniel Hitt, Ph.D., of Virginia Tech, and Michael Hendryx, Ph.D., of West Virginia University, used data from state and federal databases to compare stream quality and cancer rates in West Virginia. They observed the highest cancer rates in areas with the most biologically-impoverished streams and vice versa. They also observed that streams provided information about public health above and beyond known risk factors including smoking, poverty and urbanization.

“Our research shows the importance of streams for people,” Dr. Hitt said.

“We learned that some of the smallest organisms living in streams can provide a warning system for one of the largest human health problems, cancer.”

“We found that cancer rates are linked to environmental quality even after accounting for other major risks such as smoking,” Dr. Hendryx said.

“Furthermore, we saw that the most impaired streams were in close proximity to coal surface mines. This adds to the body of evidence that coal mining is harmful to ecosystems and human health.”

This research required a new interdisciplinary collaboration. Dr. Hendryx is an epidemiologist in the WVU Department of Community Medicine. Dr. Hitt is a stream ecologist and conducted this research with the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences at Virginia Tech. The combination of their diverse backgrounds enabled this groundbreaking research.

“Regulation of coal mining is often portrayed as a choice between ‘mayflies and miners,’” Emily Bernhardt, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology at Duke University, said. “However, this study

shows how streams are important for the health and welfare of miners and their communities.”

“This paper really drives home the fact that it is not just streams and stream animals that we are losing in the surface mining regions of Appalachia, but also the health and well-being of women, children and men,” Margaret Palmer, Ph.D., professor of entomology and biology at the University of Maryland, said.

Colin Soskolne, Ph.D., associate editor of “EcoHealth” and professor of public

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health and environmental epidemiologist at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, said the approach taken by Hitt and Hendryx exemplifies how innovative methods can improve the understanding of the complex connections between environmental quality and public health.

The study can be accessed online at: www.springerlink.com/content/lu7wgk595v1hh m64/?p=88410a34adb64810a01c45aa7546d 3a2& pi=0. For More Information contact Amy Johns, HSC News Service 304-293-7087 or email johnsa@wvuh.com

We Practice What We Teach West Virginia University’s Charleston Division is the nation’s oldest regional medical education campus, housing divisions of the West Virginia University Schools of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy and Social Work.

At the WVU/CAMC Charleston Division campus, some 100 faculty and 400 clinical faculty provide training and educational oversight to both students from West Virginia University’s Schools of Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy and to the CAMC residency programs.

Through its partnership with Charleston Area Medical Center, West Virginia Univsersity Charleston educates over 500 students, researches in over 500 areas, hospitalizes over 40,000 patients, and treats over 200,000 outpatients. Our services reach over 25 counties on any given day.

Our practice plan, the West Virginia University Physicians of Charleston, includes providers that specialize in everything from primary to specialty care and from pediatrics to geriatrics. In addition to practicing medicine, each doctor is on the faculty at the West Virginia University School of Medicine. As mentors in the medical field, dedicated to training a new generation of doctors, our physicians have a passion for knowledge that pushes them to learn more.

Our doctors aren’t content just to practice medicine -- they’re committed to teaching it, too.

West Virginia University Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center Charleston Division 3110 MacCorkle Avenue, SE Charleston, WV 25304

(304) 347-1300

www.wvupc.com

www.hsc.wvu.edu/charleston

Premiere Issue 2010

WV Physician • Page 19

How Interest Rate Changes May Affect Your Investments Jeffery Thomas, AAMS Financial Advisor For many Americans living through the economic recession of the past several years, dealing with the affects of interest rates has become as inevitable as death and taxes.

The rise and fall of interest rates is one of the biggest factors influencing the economy, financial markets and our daily lives. That’s why it is important to have a basic understanding of how interest rate changes could affect not only your wallet but also your investment portfolio.

Simply put, interest rates help control the flow of money in the economy.Typically the Federal Reserve lowers interest rates to jump-start the economy. Lower interest rates mean consumers may be willing to spend more money and incur more debt. This stimulates the economy in a variety of ways, including increased revenues from products sold to the consumers and taxes generated from those sales.

Investors, on the other hand, have a different perspective.

Bond Investors: As interest rates fall, the prices of previously issued bonds tend to rise. The new issues are offered at lower, less appealing rates. That makes bonds with higher interest rates much more desirable and that much more in demand. On the other hand, those who plan to hold their bonds to maturity aren’t really affected by falling rates, with the exception of reinvestment risk.

One way issuers may take advantage of falling rates, is by calling their outstanding bonds and issuing new bonds at lower rates. This can hurt those whose bonds have been called because they can’t reinvest at the rate they were previously receiving. To offset that risk, it’s important to make sure you don’t have too many callable bonds in your portfolio. Your fixed-income investments should be diversified to withstand rising and falling rates.

Stock Investors: Falling interest rates tend to have a positive impact on the stock market, especially stocks of growth companies. The companies that tend to borrow money to finance expansions also tend to benefit from declining rates. Paying lower interest rates decreases the cost of their debt, which may positively affect their bottom line. The stock prices of those companies may rise as a result, driving the market in such a way that prices of other stocks may follow suit.

When the Federal Reserve decides to raise interest rates, its goal is usually to slow down an overheating economy. Interest rates tend to affect the economy slowly – it can take as long as 12 to 18 months for the effects of the

change to permeate the entire economy. Slowly, the cost of borrowing increases, banks lend less money and businesses put growth and expansion on hold. Consumers may begin to cut back on spending because they realize they don’t have as much disposable income as they once did. This reverses the effects that lower interest rates had on the economy and, again, investors are affected differently.

Bond investors: When interest rates shoot up, the demand for bonds with lower interest rates typically falls, which decreases their value. That’s because new bond issues are offered at higher rates.

Stock investors: Depending on the current market environment, rising interest rates can have a positive or negative impact on the stock market. In some cases, rising rates can send jitters through the market, resulting in falling stock prices. In other cases, the stock market will respond favorably.

In addition, rising interest rates may affect certain industry groups more than others. For instance, because growth companies borrow money in order to expand, rising interest rates increase the cost of their debt, which in turn decreases profit (or increases loss). As a result, the prices of their stocks may fall.

If you’re interested in learning more about what changing interest rates mean for you, a Financial Advisor can help you better understand the effects interest rates may have on your portfolio.

Stocks offer long-term growth potential, but may fluctuate more and provide less current income than other investments. Bonds offer a fixed rate of return and investment principal if held to maturity. In addition to market and interest rate risk, bonds are also subject to default risk, the risk that companies or individuals will be unable to make the required payments on their debt obligations. ■ Jeffery Thomas has been a Financial Advisor for more than twenty-five years. He welcomes questions and discussions on investing and can be reached at 888-645-4634.

Investments in securities and insurance products are: NOT FDIC-INSURED/NOT BANK-GUARANTEED/MAY LOSE VALUE Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC, Member SIPC, is a registered broker-dealer and a separate non-bank affiliate ofWells Fargo & Company.

Page 20 • WV Physician

Premiere Issue 2010

Best Rated for Joint Replacement Best Rated Joint Replacement Three for Years in a Row! Three Years in a Row!

For the third consecutive year, Cabell Huntington Hospital has been the only hospital in Huntington and the Tri-State Area to receive the Joint Replacement Excellence Award™ from HealthGrades®, the nation’s leading provider of independent hospital ratings.

HealthGrades® recently released its Twelfth HealthGrades Qualityand in America Study*, For the third consecutive year, Cabell Huntington Hospital has Annual been the only hospitalHospital in Huntington the Tri-State Area announcing following outstanding qualityAward™ achievements for Cabell Huntington Hospital: to receive thethe Joint Replacement Excellence from HealthGrades®, the nation’s leading provider of independent

hospital ratings. HealthGrades® recently released its Twelfth Annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study*, • Recipient the of the HealthGrades® Joint Replacement Excellence Award three years in a row. announcing following outstanding quality achievements for Cabell Huntington Hospital: • Ranked among the Top 10% in the Nation for Joint Replacement three years in a row.

Five-Star Rated Joint Replacement three years inExcellence a row.

••Recipient of the for HealthGrades® Joint Replacement Award three years in a row.

• Five-Star Rated for Knee Replacement three years in a row.

• Ranked among the Top 10% in the Nation for Joint Replacement three years in a row.

Best Rated in the Areayears for Joint and Overall Orthopedics three years in a row.

••Five-Star Rated for Huntington/Tri-State Joint Replacement three in aReplacement row.

• Five-Star Rated for Knee Replacement three years in a row. you’re considering joint replacement surgery outcomes important to you,three call (304) •IfBest Rated in the Huntington/Tri-State Area for and Jointquality Replacement andare Overall Orthopedics years 526-2607 in a row. to schedule an appointment.

If you’re considering joint replacement surgery and quality outcomes are important to you, call (304) 526-2607 to schedule an appointment.

2010

2010 *This study, the largest of its kind, analyzed patient outcomes at virtually all of the nation’s 5,000 hospitals over the years 2006, 2007 and 2008.

*This study, the largest of its kind, analyzed patient outcomes at virtually all of the nation’s 5,000 hospitals over the years 2006, 2007 and 2008.