Hanging on to hope
Copas home still has a chance
A4
Lagoon advocates
Council seeking Federal funds
A10
Art investing for the chimps Save the Chimps hosts art auction
B7
ST. LUCIE WEST • TRADITION
YourVoiceWeekly.com VOL. 4/ISSUE 37
YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER
FRIDAY, JULY 15, 2016
Vanguard of medical science
Photo by Patrick McCallister Bottles of blue-green algae headed to Washington D.C.
Water for Congress Murphy collects water to bring to Washington D.C. Patrick McCallister STAFF WRITER
Photo provided by Martin Health Systems Craig Wengler, MD, a breast cancer surgeon with Martin Health, prepares to provide radiation treatment to a breast cancer patient using intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) technology.
pmccallister@YourVoiceWeekly.com
Martin Health Systems in Tradition looking for the answers
TREASURE COAST — Sunday, July 10, was a sunny morning by the St. Lucie River. There were few boats on the water. There was a light breeze, however. When it shifted westward, everyone groaned. A small bay nearby was covered in a thick blanket of cyanobacteria, blue-green algae. When the sun hit it right, the algae bloom looked like a solid, beautiful alien landscape one could walk on. It glimmered in rich, surreal colors.
Adam Laten Willson
FOR YOUR VOICE NEWS & VIEWS
TRADITION — Martin Health System (MHS) continues to be at the forerunner in medical science, after 77 years of providing health care to the Treasure Coast. “We really try to make sure that we’re providing the kind of care
that you would find in a larger city,” says communication director Scott Samples. “This area has been growing for quite some time. We’ve tried to stay at the forefront of a lot of technology that is out there.” Since opening in 2013, the Tradition campus alone has seen such demand they’ve already initiated a second-phase expansion that will double the amount of hospital rooms to 180, add medical offices, and install new specialized facilities by 2018. One of these facilities will be a
new catheterization unit. In May, MHS introduced an innovative alternative to open-heart surgery: Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement or TAVR. This procedure is offered to patients with aortic stenosis (narrowing of the aortic valve) who because of age or certain comorbidities may be ineligible for surgery. The procedure installs a new valve with the use of a catheter inserted through a small incision in the groin and fluoroscopy,
See MHS page A3
See WATER page A6
ECRWSS
Local Postal Customer
28352
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID FORT PIERCE, FL PERMIT NO. 248