Friday, May 26, 2006
Children's Hospital Welcomes New Infant Ambulance
 A new neonatal and pediatric ambulance equipped with state-of-the-art patient care and safety features has arrived at Sacred Heart Hospital to replace a nearly 20-year-old transport vehicle. The new ambulance transports newborns and children from other healthcare facilities to Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital in Pensacola. “The ambulance mainly will be used to pick up sick babies at other community hospitals in Northwest Florida and bring them to Sacred Heart to be cared for in our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit,” said Melba Darden, administrative director of Children’s Services at Sacred Heart. “In addition, it will be used to transport sick or injured children from other healthcare facilities to our Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Sacred Heart. The addition of this new ambulance truly is a blessing for our community’s children.” The new, custom-built vehicle cost $212,000, and cost to equip the vehicle was $125,000, including a $100,000 transport isolette. A grant was awarded from the state Emergency Medical Services agency, and other community support came from Food World, the Senior Bowl and the Kugelman Foundation. The vehicle, which can accommodate two full stretchers end to end, is spacious enough to transport twins and a double care team in one trip. A crew of nine can be seated comfortably inside the ambulance. Features include a 2007 International Navistar lowrider extended-cab chassis, which was chosen to provide a smooth ride, “a clinically significant issue with our small babies,” said Darden. Other features include: - Medication refrigerator
- X-ray view box
- Blanket warmer
- Electric liquid-crystal windows that turn opaque for privacy
- DVD player to keep children entertained
- Oxygen and air hook-up in ceiling for crew safety
Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital has been providing pediatric care to sick and injured babies and children for the past 37 years.
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Thursday, May 25, 2006
Sacred Heart Home Care Offers Free Caregivers’ Workshop on June 7
Sacred Heart Home Care offers free training to individuals responsible for caring for people who are coping with health problems or medical conditions. The next workshop will be held on Wednesday, June 7, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Sacred Heart Home Care in downtown Pensacola, 213 E. Wright St.
The program covers topics including caregivers’ rights, goals of medical treatment, end-of-life issues, tube and intravenous feeding, and healthcare surrogate information. Sitters are available to allow caregivers to attend the program.
These workshops are funded by the Florida Department of Elder Affairs and the Northwest Florida Area Agency on Aging. Sacred Heart Home Care’s social workers serve as instructors.
To register for a caregivers’ workshop, call Sacred Heart Home Care’s Social Services Department at (850) 470-9288 or toll free 1-877-470-9288.
Latest Weight-Loss Surgery Techniques are Topic of Seminar on June 15
Dr. Jeffrey L. Lord, a specialist in laparoscopic weight loss surgery, will present “Weight Loss Surgery: Is It Right for You?” on Thursday, June 15, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Sacred Heart Hospital Conference Center in Pensacola.
The only board-certified bariatric surgeon in Northwest Florida with advanced fellowship training in weight loss surgery, Dr. Lord serves as director of the Sacred Heart Institute for Surgical Weight Loss. He has special expertise in minimally invasive surgical weight loss procedures. Dr. Lord and the Institute for Surgical Weight Loss can perform two types of weight loss surgery that use small incisions. The first is laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery, which involves a permanent rerouting of the digestive system that leaves patients with a small stomach pouch. The surgery creates a bypass that reroutes food around most of the small intestine.
The second, newer approach performed at Sacred Heart is adjustable gastric banding. Using a laparoscope, the surgeon places an inflatable band around the stomach, creating a small upper pouch at the top, with restricted passage to the rest of the stomach. This pouch fills quickly and creates a feeling of fullness.
Dr. Lord and his staff provide comprehensive evaluation of clinically obese patients to determine their candidacy for these life-changing procedures as well as extensive patient/family education to create a foundation for a healthy lifestyle.
Reservations are required for this free seminar. To make a reservation or to obtain more information, please call (850) 416-1628.
Saturday, May 13, 2006
Dr. Turnage To Discuss Shoulder Injuries, Arthroscopic Surgery
Sacred Heart Hospital will present a free Joint Pain Seminar in Pensacola on Monday, May 22, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Dudley Greenhut Auditorium on Sacred Heart’s Ninth Avenue campus.
The seminar, presented by Dr. Kirby Turnage, will discuss the benefits of arthroscopic joint surgery with particular attention to rotator cuff disease.
Dr. Turnage, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon, specializes in both adolescent and adult sports medicine and arthroscopic surgery of the knee and shoulder.
Seating is limited and reservations are required. Light refreshments will be provided.
For more information or to make a reservation, please call 850-416-1600.
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Friday, May 12, 2006
Sacred Heart to Present Nationally Known Speaker on Hurricanes on May 15
***EVENT FOR HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS ONLY***
Dr. Scott Norwood, a nationally known speaker from Louisiana who shares lessons learned from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, will speak at Sacred Heart Hospital’s Trauma Grand Rounds on Monday, May 15, from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. in the Dudley Greenhut Auditorium. All area healthcare professionals are invited to attend the free program.
Dr. Norwood serves as director of Trauma Service at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge. The title of his presentation is “Hurricanes Katrina and Rita: Short- and Long-Term Effects on Medical Care in Southern Louisiana.”No pre-registration is required for the program.
Contact hours are pending for nursing, respiratory care, social work and laboratory professionals. Doctors, pharmacists and nursing home administrators should contact the Medical Education Council of Pensacola at (850) 477-4956 for education credit information.
For more information, please call Steve Morse in Education & Training Services at (850) 416-7264.
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Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Bariatric Seminar Set for May 11
Dr. Jeffrey L. Lord, a specialist in laparoscopic weight loss surgery, will present “Weight Loss Surgery: Is It Right for You?” on Thursday, May 11, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Sacred Heart Hospital Conference Center in Pensacola.
A board certified, fellowship-trained surgeon who serves as director of the Sacred Heart Institute for Surgical Weight Loss, Dr. Lord has special expertise in minimally invasive surgical weight loss procedures. Dr. Lord and the Institute for Surgical Weight Loss can perform two types of weight loss surgery that use small incisions. The first is laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery, which involves a permanent rerouting of the digestive system that leaves patients with a small stomach pouch. The surgery creates a bypass that reroutes food around most of the small intestine.
The second, newer approach performed at Sacred Heart is adjustable gastric banding. Using a laparoscope, the surgeon places an inflatable band around the stomach, creating a small upper pouch at the top, with restricted passage to the rest of the stomach. This pouch fills quickly and creates a feeling of fullness.
Dr. Lord and his staff provide comprehensive evaluation of clinically obese patients to determine their candidacy for these life-changing procedures as well as extensive patient/family education to create a foundation for a healthy lifestyle.
Reservations are required for this free seminar. To make a reservation or to obtain more information, please call (850) 416-1628 or visit www.sacred-heart.org.
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Seniors’ Seminar to Focus on Savings Bonds
Sacred Heart Hospital’s Senior Services’ program will present a free seminar on U.S. Savings Bonds in Pensacola on Thursday, May 18, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at Sacred Heart Home Care, 213 E. Wright St.
Speaker will be Annalee Leonard, a certified senior advisor and president of Mainstay Financial Group in Gulf Breeze. The seminar will address the three stages of maturity of savings bonds, the obligations of the purchaser at each stage, the proper way to title bonds, and how to track them.
Registration is required and seating is limited. To register, call (850) 416-1620 or 1-877-416-1620.
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Thursday, May 04, 2006
Mission in Motion Offers Free Screenings to Needy, Elderly, and Uninsured
 Sacred Heart Health System’s mobile health unit will provide free health screenings in May at sites in Escambia, Santa Rosa and Walton counties. Sacred Heart’s Mission in Motion program targets persons who are poor, uninsured, or elderly.
The mobile unit will provide blood screenings to measure blood pressure, blood sugar, total cholesterol and blood count. The schedule is as follows:
• Friday, May 5, by the main entrance to Sacred Heart Hospital, from 1 to 4 p.m. as part of Sacred Heart’s Stroke Prevention Health Fair.
• Wednesday, May 10, Cantonment Council on Aging on Aging, 132 Mintz Lane, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
• Tuesday, May 16, at Bayview Senior Center, 20th and Lloyd streets in Pensacola, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
• Friday, May 19, at Milestone Aquatics, 35 New Market, Cantonment, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
• Thursday, May 25 at Davisville School, Highway 97, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
• Friday, May 26 at St. Margaret Catholic Church, 247 US Highway 331 North, Defuniak Springs, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
• Tuesday, May 30, at Waterfront Rescue Mission Bargain Store, 4467 Avalon Blvd, Milton, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
Mission in Motion is a community service of Sacred Heart Health System, celebrating 90 years of service to Northwest Florida. The mobile unit is funded by Sacred Heart Health System and staffed by nurses and a driver.
The mobile unit’s services also are made possible by support from the law firm of Kerrigan, Estess, Rankin and McLeod, as well as the Gannett Foundation and other community donors. For more information, call (850) 416-7826.
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Sacred Heart Seminar to Discuss Avoidable Estate Planning Mistakes
Sacred Heart Foundation will host a free planned giving seminar on “Avoidable Estate Planning Mistakes” on Thursday, May 25, at 11:30 a.m. at the Sacred Heart Lecture Hall at Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola.
Attorneys Gary Hicks and Michael Cumpton, senior partners with the law firm of Ryan, Hicks, Cumpton & Cumpton, LLP, will speak on issues concerning estate planning, wills, trusts and probate.
In addition, they will cover how to leave property to your heirs, how to minimize federal estate taxes, and how to protect assets inherited by your heirs from lawsuits, divorce and other claims.
Ryan, Hicks, Cumpton & Cumpton, LLP has offices in Pensacola, Mobile, and Huntsville, Ala. Mr. Hicks and Mr. Cumpton are also the authors of two books on wills and living trusts and are frequent lecturers on these issues.
The program is sponsored by Gulf Coast Community Bank and includes a complimentary lunch. Seating is limited and reservations are required.
For more information or to make a reservation, please call Sacred Heart Foundation at (850) 416-4660.
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Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Preemie Cup Regatta to Support NICU at Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital
PENSACOLA, Fla. – Attention all sailors! Hoist the main sail and batten down the hatches for the Preemie Cup Regatta May 12 and 13 on Pensacola Beach, benefiting the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital. The festivities will begin at 6:00 p.m. Friday, May 12, with a fish dinner and silent auction at Flounder’s Chowder House. The fun will continue the next morning, Saturday, May 13, with a double-handed sailing race at Pensacola Beach Yacht Club, followed by a great post-race meal. Registration for the regatta begins at 9 a.m. and the Skipper’s Meeting is at 10:30 a.m. The race will start at 12 p.m. Tickets for Friday’s food and auction are $15 per person. The registration fee for Saturday’s regatta and post-race meal is $40 which includes two tickets for the Friday night party. The Preemie Cup Regatta is sponsored by Pediatrix Medical Group; Trawick Orthodontics; and Kid’s Dentist - Stu Bonnin, DMD. For more information on the race or the NOR, call the Pensacola Beach Yacht Club Principal Race Officer at (850) 968-8796. For more information and reservations to the Friday dinner party, call Shea Hale at (850) 416-4661 or visit www.sacred-heart.org.
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Annual Pediatrics Symposium and Life Support Courses to be Held May 25-29 in Destin
The Medical Educational Council of Pensacola (MECOP) will present two education events in May designed for physicians and healthcare professionals who work in the field of pediatrics. Both events will be held at the Sandestin Beach Hilton Golf and Tennis Resort in Destin. Following are the programs, which are jointly sponsored by Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital, Nemours Children’s Clinic, and the University of Florida College of Medicine’s Department of Pediatrics. - May 25-26: Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) courses
- May 27-29: The 37th Annual Pediatrics Symposium: Update 2006
The PALS course will be offered at the following times: - Thursday, May 25: 11 a.m. - 7 p.m., PALS training/certification
- Friday, May 26: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., PALS training/certification and PALS re-certification
PALS course director is William Blanchard, MD, co-director, Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital. The PALS faculty include Robert Patterson, MD, Mark Stavros, MD, Phyllis Hope, MD, Robert Dillard, MD, and Vickie Bush, RN. The Pediatrics Symposium is designed for physicians in pediatrics and family medicine as well as other healthcare team members interested in the latest information on the clinical management of pediatric patients. Edward Kohaut, MD, chief of pediatric nephrology at Nemours Children’s Clinic in Pensacola and director of Sacred Heart’s pediatric residency program, is the conference director and will also lecture. Faculty include Dr. Stephen G. Kimmel, pediatric general and thoracic surgeon, Nemours Children’s Clinic, Pensacola; Dr. J. Benjamin Renfroe, Children Neurology Center of Northwest Florida, Pensacola; Dr. Vinit Mahesh, associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics, University of Alabama School of Medicine, Birmingham; Dr. Russell Steele, division head, Ochsner for Children, Tulane Medical School, New Orleans; Dr. Don P. Wilson, chair, Department of Pediatrics, Texas A&M University College of Medicine, Temple, Texas; Dr. Alan Sacks, division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Nemours Children’s Clinic, Pensacola; and Karen Haggerott, PhD, Adult and Pediatric Neuropsychology Center, Pensacola. To register, or for more information about the PALS courses and Pediatric Symposium, please contact MECOP at (850) 477-4985 or visit www.mecop.org.
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Sacred Heart Cancer Center Announces Affiliation with M. D. Anderson Cancer Manager® Program
Pensacola, Fla. – Sacred Heart Health System announced today that it has formed an affiliation with M. D. Anderson Physicians Network® to further enhance the level of cancer care available to eligible patients in Northwest Florida and Baldwin County, Ala.
M. D. Anderson Physicians Network is an affiliate of The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, a research driven institute that is consistently ranked by U.S. News and World Report among the nation’s top two cancer treatment centers. Because of the excellent care that Sacred Heart and its physicians already provide, M. D. Anderson Physicians Network selected Sacred Heart as an ally in the fight against cancer.
Dr. David Tubergen, medical director of M. D. Anderson Physicians Network, said Sacred Heart is one of only six healthcare systems in the nation and the only one in Northwest Florida to provide services under the M. D. Anderson Cancer Manager® program. The program is a full-service oncology disease management program. It provides patients enrolled in the program with access to more than 100 detailed regimens for the diagnosis and treatment of almost every type and stage of cancer.
“It is an honor to be selected as an affiliate of this most prestigious cancer treatment leader,” said Patrick J. Madden, president and CEO of Sacred Heart Health System. “It is a tribute to the excellent work and reputation of our physicians and staff. Only excellent cancer programs are approved for affiliation with M. D. Anderson Physicians Network. We look forward to sharing in the wealth of research and clinical expertise available through this program. We are taking our community’s fight against cancer to a new level.”
Following a three-month implementation period, eligible patients at Sacred Heart will have access to M. D. Anderson’s guidelines and innovative treatments.
“Ultimately, our mission is to eliminate cancer,” said Tubergen. “We want to give hospitals around the country the tools they need to bring the highest standard of cancer care to their communities. Sacred Heart Health System is a perfect ally to help us achieve this goal.”
Sacred Heart’s cancer program has undergone a rigorous review of standards and practices to ensure it meets M. D. Anderson’s standards of care. Participating physicians are going through a lengthy credentialing process, including an assessment of the physicians’ office practices and a medical record review, which will allow Sacred Heart’s physicians to be credentialed into M. D. Anderson Physicians Network.
"This affiliation will enhance the services available to patients by providing additional resources and technology to our physicians, enabling them to offer the latest evidence-based treatment guidelines using the M. D. Anderson multidisciplinary treatment process.” said Dr. Joanne Bujnoski, medical director of the James Baroco Cancer Center at Sacred Heart Hospital.
Patients will have access through the M. D. Anderson Cancer Manager® program to Sacred Heart physicians who follow the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center guidelines for treating cancer. However, if the need arises for a patient to travel to Houston for care, Sacred Heart’s affiliation with M. D. Anderson Physicians Network provides unique support services to ease that transition. Those services include: scheduling of timely appointments, meeting patients upon their arrival at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and escorting them to appointments, a discount on lodging services in Houston, and personal coordination of other aspects of medical care.
About Sacred Heart Health System
Celebrating its 90th year, Sacred Heart Health System has established itself as Northwest Florida’s most preferred hospital and its leader in providing high quality health care to children and adults. Key services of the 449-bed hospital in Pensacola include: a Regional Heart and Vascular Institute, Children’s and Women’s Hospital, a Level II Trauma Center, Cancer Center, a home health agency, a 120-bed nursing home and a network of primary care doctors that stretches from Foley, Alabama to Panama City Beach, Florida. In 2003, the Health System also added Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast, a 50-bed community hospital near Destin. Sacred Heart provides cancer patients with advanced technologies such as a PET/CT for detecting cancer and IMRT for state-of-the-art radiation therapy. Sacred Heart also offers the services of board certified oncologists, radiation oncologists and a gynecologic oncologist in Pensacola. In Baldwin County, Sacred Heart provides medical oncology services through the services of its new Medical Oncology Group location in Malbis. For more information, call 850-416-7000 or visit www.sacred-heart.org.
About M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Located in Houston, Texas, on the sprawling campus of the Texas Medical Center, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center is one of the world’s most respected centers devoted exclusively to cancer care, research, education and prevention. M. D. Anderson was founded in 1941 and has treated more than 600,000 patients. This year, about 75,000 patients will seek treatment at M. D. Anderson, with more than half those patients traveling from outside Texas. A research-driven institute, M. D. Anderson ranks first in the number of research grants awarded by the National Cancer Institute, boasting ten programs recognized by the NCI as Specialized Programs of Research Excellence.
Media Contacts:
Mike Burke, Sacred Heart Health System, 850-416-6304
Brigid Pace, M.D. Anderson Physicians Network, 713-745-9607
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