connectLawrence MeMoriaL HospitaL

Spring 2010

Getting to the heart of echocardiography

Hearts of Gold Ball: A community favorite

Hands-on tips for healthy gardening

healthy

How does your garden grow? Visit www.lmh.org for a planting guide for our area.© iStockphoto.com/mosquito2

Dana White, a certified hand therapist at LMH’s Kreider Rehabilitation Services, offers these tips for healthy gardening this year. • Limitrepetitiveactivitiesandsustainedpositioningto

fewerthan30minutes.• Workduringthetimeofdaywhenyoufeelthebest.• Spreadgardeningandyardactivitiesoverseveraldays

versusoneday.• Weedyourgardenwhenthesoilismoist.• Wearglovestoprotecthandsandtopreventskin

breakdown.• Listentoyourbody.Respectyourpain.• Ifpossible,workbelowshoulderlevel.• Limittheamountoftimedoingactivitiesoverhead

tofiveminutesorless.• Neverlockyourelbowsinastraightposition,evenwhen

carryingbuckets.• Whenpullingweedsorbulbsavoidgrabbingandturning

yourpalmupwardsrepetitively.• Trytoworkwithyourthumbspointingup.

• Lookforlight-weightand/orlargegriptools.• Lookforhandlesthatarenotstraight,butcontourtothe

shapeofyourhand,preferablythosethatarecylindricalin shape.

• Uselongertoolstominimizebending.• Avoidbeingthepainfulweekendwarrior.Askforhelp

orspreadworkoutoveralongerperiodoftime.• Trytoavoidexcessivewristmotionsinupward,

downward and sideways positions.• Limittheamountofforceusedwhenholding

gardening tools. • Tryraisedbedsthatcanbeaccessedatwaistlevelor

fromachair.• Usetrellisesandcontainers.• Usethecorrecttools—forexample,asmallspademay

workbetterthanatrowelforcertaintasks.• Avoidbeinginapositionwhereyourspineisinaforward

flexedpositioncontinuouslyformorethan20minutes.• Practicegoodpostureinallpositions.• Avoidactivitiesthatrequireoverextendedreaching.

Kreider Rehabilitation Servicesoffers comprehensive inpatient and outpatient

physical, occupational and speech-language

therapy. The center is home to therapists with

collective clinical experience of more than

300 years — and an average length of service

spanning more than a decade. The staff

members of Kreider Rehabilitation Services

are highly trained in a variety of clinical areas

and have achieved advanced training in a

number of clinical specialties.

Staff members are certified:• Indizzinessandbalancerehabilitation• BytheArthritisFoundationasan

AquaticProgramLeader• Withachievementinpelvicpain

rehabilitation• InKinesio® taping• ToadministertheLeeSilverman

VoiceTreatment(LSVT)• Inmanuallymphdrainagetechniques• Inspinalmanualtherapy• InperinatalfitnessbytheInternational

ChildbirthEducationAssociation

KreiderRehabilitation,aserviceof LMH, has two convenient locations:

LMH Main Campus 325MaineSt. Lawrence,KS66044 (785)505-2712

LMH South 3500ClintonPlace Lawrence,KS66047 (785)505-3780

Hands-ontipsfor

gardening

www.lmh.org 3

Lawrence General Surgery joined Lawrence Memorial Hospital as an affiliated physician practice January 1, 2010. Though the practice itself is new, serving the community is an established tradition.The physicians in the group have more than 60 years of combined experience.

Continuity of careLawrenceGeneralSurgery

providescontinuityofcarebykeepingboth referring physicians and patients informed.Theyworkcloselywith patientstoreviewtreatmentoptionsand provide referring physicians with theinformationtheyneedtomonitortherecoveryprocess.Thesurgeons performavarietyofsurgicalproce-duresinnew,state-of-the-artsurgicalfacilities.Inordertominimizerecoverytimesandreturnpatientstotheir highestleveloffunctioning,theyfocusonminimallyinvasivelaparoscopicsurgicalinterventions.Inaddition, theyspecializeinthetreatmentof:• Breastdisease• Hernias• Abdominalissues

Meet the physiciansCheryl A. Rice, MD | Dr.Riceisaboard-certifiedgeneral surgeon.ShecompletedaninternshipandaresidencyingeneralsurgeryatSt.LouisUniversityinSt.Louis,Mo.SheearnedhermedicaldegreefromtheUniversityofKansasSchoolofMedicine, and her bachelor’s degree inchemistryfromTaborCollegeinHillsboro, Kan.

William L. Freund Jr., MD, MBA | Dr.Freundisaboard-certifiedgeneralsurgeon.Hecompletedasurgical residencyandamaster’sdegreein businessadministrationinNorthCarolina.HeearnedhismedicaldegreefromtheUniversityofKansasSchoolof Medicine and his bachelor’s degree fromtheUniversityofKansas.

Steve W. Myrick, MD, FACS | Dr.Myrickisaboard-certifiedgeneralsurgeon.In1982hejoinedagroupof surgeonswhohadbeenservingthe Lawrencecommunitysince1951. Dr.MyrickgrewupinwesternKansas,receivedhisbachelor’sdegreefromtheUniversityofKansasandhismedical degreefromtheUniversityofKansasSchool of Medicine.

Mark A. Praeger, MD, FACS | Dr.Praegerisaboard-certifiedgeneral surgeon.HecametoLawrencein1977afterserving10yearsinthe U.S.ArmyMedicalCorps.HeisagraduateoftheUniversityofKansasandtheUniversityofKansasSchoolofMedicine.

LawrenceGeneralSurgeryislocatedin themedicalbuildingontheLMHcampusat330Arkansas,Suite202,Lawrence,Kan.,66044.Thephonenumberis785-505-2200.

Experienced physicians adopt new nameLawrence General Surgery

Inarecentonlinesurveyof arearesidents,

LawrenceMemorialHospitallearnedsomevaluable

information about consumer understanding and

awareness of hospital quality. Key findings include:

• 76%wereawarethatthequalityof careprovided

by a hospital can be statistically measured;

however,96%haveneverresearchedthese

measurements

• 60%saidtheymightoccasionallyusequalityof

care measurements if they were easily accessible,

and29%saidtheywouldalwaysusethem.

To educate the community about hospital quality

data,LMHhasdevelopedanewWebsite:

www.lmh.org/qualitymatters. The site includes

tools that explain and compare hospital quality data

and clinical outcomes.

“Webelievequalityhealthcaremattersbecauseit

leads to excellent patient outcomes,” says Jennifer

Brooks,directorof QualityServicesandRisk

ManagementatLMH.“WedevelopedthisWebsite

so the public can easily access unbiased information

to make educated decisions about their families’

health care.”

Brooksexplainsthatqualityismeasuredinthe

clinical outcomes achieved, such as infections and

readmissions to the hospital, and in compliance

withnationalqualityindicators.LMHalsomeasures

thepatient’sexperience,evaluatingmorethan10

criteriareportedbyhospitalpatientsinstandardized

satisfaction surveys.

“These quality process and patient satisfaction

measures allow you to compare our care to national

and state averages of other hospitals,” she says.

“Wewantthecommunitytolearnwhyquality

mattersatLMHandhowwecollaboratetoensure

patient safety.”

at LMH

4 www.lmh.org

Inatownthesizeof Lawrence,population90,000,itseemsrare that a black-tie fundraiser would become a tradition that keeps people coming back for more and has community volunteerslininguptohelpplanit.Butthatisexactlywhat happenseveryotheryear,whenLMHEndowmentAssociationsponsorstheHeartsof GoldBall.

Since1999,thebiennialeventhasretaineditsstatusasoneof the community’s premier social events and serves as an integral part of the hospital’s fundraising efforts. Each time, it hasraisedupwardsof $100,000foraspeciallyearmarkedproject at the hospital, including expanded services in radiology, cardiology, oncology and emergency care, as well as helping with the creation of the special care nursery.

LawrenceresidentandformerLMHEABoardMember JanMcCullough,whohelpedpioneertheconcept,remembers vividlyhowtheideacametofruition.Aftersponsoringa somewhatsuccessful,smallereventthatincludedanItalian buffet and silent auction, she and others on the Endowment Boarddecidedtoexpandtheproject.

“Weknewthatoutsidetheuniversity,Lawrencedidn’thavea black-tie event, so we decided to go with something formal,” shesays.“Wewantedtoraisealotof money,too,socombininga ball with an auction made sense.”

Jan says it was decided from the onset that the ball would be a biennial fundraiser, a concept she believes is key to the event’s success.

“Becauseourcommunityisnotlargeandlocalbusiness professionals are continually asked to provide corporate sponsorships for a variety of good causes, it was important to

askfortheircontributionswiththatinmind,”shesays.“Wedidn’t want to make them feel tapped out with regard to the do-nationstheymade,andIthinkithasresultedinmorewillingnesson their part when the event rolls around once every two years.”

She believes the community continues to rally around the idea — not only because the event is so much fun, but also because there is a strong desire to support such a good cause. Althoughhersixyearsof serviceontheEndowmentBoardarebehind her, she remains actively involved on steering committees andchairedtheeventsin2003,2006and2008,alongwithherhusbandKent,andWayneandDonnaOsness.Shesaystheballhasgainedsuchpopularitythatabout100eagervolunteersjointhe planning committees.

NancyLonghurst,formermemberandpresidentof theBoard,isanotherof theHeartsof Goldfounderswhocontinuesto offer her loyal support. She credits the strong volunteer corps forkeepingthetraditionintact.Inadditiontotheslewofpeopleworkingon12differentplanningcommittees,shesaysmanymore volunteers are on board to help the night of the event. She also praises the outpouring of support from local merchants. Allauctionitemsaredonated,asisthefood.

She says another measure of the event’s success lies in the robustticketsalestheballhasenjoyedsinceitsinception.About600peopleattendedthefirstHeartsof Goldgalain1999. Organizersanticipatethisyear’seventwilldraw750.

“There are some physicians and some hospital staff who attend,”shesays.“Butprimarysupportcomesfromthepeopleinthecommunity,whorecognizethatourlocalhospitalisforeverybody, which makes it an extremely good cause.”

a favoriteHearts of Gold Ball

For tickets to this year’s Hearts of Gold Ball, call 785-505-3317. 5

LawrencecardiologistMichaelZabel,MD,canattesttojusthowgreatthecauseis.Proceedsfromthe2003Heartsof GoldBallmadepossiblethecreationof TheBobBillingsCardiacEvaluationCenter,anacute-carediagnosticservicestaffed byCardiovascularSpecialistsof LawrenceandLMHhospitalists.

“The Center allows us to rapidly triage patients and make a plan for their further treatment,”Dr.Zabelsays.

Headdsthathewasthrilledtolearnthisyear’searmarkedprojectisagaintargetedatenhancedcardiacservices.Proceedsfromtheball,aptlynamed“Heartsof Gold–TheBeatGoesOn,”willhelppurchaseadvancedcardiacmonitoringequipment.HighonDr.Zabel’swishlistisaspecializeddiagnosticcamerathatoffersaquicker,morecompletestudyofbloodflowtotheheart.Hesaysthatalthoughthehospitalmayhaveeventuallyseenthesemuch-neededenhancementswithoutfundsfromtheLMHEA,the earmarked funds will be a pivotal contribution in offering improved care in a much timelier manner.

“Lawrencehasawonderful,highlytrainedgroupofcardiologists,butweareonlyasgoodasthetoolswehave,”hesays.“Itisfantasticthatthecommunityvalueswhatwedo enough to put their own money toward state-of-the-art care.”

ConnieSollars,whoischairingthisyear’seventwithAnnMcQueeneyandArdithPierce,echoesDr.Zabel’ssentiment.

“Thegenerosityof ourcommunityneverfailstoastoundme,”Conniesays.“Webraced ourselves for the difficulty of holding the ball and raising money in a challenging business climate, but to date, we have received unparalleled support.”

Shesaysorganizerstrytomaketheeventbiggerandbettereachtime.Planningforthisyear’sballbeganlastJune.Bytheevent’send,severalhundredpeoplewillhavehadan impact on its success.

“Itisarealprivilegetobepartof aneventthatcouldpotentiallyimpactthelifeof anyone living in our community,” she says.

Forticketstothe2010ball—whichwillbeheldSaturday,May1—orformore information,contactMelissaHess,LMHEAdevelopmentspecialist,at785-505-3317.

community tradition Saturday, May 16 p.m.–midnightO’Malley’s Beverage Warehouse 2050 Packer Court

• Buffetdinner• Liveentertainmentby

AtlanticExpress• Dancing• Auction

Proceedswillhelppurchase advanced cardiac monitoring equipment

Individual tickets: $125

Tables for 10 (priority seating): $1,500

For information:MelissaHess,785-505-3317

Pictured above, from left: Jan McCullough, Gene and Carol Meyer, Nancy and David Longhurst, Donna and Wayne Osness, Connie and Gary Sollars

Photos by John Gladman Photography

Dr.ScottSolcher’sdutiesattheKansasDialysisCenterandathisthrivingnephrologypracticekeephimplentybusy—notsurprising,givenhis12successfulyearsinthefield.Sowhywouldthe newest physician to assume the title “chief of staff ” take on this extra administrative task?

“Iwaspleasedtodoit,”hesays.“Ihavealwaysbeeninvolvedinwhateverthecurrentissuesareatthehospital,soIconsideritaprivilegetoserve.”

Dr.Solcher’stwo-yeartermaschief beganinJanuary—and,aswasthecasewith his predecessors, he hit the ground running.

“The landscape of medicine is constantly changing, in terms of technology andprocedures,”Dr.Solchersays.“Therearealwaysissuestoaddresssothat we can stay ahead of the game.”

The chief of staff position entails more than just presiding over regularly scheduled meetings of the hospital’s 228 physicians. The primary duty is to represent the viewpoint of the medical staff tohospitaladministrators,ataskthatrequiresleadershipskillsanddiplomacy.Dr.Solcheris prepared for the job to consume a significant amount of time, including about 20 hours per month in meetings.

Hecitesthehospital’splantoconverttoexclusivelypaperlessrecord-keepingasjustoneex-ample of issues currently facing the medical staff. The conversion will take place this spring and callsforextensivephysiciantraining.Anothertopicof discussionisprovidingasmoothtransferof carebetweenprimarycarephysiciansandthesevenhospitalistsonstaff atLMH.

ChristopherPenn,MD,internalmedicineandinfectiousdiseasespecialist, servedaschief of staff in2006and2007.Hesaysthatalthoughthejobdemanded a fair amount of time outside his regular business hours, he was happy to serve.

“The former chiefs of staff nominate someone for the position, with leadershipbeingoneof thedesirablecharacteristics,”hesays.“Iwashappythey trusted me enough to do it.”

Movementintothepositionisaprogressiveprocess,wherebycandidatesaregroomed to lead; serving as secretary for two years and vice-chief for two years, before taking overaschief.Althoughaformalelectionisheld,Dr.Pennsaysnomineestypicallyrununopposedand election to the position is usually by a consensus type of vote.

LeeReussner,MD,whoservedaschief immediatelypriortoDr.Penn,recallspresidingoverseveralkeyissues.Onewasthedecisiontomoveaheadwithprovidinginterventionalcardiology

atLMHandmakingtheimportantdecisionastowhichcardiologistswouldprovidethatcare.Anotherissuewasadebateabouttrainingandcredential-ingof doctorsperformingC-sections.Hesaysthatwithstrongfeelingsonboth sides, these issues were amicably resolved, a testament to the great groupofphysiciansatLMHandtheirabilitytoeffectivelyworktogether.

“Myjobaschief wasn’tsomuchtosolveaproblem,asitwastotryto promote the appropriate dialogue,” he says.

Chief of staff position one of challenge and privilege

6 Want to honor your doctor? Call the LMH Endowment Association at 785-505-3317.

Dr. Solcher

DocTalkCharles L. Brooks, MD, FACP

Dr.Brooks,a

board-certified

gastroenterologist,

is now practicing

atLawrenceGI

Consultants,346Maine.

Hespecializesinthe

screening, diagnosis and treatment of

conditions associated with the digestive

system, including performing colonoscopy

andesophagogastroduodenoscopy(EGD)

procedures.

Dr.Brookscompletedafellowshipin

gastroenterology at the University of

LouisvilleinKentucky.Hegraduatedwith

distinction, earning a bachelor’s degree in

chemical engineering from the University of

Kansas, and completed his medical degree,

internship and residencies at the University

of KansasMedicalSchool,wherehealso

completed a fellowship in general internal

medicine.HehaspracticedintheKansas

City area for the past 25 years.

Dr.Brooksisboardcertifiedininternal

medicine and gastroenterology by the

AmericanBoardof InternalMedicine.

Heisamemberof theAmerican

GastroenterologyAssociationandthe

AmericanSocietyof Gastrointestinal

Endoscopy.

TomakeanappointmentwithDr.Brooks,

call 785-505-2250.

Dr. Penn

Dr. Reussner

echoEchocardiography (echo) is a

painlesstestthatusessoundwaves (ultrasound)tocreatepicturesoftheheart.Echoisapotentiallylife-savingtest that allows physicians to view the structureoftheheart,seehowtheheartis beating and inspect the valves.

Itiswidelyusedforhospital inpatientsandoutpatients.Becauseechodoesn’tputthepatientindangerandoffersquickresults—thetestusuallyonlytakeslessthananhour—itisusedintheemergencydepartmenttoquicklydiagnoseheartissues.

Onanoutpatientbasis,physiciansgenerallyrecommendechoforpatientswhoexhibitsignsandsymptomsofheartproblems.Ingeneral,patientsexperienc-ing shortness of breath or swelling of the legs are good candidates for the test. Physiciansgenerallyuseechotoview:•Heart size.Anenlargedheartcanbearesultofhighbloodpressure,leakyheartvalves,orheartfailure.

•Heart muscles.Weakenedareasofheartmusclecanbeduetodamageoftheheart.Weaknesscanalsomeantheareaisn’tgettingenoughbloodsupply,whichmaybeduetocoronaryarterydisease.

•Heart valves.Thistestallowsphysi-cians to see if heart valves are opening normallyandareformingacompleteseal when closed.

•Heart structure. Echo can see issuessuchasaholeinthewallofthe heart that separates the two heart chambers.

•Blood clots or tumors.Ifapatienthasexperiencedastroke,echocanbeusedtocheckforbloodclotsortumorsthatmayhavecausedtheissue.“Thistestisunique,”sayscardiolo-

gistMichaelA.Hajdu,MD.“Itinvolves

norisk,isrelativelyinexpensive,andthepatientexperiencesnobleedingorpain.Asamatteroffact,itisthesametechnologyusedtoviewafetusduringpregnancy,”headds.

Thefollowingarethethreedifferenttypes of echo offered at Lawrence MemorialHospital.

Transthoracic Echocardiography (TTE)

Thisisthemostcommontypeofecho.Itispainlessandnoninvasive.Duringthistest,adevicecalledatrans-ducerisplacedonthechest.Thedevicesendsultrasoundwavesthroughthechestwalltotheheart.Astheultrasoundwavesbounceoffthestructuresoftheheart,acomputerintheechomachineconvertsthemtopicturesonthescreen.

Transesophageal Echocardiography (TEE)

Thistestallowsphysicianstoobtainaclearerpictureoftheaortaandotherpartsoftheheart.Duringthistestthetransducerisattachedtotheendofaflexibletube.Thetubeisguideddownthethroatandintotheesophagus,which

allowsthephysiciantogetmoredetailedimages.

Dr.HajdunotesthatthereisnoothertesttoreplaceaTEE.Thistestofferstheclearestviewofmanyheartstructuresandisaninvaluabletoolforphysicians.

Stress EchocardiographyDuringastressecho,youexerciseor

takemedicinetomakeyourheartworkhardandbeatfast.Atechnicianwilltakepicturesofyourheartusingultrasoundbeforeyouexerciseandassoonasyoufinish.Someheartproblemsareeasiertodiagnosewhentheheartisworkinghardand beating rapidly.

Formoreinformation,visittheLMHServicessectionatlmh.org.

www.lmh.org

Getting tothe heart of echocardiography

ech·o·car·di·og·ra·phyn. the use of ultrasound to examine and measure the structure and functioning of the heart and to diagnose abnormalities and disease

We’ve Moved!Convenience is our top priority. The Echocardiography department is now located next to CardiovascularSpecialistsofLawrenceinthenew4thStreetHealthPlaza,adjacenttoLawrenceMemorialHospital.Thislocationoffersaconvenientlocationforbothpatientsandphysicians.8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday | 1130 W. 4th Street, Suite 2030

7

Larry Koerner, RDCS, shows an echocardiograph image.

325MaineStreetLawrence,KS66044

connect ispublishedbyLawrenceMemorialHospital.Theinformationinthisnewsletterisintendedtoeducatereadersaboutsubjectspertinenttotheir

healthandisnotasubstituteforconsultationwithapersonalphysician.Tohaveyournameaddedtoorremovedfromthismailinglist,pleasecall785-505-3315.

Gene Meyer|PresidentandCEO,LawrenceMemorialHospitalEditorial Board|KathyClausingWillis,SherriVaughn,MD,JaniceEarly-Weas,HeatherAckerly

8 Lawrence Memorial Hospital • 325 Maine Street • Lawrence, KS 66044 • 785-505-5000 • www.lmh.org

LMH leading the way thanks to community supportThankstothreepublicandprivatedonors,Lawrence

MemorialHospitalisthefirsthospitalinthenortheastKansasandKansasCityregiontohavetheSecureDigitalForensicImaging(SDFI)system.TheacquisitionoftheSDFIsystem,whichisusedtodocumentandcollectevidenceinsexualassaultandphysicalabusecases,wasmadepossiblethroughgiftsfromtheDouglasCountyDistrictAttorney’sOffice,theDouglasCountyCommunityFoundationandaprivatedonor,AudreyBishop.

“Wearesogratefulforthesupportthatthe(DouglasCounty)CommunityFoundationandthedistrictattorney’sofficeandAudreyBishophavegiventoprovideforthis equipmentandservicetoourcommunity,”saysKathy Clausing-Willis,vicepresidentandchiefdevelopmentofficer,LMHEndowmentAssociation.“Thistechnologyisvery importantand,whilewewishtherewasneveraneedforitsuse,wearethankfultohaveitavailableatLMH.”

DevelopedontheWestCoast,thissystemallowsforthecaptureofsharperandhigherqualitydocumentationofevidence.TheSDFIsystemalsohashigh-leveldataencryptionwhichsecurestheevidencecollected.ThisequipmentwillbeusedbytheLMHemergencydepartment’s12sexualassaultnurseexaminerswhenevaluatingpatientswhohaveexperi-encedsexualand/orphysicalabuse.

“Wehavealwaystakenseriouslyourresponsibilitytopatientswhohavesufferedatraumaofanykind,”saysJessieFazel,LMHsexualassaultnurseexaminerscoordinator. “Weareproudtobethefirstintheregiontohavethisnewtechnology.Thiswillbenefitthepatient,lawenforcement andtheentirecommunity.”

Community partners present donations to LMH emergency department staff. From left: Jessie Fazel, LMH emergency department; Joan Harvey, director, LMH emergency department; Audrey Bishop; Chip Blaser, Douglas County Community Foundation; and Charles Branson, Douglas County District Attorney