Synapse - Life Sciences News Digest of the Medical center of the americas

In April, Tenet honored exemplary hospitals, employees and leadership teams for their outstanding performance and commitment to patient care and customer service. Sierra Providence East Medical Center is one of nine Tenet hospitals, and the only one in the state of Texas, to be recognized for superior achievement in the areas of care, service and operational performance. This is the second year in a row Sierra Providence East Medical Center has been recognized with the Circle of Excellence Award. The other eight Tenet hospitals honored include: 

1. Coastal Carolina Hospital - Hardeeville, S.C.
   
   
2. Delray Medical Center - Delray Beach, Fla.
   
   
3. Doctors Hospital of Manteca - Manteca, Calif.
   
   
4. East Cooper Medical Center  - Mount Pleasant, S.C.
   
   
5. Good Samaritan Medical Center - West Palm Beach, Fla.
   
   
6. Lakewood Regional Medical Center  - Lakewood, Calif.
   
   
7. Los Alamitos Medical Center... [more]

     Richard Farnam, MD, a gynecologist and robotic surgeon at Las Palmas Medical Center, is one of only seven gynecologists in the nation selected to perform a hysterectomy using a new single-site platform for robotic surgery.  The new single-site robotic hysterectomy platform will become available to physicians in other parts of the United States during the next few months.

     Farnam is one of the nation's most experienced robotic surgeons, having performed more than 750 robot-assisted procedures since 2007, according to the Texas Institute for Robotic Surgery at Las Palmas Medical Center. He recently performed the procedure on five patients this year. Using a single incision that is approximately two centimeters in length, the system enables surgeons to remove the uterus through the belly button in less than 60 minutes. Previously, hysterectomies required one large incision for open surgery or multiple small incisions for traditional laparoscopic surgery.

     “This single-site robotic platform provides surgeons... [more]

Providence Memorial Hospital has been awarded the 2013 Tenet Clinical Innovation Award, an honor only given to four Tenet hospitals nationwide. This award recognizes Providence Memorial Hospital’s Patient Care Technician Program, which improved employee satisfaction and reduced turnover by increasing the nursing skill set. The Patient Care Technician Program was done in conjunction with the El Paso Community College and is easily replicated, making it a useful contribution to the healthcare community.

Full story 

The mission of the US-Mexico Border Health Commission is to provide international leadership to optimize health and quality of life along the United States-México border. Its strategic priorities for 2013 include:

• Access to care

• Research, data collection, and academic alliances

• Strategic planning

• Tuberculosis

• Obesity/diabetes

• Infectious disease and public health emergencies

Its strategic actions for 2013 include various activities and product-oriented, measurable outputs. The complete list of actions may be viewed by clicking below.

Strategic Actions (PDF)  

Border Health Commission releases its 2011 goals and plans 

The United States-México Border Health Commission (BHC) has released a document outlining its goals, actions, and plans for program year 2010-2011. The document also identifies achievements of the BHC over the past decade. 

English                     Spanish

Swimmer, the official magazine of the U.S. Masters Swimming, features research by local researcher and bio­medical sciences professor Charles C. Miller III, PhD. The research breaks ground on a dangerous lung condition called swimming-induced pulmonary edema. The five-page story appears in the March/April 2013 issue of Swimmer. Access the article at mcaSynapse.org. In related news, Dr. Miller is returning to Houston to assume a leadership role as associate dean for Health Services Research and Healthcare Quality at the UT Health Sciences Center at Houston. He will retain an adjunct professor appointment at TTUHSC-El Paso and foster clinical and translational sciences collaborations between Houston and El Paso.

Swimmer     

Men’s Health article centers on study led by TTUHSC scientist  [originally posted Nov. 8, 2012]

Men’s Health magazine published a story Nov. 6 about how pulmonary edema can strike athletes who are taking fish oil supplements.... [more]

      The University Breast Care Center (UBCC) of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at El Paso can now call itself the only nationally accredited breast care program in El Paso. That means patients don’t have to go anywhere else to receive the best treatment, said Zeina Nahleh, MD, associate professor and chief over the Division of Hematology and Oncology at the Texas Tech Paul L. Foster School of Medicine. The UBCC was accredited through the National Accreditation Program for Breast Cancers, a consortium of leaders and organizations dedicated to quality of care and monitoring outcomes of breast disease. Accreditation means the UBCC has met the 27 rigid standards set forth by the consortium, as well as an on-site survey.

      “This is yet another milestone in bringing higher standards... [more]

This month, El Paso Children’s Hospital is completing its first year since its grand opening on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, 2012. Since that day, El Paso Children’s Hospital has had over 19,000 emergency department visits, admitted 3,500 patients, and conducted 1,700 surgeries and procedures. Its team of pediatric specialists and technicians performed over 19,000 radiology procedures, 149,000 laboratory tests, and 60,500 respiratory therapy treatments.  

Six years ago, El Paso had one pediatric emergency specialist. Today, the pediatric subspecialties currently offered at El Paso Children’s Hospital include emergency medicine, rehabilitation, imaging, radiology, general surgery, neonatology and perinatology, respiratory therapy, neurodiagnostics, cardiac services, anesthesiology and pain, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, intensive care, gastroenterology, endoscopy, ophthalmology, maxillofacial surgery, pathology, hematology, and oncology.

El Paso Children’s Hospital continues to be the first and only separately licensed, independent, 501(c) (3) not-for-profit children’s... [more]

William Beaumont Army Medical Center has begun offering immigration and naturalization physicals at its Mendoza Soldier Family Care Center. The service is being offered to active duty noncitizen soldiers, retired soldiers and eligible family members (TRICARE beneficiaries).  The Mendoza Soldier Family Care Center is at 11335 SSG Sims Street in East Fort Bliss. Select physicians at Beaumont medical center have been appointed as civil surgeons and will be able to perform these examinations for beneficiaries.  Appointments can be scheduled by calling (915) 742-6105. 

       The City of El Paso Department of Public Health has reported the sixth death this year associated with West Nile virus in El Paso. The 78-year-old man lived in the 79903 zip code and was diagnosed with the illness late last month. He was also diagnosed with multiple underlying conditions. In addition, the department reports a second “off-season” case of the disease in a 74-year-old man who lives within the 79925 zip code. For 2012, the number of reported West Nile infections stands at 32. Last year, the West Nile case count in October stood at seven. In October 2010, the count was at 24.

      “With the official start of winter just days away, it is definitely surprising to see new cases of the disease so late in the year,” said Fernando Gonzalez, lead epidemiologist, in a Dec. 19, 2012 press release.  The city continues to monitor the presence... [more]

Del Sol Medical Center and Las Palmas Medical Center were honored on Nov. 28 with an “A” Hospital Safety Score by The Leapfrog Group. The Leapfrog Group is an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits. Scores of A, B, C, D or F were assigned to U.S. hospitals based on preventable medical errors, injuries, accidents, and infections. The scores are designed to give the public information to protect themselves and their families.

Scores are calculated under the guidance of The Leapfrog Group’s nine-member Blue Ribbon Expert Panel. Twenty-six measures of hospital safety data are used to produce a single score. The panel includes:
•    John Birkmeyer (University of Michigan)
•    Ashish Jha (Harvard University)
•    Lucian Leape (Harvard University)
•    Arnold Millstein (Stanford University)
•    Peter Pronovost (Johns Hopkins University)
•    Patrick Romano (University of California, Davis)
•    Sara Singer (Harvard University)... [more]