Franciscan St. Francis Health earns national heart care performance recognition

INDIANAPOLIS – Franciscan St. Francis Health’s nationally recognized heart attack team has received the American College of Cardiology Foundation’s 2012 National Cardiovascular Data Registry-Get With the Gold Performance Achievement Award – one of only 26 hospitals nationwide to do so.

The award recognizes Franciscan St. Francis’ commitment and continued success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients, and signifies the hospital has reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients to standard levels of care as outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) clinical guidelines and recommendations.

To receive the award, Franciscan St. Francis consistently followed the treatment guidelines for eight consecutive quarters and met a performance standard of 90 percent for specific performance measures. Following these treatment guidelines improves adherence to ACC/AHA recommendations, monitors drug safety and the overall quality of care provided to ST-elevation myocardial infarction and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction patients.

“Franciscan St. Francis Health has been and continues to be focused on improving the quality of cardiovascular care by setting the standards,” said William Berg, MD, medical director of Franciscan St. Francis Heart Center. “The number of acute myocardial infarction patients eligible for treatment is expected to grow over the next decade due to increasing incidence of heart disease and a growing aging population.”

To receive the ACTION Registry–GWTG Gold Performance Achievement Award, Franciscan St. Francis Health consistently followed the treatment guidelines in ACTION Registry–GWTG for 24 consecutive months. These include consistent, evidence-based use of medications like cholesterol-lowering drugs, beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors, aspirin, and anticoagulants in the hospital. 

Born to be mild®: Less-invasive surgery markedly eases patients’ back pain, restores mobility

Franciscan St. Francis Health physician among few certified to perform procedure

INDIANAPOLIS – It causes extreme pain, numbness, or tingling in the lower back, legs or buttocks, limiting a person’s ability to walk or even stand for long periods of time. The reality is that lumbar spinal stenosis – a narrowing of the lower spinal canal – affects an estimated 1.5 million Americans.

Now comes a treatment which eases the pain and other conditions associated with spinal stenosis and physicians at Franciscan St. Francis Health have been using it to help their patients. It’s called mild® (minimally invasive lumbar decompression), an outpatient procedure which usually takes less than an hour and enables patients to resume light activities within a few days.

“The mild procedure is for patients who are too old or too sick for more open surgery, or who want to try something less invasive first,” said Robert Prince, MD, a pain expert with Franciscan Physician Network Spine Specialists. “While traditional surgery is effective, it requires general anesthesia, lengthier hospital stays and poses a higher risk of complications.”

Prince is one of the few physicians in Indiana and nationally who are certified to perform mild, which was developed by the California-based Vertos Medical Inc.

Lumbar spinal stenosis generally manifests in people 50 years and older, and the likelihood of developing it increases as they age. Non-surgical treatments include a regimen of specialized exercise, activity modification and cortisone injections, the latter of which can only temporarily reduce symptoms.

Here’s how mild works: A small incision is made in the affected area and then specialized imagery and tools are used to remove excess small pieces of bone and ligament tissue. This restores space in the spinal canal and decreases compression of the nerves. No general anesthesia, implants, or stitches are necessary with this procedure.

A study conducted at the Cleveland Clinic found that mild is both effective and efficient and offers most patients a new alternative.  After monitoring 40 patients over a one-year period, researchers found that standing time for mild patients increased on average from eight minutes to nearly an hour and that the patients' average walking distance increased from 246 feet to nearly three quarters of a mile.  

View an animation of how mild® works here

Making a Big Splash!

     Franciscan St. Francis Health was on hand for the Aug. 26 grand opening of City Center Park in Old Town Greenwood. The hospital was a founding partner of the project, donating $25,000 earlier this year. 

     The contribution was designated to help build the Splash Pad and other family-friendly activities at the park.






City workers prepare the site before the grand
opening.

Downpour testing at the Splash Pad.

Sister Marlene Shapley recites the Prayer of St. Francis

Joe Sagorsky (r) accepts formal recognition of the hospital's support of the park project from Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers.

And in a flash there was splash!

Youngsters immediate found a way to cope with the 90-plus degree heat.

Cardiovascular professionals prepare for Franciscan St. Francis Health symposium

INDIANAPOLIS – Hundreds of health-care professionals are expected to attend the fifth annual Franciscan St. Francis Health Cardiovascular Symposium on Friday, Sept. 13.

Participants at the day-long conference will discuss new treatment options for patients with heart failure, heart valve disease and atrial fibrillation and discuss recent landmark studies in cardiovascular care.

Presenters include cardiologists and an endocrinologist from Franciscan Physician Network, along with cardiovascular surgeons from Cardiac Surgery Associates.

Other topics will include the link between diabetes and cardiovascular disease; device therapy; and how Franciscan Alliance Accountable Care Organizations will enhance delivery of care.

Also on deck is a session led by Mary Starvaggi, a communications and etiquette expert who has worked nationally to help health-care professionals hone their communications and listening skills with patients and amongst colleagues.

Held at The Westin Indianapolis, the symposium offers continuing medical education credits and will give primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses and other allied health professionals insight into new treatments and procedures advancing patient outcomes.

Click here for a full listing of presenters, agenda and more details about the 2013 symposium.

Franciscan Physician Network Pain Specialists welcomes new staff doctor

INDIANAPOLIS – Amrita De Patel, MD, has established a new practice with Franciscan Physician Network Pain Specialists and is accepting new patients.

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She joins Robert H. Kravitz, MD, at Pain Specialists, which is located at 8051 S. Emerson Ave., Suite 250, located on the Franciscan St. Francis Health-Indianapolis campus.

Dr. Patel recently completed residency training at the Indiana University School of Medicine, where she also earned her medical degree. She received her undergraduate degree in nutrition science at IU-Bloomington.

During her medical education and residency, she gave several professional presentations and was an active volunteer in community health outreach programs.

Led by President Isaac J. Myers II, MD, Franciscan Physician Network-Central Indiana Region is a multidisciplinary group of physicians throughout central Indiana. These physicians offer a variety of primary care and specialty care services and all practice at Franciscan St. Francis Health.