PATIENT AT ST. VINCENT CHARITY MEDICAL CENTER CREDITS CULTURE OF RESPECT TO SUCCESSFUL KNEE AND HIP REPLACEMENT SURGERY AND BEING ABLE TO DANCE AT DAUGHTER’S WEDDING

Elaine Makupson, a Nurse Case Manager at St. Vincent Charity Medical Center for the past 12 years, and a patient advocate for over 30 years found herself with the tables turned. She became a patient herself. She has been suffering from knee and hip pain for several years, but had been afraid to consider surgery. Now, her daughter’s wedding was approaching and she wanted to be able to walk her daughter down the aisle and dance at her wedding. That motivated her to make an appointment with Dr. Audley Mackel. Dr. Mackel is board-certified in orthopedic surgery and chair of the Division of Orthopedics at St. Vincent Charity Medical Center. 

Elaine knew the great caregivers through her work. But her concerns were personal.  

“People know it’s a Catholic hospital. But as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, my caregivers at St. Vincent Charity respected my religious beliefs on blood transfusions. There was never any hassle about it. They were trained in bloodless surgery and ready to treat me without even thinking about it. It was very important to me not to be pressured to compromise my faith and values.”

This environment of mutual respect is what sets St. Vincent Charity apart from others in Cleveland.  

“There is a culture of respect in this hospital. All of the support staff are respected at this hospital for their role in patient care. Our doctors respect everyone. That culture of respect spills over into how patient care is delivered—whether it is from a physician or housekeeping.”

Elaine now has new knees and hips on both sides. She realizes that the surgery did more than allow her to walk her daughter down the aisle. It has allowed her to continue with the demands of work and use her personal experience as a surgery patient to help her patients go through their medical journey and receive the same compassionate care that she experienced.

To read Elaine Makupson’s full article, click here.

DIABETES ORGANIZATIONS WORLDWIDE AGREE THAT BARIATRIC SURGERY IS NOW A STANDARD TREATMENT OPTION FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES

It has been known that metabolic or bariatric surgery improves blood glucose control, along with cardiovascular risk factors. But not until recently have guidelines been proposed to advise clinicians and policy makers on the benefits of metabolic surgery for type 2 diabetes. The Diabetes Surgery Summit, held in early fall of 2015 in London drew professionals from the American Diabetes Association (ADA), International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and other international organizations to develop guidelines of the benefits and limitations of metabolic surgery for type 2 diabetes. The surgery is defined with the intent to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity.  

"Surgery represents a radical departure from conventional approaches to diabetes. The new Guidelines effectively introduce, both conceptually and practically, one of the biggest changes for diabetes care in modern times," said Dr. Francesco Rubino, a Professor of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery at King's College London in the UK, co-director of the DSS-II and the first author of the report. "

St. Vincent Charity’s Dr. Michael Nowak, Medical Director and surgeon for the Center for Bariatric Surgery agrees.

“It is good to finally see this. Bariatric surgeons have seen improvements in diabetes with bariatric surgery for years; improvements that happen before significant weight loss occurs, often before the patient leaves the hospital. The increased safety of bariatric surgery combined with excellent, well-designed studies that confirm this should lead to an increased use of surgery to treat these patients.”

While metabolic surgery is similarly safe to gallbladder surgery, there are risks of complications and long-term lifestyle changes that need to accommodate the nutritional deficiencies that require lifelong supplements and long-term follow-up from dietary experts. More research is needed.

To learn more about The Center for Bariatric Surgery at St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, click here.

ST. VINCENT CHARITY’S ROSARY HALL REMOVES BARRIERS AND HELPS OPIOID ADDICTS GET THE TREATMENT THEY NEED

“There were times I thought I was just going to die.”
 
That is the despair that “Lisa,” addicted to opioids and alcohol, felt as she tried again and again to reach out to numerous treatment facilities, only to land in voicemail and forced to wait for a live person to actually call her back. Knowing she needed help and ready to accept it, Lisa because more discouraged with every call—until she dialed the number for St. Vincent Charity’s Rosary Hall and Orlando Howard picked up the phone to talk to her.

“Rosary Hall was the first place that I felt like I could actually talk to somebody. They made me feel like this could be done,” Lisa said.

There are 3,200 phone calls that come through each month, said Orlando Howard, Manager of Outpatient Treatment Services for Rosary Hall. And each is directly answered by one of four addiction intake team members.

“When most people make a decision to make a change, they are ready now,” Howard said. “If they have to wait for a return call in 20 minutes, they might change their mind. If you don’t talk to them right then and there, you have probably lost them for a week or even forever,” he said.

St. Vincent Charity understands the importance of removing barriers to treatment so that addicted patients can quickly begin the steps necessary toward recovery. Like Lisa, many who suffer addiction find themselves without the private insurance required by most inpatient treatment facilities.

By partnering with the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board of Cuyahoga County, St. Vincent Charity ensures that there are no barriers to treatment. Of Rosary Hall’s treated 1,547 patients in the detoxification unit last year, 86.3 percent were funded by the ADAMHS Board or Medicaid.

After a thorough assessment to determine Lisa’s drug and alcohol use, she was recommended for inpatient detox treatment at Rosary Hall.

Even though Lisa describes herself as a “stubborn person,” she said the detox coaches and nursing staff were able to convince her to “swallow my pride and stay for the full five days,” because she quickly found they fully understood the stresses, emotions and challenges she was experiencing. All of the detox care coaches at Rosary Hall are required to be in recovery themselves.

Orlando said this personal experience gives Rosary Hall coaches and staff the understanding they need to remind patients why it is important to stay in treatment and to talk patients out of leaving the program early, risking a relapse or even death. 

After leaving her inpatient treatment, Lisa recently finished six weeks of Intensive Outpatient treatment (IOP) for three hours a day, three days a week, and 12 weeks of weekly non-intensive outpatient treatment. She has also been prescribed the medication Suboxone and continues to meet with her sponsor and attend support meetings to assist with her recovery. She credits St. Vincent Charity and Rosary Hall with saving her life.

“I never thought there was hope for people like me who are addicted to opioids. Without Rosary Hall, I don’t think I would be alive.” –Lisa

ST. VINCENT CHARITY MEDICAL CENTER SERVES LOW-INCOME PATIENTS THROUGH DISCOUNT MEDICATION PROGRAM

Catholic hospitals across the country provide low-income patients with much needed health care
through participation in a federally funded drug discount program known as Section 340B of the Public
Health Service Act. The program, passed by Congress in 1992, provides specific outpatient medication
at discounted rates to qualifying nonprofits. These organizations, like St. Vincent Charity Medical
Center, are known as safety net providers. Through their participation in the 340B program, they are
able to serve their most vulnerable populations.

Ministry advocates said in a recent article in Catholic Health World, a publication from the Catholic
Health Association of the United States: “340B is vital to their service to the poor and vulnerable and
they've used savings generated through participation in the discount program to provide low-cost drugs
to poor patients and to cross-subsidize other services in their safety net facilities.”

The program requires pharmaceutical companies that participate in the Medicaid program to provide
specific brand and generic drugs at discounted rates to qualified safety net providers. The article says:
“... some manufacturers provide steeper discounts than mandated, David Brudapast, director of
pharmacy, St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, said that the program is manufacturer-driven. ‘Without
their support it would not exist.’”

The way it works is safety net providers buy specific medications from participating pharmaceutical
companies for their outpatient pharmacies, as well as contract to local pharmacies in the community.
Low-income patients, as well as patients with private insurance, or those covered by Medicare purchase
their prescribed medications. However, the safety net provider is reimbursed the full amount by the
federal government or a patient’s private insurance, and thus, uses these reimbursement funds to
provide medical care to their low-income patients. The article states: “The 340B facilities are not
required to pass their discount along to patients, but as nonprofit facilities, they have their individual
charity care policies in place to provide services and prescription drugs at no cost or at reduced cost to
their uninsured and underinsured patients.“

The program is critical for hospitals like St. Vincent Charity Medical Center to be able to serve their most
vulnerable patients, but it is under pressure. Many pharmaceutical manufacturers claim the program has
grown beyond the original scope, causing drug pricing to be distorted and are asking for stricter
eligibility participation. Ministry advocates of the 340B program John Rusnaczyk, senior vice president
and chief financial officer, and Brudapast, both of St. Vincent Charity Medical Center have asked for
support from legislators and pressed for the continuation of this program.

St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, like Catholic hospitals around the country, is dedicated to serving the
needs of the whole community. The 340B program ensures that the mission continues to be possible—
to serve with a deep respect for the dignity and value of all persons and dedication to the poor.