Public invited to open house and dedication of new orthopedic center

After nearly 18 months of construction, the new 65,000 square-foot Meyer Orthopedic Center is almost complete. Join CoxHealth for a ribbon cutting, refreshments and tours to dedicate this new facility on Saturday, April 17, from 1 -3 p.m., at the corner of National Avenue and Walnut Lawn.

As the population continues to age, the need for orthopedic and joint care is expected to continue to rise. To serve these patients, The Meyer Orthopedic Center (MOC) will provide a single location where they can visit their doctors, undergo surgery, receive inpatient rehabilitation and physical therapy, and have access to a medical fitness center – all under one roof.

Research shows that consolidating services in this way benefits patients. “More and more studies show that when you focus on one type of service, the result is enhanced patient and physician satisfaction, increased efficiency and overall better services,” says Ron Prenger, administrator at Cox Walnut Lawn, where the MOC is located.

This facility includes six new cutting-edge operating rooms; 35 private patient rooms with bedside charting capabilities, flat-screen TVs and couches for patients and their families; hotel-style room service for patients; and each patient will receive a personalized daily newsletter detailing their treatment schedule broken down by the hour for each day of their stay. Patients who are scheduled to undergo a joint replacement at the MOC will also attend Joint Adventures, a new pre-surgery “boot camp” that includes weekly educational classes, an exercise program designed to help patients have a faster recovery and more. Orthopedic trauma cases will continue to be cared for at Cox South.

The Meyer Orthopedic Center was funded by a $1.5 million donation from Ken and the late Jane Meyer, and a bond issuance in the fall of 2008. The Meyer Foundation’s contribution follows a major gift in 2002 that established the Meyer Center for Wellness and Rehabilitation, which is connected to the new MOC.

BabySense class focuses on adoptive parents

Adopting a baby is exciting, but it also brings plenty of new duties and responsibilities. And as the saying goes, new babies don’t come with a manual. As part of an ongoing commitment to families, CoxHealth now offers “BabySense for Adoptive Parents” to help parents prepare for the changes a new baby brings.

The class will be held Wednesday, April 28, 6:30-9:30 p.m., in Suite 130 of the Turner Center, 1000 E. Primrose.

Hosted by the CoxHealth Women’s Center, the class is led by an experienced educator and is geared toward adoptive moms and dads.

The class teaches adoptive parents how to meet the everyday needs of their child. The course covers the basics of baby care and safety, including baby-proofing your home and car seat safety. Parents are also coached on handling crying and offering comfort to their infants, selecting childcare and more.

BabySense is open to the public, but registration is required. There is a $20 fee. For more information or to register, call 269-LADY.

Handmade cards brighten patients’ days

One never knows when the opportunity to make a difference will present itself. For 18-year old Megan Stahl of Nixa, the idea came during a trip to the hospital. She was visiting a patient who mentioned how much he enjoyed receiving get-well cards.

“He said he liked getting cards better than getting flowers because the cards lasted longer,” says Stahl.

Stahl realized supplying cards to patients would not only brighten their hospital stay, but could help her complete a project to achieve her Girl Scouts “Gold Award.”

Stahl got to work and one year later, she delivered 1,200 get-well cards, many of them hand-made, to Springfield hospitals. Cox South received 600 of the cards.

“Some patients who are in the hospital don’t have any visitors or they don’t have family close enough to visit,” Stahl says. “I hope the cards will lift their spirits.”

Stahl worked all year on the project. She collected get-well cards and asked children in the community to make others. Stahl had a booth at the Discovery Center and at various community events, asking people to sign the cards and to create their own for people in the hospital.

“She was an absolute delight and was so excited to bring us the cards,” says Barth Fraker of Volunteer Services. “This is a huge gift of time and caring for our hospital and our patients.”

Guest Services director Debbie Stange says her team of Guest Services representatives will deliver the cards to patients as they visit patient rooms.

“This will definitely put a smile on our patients’ faces,” says Stange. “We appreciate Megan’s hard work and her kindness.”

Haiti relief effort an ongoing mission for health care volunteers

When a 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti on Jan. 12, people around the world reached out and offered help, sending food, money and medical supplies. Many physicians and nurses traveled to the poor Caribbean nation to provide medical care to the sick and injured. Joy Raybourn, a Regional Services nurse practitioner who works at The Clinic at Walmart, was among them.

Raybourn returned Feb. 16 from a two-week medical trip to Haiti with Project Helping Hands, a group that sends medical teams to underserved areas around the world. It was Raybourn’s second trip with the group – she traveled to Bolivia in 2002.

“We traveled to the Port-Au-Prince area with medical supplies and set up mobile clinics to treat people of all ages,” says Raybourn. The group treated people for malnutrition, dehydration, skin conditions and infections, among other things.

“We saw some wounds from the earthquake that had not yet been treated; I saw the first case of typhoid fever that I’ve ever seen in my life, just a little bit of everything.”

The group of 20, including a pharmacist from Springfield and medical professionals from across the country, travelled by air to Santiago, Dominican Republic, and then drove for 12 hours to Port-Au-Prince, Haiti – an indirect route, but the only one roads allow for.

As the group neared Port-Au-Prince and the epicenter of the earthquake, the degree of damage became more severe. Raybourn says while there are some buildings still standing, nearly all were damaged.

“There is rubble everywhere, and the air is very dusty from the clean-up work that’s going on – that keeps the dust stirred,” she says.

But in spite of the tremendous devastation and the difficult living conditions faced by so many people in the Port-Au-Prince area, Raybourn says the people her group served were gracious and grateful, yet she worries about what the future holds for them.

Spring in Haiti is the rainy season, followed by a hurricane season that lasts until October. “I have a lot of concern for these people and how they will survive that,” says Raybourn. “So many people are sleeping in the streets with nothing – no shelter at all.” Raybourn says the tent cities that have sprung up all around the capital offer very little protection. “It’s just plastic or sheets stretched up on sticks.”

The lack of proper sanitation in these camps, paired with the inevitable standing water the rains will leave behind, makes Raybourn, and medical and relief experts around the world, very concerned. All expect infectious disease to become rampant as runoff from ill-managed human waste and trash interacts with rainwater and leaves behind a breeding ground for diseases such as typhoid fever, malaria and more.

In the long-term, Raybourn believes recovery will take many years. Not just because of the overwhelming damage to buildings and infrastructure, but because of the overwhelming loss of life.

“Everybody there has lost somebody, whether it was a family member, a friend, a co-worker or an acquaintance. News reports say more than 200,000 people died. Haitians themselves say that’s maybe half. They think there are a lot more,” she says.

And so many of those who died were Haiti’s future. Project Helping Hands hired university students to translate for the group.

“Those universities are now gone. Jobs are gone,” says Raybourn. “We would be going down the street and they would say, ‘This was a school. Four hundred people died there. Three hundred children died at this school. This was our nursing school – all our nurses are gone.’ It was just unbelievable.”

Raybourn says if she could return to help more, she would. Project Helping Hands had plans to send in additional teams in April, and more trips could follow.

“I always feel like I get what I give when I go on these trips,” says Raybourn. “And I feel so blessed to live in America. We have so much here to be grateful for.”

A new frontier in joint care opens in May

For patients needing a variety of orthopedic services, including total joint replacement, the new Meyer Orthopedic Center at Cox Walnut Lawn will offer a single stop for care. When it opens at the beginning of May, the facility will be home to the latest in technology combined with a comprehensive approach to orthopedic care that is aimed at getting patients healthier and back home more quickly.

The Meyer Orthopedic Center will provide a single location where patients can visit their doctors, undergo surgery – and post-acute care such as inpatient rehabilitation and skilled nursing – and follow up with physical therapy. After they recover, they’ll also have easy access to a medical fitness facility in the adjoining Meyer Center for Wellness and Rehabilitation.
The new facility will serve as an anchor for many of the services offered on the Walnut Lawn campus and leaders say the focus on orthopedics will benefit both patients and the system as a whole.

“More and more studies show that when you focus on one type of service, the result is enhanced patient and physician satisfaction, increased efficiency and overall better services,” says Ron Prenger, administrator at Cox Walnut Lawn.

The new center will provide that care with six cutting-edge operating rooms that feature digital imaging, ceiling-mounted equipment booms and video capabilities. A new patient wing includes 35 private patient rooms, each with bedside charting capabilities and features such as flat-screen televisions and couches for patients and their families.

In addition to the new facility, leaders say the biggest improvements will come from an in-depth approach that will guide patients through the entire process.

“This is a total comprehensive program where we’re working on a lot of up front education,” says Fred Lerche, director of the musculoskeletal service line at Cox. “Our goal is to make sure that patients are involved in their care and our ultimate goal is to keep improving their outcomes.”

A continuum of care

As the population continues to age and more members of the active 78-million-strong Baby Boom generation retire, the need for orthopedic and joint care is continuing to rise. Recent statistics presented at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgery show that experts predict a 673 percent rise in knee replacements by 2030. The nationwide total predicted then is 3.5 million.

Right now, orthopedic surgeons at Cox perform roughly 1,000 joint replacements annually, with hips and knees being the most common, followed by less common replacements such as shoulders and ankles.

The surgery and rehabilitation process creates a major lifestyle change for patients and the musculoskeletal program at Cox is working to help patients deal with those changes by providing enhanced support in the time before and after surgery.

Patients who are scheduling hip or knee replacements will be enrolled in a new program known as Joint Adventures, a sort of pre-surgery educational boot camp. The idea is to prepare patients for the surgery and to help them identify any potential pitfalls early.

“In the past, we’ve done great joint replacements, but we haven’t had a formal joint education class for patients,” Lerche says. “Working with patients early gives us a chance to evaluate a patient’s situation prior to surgery and it’s easier to problem solve before than after.”

Patients will receive education manuals from their physicians and two weeks prior to their procedure, they are invited to weekly educational classes. Those classes will involve going over the manuals and receiving occupational therapy assessments, followed by a question and answer session.

They will also begin an exercise program with stretching and exercises that will help put patients on the road to a faster recovery process. Lerche says the classes are a good chance to help patients plan for how they’ll handle their home life after the surgery.

“If they have a caregiver at home, we’re asking that person to come to class as well,” he says.

The surgery itself usually involves a three-day length of stay. During that time, patients will receive a daily newsletter that details their treatment schedule, including therapy requirements broken down by the hour.

“They’ll know what’s happening at what time each day during their stay. They’ll know when they have meetings with their therapist and when they have group therapy,” Lerche says. “This really gets the patient into their care. They know what to expect and what’s expected of them.”
Getting patients up and moving after surgery is key to a speedy recovery and to the best outcomes. Keeping them engaged and informed lets the patient lead the way in their own care.

“My hope is that on day two if the therapist hasn’t come in, they’ll be asking, ‘Where’s my therapist?’” Prenger says. “When we’re at the stage where the patient is pushing us, we’ve succeeded in an educational process that involves the patient in their care.”

Patients will be able to attend group therapy in the new facility where classes of 6-10 patients will work together on rehab and exercise. Even after discharge, organizers will be tracking outcomes and seeing how patients are doing months down the road.

Lerche and Prenger say the comprehensive program approach isn’t common at most hospitals, but the investment will pay off in the best outcomes.

“It takes extra time and dedication,” Lerche says, “It really is a team approach, everyone from therapists and nurses to the physicians and support staff is on board for the common cause.”

A wise use of resources

In addition to providing seamless care for patients, the opening of the Meyer Orthopedic Center will also produce new efficiencies for the system as a whole. The new facility will handle most orthopedic surgeries, with the exception of trauma cases and fractured hips, which will remain at Cox South.

Prenger says that in choosing to create an orthopedic hospital, leaders looked at what service lines could be pulled out to stand alone while minimizing any duplication of the services at Cox South. With the other bone and joint efforts going on at the Walnut Lawn campus, orthopedics was an obvious choice.

“We need to be good stewards of the resources we have. By moving some orthopedic beds out of Cox South and bringing them here, that allows South more flexibility in handling their patient volume,” Prenger says.

The additional space also allows for features such as private rooms that wouldn’t be available in a facility that handles a variety of cases. By creating an othopedics-focused area, leaders hope to make an environment that is positive for everyone, from patients and families to staff and surgeons.

“We’re unique in that we have a small operation that we can mold to focus on muscloskeletal on the entire campus,” Prenger says. “That allows us to be focused and expand on our services and the amenities we offer to patients.

“We haven’t seen any other programs as inclusive as ours. We haven’t come across anyone yet who has all of these services in one building with a medical fitness facility under the same roof.”


Center adds hotel-style room service

In addition to a comprehensive orthopedic program, the Meyer Orthopedic Center will also bring a new level of service that will cater to patients and their families.

Among the concierge-style features: room service.

Room service has long been tied to increased patient satisfaction and leaders in Food and Nutrition Services say the Meyer Orthopedic Center is a great opportunity to try out the concept.

From 6:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. patients will be able to phone in orders from their rooms, making their selections from a hotel-style menu. Orders, called in to 19-FOOD, go directly to the kitchen, where meals are made and delivered to the room within 45 minutes.
Menus offer a wide variety of options for patients, with a full array of breakfast selections; soups, salads and sandwiches for lunch; and a variety of dinner entrees.

“We have more options than a typical facility because of the length of stay,” says Jesse Baedke, registered dietitian and coordinator of Food Services at Walnut Lawn.

In the patient wing, the meals are delivered by a host or hostess who is stationed on the unit and works directly with patients.

“This allows us to really focus on the patient, deliver the meal to them and set up the tray and get the patient anything they need.”

Take time to learn CPR, get AED training

CPR is a life-saving skill everyone should have. Automated external defibrillators (AEDs) are now available in a variety of public places, including office buildings, airports and malls. If an emergency occurs, would you know how to save a life with one of these methods?

At the next Heartsaver AED class, participants can earn certification in adult, child and infant CPR, and receive AED training. This American Heart Association course is being offered twice in April. Participants can choose from:

• 6-10 p.m., Thursday, April 15
• 8 a.m. – Noon, Saturday, April 24.

Classes are held in the Orientation Classroom at Cox South, 3801 S. National, and are available for a fee of $35 per person. Registration is required. For more information, call 269-4117.

Final week to purchase a piece of new ED

We’re down to the final week for those who would like to become a part of CoxHealth history by purchasing a commemorative brick for the new Cox South Emergency Department.

Employees and the community have a chance to be part of the construction of the new Emergency Department through a program offered by the CoxHealth Foundation.

Donors may sponsor one of 2,200 bricks that will be used in a pathway in the ED garden. The bricks will be engraved with up to three lines of text, such as names, special messages, remembrances or favorite sayings.

All brick donors will be invited to the VIP party to see their bricks before the community open house. All proceeds will provide grants to patients in the Emergency Department who cannot afford their care through the Foundation’s Good Samaritan fund.

Each brick costs $100 and payroll deduction is available in $25 increments for employees. Donors will also receive a miniature brick as a keepsake of their donation.

For more information or to purchase a brick, check out the Foundation’s web site at www.coxhealthfoundation.com

National construction to cause traffic stops Friday afternoon

MoDOT Traffic Alert for Friday, March 26:
National Avenue North of James River Fwy.

Where: National Avenue at entrance to Cox South Hospital just north of James River Freeway (Route 60)

When: 12 Noon to 3 p.m. Friday, March 26

What: Brief traffic stops to enable concrete trucks to enter and exit construction site where new underpass is being built as part of interchange reconstruction project.

Please obey flaggers directing traffic at Cox driveway.

Volunteer Services project offers security blankets for pediatric patients

Spending time in an emergency room can be scary for patients of any age, but for children, it can be especially traumatic.

Pat Long, volunteer coordinator in Volunteer Services, knew how much her own grandkids (shown with a few blankets above) had been comforted by their security blankets in the past and she wanted to bring that same luxury to Cox’s pediatric patients.

“We saw a need when kids come to the ER, so we started asking around,” Long says. A group called Newborns in Need stepped up and donated 25 blankets. On Tuesday, 80 new blankets were delivered by Project Linus-Springfield/SW/Lakes Area, a local chapter of a national organization that provides security blankets, not unlike the one carried by Linus van Pelt in the “Peanuts” comic strip.

The blankets are now available to young patients in both Emergency Departments and those served by Pre-Hospital and Pediatrics.

“It’s a security thing,” Long says, noting that even older children like the handmade blankets. “I think it’s a great customer service to provide that security for them.”

There are currently 105 blankets available and Long is pursuing more. On Saturday, May 15, Volunteer Services is hosting a “Make-a-Blanket Day,” with experts from Project Linus coming to the Ozark Room at Cox Walnut Lawn to teach a class on blanket making. The event will be held from 10 a.m.- 2 p.m. Participants are asked to bring 1.5 yards of fleece and a sharp pair of scissors to create “no sew” blankets that can be donated to the hospital.

Anyone interested in participating or donating may call Long at 269-3169.

Online physician visits now an option

This month, CoxHealth began offering eVisits at some physician offices. EVisits
allow participating physicians to communicate with and provide care to established patients who need help with routine concerns via the internet.

Any patient of a participating physician can use the service, but the cost varies depending on the patient’s insurance plan. For some patients, the cost is significantly less than a standard office visit.

EVisits is an expansion of CoxHealth’s existing Patient Express service, a secure on-line portal that allows patients to schedule appointments, refill prescriptions, get lab results, journal blood glucose levels and more. The eVisits option lets patients essentially e-mail their physician with a question, and the physician will answer back within normal business hours.

“It’s not instantaneous, but it is timely,” says Dr. Kerry Randolph, medical director of CoxHealth Regional Services. “The physician should respond within half a working day.”

The program is a convenient option for patients with routine concerns that don’t necessarily require face-to-face care.

Dr. Tim Jones with CoxHealth Steeplechase Family Physicians has used the service and says, “For someone who is very familiar with themselves and their typical symptoms, and a physician who is very familiar with that patient, it’s a benefit. It’s definitely convenient for patients, saving them the time and expense of coming into the office for something routine.”

Physicians say patients who often experience the same condition and symptoms, such as a sinus infection or urinary tract infection, are the best candidates for this service. During the course of the eVisit, if the physician decides a prescription is necessary, it can be electronically prescribed to the patient’s pharmacy.

Three CoxHealth clinics are currently trialing the service: Cox Family Medicine Associates and Steeplechase Family Physicians in Springfield, and CoxHealth Center Willard in Willard.

“We’re in the testing phase. Our intention is to roll this out to other clinics as it develops,” says Dr. Randolph.

If during an eVisit the physician determines an office call is needed, there is no eVisit charge and the patient can come into the office and pay as they normally would.

“This is along the same idea as our Walmart Clinics, in that we are offering a unique, convenient service at a lower cost to the patient than the standard physician clinic model,” says Dr. Randolph.