Intrepid USA Healthcare Services Appoints Roberta Rose As Vice President Of Clinical Services

Intrepid USA Healthcare Services announced today the promotion of Roberta “Bobi” Rose to Vice President of Clinical Services. She previously served as the company’s corporate Director of Clinical Operations since July of 2006.

Rose has more than 22 years of clinical experience, including 13 in the home health sector. An expert in the development of clinical policies, procedures and practice guidelines in a variety of home care and hospice settings, she has additional experience in cardiovascular intensive care, hemodialysis and wound consultation.

Rose earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Maryville University in St. Louis and certification in wound, ostomy and continence therapy from Emory University . She remains an active member of the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing; the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society; and has recently been named to the Briggs Corporation senior care advisory board.

UT Health Science Center Implements Emergency Alert System

Faculty, staff and students at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) are now signing up for a free emergency alert text messaging service: e2Campus. The secure system will be used only to deliver critical messages in the event of an emergency.

The university has contracted with e2Campus, a mass notification and text messaging firm, to make the system available for this academic year. Operated by campus police, the system will be used to shut down the campus for emergencies such as gas leaks, bomb threats and events involving an active shooter.

“This project has been on our radar screen for quite a while but, naturally, the Virginia Tech experience pushed it to the top of our priority list,” said Ida Upchurch, chief of UTHSC Campus Police.

The same system is currently being launched on the University of Tennessee main campus in Knoxville and on all UTHSC campuses, including the Graduate School of Medicine and College of Pharmacy facilities on the Knoxville campus, as well as the College of Medicine campus in Chattanooga.

UT Medical Group Welcomes Ophthalmologists

The Department of Ophthalmology at UT Medical Group Inc. has added three specialists to the medical staff.

Dr. James Hart is a board-certified ophthalmologist with a special interest in dry eye disease, glaucoma, and hypertension. He earned a medical degree from the University of Louisville Medical School and completed his residency at Harkness Eye Institute at New York ’s Columbia-Presbyterian College of Physicians and Surgeons. Hart also has a master’s in public health from Columbia University School of Public Health. He is assistant professor of ophthalmology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.

Dr. Elliott Kanner is a graduate of Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York , where he also earned a doctor of philosophy from Rockefeller University . He holds a master of science in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale University . A glaucoma specialist, he completed a transitional internship at St. Raphael Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut and completed his residency training at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York . Kanner recently finished his glaucoma fellowship at the UT Health Science Center and joined the faculty as assistant professor.

Dr. Andreea Partal is a board-certified ophthalmologist and assistant professor at the UT Health Science Center. She specializes in cornea and external disease with a special focus on dry eye, infectious keratitis, corneal transplantation, and newer vision restoration techniques. A graduate of Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, she completed her ophthalmology residency at Stanford University Eye Center and fellowship training at Emory University Eye Center , a world-renowned corneal and external disease center.

All three of the physicians care for patients at UTMG offices at the Hamilton Eye Institute.

Legendary Newsman to Speak at Luncheon to Benefit Methodist Cancer Center

Legendary NBC newsman and author Tom Brokaw will reflect on his experiences and share his impressions of the world as observed during his more than 40 year career in journalism at the 6th annual Methodist Cancer Center Luncheon scheduled for Friday, November 16 at the Peabody.

In 2004, Brokaw stepped down after 21 years as the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News. Since beginning his journalism career in 1962, he has led the news industry with a series of historical “firsts,” including the first exclusive U.S. one-on-one interview with Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev. Brokaw was the first and only anchor to report from the scene the night the Berlin Wall fell, and was the first American anchor to travel to Tibet to report on human-rights abuses and to conduct an interview with the Dalai Lama.

The NBC News anchor also has a distinguished record as a political reporter, having covered every presidential election since 1968. He was also NBC’s White House correspondent during the national trauma of Watergate and has anchored all of NBC’s political coverage since 1984.

Brokaw’s insight, ability and integrity have earned him numerous awards for his journalistic achievements, including several Emmy, Overseas Press Club and National Headliner awards. In 1998, Brokaw became a best-selling author with the publication of The Greatest Generation. In 1999 his second book The Greatest Generation Speaks was published followed by An Album of Memories in 2001 and A Long Way from Home in 2002. His most recent book, which will be released in November 2007, is titled Boom - Personal Reflections on the 60’s and Today.

Proceeds from the luncheon benefit the education and research initiatives of the Methodist Healthcare Cancer Center in the treatment of all forms of cancer. Tickets and reserved tables are available for purchase. Individual tickets are $100. Call 901-516-0500 for more information.

Dr. Diane Todd Pace Named a Fellow of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners

Dr. Diane Todd Pace was inducted as a Fellow of the AANP (FAANP) on Wednesday, June 20 during the AANP national conference at the Indiana Convention Center & RCA Dome, Indianapolis, Indiana.

Dr. Pace who is a nurse practitioner/nurse scientist and EMR Project Manager with the Regional Medical Center at Memphis/The Health Loop is also one of few Certified Menopause Practitioners. She earned her basic nursing diploma in 1971 from Methodist Hospital School of Nursing, and PhD in nursing in 1998 from the University of Tennessee College of Nursing. She also holds bachelors degrees in Health Care Administration and Nursing, masters degrees in Education and Nursing and additional nurse practitioner certifications. Dr. Pace has been honored not only by this recent induction, but by the Tennessee Nurses Association for her outstanding efforts in clinical practice, patient advocacy, and professional/political leadership locally, within the state, and both nationally and internationally. She serves as Chair of the APN Council for TNA, President for the Greater Memphis Area Advanced Practice Nurses and represents the American Nurses Association on the International Bank of Experts on Women’s Health and on the Congress for Nursing Practice Committee on Information Infrastructure.

She is a member of the North American Menopause Society and has been appointed to many national Committees. She has received funding and conducted research in women’s health and has current funding requests for healthcare informatics projects. She has published several manuscripts and has presented results of her research or clinical expertise in the US, Canada, Virgin Islands and Italy. Additionally she has served on the Tennessee TennCare Pharmacy Advisory Board, state e-prescribing committee, and the Memphis e-Health Alliance. Dr. Pace has been honored by both Dallas, Texas and Memphis as a Great 100 Nurse recipient and will continue the tradition of contributing to the mission of the AANP and promoting the role of the nurse practitioner.

Smith & Nephew Wins Gender Knee System Clearance

Smith & Nephew, Inc.’s (NYSE: SNN, LSE, SN) Orthopaedic Reconstruction business recently announced FDA clearance for Smith & Nephew’s JOURNEY™ Bi-Cruciate Stabilized (BCS) Knee System, the GENESIS™ II Total Knee System and the LEGION™ Revision Knee System product lines for gender specificity product requirements. This gives Smith & Nephew the largest breadth of knee products cleared for gender specific attributes, affirming the company as market leader with a range of customized products to meet changing needs of active, informed patients.

Unlike competitive knee systems being marketed as gender specific, Smith & Nephew offers the only anatomic tibial baseplate for both the right and left knees. The asymmetric design of the tibial baseplates used in the Smith & Nephew system ensures an anatomically accurate fit of the tibial baseplate component to the proximal tibia for male and female components. In order to substantiate said claims, Smith & Nephew analyzed the gender and sizing distribution of over 1,300 GENESIS II implants, reviewed over 300 CT scans, and analyzed 200 knee replacement procedures.

“Smith & Nephew knee products have long been solutions for active, informed patients,” said Joseph DeVivo, president of Smith & Nephew Orthopaedic Reconstruction. “This recent FDA clearance demonstrates that our knee reconstruction product line offers a breadth of individualized implant solutions designed to treat patients suffering from knee osteoarthritis that provide both the fit and function necessary to regain an active lifestyle. Our mission is to meet needs of all individuals and provide the best possible products for both men and women who want more than ever to regain their passion for life.”

This confirms the size and shape of the GENESIS II Knee System has incorporated unique features of both men and women since its introduction in 1996. With over 500,000 implanted worldwide, the GENESIS II Knee System has the longest clinical follow up of any knee cleared for gender specificity. The JOURNEY Bi-Cruciate Stabilized Knee System, Smith & Nephew’s most recently introduced total knee product, was developed using over 50 design iterations in order to optimize the shape and fit of the component. The unique design features of the JOURNEY Knee System provide function for both the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) and result in improved stability and motion in both males and females. The LEGION Revision Knee System meets the unique demands of revision surgery and is the only dedicated revision component for gender specific attributes.

These systems feature Smith & Nephew’s proprietary OXINIUM™ technology, a superior metal for use in production of knee and hip implants. This advanced material exhibits exceptional performance due to hardness, low-friction and resistance to roughening and abrasion. With its negligible nickel content, OXINIUM Oxidized Zirconium has been found to be more hypoallergenic than previously available materials in hip and knee replacements.



™Trademark of Smith & Nephew. Reg. US Pat. & TM Off.

Revolutionary CT Imaging Technology Installed at Methodist South Hospital

The most advanced technology in the world is helping doctors save lives at Methodist South Hospital. GE Healthcare’s Lightspeed® Volume Computed Tomography (VCT) system arms doctors with some of the clearest and most detailed images of the carotid and coronary arteries to diagnose disease and life-threatening illnesses, including cardiovascular disease, stroke and chest pain.

The scanner revolutionizes diagnostic speed for patients, helping patients get the appropriate treatment much faster. Physicians can capture images of a beating heart in just five heartbeats, an organ in one second, and scan the entire body in 10 seconds.

In a single rotation, the Lightspeed® VCT creates 64 high-resolution anatomical images as thin as a credit card. These images are combined to form a three-dimensional view of the patient’s anatomy for doctors to analyze. From these images, physicians can view such things as blockages in the coronary arteries as well as the motion and pumping action of the patient’s heart.

UT Medical Group Appoints Pediatric Pulmonology Chief

Dr. Dennis C. Stokes been named chief of pediatric pulmonology at UT Medical Group Inc. and professor of pediatrics at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) College of Medicine.

A board-certified pediatric pulmonologist who has consistently been named among America ’s Best Doctors®, Stokes is known for his expertise in asthma and cystic fibrosis. He comes to Memphis from Dartmouth Medical School , where he was professor of pediatrics and director for the New Hampshire Pediatric Cystic Fibrosis Center. Stokes earned his medical degree from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and received a master’s degree in public health from Indiana University-Purdue University. He completed his medical internship and pediatric residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and fellowship training at Children’s Hospital Medical Center and Harvard University Medical School .

He cares for patients at UT Medical Group offices in Germantown.

UT Health Science Center Department of Ophthalmology Awarded Grant from Research to Prevent Blindness

Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) has awarded a grant of $110,000 to the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC). The funds will support research into the causes, treatment, and prevention of blinding diseases. The research will be directed by Barrett G. Haik, MD, chairman of the UTHSC Department of Ophthalmology.

RPB is the world’s leading non-government organization supporting eye research. To date, the organization has awarded grants totaling $1,530,000 to the Ophthalmology Department’s research facilities in the Hamilton Eye Institute.

Since it was founded in 1960, RPB has channeled hundreds of millions of dollars to medical institutions throughout the United States for research into all blinding eye diseases. For information on RPB, RPB-funded research, eye disorders and the RPB Grants Program, go to www.rpbusa.org.

Saint Francis Healthcare Reaches Multi-year Agreement With Great-West Healthcare

Saint Francis Healthcare announced today that it has reached a multi-year agreement with Great-West Healthcare, a national employee benefits provider. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

The agreement, which is effective Sept. 1, 2007, means that Saint Francis Hospital-Memphis, Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett and the Surgery Center at Saint Francis will become part of the Great-West Healthcare network. Nearly 10,000 members in all Great-West Healthcare plans in the greater Memphis area are covered under this agreement.

Methodist Files CON to Build Residence

Methodist Alliance Hospice, a division of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, applied Tuesday for a certificate of need (CON) to build a hospice residence. The residence will be a $9 million dollar, 30-bed free-standing facility. The Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare board approved $2 million towards the project’s capital campaign. The facility will be built on close to six acres on Quince Road between Messick and Kirby.

As one of the first hospices in the country to receive Medicare certification, Methodist Hospice works to help ease the end-of-life transition for over 225 families in the Mid-South every day. Methodist Hospice leaders believe a hospice residence is the next step in providing outstanding care for patients, both adults and children, who are facing their final days and their families.

The Methodist Hospice Residence will provide acute care for those who require symptom management and short-term residential beds for those who cannot be cared for in their homes. The residence will also contain office space to accommodate interdisciplinary teams of physicians, nurses, home health aides, chaplains, social workers, volunteers and support staff. The hospice residence will serve as a community asset, offering educational rooms, a library and a bereavement center open to all adults and children throughout the region.

Methodist Hospice will use a combination of funds from Methodist Healthcare and private donations to build the residence. If you would like to make a donation to the Methodist Hospice Residence, call 516-0500 or go to methodisthealth.org and under healthcare services go to Hospice and click on fundraising.

Methodist Nurse Receives Award from International Transplant Nurses Society

Ruth Tutor, PhD, RN, Critical Care/Transplant Advance Practice Nurse at Methodist University Hospital Transplant Institute, has received the 2007 Transplant Nursing Excellence Award from the International Transplant Nurses Society.

Tutor has worked with transplant patients since 1985 and joined the nursing staff at the Transplant Institute at Methodist University Hospital in 2004. In addition to her experience working with transplant patients, she also has experience in oncology and neuro and trauma critical care.





October 2007