Download Read full article… - Tift Regional Medical Center

2016
LIVE A BETTER,
HEALTHIER LIFE IN
Tift Regional Medical Center can help
Many use the New Year as a gateway
to personal transformation. It could mean
making a resolution to eat better, exercise
more or to get a chronic condition under
control. It could mean dropping a bad
habit like smoking or finding more balance between work and family.
The New Year can be an investment for
personal change. It comes with its own
contemplation, motivation and collective
momentum. How are you going to use
that capital this year? How can it encourage you to revitalize yourself and optimize
your health?
“Tift Regional Medical Center in Tifton
offers services that can assist those who
want to look and feel better in the New
Year,” said Chris Efaw, Tift Regional Health
System’s Vice President, Outreach and Development. “These programs are designed
to help patients face health challenges with
confidence and to set realistic goals.”
Medical weight loss and Lap-Band
surgery. Losing weight can be difficult,
especially when you feel like you’ve tried
everything. The TRMC Weight Loss Center
provides effective methods that help shed
the pounds.
“With a team of clinical professionals,
TRMC offers both medical weight loss programs and Lap-Band surgery designed to
guide and support you every step of the
way,” said Efaw.
With TRMC’s medically-supervised
weight loss program located at Affinity
Clinic in Tifton, Dr. James Graham and
nurse practitioner Dawn Floyd work with
patients to assess their current level of
health and then design a plan to assist them in reaching their goal weight.
HealthWise meal replacement plans and
supervised modified diet plans are available with clinic consultations, B12/B complex injections and office visits to monitor
weight, blood pressure and urinary ketoses as well as review progress and provide support.
TRMC is also offering a safe and effective treatment for obese adult patients
who have been unsuccessful with non-surgical weight reduction alternatives. General and bariatric surgeon Dr. Christopher
Smith is trained and experienced in LapBand procedures—safe, minimally invasive
and adjustable weight loss surgeries. This
gastric banding system serves as a tool to
control hunger by limiting food consumption and creating an earlier feeling of fullness without the high risk of nutritional deficiencies associated with gastric bypass.
Dr. Smith holds a clinic at the Tift Regional Weight Loss Center, located at the
TRMC West Campus. He performs surgical
procedures at the TRMC Surgery Center.
For more information on the TRMC Weight
Loss Center, visit www.TRMCWeightLoss.
com or call 229-391-4100.
Find relief from acid reflux without
pills. General and bariatric surgeon Dr.
Christopher Smith has also recently begun
performing a new procedure at TRMC to
assist in reducing the effects acid reflux.
This new procedure, called the LINX System, is able to provide relief for patients
who suffer from gastroesophageal reflux
disease (GERD), commonly known as
heartburn or acid reflux. Millions of adults
in the U.S. suffer from GERD.
The new LINX system offered by Dr.
Smith at TRMC is a small, flexible band of
magnets enclosed in titanium beads. The
beads are connected by titanium wires.
The LINX System is implanted around the
weak esophageal sphincter, just above the
stomach. The magnetic attraction between
the beads keeps the weak esophageal
sphincter closed to help prevent reflux.
Swallowing forces separate the beads
temporarily to allow food and liquid to
pass into the stomach.
“The outpatient procedure itself takes
approximately one hour and patients are
generally able to go home within one
day,” said Dr. Smith.
For more information on the LINX System or to learn on how schedule an evaluation, call 229-353-2263.
Cosmetic surgery and skin laser resurfacing. Are you considering plastic or
reconstructive surgery? Go no further than
Tifton for advanced cosmetic procedures,
reconstructive surgery and skin laser resurfacing. Derron Spikes, M.D. and the
team at Allure Plastic and Reconstructive
Surgery are available to develop an individualized treatment plan that will help refine, rejuvenate and enhance the way you
look and feel.
Services offered by Dr. Spikes include
cosmetic surgery for the face, breast and
body; breast, skin cancer, burn and wound
reconstructive surgery; laser skin resurfacing to reduce facial wrinkles and skin irregularities, such as blemishes, acne scars
and pre-malignant lesions; Botox and dermal filler injections; chemical peels; Obagi
skin care products; Latisse growth treatment for eye lashes; and, breast reduction.
Allure Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery is located in Tifton at 907 East 18th
Street, Suite 340. Call 229-391-3600 to
make an appointment. Visit www.AllurePRS.com for more information.
Non-surgical laser treatment for varicose veins. Radiologist Carl Stalvey, M.D.
is now offering a non-surgical laser procedure at Tift Regional Medical Center
(TRMC) to treat varicose veins. If you are
one of more than 25 million Americans
who suffer from varicose veins, you may
benefit from this treatment that’s safe,
virtually painless and requires little-to-no
downtime.
“Varicose veins can be unsightly, uncomfortable and a symptom of vein disease,” said Dr. Stalvey. “The VenaCure
EVLT laser vein treatment procedure utilizes laser energy to achieve proven results
without the discomfort and lengthy recovery experienced through surgical options.
The entire procedure takes about an hour
at Tift Regional Medical Center, and depending on the severity of the condition,
may be covered by insurance.”
Talk to your provider today. A referral from a physician, nurse practitioner or
physician assistant is required. For more
information, visit www.tiftregional.com or
call the TRMC Radiology Department at
229- 353-6966.
Asthma patients can breathe easier
with Bronchial Thermoplasty. Tift Regional Medical Center (TRMC) and the pulmonologists with Affinity Clinic in Tifton now
offer Bronchial Thermoplasty (BT), a minimally-invasive bronchoscopic procedure
that delivers thermal energy to the airway
wall in a precisely controlled manner in
order to reduce excessive airway smooth
muscle (ASM). This helps reduce attacks
in adult patients with severe asthma and is
shown to improve asthma-related quality
of life for people living with the disease.
“Prior to the BT procedure, doctors had
only pharmaceutical medications to offer
their severe asthma patients temporary
relief from asthma symptoms,” said Sandy
Wells, RRT, RCP, TRMC Director of Respiratory Therapy. “We now can offer this firstof-its-kind procedure to provide severe
asthma patients with a safe, long-lasting
and proven treatment option to help reduce asthma attacks.”
In a national clinical study, Wells said
“These programs are
designed to help patients face health challenges with confidence
and to set realistic
goals.”
79 percent of patients treated with BT saw
a significant improvement in their asthma-related quality of life.
“Asthma patients have become accustomed to avoiding the many environmental triggers that increase their risks of
having an asthma attack, such as staying
indoors during pollen or cold weather
seasons, avoiding perfume and cigarette
smoke, avoiding exercise or any type of
exertion or stress,” said Wells. “People with
severe asthma can miss work, school, and
even avoid traveling due to the effects
of the disease. In addition, adults whose
severe asthma symptoms persist despite
taking the maximum tolerated medications are at risk of suffering life-threatening asthma attacks requiring immediate
Look and feel your best
New services offered by Tift Regional Medical
Center to help you take charge of your health
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Medical weight loss clinic
Lap-Band weight loss surgery
LINX system for acid reflux relief
Cosmetic surgery and skin laser resurfacing
Laser therapy for varicose veins
Bronchial Thermoplasty to help reduce severe attacks for adult asthma patients
Wound care & hyperbaric clinic
www.tiftregional.com
treatment at an emergency room.”
Wells added that the Bronchial Thermoplasty procedure is not a substitute for
pharmaceutical medication as prescribed
by a doctor. It works along with pharmaceuticals to provide less risk of asthma
attacks and its complications for those
suffering from severe asthma.
A physician referral is required for the
Bronchial Thermoplasty procedure. For
more information, visit www.tiftregional.
com or call 229- 353-7526. Learn more
about TRMC pulmonologists at www.affinity-clinic.com.
Get non-healing wounds under control.
Tift Regional Health System (TRHS) has
teamed with the Healogics network to introduce a new outpatient wound care and
hyperbaric clinic with medical director and
wound care specialist Kent Burton, M.D.
Providing additional support and care for
patients is Langston Cleveland, M.D. Located at Tifton Physicians Center (adjacent
to Tift Regional Medical Center), the Tift
Regional Wound Care & Hyperbaric Clinic provides comprehensive treatment for
non-healing wounds.
Dr. Burton stated that likely candidates
for treatment at the new center are those
suffering from diabetic ulcers, pressure
ulcers, infections, radiation injuries to soft
tissue and bone, compromised skin grafts
and flaps, and wounds that haven’t healed
within 30 days. Patients can be referred
by a healthcare provider, but self-referred
patients are also accepted. “We will work
closely with a patient’s primary care provider, surgeon or specialist in evaluation
and treatment,” said Dr. Burton.
The Tift Regional Wound Care & Hyperbaric Clinic is located at Tifton Physicians Center, 907 E. 18th Street, Suite 140,
Tifton. For more information, visit www.
tifregional.com or call 353-HEAL (4325).