Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By Sarah Whitman

Dr. Sunil Panchal, physician at the National Institute of Pain in Lutz, shakes his head every time he hears about another pain clinic being raided by police.
“Some of these clinics were seeing more than 100 patients a day,” he said. “How can you properly evaluate a patient’s condition and devise a treatment plan when you are seeing that many people in a day? You can’t. I never just write a script for pills the first time I see a patient. That’s not what we’re here for.”
Panchal is a certified pain management doctor through the American Board of Medical Specialties and former director of Interventional Pain Medicine at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa. In 2006, he opened the National Institute of Pain at 4911 Van Dyke Road.
He does not have a line of people waiting outside his door. He does not prescribe oxycodone. He limits the use of opioid drugs entirely, opting to use controlled release medications that do not produce the euphoric effect associated with addiction.
“ My goal is to determine where a patient’s pain is coming from and create a comprehensive treatment plan using as little medication as possible,” Panchal said. “I want my patients to return to living full functional lives.”
Panchal treats patients experiencing pain associated with injuries, chronic diseases and side effects from cancer treatments. He uses treatments including radiation frequency, anesthetic block injections and the implantation of spinal cord stimulators.
“There are severe downsides to pain medication,” he said. “They cause side effects like itching, nausea and constipation. There is also an increased risk of a toxicity effect, opioid induced hyperaglesia, which can actually make pain worse. When that happens, a patient thinks the medicine is not working so they want to increase the dose, which only intensifies the side effect.”
Panchal said true pain management specialists know drugs aren’t the only option. Panchal studied medicine at Albany Medical College in New York, followed by a residency at Northwestern University in Chicago and a fellowship at the University of Illinois. He was director of the pain division at Weill Medical College of Cornell University and co-director of the Chronic Pain Service at John Hopkins University before coming to Tampa.
He advises anyone in pain to research before choosing a physician.
“A lot of these clinics are run by doctors who are trained in another specialty but call themselves pain doctors,” he said. “They advertise, ‘We prescribe vicodin. We prescribe oxycodone,’ because they know that is what the people are craving for. They are contributing to the problem.”
Yvette Rollings is one of Panchal’s patients. She was driving in Texas three years ago when a quarter ton truck forged ahead at 80 miles per hour into the back of her SUV. Rollings was left with severe neck and back injuries from the top of her head to the base of her spine. She was treated with medications, which did little to help.
“They just made me tired all the time,” she said. “I was depressed and all I wanted to do was sleep.”
When Rollings moved to Tampa, she visited and interviewed several pain management doctors before meeting Panchal. They offered suggestions ranging from more medication to putting a cage in her spine.
“When I got to Dr. Panchal, I was ready to give up,” Rollings said. “I was in so much pain I didn’t even want to fill out the new patient paperwork. When I met Dr. Panchal he said, ‘I can help you. You just need to have patience.’ ”
Panchal treated Rollings using radiation frequency treatments and the surgical implantation of a spinal cord stimulator. The stimulator utilizes probes permanently implanted on the spine and a small battery placed at the hip.
“The spinal cord stimulator changed my life,” Rollings said. “I am able to be a mom and a wife again. I’ve had 98 percent relief.”
Panchal said pain problems are often misdiagnosed. In Rollings’ case, much of her pain was caused by damage to the nerves and joints.
“A lot of times people will complain about neck or back pain and be sent for an MRI,” Panchal said. “One third of people will show a herniated disc somewhere but that isn’t necessarily what is causing the pain. The actual joints of the spine may be what is causing the pain, so we can do a selective block of anesthetic to numb the area.”
According to Panchal, a good way to tell if a pain doctor is credible is how knowledgeable they are.
“Anyone can claim they are board certified in pain medicine but unless they are certified by the ABMS and have passed the board exam, they are not,” he said.  “I’ve had people come in who’ve had continual access to pain medication for whatever reason and they’ve never even been worked up to determine the real source of the pain.”
Panchal has also seen patients suffering from addiction or borderline addiction.
“I’ve had patients come to me who just want a prescription and when I won’t give it to them, they get angry,” Panchal said. “I’ve also had patients who say their dependency on the medicine is interfering with their lives and affecting their families, and they want to try something different. I’ve had some patients who’ve gotten completely off of medications and some who will always need some level of medicine, but we are able to find something that works for them other than the typical pain medication.”
In addition to time-release drugs, Panchal prescribes anti-depressants and anti-seizure medications to help with pain when absolutely necessary.
Rollings no longer takes medication but says people shouldn’t be ashamed to take medications as directed by a trained doctor.
“It’s a shame that some people will live in pain because they’re afraid of the stigma associated with pain management,” she said. “There are good doctors out there who can help and people should get the help they need.”
In Pasco County, Pasco Regional Medical Center has seven certified pain management physicians on staff. All are trained in the latest advancements and do not rely solely on medications.
“We treat a lot of people who are suffering acute pain and have been for a long time,” said Susan Frimmel, media relations representative for the hospital. “We help them manage the pain and have a better quality of life using different therapies including injections. Prescription medications aren’t always the way to go. Getting to the root of the problem for every patient is our goal.”
Panchal said the answer to the pain clinic problem is to require that physicians have proper certification.
“Hopefully in the future, only people properly trained in the field will be able to call themselves pain doctors,” he said. “What these clinics are doing now is ridiculous.”
For the National Institute of Pain, call (813) 264-7246 or visit www.nationalinstituteofpain.org. For Pasco Regional Medical Center, call (352) 521-1100.

Future project to further protect fire station No. 2

By Kyle LoJacono

Heavy rain June 3 had Zephyrhills fire department stacking sandbags and fire hoses in front of fire rescue station No. 2 next to city hall less than two months after the facility reopened.

Station No. 2 was closed for more than 800 days from Jan. 23, 2008 to April 15, 2010 because of flood damage from previous inclement weather. No destruction was done to the station during the recent storm and future improvements to the retention pond west of the building will help reduce the flooding risk in the future.
“The new project will deepen the pond to let more water stay there until the pump can get rid of it,” said Zephyrhills city manager Steve Spina. “We opened up biddings (June) 21 for the project and will award it June 28.”
Estimations on how much the project would cost were not available by press time.
“I’ve been the fire chief for Zephyrhills for almost four years and the flooding has been an ongoing problem,” said city fire chief Keith Williams. “From what I’ve heard it’s always been a problem.”
Public works director Rick Moore said the city already replaced the pump in the pond, which sends the water to Zephyr Lake.

“The area around the station historically floods, especially during intense storms like we had (June 3),” Moore said. “We got 4 to 5 inches of rain in 45 minutes and the pump can’t handle that much water in that short a period of time.”
Moore explained flooding is worse when a modest amount of rain, such as 4 to 5 inches, falls in a short period of time than tens of inches falling throughout a day because the water has no place to go.
Spina said the Southwest Florida Water Management District will not allow a larger pump to be installed for environmental reasons.
Station No. 2 is located on the corner of Seventh Street and Sixth Avenue. The flooding was so bad that both streets were closed around the station to protect the public and the facility.
“When people drive through a flooded street it causes a wake like a boat does,” Moore said. “That pushes more water right up to the doors of the station. Also there’s a dip in the road, which could cause cars driving through to be flooded and stall out in the road. The public works department closed the street and others around town that day.”
Other areas of the city that flood regularly include: 20th Street from Sixth to Eighth Avenue, Fourth Avenue from US 301 to Fourth Street and on First Street near West Zephyrhills Elementary School, according to Moore.
“From what I’ve seen the flooding usually isn’t a problem until people start driving on the streets,” Williams said. “That makes the water lap up onto the building…Closing the roads is out of my responsibility. Only public works can do that. We just have to do what we can to protect the station with the bags and hoses when bad storms come.”
The downtown facility was the original fire station in Zephyrhills and opened in 1960, according to Williams.
When the fire station reopened in April, new tile flooring and water resistant drywall were installed to prevent mold from forming if water gets into the building. The improvements cost around $130,000, according to Spina.
During that time the personnel and equipment were stationed at the World War II Barracks Museum at Zephyrhills Municipal Airport. Williams, whose office is at fire station No. 1 on Dairy Road, said he does not want to see firefighters put out of the station again because of flood damage.

“We’re basically in a bowl down here and we can’t change that,” Spina said. “There was flooding all over town that day and we closed several roads because of it. That happens a couple times each year. I think once the work on the retention pond is done that will solve a lot of the problems.”

By Suzanne Schmidt

Learning Gate Community School in Lutz is the first public school in the country to achieve the highest green certification a public school can get.

The school earned the platinum certification under the LEED for School rating system through the U. S. Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED is the internationally recognized green building certification system.
Drew Smith is the president of Two Trails, a green building consulting firm. He has been helping with the project since the beginning.
“It is a monumental achievement,” Smith said. “We helped with part of the design and through the certification. The school is already environmentally friendly so it is a natural fit for them to get this certification.”
Smith said the LEED program is the most recognized third party green certification in the country. There are multiple levels of LEED certification with platinum as the highest.
Michelle Northrup, spokeswoman for the school, said it took three years from beginning the building process to receiving the certification status.
“I am very excited about us getting platinum status,” Northrup said. “It is exciting to be the only public school in the nation to get it. Our school has always been green. Our motto is nature is our best teacher. I think building green is the future. Our students will be a step above their peers because they already have experience making green choices.”

On the 27-acre campus off Hanna Road, students spend some of their time learning about nature while walking on the woodland trails or toiling away in the organic garden.
“It is such a different environment here,” Northrup said. “The students spend about 20 percent of their day outside. Our children are taught to be independent thinkers. Instead of just being shown it, they are learning it for themselves.”
Students learn other ways to be green as well with the rain barrels, compost bins and recycling bins located throughout the school. Students are responsible for recycling in each classroom.
“The kindergarten class started doing an experiment to see how much waste we had from the lunches,” Northrup said. “They found that we used 9 tall trash bags a day. This year we started a new initiative with the green lunchboxes. Now we save $1,000 a month because we have no trash.”
The school also uses cisterns to collect water for use when flushing the toilets.
“We are the first and only school to use cisterns for the toilets,” Northrup said.
Even the air conditioning at the school is eco-friendly. The school uses a de-humidification system instead of a typical air conditioner.
“The system takes fresh air and removes the humidity,” Smith said. “It controls the temperature of the air and the humidity. It helps the students to stay alert. The green buildings provide a better environment for students. It has been proven students get higher grades.”
Northrup wrote a grant to Lowe’s Charitable Foundation for the money for the green buildings. The final cost of the whole project was $1.3 million.
“I was asking for a quarter of a million grant from Lowe’s Charitable Foundation,” Northrup said. “They felt so strongly about the mission of our school that they gave us the entire amount. They wanted to ensure we had enough to complete the project.”

When deciding which materials and products to buy, Northrup said the school turns it into a lesson for the students.
“The kids had a lot of help with choosing the materials,” Northrup said. “We would let them know what we need and they would do research. They would learn the benefits of each product. It was nice because they got to be a big part of it.”
Patti Girard, founder and principal at the school, said she opened the school with green ideals before they were even known to be green.
“I always wanted the school to have an environmental focus,” Girard said. “I grew up that way. I saw how children react to being outside. It seemed like a natural fit.”
She said she thinks building green will become the norm one day.
“I think it is a necessity to build green,” Girard said. “I think one day it will be something you don’t even think about. It will just be the right thing to do like seatbelts.”
For more information, visit www.learninggate.org.

Past Zephyrhills city councilman fighting for his life

By Kyle LoJacono

Former Zephyrhills City Councilman Mike Bussell had tremendous back pain for weeks before an MRI revealed a problem he never expected — cancer.
Bussell, 68, has a 6-centimeter tumor on his right kidney, which metastasized and spread to his second lumbar vertebra in the lower back. The pain was a result of the cancer damaging 75 percent of his vertebra.

“I was feeling very tired and in a lot of pain about 10 to 12 weeks ago, so we went to the James A. Haley Veteran’s Hospital in Tampa when they told me,” Bussell said. “I’m going to beat it, but I understand why people have problems mentally after learning they have cancer. It’s rough not so much for me, but for my wife and family.”
Bussell, who served on the Zephyrhills City Council from 2001 to 2003, said one of the low points when dealing with the pain came when he and his wife, Yvonne, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. He said his son, Michael Jr., had to hold him up because of the pain.
He was prescribed steroids, which has greatly reduced his pain, but does not remove the family’s questions.
“My first reaction to it was why didn’t someone tell us sooner,” Yvonne said. “Now I’m just focusing on getting him well. Life is too short to be sick.”
The family said they were told such a tumor grows about a half a centimeter each year, so they estimated it could have been in him for 10 to 12 years without them knowing.
“They told us it’s called the silent killer because you rarely have any symptoms until it’s too late,” Yvonne, 67, said.
“All of his family had heart problems, not cancer,” Yvonne continued. “It hit us right between the eyes and was unreal. We don’t know what the future holds, but we’ll stay positive and fight with him until he’s fully cured.”
That family history of heart problems actually sped up the timetable on Bussell’s treatment. He was experiencing some chest pressure May 25 and was taken to the VA to get it checked out. He had two stents inserted into an artery to open it and improve blood flow.
“The doctors said I was going to need the stents and go through stress tests on my heart before I could get anything done about the cancer,” Bussell said. “Now my treatment has been moved up several weeks. It’s a very good thing it happened and I thank God they could deal with it sooner.”
Bussell can use the VA hospital because he served 17 years of active duty with the Army. He emphasized he loves the treatment he has received from the hospital, especially because the facility can draw on services from Moffitt Cancer Center. He said his doctors do not have a set plan yet for how to attack the cancer, but will have a better idea in the next two weeks.
One of the things that has kept Bussell positive throughout the ordeal is his faith.
“I grew up in a very religious family and so did my wife,” Bussell said. “All my faith is in God and Jesus Christ. If I didn’t have my faith it would be a lot harder for me right now and I wouldn’t be as positive that I’m going to beat this thing.”
Bussell’s positive attitude has made it less painful for his family.
“I’m really glad he has a positive attitude,” said Bussell’s grandson Michael Bussell III. “It makes things easier on the family. We haven’t dealt with anything like this as a family and hs attitude helps us all.”
Michael III, 14, lives in Sarasota. He was visiting his grandfather in Zephyrhills just after graduating from middle school to give Bussell as much support as he could.
Bussell and Yvonne have two children, Michelle and Michael Bussell Jr. The family moved to Zephyrhills in 1988 and said he is most pleased of bringing in some pockets of land to the city.
“We added several enclaves during my time with the city council and that is what I’m most proud of,” Bussell said. “The areas had all the benefits from the city, like police and fire protection, but they weren’t part of the city.”
An enclave is an area of land not officially part of a city that is completely surrounded by that metropolis. Such areas benefit from city services like police and fire protection without paying into the tax base.
Zephyrhills city clerk Linda Boan said 18 enclaves were added during Bussell’s term.
“I thought I always wanted to get into politics and give back to the community,” Bussell said. “It turned out to be much more than a part-time job like they told me originally.”
Besides being on the council, Bussell owned Mike’s Sending Place, which shipped packages around the world. He also got involved with the American Cancer Society (ACS) Zephyrhills Relay 4 Life in 2002. That relay raised $69,000 and work done by the ACS may help in Bussell’s treatment.
“This isn’t going to beat me,” Bussell said of his diagnoses. “I won’t let it.”

By Sarah Whitman

Morton Plant North Bay Hospital and Bay Care Behavioral Health will open a new facility this summer in Land O’ Lakes. The Morton Plant North Bay Hospital Recovery Center, an in-patient psychiatric treatment center for children, will begin services July 1 at 21808 SR 54. The new 10-bed hospital will offer long-term mental health care to youth ages 5 to 17.
“The facility is the first of its kind in Pasco County,” said Beth Hardy, media representative for the hospital. “Now children who require hospitalization will not have to travel out of the county. This will make it much easier on families.”
The 45,000 square foot building formerly housed Gulf and Lake Academy, a residential facility for non-violent female juvenile offenders. Gulf and Lake moved to two new locations in Pinellas County. They no longer offer services in Land O’ Lakes.

Morton Plant is leasing the Land O’ Lakes building and has made multiple renovations, transforming the facility to a hospital. Clinical treatment will coincide with behavioral counseling such as group therapy in a more residential setting. The facility will include a full-service kitchen, main recreational living areas and private rooms.
“The entire facility has been renovated to meet hospital base standards,” said Stephanie Santiere, media representative for Bay Care.
Morton Plant has treated patients with mental illness for more than 20 years and currently treats children at its main campus in Clearwater. Inpatient conditions include substance abuse problems, depression and psychosis. Plans for an independent psychiatric facility have been ongoing.
In April 2008, Morton Plant filed three applications for a psychiatric facility with a total of 70 beds including 10 child inpatient beds. In June 2008, the state denied the application and approved a competing plan by Ten Broeck Tampa that did not specify plans for children’s beds. Ten Broeck’s plan was to open a 40-bed psychiatric facility on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. Plans have not yet been finalized.
In December 2008, the state approved Morton Plant’s application for the 10 child inpatient psychiatric beds as an exception to the original application’s denial.
Morton Plant made plans to open the Land O’ Lakes facility shortly after, confirming the decision in August 2009. The new hospital will be modeled after and supported by the comprehensive services and infrastructure available within Morton Plant’s main campus.  Susan Wright will be director of the new facility.
“The goal for the new facility is to provide quality mental health care to children and adolescents in the community,” Santiere said. “As the only hospital-based children’s mental health facility in Pasco County, we hope to make receiving high-quality treatment easier and more convenient for children and their families.”
For information on Morton Plant North Bay Hospital Recovery Center, visit www.mortonplant.com or call (727) 462-7000.