Health

Health News 02/28/2018

February 28, 2018 By Mary Rathman

Gratitude for those who help save lives
In celebration of Valentine’s Day, Bayfront Health Dade City showed its appreciation to local EMS for their dedication to providing day-to-day lifesaving services. Doughnuts were handed out, along with comfort bears, made by the East Pasco Quilters, for pediatric patients. From left: Tim Reardon, Pasco County fire chief; Jan Eichenberger, Roxanne Ritter and Sue Sereti, East Pasco Quilters; Becky Murphy, ER manager; Amanda Martin, chief nursing officer.

Gulfside launches new website
Gulfside Hospice & Palliative Care has launched a new, redesigned website.

The new site is mobile friendly, easy to navigate and a resource for those looking for local hospice and non-hospice palliative care.

New features include a “Frequently Asked Questions” video library, virtual tours of the Gulfside Centers for Hospice Care, a Griefwords Library with articles about coping with loss, streamlined online donation process and event registrations, and more.

Users also can submit online referrals for hospice and palliative care, download a digital version of the company’s brochure and download volunteer applications.

Gulfside can still be found at the same website: GHPPC.org.

Veteran health services
The Pasco County Vet Center and the Mobile Vet Center offers counseling for readjusting to civilian life, military sexual trauma, bereavement, post-traumatic stress disorder, and marriage and family. Also available are resources for benefits information and suicide prevention referrals.

All services are confidential and free for veterans and family members.

The center is at 5139 Deer Park Drive in New Port Richey, and is open Monday, Tuesday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon.

For information or to tour the facility, call (727) 372-1854.

Hospital welcomes new doctor
Oak Hill Hospital has welcomed Dr. Jon Chadwick, board-eligible otolaryngology, to its medical staff.

Chadwick completed his residency and internship at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, and received his medical degree from Penn State College of Medicine.

For information, call (352) 688-0800, or visit SuncoastENTSurgery.com.

Health initiative encourages more movement

February 21, 2018 By Mary Rathman

The Florida Department of Health in Pasco County and the “Get Healthy Pasco!” coalition, are encouraging residents to “Move More!” at Pasco County parks through April 30.

A Community Needs Assessment was completed by Pasco’s health department in 2017, determining four areas of priority in the county, one of which was overall health and well-being. This prompted the launch of the coalition, “Get Healthy Pasco!”

Many organizations that got involved focused on the health and well-being of Pasco County residents through physical activity and healthy nutrition choices, as well as systems and environmental changes.

Health experts say that being active can assist with reducing the risk of heart disease, stroke and Type 2 diabetes. It also can strengthen bones, muscles and joints, and improve mental health, relieve stress and improve sleep, over time.

An initiative was rolled out this month called “Move More!”

Pasco County has more than 50 outdoor parks available to the public, and the program aims to increase awareness of these resources, so residents can take advantage of them and become more active.

Residents can join “Move More!” online. The goal is to visit at least five parks in the county before April 30, and become eligible for a prize.

To register and print out a list of park locations, visit tinyurl.com/y94gzz7f.

For additional information on healthy events in Pasco County, contact Amina Ahmed at (727) 619-0143 or .

Residents also can complete a DOH-Pasco satisfaction survey at SurveyMonkey.com/r/FMXPW3M.

Published February 21, 2018

Health News 02/21/2018

February 21, 2018 By Mary Rathman

(Courtesy of Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point)

Star volunteers!
Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point recognized its Star Award winners for the fourth quarter of 2017. From left: Joanne Eramo, has volunteered for more than 10 years and has more than 2,700 hours of service; Fred Fredricksen, a volunteer for more than seven years has nearly 2,000 hours of service; and, Rose Sell has been at the hospital for more than three years and has more than 2,400 hours.

Acute care facility gets new program
Florida Hospital Connerton Long Term Acute Care Facility in Land O’ Lakes now has the BeSmart Safe Mobility and Reposition Transfer program in place for the benefit of employees and patients.

The new equipment eliminates manual lifting, and provides mechanical options to reduce employee and patient injuries. The program includes an overhead lift in the gym and a special walker for patients who are able to use it.

Additional BeSmart equipment is scheduled to be installed by the end of the year.

Gulfside launches new website
Gulfside Hospice & Palliative Care has launched a new, redesigned website.

The new site is mobile friendly, easy to navigate and a resource for those looking for local hospice and non-hospice palliative care.

Users also can submit online referrals for hospice and palliative care, download a digital version of the company’s brochure and download volunteer applications.

Gulfside can still be found at the same website: GHPPC.org.

Legacy stroll raises nearly $14,000 for hospice

February 14, 2018 By Mary Rathman

Members of Team Pat Jones & Company CPAs on the memorial walk route. (Courtesy of Kirsty Churchill)

The inaugural Hospice Legacy Stroll at Sims Park in New Port Richey raised nearly $14,000 to benefit Gulfside Hospice & Pasco Palliative Care. The stroll was inspired by the original Hike for Hospice.

More than 60 people participated in the memorial walk. Several stations were set up along the path, allowing families and friends to remember and honor loved ones.

Awards were given to the top fundraising teams, which included Let’s Stroll ($300), Trilogy Team ($290) and Richard’s Riches ($250).

Gulfside chaplain Steve Graybill was recognized with the Dove Award for receiving the most Hospice Hero recognitions from families throughout the past year.

Raising awareness about drugged driving

February 7, 2018 By Kevin Weiss

A case of drugged driving forever changed the lives of parents Joey and Tammy Leonard.

Now their mission is to ensure other families don’t experience the same anguish they must handle every day.

On Oct. 12, 2015, the Leonards lost their daughter, Kassidy Leonard, her husband, William Griggs, and their 12-day-old baby granddaughter, Kimberlynn Dawn Griggs, after a horrific head-on collision with an impaired driver in Tennessee.

The driver, Benjamin Franklin, then 28, had crossed over the road into the oncoming lanes and struck Grigg’s vehicle on State Highway 13 in Houston County, Tennessee.

The young family was instantly killed.

Kassidy Leonard, her husband, William Griggs, and their 12-day-old baby daughter, Kimberlynn Dawn Griggs, were killed by a drug impaired driver in October 2015. Kassidy’s parents, Joey and Tammy Leonard, shared their personal story during a driving prevention seminar at the Pasco-Hernando State College East Campus in Dade City. (Courtesy of Joey and Tammy Leonard)

Franklin, who was under the influence of oxycodone, methamphetamine and amphetamines at the time of the crash, survived.

He was later sentenced to 36 years in prison for vehicular homicide.

“We say we received a life sentence, because of a senseless, preventable act of a grown man. It’s difficult for us to understand,” said Joey Leonard, associate dean of academic affairs and retention services at PHSC’s East Campus.

The Leonards shared their personal story during a panel discussion on drugged driving prevention at the Pasco-Hernando State College East Campus in Dade City.

Topics centered on the consequences of impaired driving, along with the risks of illegal and prescription drug use while operating a motor vehicle. Law enforcement and medical professionals weighed in.

The Jan. 30 event was part of the college’s ongoing Community Awareness Series available to community members, students, faculty and staff.

The issues
The National Institute of Drug Abuse says the use of illicit drugs or misuse of prescription drugs can make driving a car unsafe — just like driving after drinking alcohol — putting the driver, passengers and others who share the road at risk.

The effects of specific drugs differ depending on how they act in the brain, according to the organization.

For example, marijuana can slow reaction time, impair judgment of time and distance, and decrease coordination. Drivers who have used cocaine or methamphetamine can be aggressive and reckless when driving. Certain kinds of sedatives, called benzodiazepines, can cause dizziness and drowsiness.

Drugged driving is widespread nationally.

According to the 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), 11.8 million people age 16 drove under the influence of illicit drugs in 2016, the latest data published on the topic.

Approximately 21 percent of the 31,666 fatal crashes in the U.S., in 2015 involved at least one driver who tested positive for drugs after the incident, according to federal data released to USA TODAY and interviews with leaders in the field.

In Florida, there were 281 drug-related crash fatalities in 2015. That figure has risen every year since 2010, when 109 drug-related crash fatalities reported.

Panelists extensively pinpointed the use of marijuana.

Each warned students about the risks, especially when operating a vehicle.

“Marijuana alters your judgment, and it’s something you shouldn’t be doing before you get behind the wheel of a car,” said panelist Jessica Boh, who’s in her final year at the University of Florida’s College of Pharmacy.

Pasco Sheriff deputy Barry Nixon, another panelist, many times has witnessed the effects of those driving under the influence of marijuana.

Nixon explained many of his marijuana-related DUI arrests have been those traveling over 100 miles per hour, usually in a 45 mph zone.

“When you smoke marijuana, your heart rate goes up, your pulse goes up,” Nixon said.

“The impairment effects can last in your body for 24 hours. Just like with pain medication or anything, you don’t know how long it’s going to affect you or what it’s going to do. …. You don’t know what it does for you.”

Recreational drugs aren’t the only problems, however.

Drugged driving can also extend to over-the-counter medications and prescription medications, Boh explained.

“The reality is, any medication can affect your ability to drive,” she said.

Her advice is to read prescription labels and consult a pharmacist on how different drugs can affect driving and how it may interact with other medications.

“It’s your responsibility to know whether or not those medications impair you,” Boh said.

“If it makes you dizzy or lightheaded, it’s probably not a good idea to take it and then get behind the wheel of a car. There’s a lot of dangerous interactions that can happen with over-the-counter medications and prescription medications.”

Seeking solutions
The topic of drug culture also was discussed during the event.

Panelist James Lear set the blame on pop culture, particularly for negatively influencing millennial by glamorizing drug use.

Lear is a medical consultant at Becton Dickinson and has worked in the pharmacy industry for nearly 30 years, with expertise in a drug diversion programming.

“Shun pop culture,” Lear said. “Find somewhere else to find your values from.”

Lear also urged students to look out for each other and not fall into the peer pressure of abusing drugs and alcohol.

In the event of drug or alcohol use, he advised students to call a cab or ride-sharing service, like Uber or Lyft, instead of getting behind the wheel. “There’s no excuse to not make sure you have a safe way home,” he said.

Lear also encouraged students to get involved in their community and local politics to influence regulatory measures on public safety issues.

“Change your world. Change the way you live in it, and be an influence for good,” Lear said.

Since that tragic day in 2015, the Leonard family created a website, StopDruggedDriving.net, to educate and raise awareness about drugged driving and drugged driving fatalities, as well as provide resources for those struggling with addiction. They’ve also been advocates for strengthening penalties for drugged driving.

“Our prayer is that one day drugged driving will cease to exist and other families will never have to put up with the tragic loss of loved ones that we have,” Tammy Leonard said.

For more information, visit StopDruggedDriving.net.

Published February 7, 2018

Mission 22 helps fight the war on veteran suicides

February 7, 2018 By B.C. Manion

U.S. military personnel are trained to go into combat and face deadly dangers, but it turns out that adjusting to life after leaving active duty can sometimes pose greater perils.

That was the message that Shawn Huber brought to the Jan. 23 luncheon meeting of the Rotary Club of Lutz at the Heritage Harbor Country Club.

Shawn Huber, an ambassador for Mission 22, talks about the problem of military veteran suicides during a Rotary Club of Lutz meeting on Jan. 23. An estimated 20 veterans die by suicide each day, according to research by the department of Veteran Affairs. (B.C. Manion)

Huber, an ambassador for Mission 22, talked about that organization’s efforts to reduce the number of veterans who lose their lives to suicide.

An estimated 20 veterans die by suicide each day, according to research by the department of Veterans Affairs.

It’s a problem that led to the creation of Mission 22, said Huber, noting that he went to high school with one of the group’s original founders.

“What Mission 22 is looking for is financial donations to get these guys through treatment,” he said. It also needs ambassadors to help organize local events.

So many wounded warriors have injuries that cannot be seen, Huber said.

“People are like: ‘How do you know when people are going through this?’

“You don’t.

“If you’re missing an arm or a leg, I know you’ve been injured, right? But, if you don’t show any outward sign of injury — it’s all internal — people pass it off as if there is nothing wrong with you,” Huber said.

“The thing about military families — the wives and children know that Dad comes and goes. “What happens when Dad comes home and stays home. They don’t know how to handle them,” Huber said. “They try to ‘fix’ them.”

Veterans leave the service, where they were part of a team and had a specific role, to return to society, where they are no longer part of that team and can’t find a job that correlates with the one they left, Huber said.

“You were trained to do a job, and that job doesn’t exist,” Huber said.

Many are suffering from PTSD, too.

“They start drinking. They’re doing drugs,” he said.

“There are people that I’ve talked to — who have been on between 25 and 47 different drugs at once,” Huber added.

Some people who end their life by suicide choose that route, he said, because “in their minds, sometimes, this is the easiest way for them not put a burden on their friends and their family,” he said.

When someone ends his or her life, people often wonder: “What is the one thing that pushes them over the edge?” Huber said. “It’s not one thing.”

And, it’s often not easy to tell who might need some help, Huber added.

“You very rarely will find out who in your neighborhood is coming back from the military, unless they’re damaged physically and they’re missing a limb,” he said.

“We want to create awareness,” Huber added.

“What I’ve volunteered to do is that when people are ready and they want to make a change in their lives, I take them from where they are, to better.

Mission 22 has two treatment programs that focus on Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The goal is not to medicate and mask the problems our veterans are facing, but to heal them. The creation of these Mission 22 Healing Projects will allow us to support even more veterans through groundbreaking treatments.

One program can be done at home, and the other is done at a treatment facility in North Carolina.

For specifics about each program, visit Mission22.com.

Published February 7, 2018

New emergency room services available for local residents

February 7, 2018 By Mary Rathman

Two new emergency rooms have opened in Pasco County, giving local residents more convenient choices in times of need.

Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel had a ribbon cutting to celebrate the opening of its Central Pasco ER in Land O’ Lakes. (Courtesy of Florida Hospital-West Florida Division)

Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel opened the doors to its new free-standing Florida Hospital Central Pasco ER in Land O’ Lakes, located offsite from the hospital, on State Road 54, just east of the Suncoast Parkway. The hospital expanded its health services in order to serve more residents in the growing area of central Pasco County.

Construction began last spring, and the new 18,000-square-foot facility features a year-round full-service emergency department with 24 beds and state-of-the-art on-site imaging, such as X-ray, ultrasound, CT scan and onsite laboratory services.

The new emergency room is staffed with board-certified emergency medicine physicians, as well as nurses who specialize in emergency care.

The Medical Center of Trinity’s new ER 24-7, in Lutz, is now open at 1430 Dale Mabry Highway. (Courtesy of Medical Center of Trinity)

Ambulance services also will be offered for patients who come to the Central Pasco ER and need to be admitted to the hospital.

The offsite emergency room officially began to treat patients on Jan. 29.

The Medical Center of Trinity’s new free-standing emergency department, ER 24-7, in Lutz, is now open at 1430 Dale Mabry Highway, next to Walmart.

The facility offers access to emergency care 24-hours a day, seven days a week, with a multitude of resources for acute care of a serious illness or injury.

The full-service ER provides more advanced emergency services than an urgent care center and will accept patients via ambulance. It also has onsite CT scan, ultrasound and laboratory services, and is staffed by physicians board-certified in emergency care and nurses with emergency care experience and certifications.

Published February 7, 2018

Pasco joins lawsuit seeking opioid settlement

January 31, 2018 By Kathy Steele

Pasco County has joined the national trend for municipalities to fight back against distributors and manufacturers of opioid medications.

County commissioners voted to become one of several plaintiffs in litigation that seeks to replicate the kind of payouts attorneys won in the late 1990s against the tobacco industry.

Pensacola-based Levin Papantonio will represent Pasco County. The law firm is part of a consortium that is pursuing lawsuits in several states including West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky.

At stake is money that could be made available to the county for drug addiction treatment and the costs to law enforcement.

Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco spoke in favor of the lawsuit, prior to the county commissioners’ vote on Jan. 23 in New Port Richey.

“We feel the epidemic every day,” Nocco said.

In 2016, Pasco County had 165 drug overdose deaths, and 120 were related to opioids.

This is a legacy of marketing strategies that promoted prescription opioids as safe and nonaddictive, the sheriff said.

“It’s actually a pill that made them addicts,” Nocco said. “Someone is accountable for it. They should be sued,” the sheriff said.

Nocco noted the unexpected consequences from the state’s successful closure of pill mills, which distributed the opioids. He said people addicted to prescription pain medications turned to other sources, including heroin and fentanyl.

The sheriff recalled an instance when officers found a man beating on the chest of a homeless man. Initially, it appeared to be an assault. Instead, Nocco said it was a heroin overdose.

“He was trying to revive him,” Nocco said.

Pasco County deputies routinely carry Narcan, a medication that can help reverse the effects of an overdose.

In December, Pasco County commissioners heard a workshop presentation from attorney Jeff Gaddy, of Levin Papantonio.

The local law firm of Lucas/Magazine initially approached the county about the lawsuit proposal.

No upfront costs will be charged to the county. If a settlement is reached, attorneys would be eligible for a maximum 25 percent contingency fee from the county’s share of the settlement.

The lawsuits are filed against drug distributors and manufacturers. They allege that false claims were made about the safety of opioids, and excessive pill distribution that amounted to a “public nuisance.”

The lawsuits also allege that distributors failed to report suspicious orders to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, as required by law.

Any settlement would seek to establish abatement funds that would be used to recoup public dollars spent battling the opioid crisis.

Published January 31, 2018

Health News 01/31/2018

January 31, 2018 By Mary Rathman

Pirate invasion infuses some fun
Moms and babies, and young kids, as well as staff members of Florida Hospital Tampa were visited by pirates on Jan. 23. The pirates invaded to visit with the patients and hand out beads to kick off Gasparilla 2018.

Lighthouse awarded grant
The Lighthouse for the Visually Impaired and Blind received a grant from the Florida Medical Clinic Foundation of Caring to cover the cost of an Independent Skills Living program to be provided to a group of up to 10 Pasco County adults and seniors.

The skills program will help those visually impaired or blind adults and seniors to acquire the adaptive skills and technical devices needed to live safety in their homes, care for their families, and take care of their basic needs.

To learn more about Lighthouse, visit LVIB.org.

For information on the Foundation of Caring, visit FMCFoundationOfCaring.org.

First robotic spine care performed
Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point performed its first case using the Mazor X surgical assurance platform, which combines pre-operative planning tools and analytics with intra-operative guidance. The platform improves safety and efficiency, while giving patients the most advanced spinal surgery options available.

Dr. Brian Hudson, neurosurgeon, performed the surgery.

Hudson said, in a release, “As spinal surgery has evolved, more focus has been placed on minimizing trauma to the body during surgery and expediting a return to function through the use of minimally invasive techniques.”

These procedures can mean less pain, less blood loss, smaller incisions, shorter hospitalizations and shorter recovery time for patients.

Health News 01/24/2018

January 24, 2018 By Mary Rathman

More than a place to exercise
The Health & Wellness Center at Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel celebrated its five-year anniversary.

(Courtesy of Florida Hospital-West Florida Division)

The center, which opened its doors in 2013, as a fitness facility featuring comprehensive health and wellness programs, now has more than 5,500 members who have come in to work out nearly 1.4 million times.

The center features indoor pools, a cushioned indoor track, group fitness rooms, state-of-the-art TechnoGym fitness equipment, and more. There are also degreed and certified personal trainers.

Members have a choice of more than 120 group fitness classes per week to take part in. Classes include the Les Mills programs, Pilates, Zumba, and aqua classes.

The facility offers child care services and has a Fit Fresh Café.

Crisis Center receives grant
The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Florida Medical Clinic Foundation of Caring.

The center serves as Hillsborough County’s certified rape crisis center, and staff are thoroughly trained in policies and procedures for interacting with survivors of sexual assault.

Survivors who report to an emergency room following an assault often communicate that the lack of privacy, long waits and overall treatment can be traumatizing.

The grant will allow the center’s sexual assault nurses and victim advocates to adequately train emergency room employees, who are often the first point of contact for survivors of sexual assault, in hospitals throughout Tampa.