Donna Stariha Joins MediSYS as Medical Billing Services Manager
Donna Stariha joins MediSYS as Manager of Medical Billing Services. Donna brings to MediSYS over twenty years of health care experience including all aspects of physician practice management as well as insurance industry billing and enrollment. Previously, Stariha served as Practice Administrator for a large cardiovascular group and Chief Operating Officer for Gadsden Primary Care.
With a B.S. in Business Administration — Magna cum Laude from United States International University-San Diego, CA, Stariha will graduate in May 2008 from Birmingham School of Law-Birmingham, AL. Active in professional organizations, Stariha is a member of Alabama State-Medical Group Management Association, National-Medical Group Management Association American College of Medical Practice Executives, American Academy of Medical Administrators and the Christian Legal Society.
DCH Home Health Care Agency Named to Top 100 Home Health Agencies List
DCH Home Health Care Agency has been named one of the top 100 home health agencies in the United States by OCS, Inc., a national health care information company. OCS, Inc. reviews publicly available information on quality outcomes, quality improvement and financial performance to identify the HomeCare Elite, a compilation of the top 25 percent of the Medicare-certified home health care providers in the United States. Not only did DCH Home Health Care Agency rate in the HomeCare Elite top 25 percent, but it was also rated as one of the top 100 of the more than 7,400 Medicare-certified home health agencies in the nation, according to the study.
Marcia Bailey, director of clinical services for DCH Home Health Care Agency, credited the staff and their kind, compassionate care, and many years of experience with the agency’s ability to rank as one of the HomeCare Elite. “It really comes down to the people,” Bailey said.
Clancy Joins Andrews Sports Medicineand Orthopaedic Center
Orthopaedic Surgeon William G. Clancy, MD has returned to Birmingham to join the Andrews Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center at St. Vincent’s - Birmingham.
Dr. Clancy returns from Aspen, Colorado where he was in practice for the past three years with Orthopaedic Associates of Aspen. Previously, he was in practice here in Birmingham with Alabama Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center.
Prostate Cancer Champion Receives Mary Lou Wright Distinguished Leadership” Award
The National Prostate Cancer Coalition (NPCC) has honored Dr. Thomas Moody of Alabama with the “Mary Lou Wright Distinguished Leadership Award.” Senator Jeff Sessions (AL - R) presented the award to Dr. Moody during NPCC’s annual Advocacy Day activities in September.
The Mary Lou Wright Award is named after a pioneer in the field of prostate cancer awareness, outreach and advocacy, and is presented to Dr. Moody in acknowledgement of his exceptional public service and dedication in the fight against prostate cancer.
“Dr. Moody has been a major presence in the battle against prostate cancer in Alabama, and his dedication is invaluable,” said National Prostate Cancer Coalition CEO Richard N. Atkins, MD. “NPCC is proud to present this award to Dr. Moody for his efforts and commitment to the prostate cancer community.”
As President of the Urology Centers of Alabama, Dr. Moody has tirelessly traveled to both Washington, DC and Montgomery to lobby for support of federal and state legislators. He has donated his own time and money to set up screenings and raise awareness of the disease across the state, and has testified before the Alabama Senate Health Committee on the need for greater access to screening.
Earlier this year, Dr. Moody played an integral part in Alabama’s passage of a state insurance mandate law, and almost single-handedly raised Alabama’s grade from an ‘F’ to a ‘C’ on the 2007 Prostate Cancer Report Cards. Next month, the National Prostate Cancer Coalition and Community Care Network will team up with Dr. Moody to offer free prostate cancer screenings in Montgomery as part of NPCC’s Drive Against Prostate Cancer program. Further information about this free screening event is available at www.fightprostatecancer.org/drive.
Children’s Hospital Organ Donation Team Awarded HHS Medal of Honor
Children’s Hospital of Alabama will receive the Medal of Honor from the United States Department of Health and Human Services for exceeding the national target for organ donation conversion rates between May, 2006, and April, 2007. The award will be presented at this month’s meeting of the National Learning Congress in Nashville.
Children’s Hospital’s target organ donation conversion rate for the past year was 82 percent, which exceeds the national 75 percent rate. The conversion rate reflects the number of actual organ donations received from eligible organ donors.
In 2003, Children’s Hospital had a conversion rate of only 33 percent.
To improve the conversion rate, an interdisciplinary organ donation team, led by Margaret Winkler, MD, was created to work with the Alabama Organ Donation Center to improve the hospital’s conversion rate. “We formed ‘Children’s Champions,’ a performance improvement team represented by critical care medicine, critical care nursing, pastoral care, social work, risk management and performance improvement,” explained Bryn Manzella, director of performance improvement and accreditation. “As a team, we explored and implemented strategies to improve conversion rate.”
Cancer Center Names New Development Officer
Sherri Van Pelt, OT, MPA, has been hired as development director for the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center. Van Pelt has been an occupational therapist for more than two decades and holds UAB degrees in occupational therapy, psychology and public administration. In her private practice, she focused on treating children with disabilities living in rural Alabama.
Van Pelt recently served as executive director for VSA Arts of Alabama, a nonprofit organization that provides art therapy for adults and children with disabilities. VSA is a sister organization to the Special Olympics and an affiliate program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. She serves on UAB’s President’s Leadership Council and the School of Health Professions Dean’s Advisory Board.
Healthsouth Lakeshore Rehabilitation Hospital Receives National President’s Circle Award
HealthSouth Lakeshore Rehabilitation Hospital recently received the President’s Circle Award during HealthSouth’s Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet.
HealthSouth Lakeshore was one of only 12 hospitals in HealthSouth’s nationwide network of more than 90 rehabilitation hospitals to receive the prestigious award. The award recognizes outstanding performance in development of clinical programs, quality of patient care services, and overall operational excellence.
“Being honored with this award is recognition for our commitment to high-quality, cost effective health care,” Chief Executive Officer Terry Brown said. “Working together as a team, our staff has demonstrated a genuine concern for our patients by always trying to provide whatever it takes for a successful outcome. This award is a result of the effort of our physicians and entire hospital staff.
UAB Researchers Publish Study on Limiting Heart Attack Damage
Administering hydrogen sulfide (H2S) directly into the heart during a simulated heart attack significantly reduces the tissue and cell damage often seen in oxygen-starved organs, according to a new study from UAB researchers that was published in the online Early Edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
H2S boosts post-heart-attack function by helping to minimize reperfusion injury, an unwanted side effect of restoring blood flow swiftly to hearts suffering from low oxygen, the study authors said.
In testing on mice, the H2S injection led to a 72 percent reduction in the amount of severe heart-tissue death after restoring normal oxygen and blood flow to mice hearts. The 72 percent reduction compares to a much larger average amount of tissue death in un-treated mice hearts after the same 30 minutes of oxygen deprivation.
Findings on the protective qualities of H2S have broad implications for improving human survival after cardiac arrest, heart transplant and trauma in general, said David Kraus, PhD, a UAB associate professor in the Departments of Environmental Health Sciences and Biology and co-author on the new study.
Help for Fabry Patients
Physicians at UAB have discovered the first successful treatment to stop progressive kidney function loss in patients suffering from Fabry disease. David Warnock, MD, director of the UAB Division of Nephrology, led the team, whose results are published in the September edition of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
Fabry, a genetic condition, is caused by the lack of enzymes that metabolize lipids. The effective treatment concoction includes an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) and an angiotensin-receptor blocker (ARB) given to patients through infusion, along with enzyme replacement therapy.
Trinity Medical Center Opens Neuro Intensive Care Unit
Trinity Medical Center has opened a dedicated intensive care unit for neurological patients. The Neurological Intensive Care Unit (Neuro ICU) is an eight bed unit located on the third floor of the hospital. This unit will provide critical care for patients following neurosurgery or for other neurological-related injuries or trauma.
Two UAB Faculty Honored for Health Information Management
Two faculty members in the UAB Department of Health Services Administration in the School of Health Professions, were honored by the American Health Information Management Association for achievement in health information management.
Sara Grostick, MA, RHIA, FAHIMA, associate professor of health information management, is the recipient of the 2007 Educator award. Grostick was honored for her leadership in transitioning UAB’s traditional HIM program into an online program. She also played a key role in developing a graduate-level program in health informatics. Grostick was the co-editor of the textbook Health Information: Management of a Strategic Resource.
Shannon Houser, PhD, MPH, RHIA,, assistant professor of health information management, received the 2007 Research award. In addition to her teaching duties, Houser is co-investigator of three research projects related to HIM methodologies and longitudinal patient follow up for various diseases and conditions.
The UAB School of Health Professions is one of the largest health professions schools in the nation with 21 innovative programs at the baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral degree levels within six departments.
UAB Cancer Center Launches Support Service
The UAB Cancer Center has launched Courage Companions, a free, one-on-one support network that pairs cancer survivors with patients and their caregivers. It’s the only one-on-one support program of its kind in Alabama. Enrollment is open to any cancer patients being treated throughout the Southeast.
The cornerstone to Courage Companions’ service comes from having trained volunteers who’ve been through the cancer experience and are willing to listen and offer guidance to those new to the ordeal. Courage Companions matches individuals as closely as possible by cancer type, treatment, age, gender and other life circumstances. A secure database helps the program managers sort through volunteer and patient match-ups under strict confidentiality.
Volunteers do not give medical advice, and are instructed to refer those questions to the patient’s physician.
November 2007
