By the Numbers: Interpreter Services

N E W S F R O M T H E R E G I O N ’ S P R E M I E R A C A D E M I C M E D I C A L C E N T E R

ADVANCES NOVEMBER 7, 2013

Turning Point Spotlight

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To suggest a By the Numbers, email Advances@kumc.edu.

The University of Kansas Hospital is situated in America’s heartland, but its patient population reflects the nation’s immense diversity.

40 Approximate number of non-English languages spoken at the hospital in the last five years

Top five requests for Interpreter Services

2008-2013

Burmese interpretations

2003-2008: 222008-2013: 3,699

2003-2008

Can we prevent Alzheimer’s disease?A unique new program tests the impact of exercise on the disease.

In one of the first such studies in the country, researchers at the University of Kansas Medical Center are exploring the role of exercise in preventing Alzheimer’s disease.

The researchers are backed by a $3 million grant, announced this fall, from the National Institutes of Health. They already have enrolled more than 200 people in the study, called the Alzheimer’s Prevention Program.

Participants who are at higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease will exercise by walking on a treadmill regularly over the course of a year. After completing the study, brain scans will show whether the participants are at higher or lower risk.

“This is the first time we can really test the impact of exercise on

prevention of Alzheimer’s disease,” said Jeffrey Burns, MD, profes-sor of neurology at the medical center and associate director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Center.

Burns and other colleagues at the center – one of only 29 such facilities in the U.S. to have earned a National Institute on Aging designation – have worked

for years to determine how exercise affects the brain.

Prevention studies elsewhere target new drugs that can affect amyloid protein in the brain, which is known to create plaques with patients who have Alzheimer’s disease. However, this is one of the first trials to examine the way exercise can affect the brain and

potentially prevent Alzheimer’s.“Prevention of the disease is a

whole new area for Alzheimer’s research,” Burns said. “We’ve never really been able to identify the risks like we can today.”

More than 5 million Americans live with the disease, which is the nation’s sixth-leading cause of death.

Prairie Village’s Joe Gittemeier, 71, was the first to enroll. He has seen Alzheimer’s effects firsthand in his family, including his father, brother and sister.

“It is a terrible disease,” he said. “I was interested in helping not only so I could get more exercise, but also to add to the body of knowledge and hopefully help other people.”

The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program continues to recruit healthy adults 65 and older. Call 913-588-0555 to learn about participation.

At the KU Clinical Research Center in Fairway, research nurse Janice Gunter, RN, and exercise physiologist Bill Hendry monitor trial participant James Hendricks.

Spanish: 91%

n Somali: 0.3%n Vietnamese: 0.6% n Russian: 2.6%n American Sign Language: 3.1%

n Nepali: 1.8%n Russian: 2.4% n Burmese: 2.7%n American Sign Language: 3.5%

Spanish: 81.6%

Names of languages spoken by some of our patients: Dari

(Afghanistan), Chin (Burma), Amharic

(Ethiopia) and Chukkese (Caroline

Islands of Micronesia)

Veterans Day Nov. 11: Honoring those who serve

Events How Do I Look in These

Genes? – Enjoy a ladies’ night out and learn how genetics plays a role in your risk for certain types of cancer. The event, hosted by Larry Geier, MD, is 6-8:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 11, at The University of Kansas Cancer Center – Overland Park. Wear your favorite jeans and learn fashion tips from a wardrobe styl-ist. The free event also features meditation and relaxation series. Registration required at 913-588-1227 or kumed.com/bewell.

Medical musical – The Medical Arts Symphony will per-form 8-10 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16, in Battenfeld Auditorium. It will be the inaugural concert for the new conductor/artistic director John Bell. The season will open with pieces by Borodin, Bizet, Dittersdorf, Strauss and Wagner. The 45-person orchestra, founded by medical profes-sionals in the metro, features an ensemble including medical students and retired physicians. The concert is free and open to the public.

Wellness Strategies during Cancer Treatment – Learn how exercise, nutrition and mind/body awareness can help you manage both the physical and emotional side effects of cancer treatment. Session is 11 a.m.-noon, Wednesday, Nov. 13, at the KU Kansas Cancer Center – North. Registration required at 913-588-1227 or kumed.com/bewell.

Stress and Your Immune System – Learn about the inner workings of your stress response system, the way it affects the im-mune system and strategies for managing this common aspect of life in more effective ways. Class is 11 a.m.-noon Thursday, Nov. 21, at the KU Clinical Research Center in Fairway. Registration required at 913-588-1227 or kumed.com/bewell.

PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT

Turning Point expands continuum of care

Wednesday, Nov. 14, marks the one-year anniversary of Turning Point joining The University of Kansas Hospital. Turning Point educates and supports individu-als, families and friends facing a wide variety of chronic physical illnesses such as cancer, chronic heart failure, Parkinson’s disease, MS, ALS and diabetes.

Through classes, activities and education at its Leawood location, Turning Point helps participants increase resilience so they may live life to the fullest, even while experiencing chronic disease.

During the past year, more than 5,600 people have participated in Turning Point services, up 55 percent from the previous year. Adult Program Director Cathy Pendleton attributes the increase to Turning Point joining the hospital. Departments across the hospital refer patients to Turning Point – a “continuum of care” that made Turning Point an attractive program for the hospital.

“Physicians and staff at the hospital do an excellent job caring for the medical needs of patients,” she said. “We’ve been

impressed with the hospital’s commitment to high-quality patient care. When it is time for patients to leave the hospital, we provide the ongoing care that is so important to patients’ health and well-being.”

Pendleton encourages potential participants, as well as hospital staff, to visit the Turning Point facility. Seeing the space provides a better understanding of its services.

“It’s a homey, welcoming atmo-sphere,” she said. Call ahead to arrange a tour. Hospital staff can combine a tour with a meeting in one of the conference rooms.

EXPOSURE

Halloween fun At the region’s leading academic medical center, staff always display a creative Halloween flair for patients. On Unit 62, Diana Jantsch, RN, dusted off her grand-mother’s actual nurses uniform from the 1940s. And on Unit 44, Pediatric residents Laura Blasi, MD (left), and Dionne Cozier Ross, MD, kept young patients entertained with their Minion look from the movie “Despicable Me.”

At Turning Point’s Leawood location, programs range from Tai Chi classes for adults to educational sessions for children whose families face chronic illnesses.

Turning Point: The Center for Hope and Healing8900 State Line Rd. in Leawood913-383-8700turningpointkc.org

Sending MDs into family medicineThe University of Kansas School of Medicine ranks No. 2 in

a study of U.S. medical schools’ percentage of graduates who choose family medicine.

With 20.8 percent of graduates in family medicine residencies, the school slightly trails the 20.9 percent at East Carolina University. However, our medical school leads the nation in sheer volume of graduates entering family medicine – 39 last year.

In the United States, only 7.8 percent of graduates of MD programs enter family medicine.

The study is from the American Academy of Family Physicians, which uses a three-year rolling average to determine which medical schools consistently graduate a higher percentage of students into family medicine.

BMT lauded for regional outreach The University of Kansas Cancer Center’s Blood and Marrow

Transplant program has received an Innovation Award for its outreach efforts to Midwest physicians.

Announced Oct. 18, the award spotlights the BMT team’s ability to “engage and educate regional physicians” about transplantation referrals. Physicians who refer patients for a stem cell transplant play a critical role helping them receive a second chance at life.

The award is from Be The Match, which is operated by the National Marrow Donor Program. NMDP helps patients in need of bone marrow, peripheral blood and cord blood transplants.

Our BMT program developed a variety of innovative approaches to help Be The Match address a major challenge: ensuring the right patients are referred at the right time.

Efforts include a quarterly newsletter about research and patient care sent to more than 6,500 physicians in a four-state area, a physician liaison team that provides transplant guide-lines and other resources when they visit community hospitals, and a May symposium for area healthcare providers.

Jeffrey Chell, MD, Be The Match CEO, called the BMT program a model for educating physicians who refer patients for transplants.

“The unique partnership with Be The Match exemplifies what we can achieve with shared vision and determination,” he said. “Their efforts are helping us achieve our mission to serve all patients in need of transplants.”

In the NewsA recap of recent articles, TV segments and other media coverage of the region’s leading academic medical center.

Debunking baby sleeping myths – Fox 4 News, Oct. 21. Famed pediatrician Harvey Karp, MD, and Carl Weiner, MD, Obstetrics and Gynecology chair at the University of Kansas Medical Center, joined the Morning Show to discuss five myths about how to help crying babies sleep better. They include: Use a special type of white noise – low and rumbling, such as rain on the roof or a car; it’s OK to wake sleeping babies when you put them to bed (it helps them learn to soothe them-selves); and use swaddling to give them the feeling of being cuddled.

Spreading the word about Midwest Cancer Alliance – The Hays Daily News, Oct. 25. Representatives with The University of Kansas Cancer Center went to Hays to promote the benefits of the center’s relationship with com-munity hospitals through the Midwest Cancer Alliance. The MCA links the cancer center to 19 other hospitals throughout the state, enabling them to offer more cutting-edge cancer treatments and specialty consults close to home, rather than sending patients to Kansas City. “It’s being able to bring that latest evidence-based care directly to the bedside no matter where you are in the state of Kansas,” said Roy Jensen, MD, cancer center director.

How to excel in residency interviews – U.S. News & World Report, Oct. 24. For newly graduated physicians, choosing a medical residency pro-gram can be as challenging as landing the right job. The article asks anesthe-siologist Greg Unruh, MD, associate dean for graduate medical education at the University of Kansas Medical Center, and other experts for advice about the process. Among the many suggestions, Unruh said students should make the interview a two-way conversation and ask about aspects of the program, such as faculty size and what specialties they represent.

Wichita school a ‘doctor pipeline’ – The Wichita Eagle, Oct. 25. Started in 1971, the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita is a “doctor pipeline” for rural Kansas, ranked No. 6 in the nation for producing primary care physicians. Even so, Doug Girod, MD, executive vice chan-cellor of the University of Kansas Medical Center, and Garold Minns, MD, Wichita dean, addressed the need to increase state funding for the Wichita school in the face of declining physician ranks in Kansas.

New

s Br

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Medical Center tourDozens of Kansas legislators visited the University of Kansas Medical Center on Oct. 30, wrapping up a two-week tour of the state’s public colleges and universi-

ties. The lawmakers met with medical center leaders – as well as students, such as Taylor Phillippi in the Department of Occupational Therapy Education. The tour allowed lawmakers and schools to discuss university funding and other impor-tant topics.

At the University of Kansas School of Medicine, students Brian Wyrowski and Jodi VanGundy develop their family medicine skills – here with Karen Mell and her baby, Lucinda Keeney.

ADVANCES

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2330 Shawnee Mission Pkwy., Suite 303 Westwood, KS 66205

Send story ideas to Advances@kumc.edu.

Bob Page, President and CEO The University of Kansas Hospital

Doug Girod, MD, Executive Vice Chancellor University of Kansas Medical Center

Kirk Benson, MD, President The University of Kansas Physicians

Staff: Mike Glynn, Editor Kirk Buster, Graphic Designer

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Our People A warm sign of support –

Volunteers Kathy Webster and Velda McMorris began visiting women heart patients this fall at The University of Kansas Hospital, providing comforting words, a care package of heart health education – and fluffy red handmade scarves.

They are part of WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease. Started in 2005, the organization (womenheart.org) has expanded across the nation to promote women’s heart health through education, patient support and advocacy.

The two volunteers are both for-mer cardiac patients at our hospital living with heart disease. They take turns visiting 10 to 15 patients each week in the Center for Advanced Heart Care, sometimes just long enough to drop off educational material in the Red Bag of Courage handbag, along with a HeartScarf.

The scarves are knitted or cro-cheted by people in our community who want to show their support for women with heart disease.

“The scarves are a sign of com-passion,” said Webster. “When I meet

with patients, I tell them, ‘I may not know you, but please know there is another woman dealing with heart issues who is presenting you with something warm that shows you are cared for.’”

Rehab Hall of Fame – Alice Ward has been inducted into the

Rehabilitation Services Hall of Fame at The University of Kansas Hospital. The annual cel-ebration honors an inpatient who has overcome significant chal-

lenges to return to a productive life.Ward, who was diagnosed with

bacterial meningitis soon after her retirement, spent months in acute care and physical rehabilitation at the hospital. She relearned how to walk, recall information and care for herself with family support.

“I was a nurse for 44 years, and spent 21 of those years in rehab nursing,” she said. “I was familiar with the hospital setting, but I never imagined myself being on the patient side of things.”

Less than three months after her May 2012 discharge, she and her beloved dog Bo were able to attend the annual Bluegrass Festival in Winfield, Kan. – capping one of many goals she set for her recovery.

Melissa Thomas, MD Emergency Medicine

New

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sici

ans

Jason Gatewood, MD Breast Radiology

John Sun, MD Gastroenterology

James Southwell Jr., DO Neurology

Detlef Wencker, MD Congestive Heart Failure

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Volunteer Velda McMorris and Ashley Simmons, MD, medical director of the hospital’s Adelaide C. Ward Women’s Heart Health Center, sport handmade HeartScarves that will be given to women heart patients.

Want to help? More scarves are needed. They must be red or mostly red, 50 to 70 inches long and approximately 4 to 5 inches wide. They can be delivered to the front desk of the Adelaide C. Ward Women’s Heart Health Center, attention Karin Morgan, RN. Information: email WH-Overlandpark@womenheart.org.