System Hospital News: May 2020

Atrium Medical Center

Mark Gebhart, MD, of Atrium’s Level III Emergency Trauma Center, has been commissioned into the Army Reserves as a lieutenant colonel. Dr. Gebhart said he hopes his 21 years of medical experience helps him care for wounded soldiers in the field, and that some of what he learns in the military will make him a more effective doctor at Atrium. Dr. Gebhart also serves as medical director for the Franklin Fire Department and Joint Emergency Medical Services district.

Andre Harris, MD, Atrium’s chief medical officer, was among the honorees of Parity Inc.’s 27^th annual Top Ten African American Males. Harris and nine others were honored for their good works in the community. Harris has volunteered his medical services to at-risk teenage boys in Dayton Public Schools, has worked with aspiring African American high school students through the Horizons in Medicine program, and has trained dozens of medical and nurse practitioner students. He is also a leader with Gem City MDP Inc., an organization for African American physicians, dentists and pharmacists. Following the 2019 Memorial Day tornadoes, Harris opened his Dayton practice to serve as a hub for those in need of supplies and donated more than $5,000 to those affected.

Intubation boxes in use at Atrium are the creation of Tina Kummerle, MD, of Atrium’s Level III Emergency Trauma Center. The boxes limit exposure to viral particles when intubating a patient. After modifying the design of a box created by a doctor in Taiwan, Dr. Kummerle altered her prototype with feedback from her ED peers. “The first prototype we brought to the hospital and the staff used it to train on and to run drills. We looked at how we could make it better. We changed some of the dimensions, added a sliding door to the side so the respiratory therapist or the nurse could hand the doctor tools and then close it, again minimizing exposure,” said Dr. Kummerle. Local businesses donated the materials and manufactured the boxes at no cost.

Atrium’s Behavioral Health Unit, led by medical director Jonathan Lazzara, MD, is providing virtual support groups to employees and providers at Atrium. These discussions are designed to offer a space for all to relieve burdens they may be feeling during the coronavirus pandemic. Atrium’s Behavioral Health staff has shared several tools to manage stress, compassion fatigue, burnout and more during this time. Dr. Lazzara is also providing a weekly Mental Health note.

Skydivers from START Skydiving in Middletown delivered in spectacular fashion a donation of PPE to Atrium. START Skydiving used a 3-D printer to make face shields for Atrium employees. In addition, Middletown Mayor Nicole Condrey used a portion of the salary she received as mayor to purchase 400 face shields that were also donated to Atrium. Condrey joined the owner of START Skydiving and two other skydivers for a jump at Atrium to announce the donation.

Atrium leaders have been involved in public service announcements reassuring people that the hospital is open and safe for everyone in need of care. These efforts, led by the Cincinnati Health Collaborative, included all major health systems in the Cincinnati region.

Miami Valley Hospital Campuses

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we continue to celebrate our health care heroes, while sending special messages to the community.

On March 5, representatives of the Maxon Foundation, U.S. Bank, and N.A., Trustee toured Miami Valley Hospital with members of the management team and the Miami Valley Hospital Foundation. In 2018, the Maxon Foundation made a grant to the MVH Foundation to acquire a 64-slice CT scanner for the trauma center. The Maxon Foundation is associated with Glen W. Maxon, Jr., whose family had a long affiliation with the hospital from the 1940s to 1980s.

Good Samaritan Foundation-Dayton has been hard at work raising funds for the Trail of the Good Samaritan at the Miami Valley Hospital North campus. Funds raised to date for the first garden, the Aull Garden, are $67,371. The anticipated opening of the Aull Garden is late spring.

Throughout April, the community showed support and generosity for Premier Health patients and clinical staff battling the COVID-19 pandemic. From food to potted plants to hand cream kits, contributions of every conceivable type have been donated to the system through its four philanthropic foundations. Three notable contributions were also received through the Premier Foundations, including an anonymous gift of $180,000 to go toward pre-screening analysis equipment for the COVID-19 test; 5,000 pairs of Crocs shoes donated by Crocs, Inc.; and a $100,000 gift in support of local health care workers from the Kolodesh Family Foundation.

A trauma team from Miami Valley Hospital traveled to Nigeria earlier this year to mentor medical professionals, providing trauma education. Peter Ekeh, MD, trauma surgeon and medical director of Miami Valley Hospital’s trauma program and Amanda Pulfer, trauma program coordinator, traveled to Abuja, Nigeria and the National Hospital to lead training for “Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS),” a course developed by the American College of Surgeons. While in Nigeria, Dr. Ekeh and Pulfer directed an ATLS instructor course and two ATLS courses while mentoring National Hospital professionals. ATLS instructors who participated were from England, United States, Saudi Arabia, and Nigeria.

The Good Samaritan Foundation raised $16,650 for COVID-19 response from individual donors in April. These contributions came at a crucial time as hospitals maximized their resources and consolidated services in preparation for the pandemic. The foundations continue to encourage donors to support patients and our health care heroes on the frontlines of this struggle. To learn more about how you can help, a special email has been established – HelpingHands@premierhealth.com – for those who wish to provide support.

Miami Valley Hospital South Wound Care Center recently was named the national President’s Circle Award honoree. The center was awarded this prestigious honor by Healogics, the nation's largest provider of advanced wound care services. The Wound Care Center achieved outstanding clinical outcomes for twelve consecutive months, including patient satisfaction higher than 92 percent, and a minimum wound healing rate of at least 92 percent within 28 median days to heal.

With the addition of the new Spine and Joint Center at Miami Valley Hospital South, many energy efficient materials and processes were a part of the construction. Through efficient and sustainable design and construction practices, the addition is expected to save about 1.3 million kilowatts of electricity annually, resulting in an estimated $500,000 in avoided utility costs over the next 10 years. In recognition of the best-in-class facility at MVHS, Dayton Power and Light offered the hospital an energy efficiency rebate totaling more than $140,000. Since 2012, the facility has received nearly $350,000 in rebates associated with numerous energy efficiency upgrades.

Upper Valley Medical Center

A clap-out ceremony was held in the Upper Valley Medical Center Inpatient Rehabilitation department on April 16 to celebrate a UVMC staffer who survived a life-threatening battle with COVID-19. Amy De Vos, a respiratory therapist, made a miraculous improvement after weeks on a ventilator in the ICU. Amy was the first patient in the nation to participate in the Soliris clinical trial. Soliris was prescribed by Thomas Pitts, MD, after he was contacted by one of Amy’s physicians, Eleina Mikhaylov, MD. Both are remote neurologists with Premier Health’s NeurOne teleneurology program.

Police, fire, EMS, sheriff, and State Highway Patrol representatives from Miami County visited the UVMC campus the evening of April 23 to express appreciation for hospital staffs. First responder vehicles lined the driveways in front of the hospital with lights flashing and sirens sounding in a show of support for the hospital teams.

Ronal Manis, MD, medical director of infection prevention at UVMC, gave an interesting and insightful interview on the COVID-19 pandemic on the Troy Chamber of Commerce “Troy Cares” Facebook Live program on April 22. Dr. Manis is a practicing physician who specializes in internal medicine and infectious diseases. Watch Dr. Manis’ interview.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, UVMC has received overwhelming support from businesses, organizations, and individuals in the Miami County community. Donations of much-needed PPE, hand-sewn facemasks, meals and snacks, and signs and cards of appreciation have all helped to bolster the spirits of our hardworking health care heroes.

Back to the May 2020 issue of Premier Pulse