In This Issue Cord Blood Bank Saves Amelia ... - SSM Health Care

14 NetWork — Our Bimonthly Publication for Employees, Physicians and FriendsMissouri ContinuedST. MARY’S DONATES TOFRANCISCAN SISTERSOF MARY MINISTRIESRICHMOND HEIGHTS—Employees turned acelebration into an opportunity for service by collectingdonations on Heritage Day (Nov. 15) for the women ofAlmost Home and Woman’s Place, two ministries of theFranciscan Sisters of Mary.St. Mary’s Health Center’s Heritage Day commemoratesthe arrival in the United States of the first Sisters of St. Mary,now the Franciscan Sisters of Mary, in 1872. Departmentsare donating money and baskets of supplies for the sisters’ministries to honor the order’s founding. Employees weregiven free bread; and a short prayer service and blessing ofthe baskets containing donations was held.SSM HOME CARE TO TAKE OVERINFUSION SERVICESSSM Home Care announced recently that it would assumecontrol of SSM Infusion Services, LLC effective Jan. 1.Infusion Services is currently a joint venture with SSMHealth Care and Coram Healthcare, which owns 50 percentof the company. SSM Home Care will purchase Coram’sownership by year’s end.As a result of the ownership change, Infusion Services,which provides home infusion therapy to patients, willorganizationally come under SSM Home Care and willreport to Dan Kraemer, Infusion executive director ofdiversified services.ST. JOSEPH PARTICIPATES INLANDMARK LUNG CANCER STUDYST. CHARLES—SSM St. Joseph Health Center is among38 institutions participating in a New England Journal ofMedicine study on screening high-risk patients for lung cancer.The study resulted in 85 percent of patients beingdiagnosed in the earliest stage of the disease, using annuallow-dose computed tomography (CT) screening. Further,the study shows that the survival rate for patients was 92percent when followed by prompt surgical removal.The study is being conducted by researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical CenterDr. Daniel Luedkein 1993. St. Joseph, the onlyfacility in Missouri in thestudy, has participated sinceNovember 2005.St. Joseph’s principalinvestigator for the study isDr. Daniel Luedke, medicaldirector of oncology servicesat the hospital’s H.W. KoenigCancer Center and an oncologist with Missouri Cancer Care.“The fact that this study shows a very high percentageof lung cancers can be detected in Stage I—the very earlieststage—is overwhelmingly positive,” Luedke said. Stage I isthe only stage at which cure by surgery is highly likely.”NEW WorkHEALTH CLINIC OPENSWith business growing faster than expected, SSM WorkHEALTH opened its second occupational medicine clinicin the St. Louis area Oct. 9—just eight months after thebusiness first launched.Since a February opening, the north St. Louis Countyclinic has grown to serve more than 160 corporateclients and averages 600 work injury visits and healthscreenings a month. The new clinic is located in St.Charles County. SSM WorkHEALTH is a full serviceoccupational medicine business managed by SSM Rehab.The clinics treat work injuries and provide a full spectrumof prevention and employee health services. Additionalclinic openings are planned for 2007.FOR 20 YEARS, RICKABAUGH,ST. FRANCIS CARE FOR CHILDRENMARYVILLE—As St. Francis Preschool & Child CareCenter celebrates 20 years of serving the Maryvillecommunity, Nancy Rickabaugh is also noting her ownmilestone. Rickabaugh joined the St. Francis staff shortlyafter the center opened its doors in 1986.“Nancy is one of the best professionals in the business,”Nancy Rickabaughsaid Preschool & ChildCare Director CindySons. “We have a lotof references becauseshe is here.”Rickabuagh has fondmemories from workingat the center. But sheespecially has enjoyedher relationships with the center’s children. Each Christmasshe makes an ornament for each child and their parents.“We have grown tremendously,” Rickabaugh said.“We do a lot more teaching today. The children are alwayslearning something.”EMPLOYEES CELEBRATESSM’S HERITAGEST. LOUIS—Employees at SSM CardinalGlennon Children’s Medical Center lookforward each year to the loaves of bread,fellowship and shared history that mark theannual celebration “Mother Odilia Day.”Mother Mary Odilia Berger was founderof the Sisters of St. Mary, which became theFranciscan Sisters of Mary, SSM Health Care’ssponsor today. She and four sisters arrivedin St. Louis from Germany on November 16,1872, and she became known in the city forwalking the streets with a bell, lantern andbasket distributing food, medicine and othersupplies to ailing and impoverished cityresidents. Annually, ceremonies throughoutSSM mark the sisters’ arrival.In the photograph, environmental servicesemployees Mary Lott (from left) and LillianWagner pick up their loaves of bread onMother Odilia Day from Sr. Judy Carron,RSM, and Mary Ann Collins, CardinalGlennon director of mission.IllinoisPeopleHONORSDr. Sajjan NemaniEventsNovember / December 2006Dr. Sajjan Nemani,St. Mary’s Good SamaritanInc., received the “Rural Physicianof Excellence Award”from the Illinois Rural HealthAssociation for going beyondthe call of duty to carefor rural residents and helpbuild rural communities.ST. MARY’S GOOD SAMARITANPROMOTES HEART HEALTHSOUTHERN ILLINOIS—Dr. John Codd,cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon at St. Mary’sGood Samaritan Inc., spoke at a recent HealthyHearts Club meeting on peripheral vascular disease.The Healthy Hearts Club meets monthlyfeaturing specialists on different topics. Thecommunity program has grown to average 98attendees a month.UROLOGISTS VOLUNTEER FORPROSTATE SCREENINGSDrs. David Knowles and Manoj DesaiMOUNT VERNON, ILL.—Drs. David Knowles andManoj Desai volunteered in September to perform prostatescreenings at the Center for Comprehensive Cancer Carefor Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Throughout theafternoon, 87 men were screened. The screenings involvedblood tests and exams by the urologists. One in six men willbe diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetimes. TheAmerican Cancer Society recommends annual screeningsfor men beginning at age 50.ST. FRANCIS PAYS TRIBUTETO FOUNDING SISTERSBLUE ISLAND—The mission awareness teamat St. Francis Hospital & Health Center celebratedHeritage Day on Nov. 16 with a special tribute to theFranciscan Sisters of Mary. The team performed a livereading from the script used in the “Our Heritage ofHealing” documentary produced by SSM Health Care.The documentaryuses stories,photographs and otherarchival images to tellthe story of the system’sfounding sisters topresent day. Pictured isSr. Doris Ashcraft, FSM,who dressed in her habitand visited employeesthroughout the hospital,Sr. Doris Ashcrafthanding out laminatedbookmarkers highlighting historical milestones of SSMand St. Francis Hospital.SSM HOME CARE, HOSPICEVISIT BROOKFIELD ZOOBLUE ISLAND—SSM Home Care and Hospiceat St. Francis Hospital & Health Center celebratedits Mission Day Oct. 11 with a trip to the BrookfieldZoo in Brookfield, Ill. Team members discussedcommunity values and created their goals. Theyenjoyed a wonderful meal, tram ride and dolphinshow. They also rode the zoo’s new carousel, whichconsists of hand-carved figures of the zoo animals.A great day was had by all.SSM Health Care