2023 Health & Wellness
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<strong>Health</strong> & <strong>Wellness</strong><br />
<strong>2023</strong><br />
Dr. Deepti<br />
Bhasin<br />
Provides an<br />
in-depth<br />
look at<br />
Alzheimer’s<br />
and its effects<br />
on the patient &<br />
their loved ones<br />
A Special of<br />
The Houston Home Journal<br />
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<strong>Health</strong> & <strong>Wellness</strong><br />
<strong>2023</strong><br />
Published by<br />
The Houston Home Journal<br />
A Division of the Dublin Courier<br />
Herald Publishing Company<br />
1210 Washington Street<br />
P.O. Box 1910<br />
Perry, GA 31069<br />
478-987-1823<br />
www.hhjonline.com<br />
ADVERTISING DIRECTOR/SALES<br />
Lori Kovarovic<br />
lorikhhjads@gmail.com<br />
Nathan Mathis<br />
nathanmhhjads@gmail.com<br />
MANAGING EDITOR<br />
Brieanna Smith<br />
hhjeditor@gmail.com<br />
STAFF WRITERS<br />
Sandra Hernandez<br />
hhjnewsroom@gmail.com<br />
Clay Brown<br />
hhjsports@gmail.com<br />
GRAPHIC DESIGN<br />
Kayley Trischan<br />
CONTENTS<br />
Discussing Dementia: A sit down<br />
with Dr. Deepti Bhasin......10-14<br />
Cantrell’s spirit of Caring:<br />
Houston <strong>Health</strong>care’s longest<br />
serving nurse reflects on<br />
career, hospital growth......20-23<br />
The DaVinci Surgical System:<br />
Houston <strong>Health</strong>care adds another<br />
robotic surgery tool<br />
to expanding fleet......26-28<br />
4
Houston Primary Care<br />
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9
Discussing Dementia:<br />
10 10
A sit down with Dr. Deepti Bhasin<br />
STORY BY BRIEANNA SMITH | PHOTOGRAPHY BY LORI KOVAROVIC<br />
11 11
November is National Alzheimer’s Disease<br />
Awareness Month, and the Alzheimer’s Association<br />
estimates 6.7 million Americans live with the disease. We<br />
sat down with Dr. Deepti Bhasin, a Child, Adolescent,<br />
Adult and Forensic Psychiatrist based in Warner Robins<br />
and discussed the impact dementia and Alzheimer’s can<br />
have on both individuals and the ones they love.<br />
As Bhasin explained, in a nutshell, dementia is<br />
marked by cognitive decline, and it falls under different<br />
stages, depending on severity.<br />
“There’s very mild dementia and then there can be<br />
very profound, where people even can stop talking and<br />
recognizing their loved ones and stop knowing what basic<br />
utensils are for or writing, just basic functioning,” Bhasin<br />
said.<br />
While the two are used interchangeably, Alzheimer’s<br />
Disease falls under the umbrella of dementia and can be<br />
brought about by more than just old age, and unfortunately<br />
cannot be fully cured, only slowed down.<br />
“There are different kinds of dementia. Alzheimer’s<br />
is the most common type of dementia that we see. But you<br />
can have dementia because [you] have vitamin deficiencies.<br />
You can have dementia because [you’re] an alcoholic and<br />
[your] brain, [your] neurons have been damaged. [You]<br />
can have dementia because [you] have an infection, like<br />
hepatitis and some HIV,” Bhasin said.<br />
Additional conditions and habits that can<br />
contribute to dementia include stroke, high blood pressure,<br />
COPD, high cholesterol, obesity, smoking and poor<br />
diet. Additionally, males are more likely to have a higher<br />
percentage of dementia, as well as minority groups, such as<br />
Black and Native Americans.<br />
Bhasin advises to look out for telltale signs that you<br />
or a loved on may be in pre-dementia, such as memory<br />
changes, changes to routine, change in personality of<br />
communications style, disorientation to time and place,<br />
as well as difficulty with abstract thinking and increased<br />
impulsivity. If symptoms are constantly happening, those<br />
could be warning signs.<br />
“There may be emotional disregulation; there<br />
could be personality changes; there could be hallucinations<br />
attached to it. But the basic definition, like when would we<br />
say ‘You know, I’m thinking this patient may be having it?’ is<br />
when we start seeing the neurocognitive changes in them,”<br />
Bhasin said.<br />
As Bhasin explained, scientists are still not sure<br />
why dementia can start to develop, but chalks the decline<br />
in cognitive function to a lack of communication between<br />
12
neurons in the brain. In Alzheimer’s specifically, telltale<br />
signs during brain scans are excessive protein deposits.<br />
However, public awareness around dementia<br />
according to Bhasin, is sending people in earlier for<br />
screening, leading to early intervention and an early<br />
slowing down of the disease, using medicine and FDA<br />
approved treatments.<br />
“So somebody may<br />
start seeing pre-dementia<br />
symptoms, and then now<br />
they’re in the mild<br />
stages of dementia.<br />
We can prolong<br />
that mild stage,<br />
intervene at that<br />
time and make<br />
it 15 years<br />
or 20 years<br />
instead of<br />
five years.<br />
We can’t<br />
stop, but<br />
we can<br />
definitely<br />
slow<br />
down the<br />
progress,”<br />
Bhasin said.<br />
A recent<br />
development,<br />
approved by<br />
the FDA in<br />
2008 is TMS, or<br />
Transcranial<br />
Magnetic<br />
Stimulation. First<br />
approved for depression,<br />
the treatment shows a 65%<br />
to 75% efficacy rate, is nonmedicinal<br />
and there are little to no<br />
side effects. Bhasin’s office has been using the<br />
treatment since 2010, and now the treatment is approved<br />
for smoking cessation, autism and of course, dementia.<br />
“One of the things that happens, especially in<br />
dementia, the connectivity between the neurons is getting<br />
lesser, and it’s getting faded and it’s breaking. So what the<br />
TMS does is it creates new networks. If they cannot fix or<br />
improve the existing network, they’ll create new networks.<br />
The concept is called neuroplasticity. That means that there<br />
is still ways to regenerate this neuron; it’s not completely<br />
gone.”<br />
Treatments, alongside habits that keep the brain<br />
active can help slow down the progression of dementia.<br />
“Very recently, a couple of years<br />
ago, we got FDA approved for<br />
one medication that is for<br />
dementia and agitation, so<br />
there’s a little bit more<br />
available in terms of<br />
medication. But<br />
also remember,<br />
if we can<br />
recognize the<br />
signs, then<br />
we can start<br />
putting<br />
things in<br />
place,”<br />
Bhasin<br />
said.<br />
“For<br />
example,<br />
slowing<br />
down the<br />
progression<br />
by<br />
stimulating<br />
the brain,<br />
engaging these<br />
people with more<br />
social activities,<br />
giving them some<br />
brain activities, like<br />
Sudoku, word puzzles,<br />
jigsaws, board games, card<br />
games. The more we can engage it<br />
is preventive, and also helps slow down<br />
some of the progression for the dementia.”<br />
For those who are afflicted with dementia, the<br />
mental health factor can also comes into play. Bhasin<br />
explained depression is also common among those who<br />
have dementia. Depression can also mimic symptoms<br />
of dementia. Those who are fearful they may be with<br />
dementia are encouraged to get tested and screened as early<br />
13
as possible; early treatment can help slow down symptoms,<br />
leading to longer functionality.<br />
“As they’re getting older, they’re already aware. One<br />
of the fears that most of us would have is, am I losing it?<br />
Am I getting demented? That’s a very common question.<br />
Once you start seeing patients in geriatric population that’s<br />
always in the back of our minds: Am I losing it? And so<br />
depression is a very big part of the dementia. There is a<br />
condition called pseudo-dementia, which is actually purely<br />
depression,” Bhasin said. “What happens is when you feel<br />
that loss; this is the age that we start losing loved ones, or<br />
spouses or companions or friends. In pseudo-dementia, it is<br />
actually depression where I may lose my cognition, meaning<br />
my thinking ability, my memory, my ability to reason, my<br />
ability to be motivated, because they overlap between where<br />
dementia and depression may appear.”<br />
Depression and burnout can also be symptoms that<br />
caregivers to those with dementia face.<br />
Bhasin also spoke to grief before a loved one passes<br />
away, highlighting a common scenario between those<br />
with dementia and caretakers, commonly children and<br />
grandchildren.<br />
“Grieving starts much earlier. We’re talking about<br />
stages. I mean, you’ve already started losing your loved one<br />
earlier on, their personality’s changing, their tastes might<br />
change. Who you known them for all these years, suddenly,<br />
they’re not that same person. And then, when it comes<br />
down to that, they don’t even recognize who you are, when<br />
you’re the one they’ve been with all your life… They raised<br />
you, now you’ve been taking care of them. It’s so painful,”<br />
Bhasin said.<br />
In the wake of what can be emotionally taxing,<br />
Bhasin advised for caregivers to treat themselves kindly and<br />
don’t be afraid to reach out for help, as there is a possibility<br />
as the disease progresses where constant monitoring is<br />
needed.<br />
“You need to take care of yourself first. You absolutely<br />
need to take care. And that’s not being selfish, because if<br />
you’re not healthy, both physically and mentally, you will<br />
not be able to take take care of anybody else. It’s a physical,<br />
emotional and financial burden. It’s from all aspects right.<br />
Have a good support system, a very good support<br />
system. Advocate for your loved ones. There are some<br />
services that can be in house, nursing. There are some<br />
services that can be provided and paid by the insurance,”<br />
Bhasin said.<br />
This in turn can make caring for loved ones easier<br />
and help maintain good relationships. Counseling can also<br />
serve as a support system for both those with dementia and<br />
caregivers.<br />
Bhasin’s office is located at 402 Osigian Boulevard<br />
Suite #400 in Warner Robins.<br />
•<br />
14
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19
Cantrell’s spirit of Caring<br />
Cantrell<br />
reflects on<br />
42 years<br />
of work at<br />
Houston<br />
<strong>Health</strong>care<br />
20 20
N<br />
Houston <strong>Health</strong>care’s<br />
longest serving nurse<br />
Nurses deserve more<br />
appreciation with the long hours<br />
they are on the job and overall<br />
help they provide to the<br />
community, no matter<br />
how big or small. It<br />
may be a tough job<br />
at times, but there<br />
are those who stick<br />
around and find<br />
reward in the field.<br />
Robbie Cantrell<br />
is one of those<br />
people.<br />
Cantrell<br />
is the Assistant<br />
Nurse Manager<br />
on the Pediatric<br />
floor at Houston<br />
<strong>Health</strong>care and<br />
has been working<br />
there for many<br />
years.<br />
reflects on career,<br />
hospital growth<br />
STORY BY SANDRA HERNANDEZ | PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRIEANNA SMITH<br />
Working at the<br />
hospital came full circle<br />
for her. Cantrell shared she<br />
was one of the first babies<br />
born at the hospital when it<br />
first opened back in September<br />
1957. She was born in December of<br />
“It’s just what<br />
I enjoy doing,<br />
I can’t imagine<br />
doing anything<br />
else other than<br />
being a nurse.”<br />
that year. She also shared all of<br />
her children were born at<br />
the hospital and even her<br />
grandchildren.<br />
She has been<br />
working at the<br />
hospital her entire<br />
nursing career<br />
and recently<br />
celebrated<br />
her 42-year<br />
anniversary<br />
back in May.<br />
“I work on<br />
the Pediatric<br />
floor, which<br />
is a small<br />
department.<br />
We do take<br />
adults and kids<br />
and I just think<br />
we’re the best<br />
kept secret in the<br />
hospital. … I just<br />
enjoy my job. I enjoy<br />
the people I work<br />
with. It’s different every<br />
single day when you’re<br />
a nurse. There’s no routine.<br />
Every patient is different; every<br />
diagnosis is different. It’s just a great<br />
21
job,” said Cantrell.<br />
Over the past 42 years, Cantrell<br />
has been through all the changes in the<br />
hospital both in new technology and in<br />
growth.<br />
Back when she started, Houston<br />
<strong>Health</strong>care was called Houston County<br />
Hospital and she said it was small then<br />
and still remembers when they built<br />
their first tower back in 1985. She has<br />
also seen the various names the hospital<br />
has had, she said she has seen it go from<br />
Houston Medical Center to now Houston<br />
<strong>Health</strong>care.<br />
She said she has seen the changes<br />
in the structure but always the changes in<br />
medicine.<br />
Cantrell shares that one of her staff<br />
members is a 21-year-old who recently<br />
graduated from nursing school, and she is<br />
always telling them the things they used<br />
to do on the floors, and she said they are<br />
always shocked when she tells them her<br />
stories.<br />
“A lot has changed. I used to wear<br />
the white dresses and the white hose and<br />
the white shoes and the hat when I first<br />
started. And, of course, now, we’re in<br />
scrubs and I still have a hard time wearing<br />
colorful shoes but the basics of taking care<br />
of patients stays the same,” said Cantrell.<br />
Cantrell started working as a<br />
nurse’s aide since she was still in nursing<br />
school. After graduating, she had already<br />
been working at the hospital for 11 months.<br />
She then moved on to working for<br />
three years in the PACU, which was then<br />
the recovery room. Then, she moved on<br />
to the Pediatric floor, where she has been<br />
working since her second child was eight<br />
weeks old, staying in the role for 36 years.<br />
22<br />
Cantrell shared she wanted to<br />
get married and was engaged when she
Over the years, she has learned the people she works<br />
with and tries to figure out what’s important to them. She<br />
said they all work together on a schedule and thinks that is<br />
what they appreciate the most.<br />
Cantrell said she works on a team leadership style<br />
on the floor because even though her team is small, they<br />
can’t survive unless they’re a team member.<br />
“We rely on each other, and we really build that<br />
confidence in each other that we’re going to be there, that<br />
we’re going to be dependable and that everybody knows<br />
their part,” said Cantrell.<br />
decided to become a nurse. She said she didn’t want to go<br />
to school for four years and instead went to nursing school<br />
for two years at Middle Georgia College nursing program<br />
in Cochran.<br />
“I just felt like that was something that I might<br />
[want.] A lot of people don’t know what to do when they<br />
first go to college. And back then, it was like, you could be<br />
a teacher or be a nurse and I just felt that God was leading<br />
me in the direction of working with people,” said Cantrell.<br />
She shared that while in nursing school, they did<br />
many of their clinicals at Houston <strong>Health</strong>care and admitted<br />
she never thought she would be in pediatrics because it<br />
wasn’t what she liked in school, but as it worked out, that<br />
was where she’s supposed to be.“I do love that it’s different<br />
every single day. I love our staff. I say to people all the time<br />
when they ask me if I’m going to retire and I’m like, ‘I come<br />
to work and play with my friends all day for 12 hours. So<br />
I’m not ready to give that up.’ But I like the variety. I like that<br />
there’s never the same thing twice. Every day is different in<br />
the nursing world,” said Cantrell.<br />
She said her motivation is the children she takes<br />
care of every day, also the new adults they are taking care of<br />
on their floor since the COVID pandemic.<br />
“It’s just what I enjoy doing, I can’t imagine doing<br />
anything else other than being a nurse,” said Cantrell.<br />
She shares her strength on her floor is scheduling and<br />
working around what is important to her staff members.<br />
Cantrell said they have a small staff made up of five nurses,<br />
and two have to work at a time.<br />
And for those interested in joining the field, Cantrell<br />
shared what she would like future nurses to know about the<br />
job and what to expect.<br />
“I would tell them to give it time, to find your niche.<br />
There’s so many different departments in nursing and if one<br />
is not fit for you then there’s plenty of other places. Don’t<br />
give up, there’s so many things you can do as a nurse and<br />
at Houston <strong>Health</strong>care. There is always a way to figure out<br />
what is your best position, whether you want to be in trauma<br />
or in the ER or whether you want to work with women and<br />
children in the women’s center or do the hard stuff in ICU.<br />
We have it all here, there’s a little bit for everybody here.<br />
Don’t let your experience in nursing school dictate whether<br />
or not you think you will do well in that department when<br />
you’re out,” said Cantrell.<br />
Cantrell’s whole life has been Houston <strong>Health</strong>care<br />
and she said that whenever she walks out the door of her<br />
floor, she always sees a familiar face.<br />
“I’ve been here long enough that somebody is going<br />
to know me and I’m going to know them when I’m going<br />
to the cafeteria or whatever. I have a rapport with people in<br />
other departments that have been there a long time. It’s just<br />
home and friends to me,” said Cantrell.<br />
Finally, for Cantrell, as far as Houston <strong>Health</strong>care is<br />
concerned, both the hospital and Warner Robins are home.<br />
“It’s just home to me. I can’t imagine being anywhere else,”<br />
said Cantrell.<br />
•<br />
23
25
Courtesy/Houston <strong>Health</strong>care<br />
Scrub Technicians/Surgical First Assistants<br />
Lori Williams and Danna Rogers.<br />
26
The DaVinci Surgical System:<br />
Houston <strong>Health</strong>care adds another<br />
robotic surgery tool to expanding fleet<br />
S<br />
STORY BY CLAY BROWN | PHOTOS SUBMITTED BY HOUSTON HEALTHCARE<br />
Surgery is one of, if not the toughest responsibility<br />
for doctors, given many procedures can last hours or, in<br />
some extreme cases, days. When you have to undergo such<br />
a lengthy and stressful operation with someone’s life in<br />
your hands, it’s important to have the right tools to allow<br />
for it to go as smoothly as possible.<br />
Though it might seem like adding the system to<br />
Houston <strong>Health</strong>care’s arsenal was an easy choice, change<br />
never comes easy. Going from tools used for decades to<br />
something brand new where you’re technically “hands off ”<br />
is quite the adjustment to make, especially with something<br />
like surgery, but it pays off for patients.<br />
The DaVinci surgical system is one of those tools<br />
that Houston <strong>Health</strong>care has introduced to the community<br />
in recent years.<br />
“It’s a computer-based robot that helps the surgeons<br />
perform what we call ‘minimally invasive’ surgery,”<br />
Nichole Blount, BSN, MBA, Director of Surgical Services<br />
for Houston <strong>Health</strong>care said. “It uses a camera and robotic<br />
arms and allows the physician to be able to see in a 3D<br />
mode or it can magnify what they’re seeing about 10 times<br />
that of the normal human eye.”<br />
The system was approved by the FDA in 2000, but<br />
Houston <strong>Health</strong>care brought their first one on board in<br />
2019.<br />
“We’re not the first ones to jump on the bandwagon.<br />
We kind of wanted to see how it was working for patients<br />
in other facilities,” Blount said. “When we do have new<br />
surgeons coming in, they bring training from the residency<br />
program. So like I said, it’s been around for a little while,<br />
but we decided to go ahead and go for it back in 2019.”<br />
2019 was when they brought their first machine in,<br />
but they’ve been adding to their count since then.<br />
“Six weeks ago, in August, we received our third<br />
robot, so our Warner Robins campus has three robots,”<br />
Blount said. “Probably more exciting than the third robot<br />
here at Warner Robins is that [Houston <strong>Health</strong>care - Perry]<br />
has now received their first robot. It’s not up and running<br />
yet but will be soon. So we’re really excited to see what it<br />
can do for the community.”<br />
“Well, with anything, change is hard, right,” Blount<br />
said. “I think all of surgical services, if it really bought into<br />
this modality and they have seen and heard the success<br />
stories, the surgeons come back and tell them that the<br />
patients that they were working on are doing great or they<br />
didn’t even have to get admitted to the hospital or they<br />
went back to work several days earlier than what they were<br />
expected to. So it really gets those patients out there and<br />
back to normal living conditions and that’s what we do.<br />
That’s why we’re here.”<br />
Dr. Danny Vaughn, a general and bariatric<br />
surgeon, is not resistant at all to the system; in fact he’s a<br />
big proponent of it.<br />
“I think it’s wonderful. I have been using the<br />
DaVinci robotic system since 2015 and have been a big<br />
proponent of it,” Vaughn said. “I’d say that I probably do<br />
90% of my cases on the DaVinci Robot system. I think it’s<br />
better for patients, I think patients are more likely to get a<br />
minimally invasive technique and a better operation.”<br />
“Well, it’s definitely a real nice advanced technology<br />
for our small community here,” Dr. Tan-Loc Nguyen, an<br />
obstetrician and gynecologist added. “It’s really helpful<br />
facilitating a lot of the surgeries that we do to make it safer<br />
and also for us to do a better job and take care of patients.”<br />
Dr. Sarah Stanescu, an obstetrician and gynecologist,<br />
really believes in its ability to minimize patient stays as well<br />
as pain.<br />
“I think it is revolutionizing the care of our hospital.<br />
I think we are able to provide much more, much better<br />
27
surgical care to our patients. It allows shorter patient stays<br />
and decreased pain.” Stanescu said.<br />
Dr. Thekkepat Sekhar, an obstetrician and<br />
gynecologist, not only believes the system has the ability<br />
to improve procedures, but also saves energy for those<br />
performing the procedure.<br />
“It’s a very useful tool and it has made my life a lot easier,<br />
and I think helps to prolong my longevity,” Sekhar added.<br />
Dr. Patrick Narh-Martey, a general surgeon, is glad<br />
that advanced technology like this is available for those<br />
who need it here in Houston County, something not all<br />
healthcare providers can claim.<br />
“I think it’s an extraordinary thing for the<br />
community, for the hospital system and most importantly<br />
for our patients, to be able to have the best, most advanced<br />
technology available for surgical care in our community.<br />
And for our patients to not have to travel to Atlanta<br />
or surrounding areas to receive care; most care can be<br />
delivered here with minimally invasive surgery,” Narh-<br />
Martey said. “Again, our patients have an outstanding day;<br />
having shorter hospital stays and less pain after procedures<br />
is phenomenal…I believe we are as cutting edge as we can<br />
be in this community.”<br />
Looking back, the system presented a learning<br />
curve, as Dr. Silvie Harrington, a general surgeon explained.<br />
28<br />
“I will say that it was positively accepted, was positive…we<br />
got trained and it all came together. I guess it was actually<br />
a pretty smooth transition and was a good addition to the<br />
community for sure,” Harrington said. “We didn’t know<br />
what to expect, but once the staff got their training we<br />
got comfortable with it, because it’s different for different<br />
surgeons. I didn’t come trained robotically from residency.<br />
So I was doing things a certain way, laparoscopy, so the<br />
transition was hard. But it was worth it in the end…They<br />
really were a great addition.”<br />
A fun tidbit about their third and most recent<br />
DaVinci system is that they’re partnering with Houston<br />
County School District to name the robot; they’re opening<br />
it up to fifth graders according to Blount.<br />
Houston <strong>Health</strong>care’s goal is always to improve the health<br />
of the community, and given physician testimonies, it<br />
seems the system does just that.<br />
“Our mission is to improve the health care of the<br />
community… and we do that by delivering high quality care<br />
that’s cost effective. That’s exactly what this robot is doing<br />
for us,” Blount said. “It increases the quality of care that<br />
we give the patients. It’s more cost effective for the patients<br />
because let’s face it, they can get back to work sooner if they<br />
don’t have to spend the night in the hospital.”<br />
•
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