FSLH Bariatric Surgery Program Earns Renewal as Center of Excellence

Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare’s (FSLH) Bariatric Surgery Program has earned a renewal as a Center of Excellence by the Surgical Review Corporation (SRC), an independent, non-profit organization that advances the safety, efficacy and efficiency of bariatric and metabolic surgery.

Founded in 2002 by the medical director, Dr. William Graber, the Bariatric Surgery Program, located at the St. Luke’s Campus of FSLH, performed more than 900 surgeries in 2009, an average of 75 procedures a month. It is designated a Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS). Dr. Graber, Dr. Matthew Fitzer, and Dr. Dmitri Baranov are surgeons who perform both gastric bypass and Lap-Band surgeries.

What is Bariatric Surgery?

Weight-loss surgery, also known as bariatric surgery, is a serious surgical procedure that decreases the size of the stomach, reduces food intake and can enable patients to lose a significant amount of weight. It is a permanent procedure that requires a lifetime commitment to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Weight-loss surgery not only helps individuals lose weight, but can help improve overall health, well-being and self-esteem.

FSLH’s Bariatric Surgery Program offers:

• Nurses, social workers, therapists, pharmacists, case managers, and other clinical experts who specialize in the care of weight-loss surgery patients
• Registered dietitians who provide pre-operative and post-operative diet education and counseling
• Education and support in which family and friends can participate
• Individual educational sessions
• Physical and occupational therapists who provide education regarding exercise tolerance, improving mobility, work and leisure activities and assistive devices as needed
• A comprehensive patient guide for patients to follow from pre-operative consultation through the post-operative period
• A support group where you can share your experiences with other weight-loss surgery patients.

Types of Weight-Loss Surgery

Drs. Graber, Fitzer and Baranov perform both gastric bypass surgery and Lap-Band surgery, two of the most widely practiced types of weight-loss surgery.

During gastric bypass surgery, the weight-loss surgeon staples the smaller, upper part of the stomach, separating it from the rest of the stomach. The net result is that the amount of food you can eat is reduced. The small intestine is rerouted and connected to the smaller stomach pouch.

In Lap-Band surgery, the surgeon places a silicone rubber band around the top of the stomach; this creates a very small stomach pouch. When patients eat, they feel full very quickly. Food slowly flows from the smaller pouch into the lower part of the stomach and then into the rest of the digestive tract.

For more information regarding FSLH’s Bariatric Surgery Program visit us online at www.bariatricexcellence.com.

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Aida Mariani
Media Relations / Communications Specialist
Faxton St. Luke's Healthcare
1676 Sunset Avenue
Utica, NY 13502-5475
p 315.624-5433
f 315.624.5610
amariani@mvnhealth.com

FSLH Welcomes Eva Grayzel Who Tells Her Story of Strength and Triumph Over Oral Cancer Thursday, March 11, 2010

At age 33, Eva Grayzel was bounced among healthcare professionals for more than two years while the ulcer on her lateral tongue became more prominent and painful. Even though she never smoked or used alcohol, she endured a partial tongue reconstruction, a modified radical neck dissection, and a maximum dose of radiation therapy following her diagnosis of late stage oral cancer.

On Thursday, March 11, 2010 Grayzel will speak during The Regional Cancer Center at Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare’s dinner and lecture series. A buffet dinner will be served at 6pm and Grayzel will begin at 7pm, following a book signing at the Radisson Hotel, 200 Genesee Street, Utica.

A professional interactive performance artist by vocation, Grayzel will share riveting details about her late stage diagnosis and how she found the strength to persevere through the devastating effects of surgery and radiation.

The cost for this program is $15 per person. It includes dinner and a copy of Grayzel’s book “YOU ARE NOT ALONE; Families Touched By Cancer.”

In 2005, Grayzel developed her own oral cancer awareness campaign called “The Sextet Six-Step Screening: Six Steps to a Thorough Oral Cancer Screening” for which she was recognized by the American Academy of Oral Medicine and given honorary membership.

Through her self-discovery and profound insight, Grayzel evokes a passion for life and for early detection of oral cancer in a charismatic and compelling way. From the profound insight she gained, she intimately shares ways to find strength from adversity. Those who have heard Grayzel speak agree that she is captivating.

“Eva will touch your lives and souls. She will tell you first hand, from the patient perspective, what it is like to hear the words from a dentist, ‘You are in an advanced stage of oral cancer’,” said Dr. Michael Seigel, professor and chairman of Diagnostic Sciences, Nova Southeastern University College of Dental Medicine.

Seating is limited; please register early by calling (315)624-4673 or email dwilliam@mvnhealth.com.

To view sample pages of Grayzel’s book “YOU ARE NOT ALONE; Families Touched By Cancer,” visit www.Talk4Hope.com.

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Aida Mariani
Media Relations / Communications Specialist
Faxton-St. Luke's Healthcare
1676 Sunset Avenue
Utica, NY 13502-5475
p 315.624-5433
f 315.624.5610
amariani@mvnhealth.com

3 New Interpreters Added to Language Assistance Program Staff

"Hitna Pomoc"This Bosnian phrase meaning “Emergency Department” might not mean anything to you, but to a Bosnian-speaking patient in need of urgent care, those words on a sign are important.Between 10,000-14,000 patients that are LEP (Limited English Proficiency) visit Faxton-St. Luke's Healthcare (FSLH) per year. With more than 30 different languages including sign language, the demand for interpreters and their services has dramatically increased. FSLH has added three interpreters to their staff and in just three months, their services have already "significantly helped to stabilize the department," said Ezio Poccia, Language Assistance Coordinator.Samie Kovac, Sidika Tocakovic and Sergey Verenich began working at FSLH in May and have balanced their time between the Faxton and St. Luke’s campuses as well as the eight surrounding ACP offices. Their schedules vary day to day because of the many different office locations and the need for translation services. Most of their time is spent at the North Utica and Washington Mills Medical Offices, the St. Luke’s Campus, the Emergency Department and Urgent Care."There are days we run out of interpreters, but we always try to get someone to Urgent Care and the Emergency Department within 20 minutes when possible," said Poccia. “If it isn’t possible, we urge the use of the telephone translation service until an interpreter can get there.” Verenich, originally from Pinsk, Belarus, has been interpreting since 2002. He is certified in medical, legal, and psychological interpretations and supports Russian and Ukranian needs. Verenich and his family left their country because of religious persecution. "It wasn't so much a challenge as it was a fifteen year struggle to get to the U.S.,” said Verenich. “I ended up in Siberia when I did my mandatory military service. Once we made it to America, we had to learn the language because we did not speak a word of English. I went to college and studied hard to learn.” Verenich received an associate’s degree in Business Management as well as a degree in Electrical Studies in Belarus. He has also completed numerous medical, legal and mental health courses for interpreting. He became interested in interpreting when he had rental property and his tenants would ask him to interpret for them. "I found that it was becoming a full-time occupation," he said. "When I learned there were classes I could take to become a certified interpreter, I took them."Kovac is from Gorazde, Bosnia, and has been a certified medical interpreter since 2003. She came to America because of the war in Bosnia. “When the war first broke out in Bosnia, I fled to Serbia,” said Kovac. “It was the most difficult time of my life so when I had the chance to move to America, I knew I had to do it. The inability to speak English, the major life changes I suffered and the war made moving a difficult part of my life. In the end, though, it made me a better person and allowed me to become a successful medical interpreter.” Since moving to America, Kovac has completed courses in mental health and medical interpreting. She enjoys helping Bosnians who live in the Utica area who are unable to speak English and feels lucky to work for such a great organization that allows her to be close to family and friends. Tocakovic is from Mostar, Bosnia, and has worked as a care attendant for FSLH’s First Floor East and now assists with interpretation and translation needs. She came to Utica with her husband after hearing nice things about the area from family who had moved to Utica several years earlier. “Six months after we moved to Utica, my husband became very ill and needed an operation,” said Tocakovic. “Fortunately, the employees at FSLH were the most beautiful, kindest, nicest people I had ever met. They made us feel comfortable and we could not have asked for more. I remember thinking that I wanted to work in a place like FSLH and soon after my husband recovered, I applied for a job and I am now a medical interpreter.”Tocakovic enjoys working as an interpreter because she knows what it is like to be in a hospital and not understand what is going on. When she had the opportunity to become an interpreter at FSLH, she knew it was what she wanted to do because she can help make a difference in people’s lives. Interpreters are evaluated by how well the patient is taken care of and if their needs are met. Maternity-specifically during delivery and discharge-is one of the departments that relies more heavily on the services of the interpreters. "We have to be sensitive not only to their language but to their culture, gender, and religion," said Poccia. So what is their motivation to maintain such busy schedules? Helping people. "Most patients that I interpret for are very thankful for the services that we provide and it makes me feel good to help them,” said Verenich. “In addition, I am learning a lot about the medical profession.” "We've received so much positive feedback,” said Poccia. “Patients’ faces light up when we walk into the room and are able to speak their language.” FSLH currently has several handouts available in Russian, Bosnian, Spanish and Vietnamese. They include print materials about NYS patient rights, patient discharge instructions, FSLH helpful information, fall alert, hand washing, smoking cessation, speaking-up when information is not clear, preventing infection, what you should know about your medication, advanced directives, uniform assignment sheets and health care proxy.Verenich, Kovac, and Tocakovic are also assisting with several translation projects such as using pictures for menu selections.For more information about the Language Assistance Program and their services, contact Ezio Poccia, Language Assistance Coordinator at 624-5242.