Healthy Living Briefs
Elite DNA Behavioral Health's back to school supply drive
Elite DNA Behavioral Health recently teamed up with United Way of Lee, Hendry, and Glades and Children's Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida to host a Back-to-School Drive that supported more than 250 local families.
The collection efforts spanned eight locations from Port Charlotte to Naples and collected nearly 1,000 items to help prepare students for the upcoming school year. The drive gathered a variety of supplies, including backpacks, crayons, scissors, dry erase markers, wired headphones, glue sticks, index cards, Kleenex, paper, folders with pockets and prongs and more.
"We are so thankful for all of you who helped support local children with the necessary items they need to have a successful school year," said Elizabeth Dosoretz, LCSW, founder and CEO of Elite DNA Behavioral Health. "With back-to-school prices continuing to soar, it's important that all children have access to the tools they need to thrive. We are honored to collaborate with United Way of Lee, Hendry, and Glades and Children's Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida to give back to our community and make these efforts possible."
United Way's mission as a volunteer driven organization is to improve the quality of life for all people in the community. The nonprofit has 90 Partner Agencies and supports over 260 local programs, including Children's Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida.
"We're grateful for the generosity of Elite DNA and the greater Southwest Florida community to provide underserved children in our community with the supplies they need for success," said Jeannine Joy, president and CEO, United Way of Lee, Hendry and Glades. "School supplies are a big financial expense for families who may already be struggling to make ends meet, so this is a great example of how community collaboration can alleviate burden for families and ensure students have the tools they need to thrive academically."
Children's Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida is a nonprofit providing a coordinated response to child victims of abuse and neglect across Lee, Hendry, Glades, and Charlotte counties. As part of the supply drive, the organization gathered volunteers at its center to help fill backpacks with the donated school supplies and prepare them for distribution to local families.
"We are so thankful for Elite DNA! Investing in our children's education is the most powerful way to shape a brighter future," said Alicia Shannon, executive director of the Children's Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida. "Their back-to-school drive is more than just supplying supplies; it's about providing the tools and confidence these kiddos need to succeed."
Surgical Healing Arts Center offers the Spatz3 adjustable gastric balloon
Surgical Healing Arts Center, which specializes in medical and surgical weight loss, is the only health care organization in Southwest Florida currently offering the Adjustable Endoscopic Spatz3 Balloon for weight loss.
Designed for individuals wanting to lose at least 22 pounds, it is a viable option for those who may not meet the criteria for weight loss surgery or who do not want invasive surgery or weight loss drugs. It is also used to help people lose weight before other surgeries, such as orthopedic or gallbladder surgery, to lower the risks associated with those procedures. The balloon is installed through the mouth via endoscopy with conscious sedation and without hospitalization. Patients can expect to lose 15 to 18% of their body weight, compared to Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists medications.
"With the increase in obesity as well as awareness about the health-threatening risk for significant disease from it, we offer another option to patients to enhance their health," said Dr. Mina Saeed, weight-loss surgeon at Surgical Healing Arts. "Like other bariatric solutions, this is a tool that will help patients develop healthy lifestyle skills to ensure long-term success and health."
Like other weight loss options, patients have guidelines to follow for best success, such as restricting the amount of fiber they consume and regularly meeting with their care team. Unlike other non-invasive weight loss surgeries, the balloon is adjustable according to each individual patient, to help enhance weight loss. It is U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved to remain inside the stomach for eight months.
The saline-filled balloon is placed in the stomach, taking up about a third of the space. After the procedure, the stomach cannot hold as much food as it did before, so patients consume smaller portions. The stomach also empties slower, so patients feel full longer and can learn the signals the body sends about eating to ensure future weight loss maintenance.
In addition to medical and surgical weight loss options, body contouring surgery after weight loss, advanced laparoscopic and endoscopic surgery, and general surgery, Surgical Healing Arts can prescribe weight loss medications as part of its comprehensive weight loss solutions.
Lee Health's new Complex Care Center at Cape Coral Hospital
The new center, located inside of the hospital's Medical Office Building, will help serve the growing Cape Coral population and enable residents and visitors to receive high-quality care close to home after hospital discharge.
The 2,591-square-foot Cape Coral Hospital Complex Care Center will be open seven days a week, including on all holidays, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. It will be staffed with hospitalists, pharmacists and licensed clinical social workers. Patients may be referred to the complex care center if they don't have a primary care physician or if they are unable to see their PCP in a timely manner due to distance or lack of appointments. Patients are also seen at the Complex Care Center for wound care and infusions.
Located at 708 Del Prado Blvd S, Ste. 14, Cape Coral, the goal of the Complex Care Center is to ensure hospital patients are seen promptly after their hospital stay and to help patients transition through the continuum of care right on the campus of Cape Coral Hospital. The Complex Care Center can also help patients establish a PCP who can provide ongoing follow-up care. Until patients have an established PCP, the Complex Care Center can act as a bridge to ensure they get care when they need it.
The center provides treatment, oversight of care, education and support for patients who may not have a PCP, resources or the means to connect with care providers. A pharmacist is also stationed in the center to assist with medication reconciliation, education and fulfillment.
Lee Memorial Hospital houses the original Complex Care Center on its campus in the Medical Office Building on the 4th floor. The Cape Coral Hospital Complex Care Center will offer similar services on a smaller scale, including antimicrobial treatment, hydration infusion, various IV infusions, blood transfusions, would care treatment, and transitional care.
"It's very important to us that the entire community has access to the care they need when they need it," said Kris Fay, chief officer of community-based care. "The Complex Care Center at Cape Coral Hospital will help us accomplish that goal as well as reduce emergency department visits and prevent hospital readmissions. The new center helps ensure that the Cape Coral community will have access to the right care in the right place at the right time."
Wound care patients can first be seen by a physician or advanced provider (AP) who will set up a wound care plan. Depending on the plan, patients may be followed by a wound care nurse for subsequent visits with occasional monitoring by the physician or AP.
Patients who need antibiotic infusions will follow the plan from their specialty physician. Some antibiotics are given daily, for several days or weeks, while something like a blood transfusion may be a one-time visit.
If a specialist follow-up is recommended at hospital discharge, the Complex Care Center can also help set up appointments for patients
To learn more about the Complex Care Center at Cape Coral Hospital, please visit www.leehealth.org .
Learn better ways to manage chronic conditions
Lee Health offers a research-based Chronic Disease Self-Management program for the community through its "It's All About You" initiative in partnership with the SMRC.
The program is designed for people 18 years or older with chronic health conditions to help them learn ways to better manage their chronic conditions and the symptoms that often accompany chronic health conditions. Participants will receive a complimentary copy of the book, "Living a Healthier Life with Chronic Conditions."
The workshop, offered once a week for 6 weeks and free of charge, will be held in person on Wednesdays from 9-11:30 a.m., starting Oct. 16 at Heights Center, 15570 Hagie Drive, Fort Myers, 33908.
Lee Health adds the da Vinci 5 to their robotic surgery program
Lee Health has added the Intuitive da Vinci 5 to its robotic surgery program and has also completed its 14,000th robotic surgery, establishing the health system as a leader in advanced and innovative surgical options for patients in the Southwest Florida region.
The dV5 will help physicians improve surgical outcomes and efficiency by providing enhanced precision and control, advanced imaging options, and rich data insights to ultimately make the surgical experience more comfortable for patients, provide better outcomes, and even faster recovery times. The dV5 represents the latest advancement in the da Vinci series, continuing its mission to empower surgeons with the ability to perform minimally invasive procedures across a broad spectrum of surgical specialties. These include adult and pediatric general surgery, gynecology, urology, colorectal surgery, oncology, cardiothoracic, and ear, nose and throat (ENT).
The dv5 incorporates Force Feedback technology to allow surgeons to feel subtle forces exerted on tissues during the procedure. This helps significantly reduce the force applied to those tissues, minimizing tissue damage and ultimately enhancing precision, patient comfort, and fewer complications during surgery. The dV5 has over 10,000 times the computing power of its predecessor, the da Vinci Xi, and supports advanced AI and machine learning capabilities for continual software and functional upgrades.
The dV5's console has been redesigned to provide better ergonomic support and accommodate different body types. As never before, surgeons can make more adjustments to the surgical equipment while their heads remain in the console, ensuring continuous focus and comfort during surgical procedures. This also helps allow for better patient outcomes.
"The da Vinci 5 is a groundbreaking addition to our robotic surgery program, and we are pleased to offer this upgraded version of the da Vinci Xi to the Southwest Florida community," said Dr. Juan Ibarra, program manager for robotics surgery. "This new device takes surgical precision to the next level and will help us continue to grow our robotics arsenal and further improve the quality and outcome of our patient care."
On December 28th, 2022, Lee Health added the Intuitive ION robotic-assisted bronchoscopy platform to its robotics program. The robotic platform enables physicians to perform minimally invasive lung biopsies on patients to help detect lung cancer earlier. Now working with four Ion units, the option will soon exist across all Lee Health hospital locations.
It features an ultrathin, ultra-maneuverable catheter that allows physicians to reach small lung lesions. The ION also offers a wide range of motion and stability, allowing the physician to aim the catheter at small targets in almost any lung location.
Lee Health has performed 705 robotic assisted bronchoscopies with the ION and 90% of those procedures resulted in a diagnosis. Sixty-two percent of the first 50 patients were diagnosed with lung cancer, and of the patients who were diagnosed, 51% were caught early enough for surgical intervention.
Lee Health's robust robotics program includes several advanced robotic systems, such as the ExcelsiusGPS®, which is used for minimally invasive spine and brain procedures, three ROSA® orthopedic robots for knee and hip replacements, two AquaBeam® for Aquablation® Therapy of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), four ION to help detect lung cancer sooner, two da Vinci SP Surgical Systems for single incision urologic and ear nose and throat procedures, the da Vinci 5, and 16 da Vinci Xi.
The introduction of robotic surgical services at Lee Health has been made possible through the visionary leadership of our executives, the firm support of our physicians, a strong partnership with robotic surgery vendors, and generous contributions from our community to the Lee Health Foundation. This synergistic effort is dedicated to bringing cutting-edge medical advancements to Southwest Florida, ultimately improving the quality of care and outcomes for our patients.
