By Lindsay Seagraves/News Editor
Riverview Wound Care and Hyperbaric Center received the Center of Distinction Award on Tuesday, June 10.
The award was given by Healogics, Inc., and presented by Area Vice President Kim Eller.
Eller explained the center achieved outstanding clinical outcomes for 12 consecutive months, including patient satisfaction over 92 percent, and a minimum 91 percent wound healing rate within 30 median days to heal.
Doctors and clinicians at the center enjoyed lunch after receiving the award.
Of the 511 centers eligible for the Center of Distinction Award, only 157 achieved the honor.
“We are fortunate at Riverview to have such a talented and compassionate group of folks working at our Wound Care & Hyperbaric Center,” said Riverview Regional Medical Center Chief Operating Officer Thomas Roddy. “Receiving The Center of Distinction Award is a testament to the care provided by our physicians and staff. There is no greater reward for our team than to heal a wound and restore normalcy to our patients’ lives.”
The Wound Care and Hyperbaric Center in Rainbow City is an outpatient department of Riverview Regional Medical Center and offers highly specialized wound care and hyperbaric medicine to patients suffering from chronic wounds that have not healed in a reasonable amount of time.
Each year, there are about 1.8 million new cases needing wound care, and studies show that wound care treatment facilities have reduced amputation rates and shortened hospital stays.
Chronic wounds may need treatment such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, an advanced and painless treatment offered at the center that helps the body’s wound-healing mechanisms function more effectively by allowing the patient to breath in 100 percent oxygen. The oxygen is carried through the blood and taken to the injured area, drastically improving healing time.
Treatments take place in a tube-shaped chamber that patients can see out of. Once the patient is inside the chamber, it takes about 10 minutes to reach 100 percent oxygen, and the same amount of time to normalize the chamber so the patient may exit safely.
During treatment, patients can watch a movie or TV show, and can only hear the TV while inside the chamber.
Clinicians can talk to the patient by way of a phone attached to the chamber.
“Patients can even schedule their appointment times around their favorite TV show,” said Eller.
Each patient has treatment 5 days a week for about two hours. Patients can receive from 30 to 40 treatments total.
The Center’s calm but cheery colors and friendly staff enhance the advanced wound care offered there.
Vicki Lamb, director since 2009, says they are the only advanced wound care treatment center in Gadsden.
Other treatments the Center offer include negative pressure wound therapy, bio-engineered skin substitutes, biological and biosynthetic dressings and growth factor therapies.
Dr. John Campbell has served as the Center’s Medical Director since its opening in 2007 and says of the staff, “I have been blessed to be partnered with this uniquely qualified, compassionate and caring group of healthcare workers and the success of our Center is directly related to their diligent attention to quality care with a human touch.”
Other staff include Gina Hollingsworth; clinical nurse manager, Beth Starr, Alicia Hatmaker, Olivia Gwin, Josh Camp, Robin Kornegay and Ashlee Garner.