to treat hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM), a genetic disease where the heart s septum is

March 15, 2013 Volume 21 Number 6 CHECKUP A PUBLICATION FOR NORTH MISSISSIPPI MEDICAL CENTER EMPLOYEES Book...2 Blood Drive...4 Jewelry Sale...4 Bed Tower...5 Regional Honor...7 Stars...8 Retirement...9 EOQ...10 Seminar...10 Globetrotter...10 Career Fair...11 inside Flag...11 Project Hope...12 CPR Training...12 NMMC Physician Develops New Heart Procedure When Gene Ward of Thaxton heard about a new procedure that could help his heart, he asked to be put at the top of the list. On Dec. 12, Ward became the first patient enrolled in a clinical trial for a new procedure called radiofrequency septal ablation. The procedure was developed by local cardiac electrophysiologist Karl Crossen, M.D., to treat hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM), a genetic disease where the heart s septum is Gene Ward of Thaxton (left) was the first patient enrolled in a clinical trial for a new procedure called radiofrequency septal ablation developed by local cardiac electrophysiologist Karl Crossen, M.D. enlarged or thickened. HOCM can cause shortness of breath, chest pain, dizziness, fainting, fatigue, heart palpitations, congestive heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms which are sometimes fatal. The first symptom among many patients is sudden collapse and possible death. All of my adult life I had what I called sinking spells, where I would kind of dim out and get tunnel vision, said Ward, who retired in 2003 as athletic director and computer network administrator for Pontotoc City Schools. I passed it off as a sugar high and never really thought much of it. In 2006, after a prolonged sinking spell left him wondering what might be the culprit, Ward saw his doctor. I thought, if there s something I can do to alleviate this and I don t, I m not very smart, he said. After an abnormal EKG, his doctor referred him to a cardiologist, who determined the problem might be with the heart s electrical system and referred him to cardiac electrophysiologist Jim Stone, M.D. Subsequent testing Continued on page 3

Surgery Center RN Publishes Children s Book Barbara Homan, RN, loves writing almost as much as she loves her job at the North Mississippi Ambulatory Surgery Center. With her new children s book, Tonsil Trouble, she has found an ideal way to enjoy both. Hailing from a family of educators, Homan started college as an education major at Mississippi University for Women in Columbus. She married her junior year, changed majors and graduated in 1984 with an associate s degree in nursing from Itawamba Community College. She joined the North Mississippi Medical Center staff that year as a registered nurse working with thoracic and vascular surgery patients. After a brief stint at the new Women s Hospital, she has spent the last 23 years working at the surgery center. As a pre-operative nurse, Homan s job is to prepare patients for surgery. Because ear, nose and throat Barbara Homan, RN, reads her book, "Tonsil Trouble," to 3-year-old Mills Daniel of Tupelo before he has his tonsils removed Feb. 20 at the North Mississippi Ambulatory Surgery Center. procedures are among the most commonly performed there, she knows firsthand the anxiety pediatric patients and their parents face. Parents don t go back into surgery with their child, so I really wanted them to get a look and see what it s like, Homan said. The book is designed for parents to read with their child. It s something I ve wanted to do for a long time. Homan wrote Tonsil Trouble as a manuscript for a class she took through the Institute of Children s Literature in 2006. Her instructor s feedback was encouraging. She tapped local artist Robert Bristow (who is married to Homan s coworker, Missy Bristow, RN) to illustrate her book. Wilma Cardona, who works as an interpreter for NMMC, translated the book into Spanish. Tonsil Trouble details the story of a 6-year-old girl named Julie who is scared about having her tonsils removed. Her journey starts when she gets the news at the doctor s office and continues through pre-op and a tour of the Surgery Center. Julie has her surgery and then a few weeks later reassures a friend who is about to have his tonsils removed. Last summer, the first 1,000 books rolled off the press. In February, the Health Care Foundation of North Mississippi and CREATE Foundation partnered to purchase 300 books to distribute to pediatric patients at the Ambulatory Surgery Center. I m so excited to be able to give a book to children when they come in before surgery, Homan said. She is currently promoting the book with the hope of getting it in other hospitals nationwide. With a full-time job and a family including three grandchildren to keep her busy, Homan is focusing on this book s success first. But waiting in the wings she has a similar book written about a child having ear tube surgery, as well as some other manuscripts she might someday like to publish. March 15, 2013 Page 2

New Heart Procedure Continued from page 1 revealed Ward s unusually thick septum, the dividing wall between the heart s left and right ventricles or pumping chambers. When the septum bulges into the left ventricle, it can make it harder for blood to leave the heart, forcing the heart to work harder to pump blood. It also can make it harder for the heart to relax and fill with blood. That year, at age 58, Ward had an internal defibrillator implanted to shock his heart back into normal rhythm if needed. Since then it has gone off four times and each time it was while Ward was officiating a ballgame. The first time I went down, and the announcers were speculating that it looked like I had a heart attack, said Ward, who officiates area high school football, volleyball and slow pitch softball games. My defibrillator went off once a year the first four years I had it, but now my medications and the device have been tweaked so well that I haven t had a shock since 2008. Prior to Dr. Crossen s new procedure, patients had few options for treating HOCM. Until now, the only treatments had been surgical myectomy open heart surgery to remove part of the septum or alcohol septal ablation injecting alcohol into a blood vessel, which causes part of the septum to die. Ward had the alcohol septal ablation procedure done in 2010, and initial results were good. Unfortunately, over time the septum became thick again. My doctor had told me, you re one of those guys who will just be walking around one day and drop dead, Ward said. While officiating a football game last fall, he knew something was awry. My heart was racing; I could feel it, Ward said. My wife tried to check my pulse and couldn t get it because it was so fast. She tried to check my blood pressure and couldn t get it either. That time Dr. Stone performed a cardioversion, or external shock administered at the hospital, to restore normal heart rhythm. When Dr. Stone mentioned that his partner, Dr. Crossen, had developed a new procedure to treat HOCM, Ward was more than interested. Since 2000, NMMC s cardiac electrophysiologists have been using an advanced cardiac mapping system which generates a 3-D virtual heart model to locate short-circuits in the heart s electrical system and a procedure known as catheter ablation to get rid of these problem spots. Dr. Crossen s theory is that the same technology should work equally as well to precisely target and ablate (or burn) excess tissue in the septum, thereby reducing its thickness and improving left ventricular outflow measurements. In 2010, Dr. Crossen put his theory to the test and successfully ablated two patients, each with a longstanding history of HOCM and both of whom had failed alcohol septal ablations and surgical myectomy. Within 10 days after the procedure, both patients had significantly decreased septum thickness and significant decrease in the left ventricular outflow gradient, which translated to an increase in their activity level. It was then that Dr. Crossen knew he was on to something. He worked with Marsha Jones, clinical research manager for Cardiology Associates of North Mississippi, to write protocols for a clinical trial to submit to NMMC s Institutional Review Board. They submitted the initial protocol in March 2011, and the IRB provided valuable feedback and thorough reviews before approving the protocol in June 2012. At the same time, the search for funding began, Jones said. Because radiofrequency septal ablation is not currently approved to be used outside of Dr. Crossen s research study, neither health insurance nor Medicare or Medicaid can be billed for the procedure. Jones applied for grants from several vendors and was thrilled when Biotronik, a worldwide medical technology company specializing in the development of pacemakers, ICDs, stents, and ablation equipment, agreed to fund it. Biotronik saw the significance of this potentially groundbreaking procedure developed here locally by Dr. Crossen and jumped at the opportunity to support it, Jones said. After a teleconference with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Jones submitted the protocol and supporting records from the 2010 ablations to the FDA for review in August 2012. Jones recalls being devastated when the first submission was denied the following month. We had spent two years working on this protocol, only to be denied, she said. We had to remind ourselves this was our first attempt and looking back, the changes the FDA required were minor. Dr. Crossen and Jones made the necessary changes and resubmitted the protocol to the FDA for a second review. Two months later, in November 2012, Dr. Continued on page 4 Page 3 March 15, 2013

Employee Blood Drive Set For March 25-26 NMMC employees can donate blood at an Employee Blood Drive on March 25-26. Hours for the drive will be 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, March 25, and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, March 26. Each employee who completes a successful donation will receive 800 CSF Reward points and a meal voucher for the Food Court. Employee donors will be entered in a quarterly drawing for 5,000 CSF points. All donors will also receive donation points from United Blood Services which can be redeemed in UBS Hero Rewards Store and a UBS Keep Calm and Save Lives T-shirt. Donating blood is safe, simple and saves lives. Every minute of every day, someone needs blood. Volunteers donate virtually all of this country s supply of blood for transfusion. People in good health who weigh at least 110 pounds can donate a pint of blood as often as every 56 days. Prospective donors can pre-register online at www.bloodheros.com Fill out the required fields, use sponsor code NMMC, select whole blood and then your donation time. You can also contact Debbie Craig in Employment Services at extension 3062 or email to pre-register. Donors need a picture ID with their first and last names included. Donors who have not pre-registered can call (662) 255-7291 on the days of the drive to find out wait times. West Point Auxiliary To Host Jewelry Sale NMMC-West Point will host its Auxiliary Jewelry Sale from 7 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday, March 18, and 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday, March 19. The sale will include $5 jewelry and accessories. A portion of proceeds from the sale, which will take place in the hospital s Education Center at 835 Medical Center Drive, will benefit the NMMC-West Point Auxiliary. New Heart Procedure Continued from page 3 Crossen finally received full FDA approval to perform the study on up to 12 patients. While NMMC and Cardiology Associates participate in hundreds of clinical trials, this marks the first time that Cardiology Associates has ever initiated a study with NMMC s IRB oversight. Before Ward s procedure was done, an echocardiogram, or ultrasound of the heart, showed a septal thickness greater than 3 centimeters, three times the normal thickness, despite his previous procedures. Radiofrequency septal ablation is not a surgical procedure but rather is performed with needle punctures of the leg vessels, similar to the way cardiac catheterization is performed. The procedure utilizes the same techniques we use for cardiac ablation, which is when we use radiofrequency energy to burn tissue to modify the heart s electrical system, Dr. Crossen explained. But for this procedure, more radiofrequency energy is delivered over a longer period of time, allowing us to create a larger amount of tissue injury. This then allows the ablation procedure to function much like the surgeon s knife, removing tissue by first injuring it irreversibly then allowing it to shrink as it heals. Radiofrequency septal ablation takes approximately two hours, and patients typically go home the next day with no incisions or stitches. Within a few days after his procedure, Ward felt up to moving some fire wood to a dry spot for the rest of the winter. I knew I was doing better because when I was moving the wood stack to the porch I just didn t tire as quick, he said. I knew I was getting better blood flow because I didn t get as winded. An echocardiogram 10 days after his procedure confirmed that his septum had decreased almost a full centimeter in thickness. The full effect of the procedure is not strictly defined by an arbitrary time period, Dr. Crossen said. In the same way that a body builder takes weeks and months, even years, to see the result of his weightlifting on his body muscles, the heart also takes a long time to reshape itself. For more information about radiofrequency septal ablation or other services available at the NMMC Heart Institute, call 1-800-THE DESK (1-800-843-3375) or visit www.nmhs.net/heart_institute. March 15, 2013 Page 4

West Bed Tower To Begin Receiving Occupants North Mississippi Medical Center will see lots of changes, with six patient floors moving from existing areas to the new west bed tower and another moving temporarily to the hospital s south bed tower. The west bed tower construction project began in January 2011 with adjustments to parking areas and relocation of some services. The tower is connected to the hospital with a new corridor. Plans call for work to begin in mid-april on the area, now known as the central bed tower. Those floors will be renovated to match the rooms and furnishings in the new tower with an estimated completion in October 2014. The first floor to locate in the new area was 1 West, home of the Rehabilitation Institute. On Feb. 19 the staff left an area that they ve called home for almost 25 years. Angie Everett serves as administrative director of the unit that offers treatment programs designed to help patients become as independent as possible following an illness or injury. We moved from an area with semi-private rooms to all private rooms, she said. We are now able to accept (From left) Cynthia Jourdan, Anna Terrell Wilson and Amy Simmons look at the controls for one of the patient beds in the west bed tower. more patients into our rehabilitation program, because we no longer have limitations caused by infection control issues and keeping patient occupancy to one gender. Patients admitted into the new Rehabilitation Institute have access to a newly renovated rehab gym as well as a new dining room, private treatment room for therapy patients, a patient and family education room, and outdoor courtyard. Our patients dine together at all their meals, and their favorite meal is the fish fry buffet on Fridays. The larger dining room allows us to be more creative with our recreational activities that are tied in with meal time. Steve Altmiller, NMMC president, said, Our staff is working diligently to make these moves go as smoothly as possible. There is a great spirit of cooperation and excitement between the various areas of the hospital as they gear up for these changes. We hold a series of planning meetings with representatives of clinical areas as well as hospital support areas and representatives from the architectural and construction companies to plan every aspect of each move. Many hours of planning and preparation help makes these moves go rather smoothly, said Bruce Ridgway, vice president of Facilities Management and Construction. The 30-bed Rehabilitation Institute offers patients three to five hours of intensive therapy daily on an inpatient basis to help patients reach their individual goals. Patients are cared for by board-certified physiatrists as well as case managers, physical, occupational and recreational therapists, social workers, Continued on page 6 and 7 Page 5 March 15, 2013

West Bed Tower Continued from page 5 rehabilitation nurses, speech-language pathologists and a clinical psychologist. The unit, which has scored 99 percent in its Press Ganey patient satisfaction scores for five years, is accredited by CARF international for inpatient adult rehab and stroke and has achieved the Gold Seal of Approval from the Joint Commission for Primary Stroke Centers. The Rehabilitation Institute received NMMC s Impact Award for its achievements in fall reduction and fall safety. This success was featured in a presentation at the American Medical Rehabilitation Providers Association s national conference in San Diego in 2012. Plans call to start with the first floor and to occupy the new spaces one floor at time from the first through the sixth floors. Except for the Skilled Nursing Facility, all areas in the central tower will move to their new location. That unit will move temporarily to 3 West, while the area that previously housed the Rehabilitation Institute is renovated. When the project is complete, the Skilled Nursing Facility will be located on the newly renovated first floor of the central tower. West Bed Tower Items Of Interest The overall project is 60 percent complete as of January 2013 Planning started in 2003 Nursing unit is 60 percent larger than the one being replaced. Each new patient bedroom is 60 percent larger than the one being replaced. Scope of work is to replace 224 patient bedrooms Bedside control of the following features for patient convenience: - Nurse call - TV/DVD - Room lighting (new feature) - Window blinds, open and close (new feature) - Room temperature (new feature) The new bedside control features came directly from patient feedback More than 1,000 planning meetings with public, patients, staff and physicians have been held Expected life of the west bed tower building is 100 years Design potential of 80 computers per floor Nearly 700 telephones will be provided in the west bed tower The tower crane used throughout the project has a reach of 230 feet and is 180 feet tall. Nearly 500,000 pounds of concrete used to anchor the crane in place The west bed tower is a poured concrete frame, with more than 6,500 cubic yards weighing almost 26 million pounds. The tower s patient rooms will house more than 500 framed prints featuring area photographs by local photographers. The tower has approximately 3,000 electrical wall switches. More than 100,000 floor tiles and vinyl wood planks were installed, one at a time. March 15, 2013 Page 6

NMMC Laundry Director Earns Regional Honor Judy Murphy was selected as the Tri-State Chapter of the Association for Linen Management s Manager of the Year. This honor is to award laundry professionals who exemplify excellence in service, quality and leadership. She will also be considered for the national manager of the year award, which will be presented in June. Murphy serves as director of the North Mississippi Medical Center Laundry. She has worked with NMMC for more than 21 years. Last year, Murphy completed the Registered Laundry and Linen Director Program from the Association for Linen Management in Richmond, Ky. The program West Bed Tower Continued from page 6 studies everything that is involved with running an efficient laundry/linen service, including theory, application, infection control, production and operations. With a background in nursing, she identifies with the necessity of having quality, hygienically clean linen to care for patients. Murphy was also chosen to serve as the health care laundry representative on the American Laundry News 2013 Panel of Experts. This panel is a group of laundry/linen managers who contribute expert advice to the Newspaper of Record for Laundry and Linen Management. Brianna Cooper (left) and Beth Walker of Food and Nutrition tour the west bed tower. Angie Everett, director of NMMC's Rehabilitation Institute, is interviewed by WTVA's Wayne Hereford. Page 7 March 15, 2013

Several NMMC employees have recently been recognized by Stars On-Line for going above and beyond their duties. Otolaryngologist Ryan Simmons, M.D., was honored for an act of kindness that took place New Year s Eve. Dr. Simmons received a call from Med Serve about a patient who had swallowed a fish bone. Rather than send the patient to the Emergency Department, Dr. Simmons offered to see the patient at Med Serve. He brought his equipment to Med Serve and scoped the patient there so that the patient would not have to wait to be seen. Stars On-Line that Wages is salaried and, therefore, not compensated for extra hours. Cheryl positively impacted the lives of patients who were in need of lifesaving measures She correctly modeled all the aspects of servant leadership. At NMMC-Hamilton, a patient s son had spent the night with his mother on a school night. The following morning, Tonya Colburn, RN, drove him to school so he wouldn t have to walk in the cold and also bought him breakfast. Tanya is a shining star in my eyes and a great role model for her fellow co-workers, her nomination reads. Speech pathologist Dana Hobby led the Developmental Team in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in making ornaments using the footprints of premature babies who were in the NICU at Christmas. I know the ornaments were a wonderful and precious gift to the parents of these children, her nomination reads. They will be cherished for many years to come. Daniel Eddings, RN, of NMMC-Tupelo Emergency Services was cited for his devotion to three children who were involved in an automobile accident that claimed their mother s life and seriously injured them. Because their father was incarcerated, they moved in with their grandmother after their hospital stays. Eddings raised more than $500 for a Toys-R-Us gift card and arranged a time for his work shift to visit and present the gift. He is a true picture of why our staff at this hospital are so special, his nomination reads. Cheryl Wages, RN, was scheduled to get off work after helping interview a nursing applicant, but before the interview started a Code Blue was called. After responding to the Code Blue and then interviewing the applicant, Wages was called to assist a visitor who had fallen to the Emergency Department, where it was determined that the visitor had suffered a stroke. On a different unit an ALERT was called, then another ALERT followed by a Code Blue. She finally went home at 1:45 a.m. after working 6.5 hours past the end of her shift, her nomination reads, noting Kristi Sloan, RN, a school nurse with Community Health, recently had a sixth-grade student with a broken tooth. An oral surgeon needed to fix the tooth under anesthesia. The student s mother learned that their insurance does not pay for sedation, which would cost more than $300, and they could not afford it. Sloan noticed that the student had become very self-conscious and would not smile. After paying the fee herself, she called the mother and simply told her it was taken care of and to please keep the appointment. The student s tooth was fixed, and now she is all smiles, thanks to Kristi, the nomination states. Amy Mobley, RN, learned that a patient who had been hospitalized at NMMC-West Point for more than a month was getting depressed. Every day when Mobley s shift was over, she would clock out and walk with the patient. The patient was delighted to leave her room, states the nomination. An NMMC-West Point employee had two grandchildren hospitalized within a week, one at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Shay King, director of Pathology, provided transportation to and from Jackson. If you see an NMMC employee displaying extreme acts of kindness like these, nominate him or her for Stars On-Line. Nomination forms are also available on the Intranet or throughout the hospital. March 15, 2013 Page 8

Rhea Warren Retires After Four Decades Of Service Rhea Warren never believed much in taking breaks, but he ll have plenty of time for them after retiring from North Mississippi Medical Center after 40 years in the Radiology Department. Warren, an Aberdeen native, was accepted to X-ray school at University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson while a student at Aberdeen High School. I graduated on a Friday and started X-ray school on Monday, Warren said. When asked what drove him toward his chosen profession, Warren said he was inspired by an uncle who was an X-ray technician and also by time spent in hospitals after being hit by a car. It was just something that I wanted to do, he said. Warren served in the United States Army for four years, including a three year stint in Belgium, where he served as an X-ray technician. He left the service and Belgium on May 22, 1972, and started as an NMHS vice president for Human Resources Rodger Brown congratulates Rhea Warren for his 40 years of service at NMMC. X-ray tech at North Mississippi Medical Center two weeks later on June 5. At the time Warren started at NMMC, the hospital had three X-ray rooms. A fourth, for special procedures, was built in 1975 and Warren served as a special procedures technician. He eventually served as technical director for Radiology. Warren also served on the MIS Project Team for Radiology through three different system implementations and for a time took care of patient billing and Medicare codes for Radiology for NMMC and the community hospitals. Warren said one of the things he ll miss most about working at NMMC is his job as unofficial doorman at the hospital s North Employee Entrance. Some of my best times were holding the back door for people, Warren said. People thought I was crazy but I enjoyed it. I was there every morning, every single day for the last couple of years. They ll have to get an automatic door now. Warren served in the Army National Guard for 12 years. He was the only X-ray tech in the Guard in the state of Mississippi during his service, which kept him busy. He and his wife Joan have been married for 45 years and have lived in Tupelo since 1972. They have two children son David Warren, a teacher in Columbus, and daughter Angela South, a certified nursing assistant and six grandsons. Warren s post-retirement plans include volunteer work for the Salvation Army, fishing and cleaning up his yard and shop. I m about three years behind on that, at least, Warren said. Page 9 March 15, 2013

NMMC-West Point Nurse Selected For EOQ Tina Manley, RN, has been selected by her peers as the most recent Employee of the Quarter at North Mississippi Medical Center-West Point. Manley serves as the hospital s case management/utilization review nurse. She rejoined the NMMC-West Point staff in 2007, working in the Emergency Department for four years before assuming her current position. She had previously worked at NMMC-West Point from 1997-2004, and then served as a rehabilitation nurse at NMMC- Tupelo for one year. She also has physician office experience and worked in home health. Manley graduated from Cottage Grove High School in Cottage Grove, Ore., and earned her associate s degree in nursing from Mississippi University for Women in Columbus in 1982. She also completed training to become a Certified Rehabilitation RN. Tina exemplifies teamwork. She jumps in and helps out, assisting nurses and physicians, her nomination states. She truly has a servant s heart. Manley was also cited for her dedication to quality and costcontainment issues, her eagerness to learn and her volunteer efforts. The best part of my job is my coworkers and the rest of the staff, from physicians to Food and Nutrition Services, she said. Everyone is so friendly and helpful. We all want what is best for our patients. She and her husband of 36 years, Robert, have two sons Michael in Columbus and Matt in Chattanooga, Tenn. Her grandsons, Jackson and Jacob, also live in Chattanooga. The Manleys are members of Evangel Church in Columbus. Weight Loss Surgery Options Seminar Scheduled Area residents are invited to a free educational program on Weight Loss Surgery Options at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 2, at The Women s Group-Columbus, located in University Mall, 2031 Hwy. 45 North, Suite 4. The program will be presented by general and bariatric surgeon Terry Pinson, M.D., who serves as medical director of North Mississippi Medical Center s Bariatric Center in Tupelo. Dr. Pinson graduated from the University of Mississippi School of Medicine and completed residency training in Birmingham, Ala. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons. Topics will include weight loss surgery s health benefits and risks; different types of weight loss surgery; who is a good candidate; questions to ask a physician; what to expect before, during and after surgery; and advanced techniques and technologies. A question-and-answer session will follow. To register or for more information, call (662) 377-SLIM (7546) or 1-866-908-9465. Globetrotter Visits Peds Harlem Globetrotter Hammer Harrison shares his expertise with Pediatrics staff members (from left) Sherry Fuqua, Judy Hughes, Ashley Oakes, Candais Bostick and Amanda Foster at North Mississippi Medical Center. Harrison, who is in his fourth season playing forward, entertained children on the pediatric unit and adults in NMMC s Skilled Nursing Facility as part of the Globetrotters Smile Patrol. Harrison and his teammates brought their You Write the Rules World Tour to the BancorpSouth Arena on Feb. 25. March 15, 2013 Page 10

NMMC Hosts Career Fair For Employees Liz Edwards (left), assistant to the dean for the University of Southern Mississippi s College of Nursing, explains program guidelines to clinical nurse educators Mindy Forsman, RN, and Amanda Sullivan, RN, during NMMC s Career Fair. The March 5 event offered employees and their families an opportunity to talk with representatives from several colleges about their healthrelated degree programs. IMA-Tupelo Flag Pole Illuminated Alan Flowers, M.D., and NMMC Honor Guard members (from left) Brad Brown, Phil Fraser, Cheryl Ford and Kelly Terry raise the flag Feb. 27 at IMA-Tupelo. The U.S. flag has been flown intermittently at the clinic since Dr. Flowers donated the flagpole in 2002. New lighting around the pole will allow the flag to be flown continually, except in inclement weather. Page 11 March 15, 2013

Outpatient Rehabilitation Raises $800 For Project Hope The NMMC Outpatient Rehabilitation Team recently raised more than $800 for Project Hope through a silent auction of donated items ranging from wooden high chairs to original artwork. This year s Festival of Hope is set for Saturday, April 6, at Tupelo Furniture Market. Doors open at 4 p.m., followed by opening ceremonies at 5 p.m. The event benefits local cancer, heart disease and diabetes patients; remembers those who suffered from these diseases and supports national research efforts. This year s theme is Chillin and Grillin and will feature a cookout, arts and crafts vendors, entertainment and children s inflatables. For more information on Festival of Hope, call (662) 377-3867 or visit www.projecthopems.com. Showing off their purchases are team members (from left) Gail Taylor, Ruthlyn Goree, Jai Eschete, Lydia Thomas, Melinda Lamon and Judy Crump. Wellness Center Hosts CPR Training Kim Wright (left), RN and trauma program manager for North Mississippi Medical Center, teaches participants how to do infant CPR March 2 at the NMMC Wellness Center. Certified CPR instructors from Tupelo SafeSplash and Splash Midsouth at Le Bonheur Children s Hospital in Memphis led three free sessions. Forty adults and children learned adult handsonly CPR, child CPR with breaths, adult and child AED use, infant CPR and relief of choking in an infant, child and adult. March 15, 2013 Page 12