Dr. Hensen provides treatment of disorders of the ear, nose and throat including:

• General pediatric ENT disorders;
• Full audiology and hearing aid services;
• Sinus disorders;
• Thyroid and parathyroid disorders;
• Skin cancer of the head and neck.

Dr. Hensen attained his medical degree 19 years ago at Michigan State University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine. He completed his residency in General Surgery at St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, Mich., and his ENT-Head and Neck and Oro-facial Plastic Surgery residency at Tulsa Regional Medical Center in Tulsa, Okla.

Dr. Hensen joins Fred Freeman, M.D., practicing at the Osler Medical office in the Crane Creek Medical Center, 2222 Harbor City Blvd., Suite 440 in Melbourne. Regular office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Dr. Hensen is accepting new patients and welcomes all pediatric patients. Appointments can be made by calling (321) 725-5050.

“Our chapter is focused on philanthropy and everything we do stays in Brevard County,” said Maxine Slager, sorority service chairwoman.

Members from local sorority, Xi Lambda Lambda, present Parrish Medical Center staff with crocheted hats for cancer patients and handmade teddy bears for pediatric patients. Shown are (L-R): Jeanine Bieberich, sorority vice president; Allison Morgan, PMC emergency department secretary; Maxine Slager, sorority service chairwoman; Joann Chapman, PMC third floor nurse manager; Adriane Graham, PMC emergency department registered nurse; and Marsha Richardson, PMC oncology program coordinator and breast health navigator.

“After touring the hospital and the newly renovated Cancer Care Boutique on the fifth floor, our sorority sisters wanted to do something special for the children and cancer patients,” said Jeanine Bieberich, sorority vice president.

Linda Utz, sorority president, personally crocheted 50 hats for PMC’s cancer patients. Other sorority members sewed 40 teddy bears for children who go to the emergency room or are admitted to the pediatric unit.

Slager and Bieberich presented the hats and bears to Marsha Richardson, PMC oncology program coordinator and breast health navigator; Joann Chapman, PMC third floor nurse manager; Allison Morgan, PMC emergency department secretary; and Adriane Graham, PMC emergency department registered nurse.

“The hats are a wonderful addition to our Cancer Care Boutique, which provides cancer patients with the resources to help them adjust to the social and psychological effects of cancer in a pampering environment. We are very thankful for this heartfelt donation,” said Richardson.

Chapman said, “We really appreciate the time this sorority took to make the teddy bears, which will be so comforting to the children who are admitted to our pediatric unit.”

For more information about the Cancer Care Boutique or the other resources available at PMC, contact 321-268-6111.

About Jess Parrish Medical Foundation

The mission of JPMF is to inspire philanthropy and volunteerism in support of Parrish Medical Center’s mission of Healing Experiences For Everyone All The Time®. Through staff and volunteers, JPMF raises funds to support healthcare initiatives in North Brevard County. JPMF’s featured projects include Cancer Care, The Children’s Center, the Parrish Health Village and the Center for Lifelong Health. For more information about Jess Parrish Medical Foundation, call 321-269-4066 or visit parrishmedfoundation.com.

About Parrish Medical Center

Parrish Medical Center, located at 951 N. Washington Ave., Titusville, Florida, is a 210-bed, not-for-profit public medical center serving North Brevard County for more than 50 years. PMC earned the Gallup Great Workplace Award, the J.D. Power and Associates Distinguished Hospital ProgramSM Award for An Outstanding Inpatient Experience, was named a Modern Healthcare magazine Top 100 Place to Work in Healthcare and a Spirit of Excellence Award Winner. PMC was voted America’s # 1 Healing Hospital three years in a row. The medical center has been awarded nine disease specific certification gold seals from the Joint Commission in acute coronary syndrome, breast cancer, diabetes education, heart failure, hip replacement, knee replacement, palliative care, stroke and wound healing. For more information, visit parrishmed.com.

Serving the residents of Brevard County since 1983, Space Coast Cancer Center (SCCC) is one of the premier Hematology/Oncology practices in the area with locations in Titusville, Merritt Island and Viera. SCCC is Florida’s First and only practice to be recognized by the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI), a certification program of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).   For more information, visit www.spacecoastcancer.com.

All classes were developed nationally in response to the issues caregivers, themselves, identified. Each class focuses on different issues a caregiver will face. Hospice of St. Francis’ programs and training classes are offered at no cost to Brevard County residents.

To register, please contact Barbara Borman, RN at 321-269-4240 x 330, toll free at 866-269-4240 or e-mail her at caregiving@hospiceofstfrancis.com.

Hospice of St. Francis was founded in 1977 and serves all of Brevard County with offices in Titusville and Melbourne. It is an independent, non-profit hospice serving the pain relief and symptom management needs of patients. Hospice of St. Francis provides support programs to assist with the many needs of families with ill loved ones. For more information about patient services and support programs, please call 321-269-4240, toll free 866-269-4240 or visit www.hospiceofstfrancis.com.

“Sushoo will allow Hospice of St. Francis to operate in a totally efficient manner and still meet HIPPA guidelines for patient privacy,” explained Bruce Wolters, President and CEO of Hospice of St. Francis “We can quickly communicate any changes or adjustments to the plan of care with the patient’s physician and other healthcare services involved with the patient care.  The addition of Sushoo Health Information Exchange will contemporize patient services and reduce the time required to communicate.  Sushoo has worked closely with us to integrate the health information exchange with our own electronic medical records system.”

“We are very pleased that Hospice of St. Francis has joined our network.  They realized early on  the effectiveness of our health information exchange,” said Dr. Geetha Priyanka, Sushoo Medical Director. 

“Sushoo has not only simplified Hospice of St. Francis’ daily operations, but it has enhanced their overall patient care.”

Developed in Central Florida and launched in 2009, Sushoo Health Information Exchange is the brainchild of entrepreneur Naveen Venkatachalam and his wife, Dr. Geetha Priyanka. This is not the first time the couple has partnered in electronic conception. 

Seven years ago, the two launched Doctors Partner electronic medical records software, in part because of Priyanka’s need to computerize her office records without spending a bundle. 

With Sushoo Health Information Exchange, physicians, nursing homes and hospitals–no matter where they are located–can be on the same page, with instant access to patient information.

For patients, Sushoo means convenience by eliminating the hassle of duplicate tests and data collection.

Hospice of St. Francis was founded in 1977 and serves all of Brevard County with offices in Titusville and Melbourne. It is an independent, non-profit hospice serving the pain relief and symptom management needs of patients nearing end-of-life. Hospice of St. Francis provides support programs to assist with the many needs of families with terminally ill loved ones.  For more information about patient services and support programs, please call 321-269-4240, toll free 866-269-4240 or visit www.hospiceofstfrancis.com.

Partnership for Patients initiative aims to reduce preventable conditions, improve care

TITUSVILLE, FL (February 10, 2012) – Parrish Medical Center is pleased to announce that it has agreed to participate in the Hospital Engagement Network (HEN) led by VHA Inc., the national health care network.

As part of its Partnership for Patients initiative, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) named 26 Hospital Engagement Networks to comprise a nationwide public-private collaboration focused on reducing preventable harm by 40 percent and preventable readmissions by 20 percent in the next three years. CMS/CMMI will fund the Hospital Engagement Networks with $218 million available under the Affordable Care Act.

“We want to do everything possible to ensure that all our patients continue to receive the very best hospital care and the very best outcomes possible,” said Edwin Loftin, vice president of nursing at Parrish Medical Center. “Our participation in this Hospital Engagement Network is one way we can be confident that we will improve patient safety, achieve those objectives and provide the highest quality care.”

By participating in VHA’s Hospital Engagement Network, Parrish Medical Center joins hundreds of other hospitals around the country that will leverage VHA’s industry-leading clinical quality improvement tools, including the Leading Practice Portal™, Leading Practice Blueprints™, proprietary Rapid Adoption Networks™ and demonstrated expertise in creating and supporting peer-to-peer learning networks.

Hospitals today need to improve quality and patient safety or face the risk of incurring financial penalties imposed by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). Achieving the objectives of the Partnership for Patients would save more than 60,000 lives annually, decrease hospital injuries by 1.8 million and allow more than 1.6 million patients to recover from illness without suffering from preventable complications requiring re-hospitalization.

Loftin said Parrish Medical Center began working with VHA in January 2012 to develop the timetable and other requirements of the work needed to address the patient safety domains on which they will focus. Next, VHA will utilize its Rapid Adoption Networks™ (RAN), the company’s proprietary framework to help address the most pressing needs—in this case, reducing hospital-acquired conditions and preventable readmissions—and provide Parrish Medical Center the skills to rapidly realize practice changes within their organization.

This step-by-step methodology focuses on identifying and understanding specific obstacles to achieving improvements, as well as how to surmount them.

“For nearly 35 years, VHA has successfully designed, developed and implemented many clinical improvement collaboratives,” said Colleen Risk, VHA’s executive vice president, member networks. “Our participation in the Partnership for Patients initiative allows the company to put this expertise to critical use as it works, industry-wide, to achieve the Partnership’s ambitious safety objectives.”

Said Loftin, “We look forward to participating with VHA in this historic initiative and appreciate the leadership and support from CMS and CMMI to help hospitals nationwide continually improve the care we give our patients.”

About Parrish Medical Center

Parrish Medical Center, located at 951 N. Washington Ave., Titusville, Florida, is a 210-bed, not-for-profit acute care public medical center serving North Brevard County for more than 50 years. PMC has been awarded nine disease-specific certification gold seals from the Joint Commission in acute coronary syndrome, breast cancer, diabetes education, heart failure palliative care, hip replacement, knee replacement, stroke and wound healing. PMC is one of only seven hospitals in the U.S. to hold nine or more of these certifications. For more information, visit parrishmed.com.

Serving the residents of Brevard County since 1983, Space Coast Cancer Center (SCCC) is one of the premier Hematology/Oncology practices in the area with locations in Titusville, Merritt Island, Cocoa Beach and Viera. SCCC is Florida’s First and only practice to be recognized by the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI), a certification program of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).   For more information, visit www.spacecoastcancer.com.

ROCKLEDGE, FL – Vascular Surgeon Nowokere Esemuede, M.D. has joined Brevard Vascular Associates, one of Wuesthoff Health System’s physician clinics.

As a vascular surgeon, Dr. Esemuede provides diagnosis and management affecting all parts of the vascular system including:

Dr.  Esemuede is fellowship trained and board-certified in Vascular Surgery. He is also board-certified in General Surgery. He is a member of the Society of Vascular surgery.

Dr. Esemuede attained his medical degree at Howard University College of Medicine in Washington D.C.  He then completed a residency in General Surgery at Howard University Hospital, followed by a Vascular Surgery fellowship at Virginia Commonwealth School of Medicine in Richmond, VA.  Dr. Esemuede was a Research Fellow at both Yale University in New Haven, CT and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, MD. He has multiple publications in Peer-Review journals.

Brevard Vascular Associates has offices at 8055 Spyglass Hill Road, Suite 102, Viera and 7227 N. U.S. Highway1, Suite 200, Cocoa. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.  Appointments can be made by calling (321) 255-8080.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8*

“STEMI Alert! Treating the Acute Heart Attack!”

Presented by Cesar Jara, MD, Board-certified Cardiologist with Health First Physicians

11 am to noon—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

and

“‘I Have High Cholesterol. What Do I Do?’”

Presented by Ralph Vicari, MD, Board-certified Cardiologist with

Melbourne Internal Medicine Associates

Noon to 1 pm—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15*

“What’s New for Treating Heart Failure?”

Presented by James Ronaldson, MD, Board-certified Cardiologist with Melbourne Internal Medicine Associates

11 am to noon—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

and

“So Many Medications. So Many Questions! A Lesson in Medication Safety”

Presented by hospital-based Pharmacist Norman Tomaka, PharmD

Noon to 1 pm—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21

“Prevention and Reversal of Heart Disease: What’s New in Keeping Your Heart Healthy?”

Presented by Cardiovascular Specialist Khalid Sheikh, MD, FACC, FACP, with Health First Physicians at CCH Medical Plaza

6 pm—Cape Canaveral Hospital Medical Plaza, Conference Room B

(Cape Canaveral Hospital Medical Plaza is located adjacent the hospital on the Cape Canaveral Hospital campus at 701 W. Cocoa Beach Causeway in Cocoa Beach.)

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22*

“Open Heart Surgery — What Can I Expect?”

Presented by James Battaglini, MD, Board-certified Cardiothoracic Surgeon with Health First Physicians

11 am to noon—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

and

“New Options for Removing Unsightly Varicose or Spider Veins”

Presented by Brian Dunfee, MD, Board-certified Interventional Radiologist with Health First Physicians

Noon to 1 pm—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29*

“What Everyone Should Know about Taking a Blood Thinner”

Presented by hospital-based Pharmacist Steven Gilbert, PharmD

11 am to noon—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

and

“Diagnosing Heart Disease with Nuclear Stress Testing”

Presented by Ronald Levy, MD, independent Board-certified Nuclear Medicine Specialist

Noon to 1 pm—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A

(Parking available in Zone A)

WE’RE CELEBRATING AMERICAN HEART MONTH IN FEBRUARY!

Bring your appetite and join us for a FREE Heart-Healthy Cooking Demonstration & Lecture at Holmes Regional Medical Center.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1

“Healthy Eating for a Healthy Heart”

Lecture and cooking demo presented by Executive Chef Mark Whitley and Registered Dietitians Aimee Molineaux RD/LDN, Candice Eisenmann, RD/LDN, and Tristan Soyka, RD/LDN. Samples will be served!

Noon to 1 pm—Holmes Regional Medical Center, Auditorium A (Parking available in Zone A)

*FREE blood pressure checks will be offered from 10:30 to 11 am (prior to the first lecture) in Auditorium A on the South end of the hospital campus located at 1350 S. Hickory Street in Melbourne.

Seating for all Healthy Happenings events is limited, so call 321-434-4335 to reserve a seat today. Lectures or events may need to be canceled or changed without notice, but attendees may call the number above at any time to confirm events or can check online at www.Health-First.org/Events.

Dr. Boodhoo specializes in the care of patients ages 16 and older, including, but not limited to general medical conditions, immunizations, geriatrics, health maintenance, diabetes, hypertension, cardiology conditions, preventive care, general gynecology and minor office procedures.

Boodhoo did fellowship training with the USAID for family planning in five U.S. states, residency training at Polk General Hospital, Bartow, Fla., and an internship at University College of the West Indies (College of the University of London), Kingston, Jamaica. He received his medical degree from University College of the West Indies (College of the University of London), Kingston, Jamaica. Boodhoo has been board certified in family practice since 1978, and a Titusville resident since then.

Titusville Family Practice is part of the Parrish Medical Center family of services.

About Parrish Medical Center

Parrish Medical Center, located at 951 N. Washington Ave., Titusville, Florida, is a 210-bed, not-for-profit public medical center serving North Brevard County for more than 50 years. PMC earned the Gallup Great Workplace Award, the J.D. Power and Associates Distinguished Hospital ProgramSM Award for An Outstanding Inpatient Experience, was named a Modern Healthcare magazine Top 100 Place to Work in Healthcare and a Spirit of Excellence Award Winner. PMC was voted America’s # 1 Healing Hospital three years in a row. The medical center has been awarded nine disease specific certification gold seals from The Joint Commission in acute coronary syndrome, breast cancer, diabetes education, heart failure, hip replacement, knee replacement, palliative care, stroke and wound healing. For more information, visit www.parrishmed.com.