News at USA Health

“The goal with this procedure is to liberate patients with spinal cord injuries from mechanical ventilation as soon as possible,” said Maryann Mbaka, M.D., FACS, a trauma and emergency general surgeon at USA Health. “This gives them a better chance for recovery and an improved quality of life, which is great news for patients.”

USA Health is one of 18 sites in the nation enrolling patients in the ReInvigorate Study, which will evaluate the safety and efficacy of a new system to increase diaphragm strength and improve ventilation weaning for patients.

Considered a breakthrough, pulsed field ablation uses pulsed electric fields to efficiently isolate the pulmonary veins for the treatment of atrial fibrillation. Because the mechanism of cell death is non-thermal, the risk of collateral structure damage is potentially lower.

In this issue, you’ll meet Ocean Kelly, who was born with a rare genetic disorder; hear from leaders in medical education and student affairs at the Whiddon College of Medicine; learn about menopause care available at USA Health; and celebrate with Providence employees as they joined the health system.

The ORBIE Awards honor chief information officers who demonstrate excellence in technology leadership.

Lung cancer claims as many lives each year as breast, colon and prostate cancers combined. However, diagnosing lung cancer in the early stages increases the survival rate to more than 61%.

Earlier in 2023, Simon Grelet, Ph.D., and his colleagues developed a provisional patent for the technology, which involves labeling cells that have received mitochondria from donor cells.

Jennifer Young Pierce, M.D., M.P.H., attended the White House Cervical Cancer Forum on Thursday in Washington, D.C., where a national network to study self-collection of vaginal samples was announced.

The new Whiddon College of Medicine building will provide state-of-the-art laboratory spaces that will create flexibility and efficiency for research today and in the future. It will also allow for expanding the class size of first-year medical students from 80 to 100, with the capability of increasing to 120 in the future, at the same time the nation faces a projected shortage of healthcare providers.

“The addition of these four ORs and hybrid OR suite will dramatically expand our ability to perform the most complex tertiary surgical procedures while also caring for our trauma patients.”

Jennifer Young Pierce, M.D., M.P.H., FACOG, is the director of the Division of Cancer Control and Prevention at the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute, where she conducts research in cancer care delivery and supportive care for cancer patients and survivors, and is a principal investigator on grants totaling $1.3 million.

Providence is now one of 11 facilities in Alabama to be accredited as a Comprehensive Center by the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program.