News
TUBA CITY, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 9, 2012-- Tuba City Regional
Health Care announced that a new phase in a strategic partnership with
KARL STORZ, a global manufacturer of advanced medical equipment, will
begin with a ceremony at the hospital on Friday, March 9, 2012, to
mark the presentation of state-of-the-art endoscopic instrumentation
and related equipment for performing advanced gynecologic procedures
as well as addressing other women's health issues. The relationship
between the hospital and the family-owned company based in Germany is
focused on enabling the Arizona facility to acquire much-needed
equipment to enhance the care provided to its patients across a range
of medical specialties. This donation follows an initial gift of
advanced life-saving equipment made to the hospital late in 2011.
The donation project began last year with an outreach and meetings
that resulted in a relationship with Congressman Paul Gosar, a
first-term Congressman from Flagstaff, Arizona. A dentist by
profession, Congressman Gosar has a particular interest in initiatives
for reforming healthcare and expanding job opportunities in his
district. As a member of the Indian Affairs subcommittee, he is also
highly engaged in establishing greater sovereignty for Native
Americans. As such, he was instrumental in bringing the needs of Tuba
City Regional Health Care to the attention of KARL STORZ.
Jack A. Frydrych, Member, Global Executive Committee, KARL STORZ,
explained, "Recently, a decision was made by Dr. h. c. mult. Sybill
Storz to undertake a series of transformative projects of high impact
to meaningfully increase access to quality healthcare, while lowering
costs, in a Native American community that has a challenging
infrastructure (such as a large land mass, unimproved roads and
minimal public utility delivery), lack of significant sources of
revenue, has a hospital that is tribally run, and has the support and
encouragement of administration, medical staff, and tribal leadership
to collaboratively undertake and sustain programs to provide access to
advanced medical procedures as a center of excellence in Native
American communities, notwithstanding the revenue and infrastructure
challenges. Through the introduction of Congressmen Bill Cassidy, MD,
of Louisiana, an association developed with Congressman Paul Gosar and
his staff, who enthusiastically undertook the role and responsibility
of connecting us to Tuba City Regional Health Care and encouraged us
to evaluate it as the site for our project. We found that Tuba City
Regional Health Care and the Navajo/Hopi Nations met our criteria."
Initial onsite meetings helped in determining the most pressing needs
of the hospital and surgeons. Because of limited funding available,
Tuba City Regional Health Care is severely under-resourced, with
limited to no funding sources available to purchase much-needed
equipment. The hospital was overjoyed at the possibility of working
with KARL STORZ on a "true" partnership. The hospital's commitment to
the project has reinforced the interest of KARL STORZ in supporting
transformational change for the hospital and the Navajo Nation, and
not in merely donating a "piece of equipment."
According to Congressman Gosar, programs such as the one at Tuba City
Regional Health Care help demonstrate the progressive nature of
healthcare in the Navajo community and where it can lead. "I am proud
to have been a part of this unique partnership. The philanthropic
giving of KARL STORZ will empower Arizona native tribes to pursue
excellence in healthcare. The donations of KARL STORZ will impact the
day-to-day lives of many throughout the region, improving access and
the quality of care. I hope that this exceptional partnership
encourages other companies to consider how their investment can also
change the future of healthcare for communities in need. I thank all
who came together to be a part of this exceptional initiative," he
said.
The first equipment donation was a C-MAC(R) Video Intubation System
that has helped the hospital deal with difficult airway cases daily
and address concerns with patient safety issues.
The current stage of the partnership program now addresses the
hospital's strong commitment to developing its minimally invasive
surgical techniques in gynecology. The hospital's vision is to become
a regional center of excellence, providing advanced laparoscopic
surgery to women from all of the reservations in the Southwest. More
specifically, an additional aim of the hospital is to create a Women's
Health Center at Tuba City Regional Health Care that will function as
a center of knowledge and serve as a training site where surgeons can
improve their skills and master new techniques. The two current
gynecologic surgeons at Tuba City Regional Health Care are expert in
laparoscopic hysterectomies and laparoscopic surgery for pelvic organ
prolapse. By comparison, less than one-third of hysteroscopies in the
United States are performed minimally invasively.
The laparoscopic gynecology equipment being provided to the Tuba City
Regional Health Care includes small diameter operating hysteroscopes
and instrumentation, and other specialized telescopes and instrument
sets and equipment representing a range of innovative technologies for
performing minimally invasive procedures. Adult cystoscopy instruments
and telescopes are also being provided, as well as the company's Image
1(R) high-definition (HD) video technology that provides laparoscopic
video and images representing the highest imaging standards in the
medical field. The system also includes an AIDA HD Connect with
SmartScreen and peripheral equipment for copying, archiving, printing
and reviewing HD images and videos. This offers a critical capability
for the surgical staff at Tuba City Regional Health Care to support
education and training physicians in advanced surgical techniques.
"The majority of our patients live with extreme poverty, many times
with limited running water and electricity. The ability for them to
access high level healthcare without having to go hundreds of miles
for care is a major step forward. It's critical for their health and
welfare to have a first-class medical facility. We are grateful to
KARL STORZ for their commitment to women's health worldwide," said
Jennifer Whitehair, MD, FACOG, Department of OB/GYN, Tuba City
Regional Health Care.
The medical staff of Tuba City Regional Health Care is setting a high
standard for innovative medical care, an achievement that is
distinctive among the Indian nations. They are proving that, despite
hard living conditions and extreme poverty, a high level of advanced
medical care can be provided to the local communities.
This emphasizes a critical aspect of the project: that the advances
represented in the new procedures and new technologies available will
not only help patients on the Navajo lands, but will also provide
invaluable support for the training and education of other healthcare
providers outside of the Navajo Nation, such as at the University of
Arizona.
The donation program with Tuba City Regional Health Care is a
reflection of the social and ethical values that have long been an
integral part of the KARL STORZ business culture. A primary objective
has been to support worldwide training activities to enable doctors to
carry out minimally invasive interventions. "Beyond our core
competencies of being an innovation and quality leader in providing
endoscopic product solutions it is our tradition to actively support
medical training. With this effort, we especially focus on hospitals
and healthcare centers that need this support in order to advance the
usage of minimally invasive techniques for a better care and
well-being of patients. Therefore, we very much appreciate this
intensive dialog and exchange with the Tuba City Health Care
Corporation and we are glad that physicians and patients will benefit
from the endoscopic equipment of KARL STORZ," explained Dr. h. c.
mult. Sybill Storz, one of the owners and CEO of the KARL STORZ group.
Dr. Storz and the global KARL STORZ organization have supported
numerous humanitarian projects throughout the world. Each project was
aimed at improving medical care and training in underdeveloped
countries and in regions with less developed infrastructure.
Additionally, the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) of Dr. Storz has
sought to improve reproductive and maternal health for women and girls
in India. Considered a remarkably successful project since its launch
in 2005, the WHI has two major objectives: offering medical training
to local doctors in India, and creating this training to improve
access to gynecological treatment for women and girls, particularly in
India's remote regions. With ongoing support of Dr. Storz, projects
have been supported around the globe, from Afghanistan, Armenia,
Bolivia, Botswana, Cambodia and Gabon, to Ecuador, Jamaica, Kenya,
Nigeria and Vietnam, among many others.
Looking forward, the global KARL STORZ organization is continuing to
work collaboratively on future projects with the administration and
medical staff of Tuba City Regional Health Care, as well as the
leadership of the Navajo community.
ABOUT TUBA CITY REGIONAL HOSPITAL
Tuba City Regional Hospital is a 73-bed, regional acute care facility
with three operating rooms and one endoscopy room. The hospital
provides hundreds of clinical and patient care support services
spanning the medical spectrum, including total hip and joint
replacement surgery and emergency room trauma care. It serves a
geographic area of over 6,000 square miles in the western region of
the Navajo reservation and adjacent Hopi reservation for the more than
75,000 residents throughout this service area.
Tuba City Regional Hospital is the only place within the entire
reservation where total hip and joint replacements are performed by
board certified orthopedic surgeons. Tuba City Regional Hospital also
offers certified diabetic care, selective general surgery services and
specialty care services not typically found at other tribal hospitals.
Since September 2002, the Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation
(TCRHCC), a private nonprofit tribal organization, has run the
hospital under a Self-Determination Contract in lieu of the Indian
Health Service. This status gives TCRHCC greater autonomy and
flexibility to pursue present and future opportunities beyond its
limited federal funding.
ABOUT KARL STORZ
KARL STORZ GmbH & Co. KG is a privately held family-owned business,
founded in 1945 by Dr. med. h. c. Karl Storz in Tuttlingen, Germany,
which remains the global headquarters. After the death of Dr. Karl
Storz in 1996, his daughter Dr. h. c. mult. Sybill Storz assumed
management as chief executive of the KARL STORZ group. The company
operates worldwide, with 46 subsidiaries in 38 countries, including
multiple research and development and manufacturing sites in Europe
and in the U.S., with more than 2,000 employees in its U.S.
subsidiaries. For more information, visit the company's Web site at
CONTACT: Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation
Community Relations, 928-283-2993
or
Brandy Tomhave, 410-908-8461
KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA ARIZONA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: WOMEN SURGERY HEALTH HOSPITALS MEDICAL DEVICES OTHER HEALTH PHILANTHROPY OTHER PHILANTHROPY CONSUMER GENERAL HEALTH
SOURCE: Tuba City Regional Health Care
Copyright Business Wire 2012
PUB: 03/09/2012 06:00 AM/DISC: 03/09/2012 06:00 AM
