Radiant Blog

Tuesday, August 25, 2020

St. Vincent Charity among group of hospitals and colleges partnering to build talent pipeline

Cleveland hospitals, including St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, and area colleges are teaming up to build a strong health care workforce. The initiative, known as the Workforce Connect Healthcare Sector Partnership, creates a health care talent pipeline, while also ensuring that job seekers have career pathways with family-sustaining wages. ...Continue →

Thursday, August 20, 2020

Health Progress: Rosary Hall in Cleveland Fights Addiction

At Rosary Hall in Cleveland, they don't like to talk about waiting lists. When someone struggling with addiction seeks help, they try to provide it — right then, right there. During daytime hours, Rosary Hall accepts walk-in patients, people seeking immediate treatment for alcoholism and drug dependency. The approach to immediately admit those in need hearkens back to Rosary Hall's founder, a slight but stalwart religious sister. Sr. Mary Ignatia Gavin, CSA, was first in the nation to admit patients to a general hospital for treatment of alcoholism. ...Continue →

Sunday, August 09, 2020

UH and St. Vincent to Improve Access to Addiction Care

The $2.89 million grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration will expand and extend the Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center in partnership with and alongside the long-standing SVCMC Addiction Medicine Fellowship. Funding will be used to increase the number of board-certified Addiction Psychiatrists and Addiction Medicine Physicians trained in Northeast Ohio. ...Continue →

Thursday, August 06, 2020

Innovative, Nonsurgical Treatments Provide Relief from Back, Joint Pain

Millions of Americans suffer each day with pain from arthritis or injury to the back, neck and joints. Many choose to live with what can be debilitating pain, unable to perform household chores or even work, rather than turn to surgery to relieve their pain. In an article in Brecksville Magazine, Dr. George Friedhoff, St. Vincent Charity sports medicine specialist, discussed how there is hope for those looking to prevent surgery and even for those in which surgery has failed to relieve pain. ...Continue →

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Effective Treatments for Arthritis Pain of the Thumb

Pain or stiffness at the base of the thumb when gripping, grasping or pinching an object is often a sign of arthritis in the carpometacarpal (CMC) joint – the most common type of arthritis in the hand requiring surgery. Most common in women over 50, CMC arthritis can make simple acts such as opening a door or turning a key in a lock a painful experience. Orthopedic surgeon and hand specialist John Krebs, MD, said when non-surgical treatments fail, CMC arthroplasty (joint replacement) is an effective treatment that maintains proper function of the thumb and hand. ...Continue →

Monday, July 27, 2020

Former College Football Player and Avid Outdoorsman Returns to Doing What He Loves with Relief from Back Pain

At age 60, avid outdoorsman Jay Scholes found out he wasn’t invincible. The years of playing high school and college football had led to pain in his back so severe he felt almost as though life had stopped. He found he could no longer enjoy the activities he loved due to the pain caused by three degenerated discs in his lower back. Scholes followed the recommendation of a friend to turn to the Spine and Orthopedic Institute Co-Medical Director Dr. Louis Keppler, for help. Upon meeting Dr. Keppler, Scholes said he immediately knew he found the right physician. ...Continue →

Thursday, July 23, 2020

St. Vincent Surgeons Participate in Nationwide Clinical Trial of 2-level Total Disc Replacement for Symptomatic Cervical Disc Disease

Two St. Vincent Charity Medical Center surgeons, Robert McLain M.D. and James Anderson M.D., are participating in a nationwide clinical trial investigating the safety and effectiveness of two new total disc replacement (TDR) devices (prodisc® C SK and prodisc® C Vivo) intended for the treatment of 2-level cervical disc disease. ...Continue →

Monday, July 13, 2020

Staying Active to Prevent, Reduce Pain of Osteoarthritis

For those suffering with pain from osteoarthritis, exercise may seem like the last thing they want to do. However, research shows staying active may be the best way to ward off progression and pain from the disease. “While there is no cure for osteoarthritis, there is a lot we can do to reduce pain and improve function,” said Matthew Levy, MD, St. Vincent Charity Spine and Orthopedic Institute. “Regular, moderate exercise helps to strengthen muscles surrounding the affected joints and improves flexibility and balance.” ...Continue →

Friday, June 19, 2020

Staying Active While Still Staying Safe

The COVID-19 pandemic has made remaining fit and active a major challenge for many. Even as gyms and fitness centers reopen in Ohio, you might not feel comfortable exercising inside around other people. It can be easy to lose motivation and stay within the confines of home. Cardiovascular conditioning, muscle strength and flexibility all start to decline when physical activity stops. For someone with spine and orthopedic-related health issues, physical activity is especially important because it helps keep joints lubricated, mobile and strong to help relieve pain. That's why it's important to find alternatives to the gym to maintain your overall health during this pandemic. Dr. George Friedhoff, sports medicine specialist at St. Vincent Charity’s Spine and Orthopedic Institute, says the key for those who may have been inactive the last 6 to 8 weeks during quarantine is to remember to take it slow. ...Continue →

Monday, June 15, 2020

We Can Help If Pain Returns After Back Surgery

With today’s technology and minimally invasive procedures, spine surgery is a viable option for the 16 million Americans experiencing chronic back pain. However, even with advanced techniques, an estimated 10 to 30 percent of patients continue to experience persistent and, sometimes severe, pain. The good news is there are effective treatments to help those with lingering pain, including the use of a spinal cord stimulator. The implanted device sends low level electrical signals directly around the spinal cord to help reduce the pain patients feel. ...Continue →