Calgary Herald Options Insert – Spring 2013 – Click here to read more

By the numbers
– CORPORATE PROFILE –
20%
Of the estimated 46,000-plus Canadians who
sought treatment in a foreign country in 2011,
more than 9,200 — 20 per cent — were Albertans.
Contents
Leaving Canada for Medical Care/2011, Fraser Institute
FEATURES
17.7 weeks
Our goal is to help
people take control
of their health and
the health of their
loved ones so they
can fully enjoy all
that life has to offer.
Preventous founder,
Dr. Rohan Bissoondath
Average wait times across Canada in 2012
between referral from a general practitioner and
receipt of elective treatment.
22nd edition of Waiting Your Turn, Wait Times for Healthcare in
Canada, the Fraser Institute
Wait times in Alberta, slightly down from
21.1 weeks in 2011 and a peak of 22.1 weeks
in 2010.
Fraser Institute
8
Members of the Preventous team from left, Georgie Weeks, Dr. Aaron Woodard, Dr. Sarb Grewal, Barb Schafer, Dr. Maya Grover and Dr. Rohan Bissoondath.
“People in Calgary work very hard to
create lives they can be proud of,” says
Preventous Collaborative Health medical
director Dr. Rohan Bissoondath. “We’re
here to help them figure out what they
need to do so that they can fully enjoy
their lives and be as healthy as possible.”
Knowing your health risks and how to
avoid problems in the future is key to staying healthy, hence the “prevent” part of
the company name.
Bissoondath tells of seeing a 50-yearold man who had a heart attack, and in
the next examining room sat a 22-yearold “who was not taking care of himself
— smoking, etc. — and I just saw his
future in the room next door.
“If we can help this kid avoid that other
room in the next 20 to 30 years, that will
be an accomplishment. Nothing in life
matters if you’re not healthy.”
Bissoondath and the rest of the Preventous medical team are strong believers in
the power of preventive health care for
men, women and children.
That includes, when required, nutrition counselling as well as customdesigned fitness programs delivered in
Options | Spring 2013
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20.7 weeks
Preventous helps families enjoy
happier, healthier lives
2
4
the on-site fitness facility.
Developing a relationship with each
client helps ensure success. At Preventous
Collaborative Health, the traditional
family doctor who knew your children’s
names, and was there for you day and
night, lives on.
“I didn’t like how impersonal the medical system can be,” says Bissoondath.
Bissoondath started Preventous in 2007
because he saw a need for a one-stop shop
offering strong, evidence-based family
health care delivered in a caring, compassionate manner.
The Preventous family is 100 per cent
committed to the people and families that
rely on it for medical care.
“I don’t think you’ll find any other
clinic that gives patients as much time as
they need and offers full 24/7/365 care
the way we do.” says Bissoondath.
As a lifelong Calgarian, Bissoondath
takes great pride in bringing the highest quality preventive medical care to
this city, and nothing makes him happier than great feedback from clients
telling him Preventous is achieving
that goal.
“We know we’re on the right track
because of the positive comments we get
from our clients,” says Bissoondath, citing
this message from David Tuer:
“As a member myself of the Preventous organization, and a fairly knowledgeable one given
my role as chair of the Calgary Health Region
for more than seven years…I feel well qualified
to point out the advantages and the strengths
that membership offers both individually and
corporately.
“I take genuine pleasure in offering my
comments on Preventous, largely because my
personal experience has been as positive as I
could hope for, and has established for me an
intimate relationship with a team of health
professionals who have my interests at heart
and take whatever time is needed to deal with
those interests.
“From a corporate perspective, and from a
personal one, Preventous provides its services at
an investment cost which seems to have an infinite
yield — given that I have access to the highest
quality health care on a 24/7 basis.
“So why Preventous? I can answer for me by
saying that I have tried alternatives, and
Preventous is ‘as good as it gets.’”
Name: Preventous Collaborative
Health
Location: 1635 17th Ave. S.W.
Calgary, T2T 0E5
Contact info:
Phone: 403-229-0129
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.Preventous.com
Services:
n2
4/7 Access to our health
care team
n T otal health assessments
n Executive medicals
n F itness assessments
nN
utrition assessments
n Free consultations
10.5 weeks
12
Alberta wait time average in 1993. Today’s wait
time has nearly doubled.
Fraser Institute
$97.6 billion
Wait times have soared in the past 20 years
despite increases in federal health-care transfers
that have outpaced population growth and
inflation by $97.6 billion since 1997/98.
Fraser Institute
Options
YOUR GUIDE TO PRIVATE MEDICINE
is a special publication of the Calgary Herald
Publication date: Saturday, Feb. 23, 2013
Special Projects Manager:
Barb Livingstone, 403-235-7339
[email protected]
14
16
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Peace of mind
A Calgary couple with two young children, appreciates the collaborative and comprehensive nature of a private medical caregiver.
Leaving home
A survey of Canadian physicians indicates one per cent of patients
travel to foreign countries for medical treatment each year.
The big picture
The imaging systems that many people take for granted have saved
countless lives.
Health quest
A series of medical challenges, including extreme headaches and back
pain, has led a Calgary man to pursue private medical options.
Whole health
The holistic approach to health at his private medical facility has
helped a Calgary man eat better and, as a result, lose weight.
Timely alternative
Battling cancer, a Calgary woman chooses to invest in rather than
wait for her medical treatment.
Wake up call
On the verge of a heart attack, a Calgary geologist makes some
significant lifestyle changes with guidance from his medical provider.
Cross-border shopping
Increased awareness and new technologies are attracting more and
more Albertans to a Kalispell, Mont. medical centre.
CORPORATE PROFILES
2
Preventous Collaborative Health
5
Copeman Healthcare Centre
13
Landmark Collaborative Health
9
Provital Health & Wellness
15
Canada Diagnostic Centres
10/11
Mayfair Diagnostics
Advertising: Susan Walker, 403-235-8784
Cover and cover story illustrations:
Jennifer Worley and Charlene Kolesnik
Options | Spring 2013
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PROFILE
– CORPORATE PROFILE –
Copeman Healthcare
has introduced a highly
personalized and
service-focused approach
to personal, family and
corporate health care that
delivers excellence in
prevention and health
management.
Dr. Adrian Wladichuk, family physician.
Marissa Adams, with four-month-old son Jaxson, no longer has to endure long waiting times for blood tests related to Type 1 diabetes.
— Wil Andruschak photo
‘We have had nothing but positive experiences’
By COLLEEN BIONDI
W
hen Marissa Adams, 32, moved
to Calgary from White Rock, B.C.
in 2004 to attend Mount Royal
College (now Mount Royal University), little
did she know how much access to reliable
health care would play a critical role in her life.
But that same year she was diagnosed with
Type 1 diabetes. This means her pancreas
does not produce insulin. Marissa has to
inject insulin into her body daily, monitor
sugar levels with a glucose meter, go for
regular A1C blood tests — which measure
sugar averages over three-month periods ­—
and see an endocrinologist. From 2004 until
2010, she made numerous visits to the lab,
enduring long waiting times, and travelled
across town for visits with her family doctor.
But when her husband, Derek, who manages his father’s automotive shop, followed
his long-term family physician, Dr. Sarit Sengar, to Provital Health & Wellness, Marissa soon
followed. She was then pregnant with Abigail
4
Options | Spring 2013
(who is now two) and concerned about care for
her child-to-be (son Jaxson would follow in late
2012). She’d also been having more difficulty
accessing her own family doctor, having to
default to local medical clinics when she needed
help, like diagnosing and getting treatment for
strep throat.
“You don’t want to be sick for a week before
seeing a doctor,” she says.
Signing on with Provital has been a godsend.
“We’re on the phone to them all the time, especially with two young kids,” she says. When
Abigail was suffering with a bad cold recently,
a telephone consult confirmed there was a bug
circulating, and suggested Marissa watch for
breathing developments and recommended
she hold Abigail in the steam of a bathroom
shower to help with congestion.
“Then they called back the next day. They
always call the next day to check in.”
Doctors at Provital are accessible by phone
day and night and will recommend same day
or next day appointments when necessary.
Provital has a lab onsite so now her quarterly
blood tests are a breeze. ”I can bring my kids
and I am in and out in five minutes.”
And when the unthinkable, a miscarriage,
happened, she called for advice and an action
plan was immediately put into place. She was
to rest that night (and call if matters got worse),
get an ultrasound in the morning, then have a
follow-up appointment with her doctor.
“The miscarriage started at 5 p.m. one day; the
ultrasound and meeting with my doctor happened by 10 a.m. the next morning.”
Marissa and Derek also take advantage of
other therapies offered at Provital, especially the
monthly massages. Marissa’s are relaxation and
stress reduction-based; Derek’s target tightness
associated with old sports injuries.
The cost of these services is $3,060 per person
annually for Marissa and Derek (there is no cost
for the children). The Adams are fortunate to
have the cost absorbed by their employer, Derek’s
dad, at Dale Adams Automotive Specialists (Marissa is also employed there in an administrative
role and is currently on maternity leave).
The Adams still use and value the traditional
I can bring my kids
and I am in and out in
five minutes.
system. Marissa continues to see a Calgary
endocrinologist, is referring Abigail to a speech
pathologist and was seen by specialists for both
pregnancies which were considered high risk.
But they appreciate the collaborative and
comprehensive nature of Provital, from its
in-person medical advice to over-the-phone
reassurances, from its emphasis on wellness
plans before a problem surfaces to the whole
health team being in one place. “We have had
nothing but positive experiences at Provital,”
adds Marissa. “From the front end to the doctors, we get great service and our questions
are always answered. It is the best move we
ever made.”
A new standard of health care
The Copeman Healthcare
Centre set a new standard for primary
care in Alberta when it opened the doors of
its Calgary Centre in October 2008.
The centre was developed to offer each client
a personalized and expert team of professionals
focused on all aspects of his or her health.
The state-of-the-art, centrally located
17,000-square-foot facility was expanded in
2011, and a second Alberta location opened
in Edmonton in May 2012.
Copeman Healthcare has created a Western
Canadian network of doctors, specialized professionals and researchers to develop and implement some of the most advanced programs
of screening, diagnosis, prevention and health
management available in the world today.
According to founder and CEO Don
Copeman, the company began with a simple
premise — to deliver unparalleled access
to medical expertise while providing each
patient with a highly personalized and “unhurried” experience.
In addition to expert doctors, the centres
are staffed with a complementary team that
includes psychologists, psychiatrists, neuropsychologists, physiotherapists, registered
dietitians, kinesiologists, exercise medicine
specialists, nurses, health coaches and other
specialized professionals who work together for
the early detection and treatment of disease.
The centre is the only one of its kind to
have a program recognizing that complete
wellness must address all three areas of physical, psychological and brain health.
Copeman’s brain health program is the first
of its kind and is focused on early intervention
for age- and disease-related cognitive decline.
Copeman Healthcare has become
Canada’s leader in collaborative, team-based
health care, but the services and technologies
it has developed are now being shaped for
implementation throughout the world.
One of the centre’s greatest contributions
to the field of prevention and health management is its computerized Health Management
System, which is a secure, online personal
health record combined with sophisticated
risk assessments, health surveillance and selfmanagement tools.
Changes in laboratory results and other diagnostic measures trigger personalized reminders
about important risk factors and transmit both
positive and negative trends to the patient’s
health team. This advanced technology is made
available to every client of the centre.
The centre offers a warm and comforting
environment as well as an atmosphere of
genuine caring that belies the size and sophistication of its operations.
“We are committed to a large, expert staff
and the most current technology and techniques, but creating a very personalized and
highly available service is just as important to
us,” says Copeman.
“We have a simple motto, which is to treat
every client like we would have our own loved
ones treated. Our clients’ health teams are
dedicated to them and committed to looking
after every aspect of their health.”
Although the centre has numerous subscription programs and services, the most
popular offering is LifePlus, an all-inclusive
prevention and health management program.
It includes a comprehensive, four-hour annual
health assessment and a complete package of
professional services to support a client’s individual health plan. This service costs $4,200
per adult in the first year of service and
$3,200 per year thereafter and the enrolment
team works with clients to explore individual
coverage as it relates to employee benefits
packages and tax deductible health expenses.
In addition to the comprehensive adult
health services, the centre also offers one of the
most advanced programs for the prevention of
child illnesses available in the world today.
Name: Copeman Healthcare Centre
Location: 4th floor, 628 12th Ave. SW
Calgary, T2R 0H6
Contact info:
Cristle Jasken
Phone: 403-270-CARE (2273)
Email:
[email protected]
Web: www.copemanhealthcare.com
Services:
Advanced personal and family health
care; 24/7 physician on call; integrated
physical, psychological and brain health;
exercise medicine and physiotherapy;
comprehensive health assessments;
corporate wellness; registered dietitians;
concussion management services; dementia and Alzheimer’s screening; stroke
and brain injury rehabilitation; integrated
personal training; cardiac health and
rehabilitation; health coaching and
therapeutic lifestyle change.
Options | Spring 2013
5
COVER
STORY
Medical tourism
taking flight
Quality care and unwillingness to suffer, prompt
some Canadians to seek treatment out of country
By BRIAN BURTON
M
ore than 9,200 Albertans travelled
to foreign countries for medical
treatment in 2011, according to
estimates of the Fraser Institute national
think tank.
Albertan’s were some 20 per cent of the estimated 46,000-plus Canadians who sought
treatment abroad in 2011, says the Fraser
Institute report, Leaving Canada for Medical
Care/2011. The report is based on a Fraser
survey of Canadian physicians that indicates
one per cent of all patients access foreign
medical systems each year.
The main reasons for hopping a flight
for medical treatment in the United States,
Europe, Mexico, India or other destinations
were:
n Provincial health-care referrals for treatments unavailable at home;
n Concerns about the quality of health care
at home;
n Fear of medical deterioration due to wait
times in Canada; and/or,
n Unwillingness to endure pain or disability
while waiting for treatment.
In its 22nd annual edition of Waiting Your
Turn, Wait Times for Healthcare in Canada,
the Fraser institute says average wait times
across Canada have declined to 17.7 weeks
in 2012 from 19 weeks in 2011. In Alberta,
wait times contracted slightly, to 20.7 weeks
from 21.1 weeks in 2011 and a peak of 22.1
weeks in 2010.
Despite improvements, the latest figures
are no cause for celebration, according to
Nadeem Esmail, a Calgary-based Fraser
fellow and co-author of several reports on
health care in Canada. He notes that national
wait times have increased from 9.3 weeks
in 1993 and that Alberta wait times are now
essentially double the 1993 average of 10.5
weeks.
“The Canadian health-care system cannot
meet the need for timely and efficient access
— unless you consider access to a waiting
list timely and efficient,” Esmail says. The
Fraser Institute has long called waiting lists
a form of health care rationing by an overburdened and outmoded system.
Wait times have soared in the past 20 years
despite increases in federal health-care transfers that have outpaced population growth
and inflation by $97.6 billion since 1997/98,
the Fraser Institute calculates. At the same
time, health care has become the largest and
fastest growing budget item in nearly every
province, Esmail notes. Total health care
spending by governments and individuals
surpassed $200 billion in 2011, according
to the Canadian Institute for Healthcare
Information (CIHI).
The Alberta Government projects final
health-care spending for 2012/13 will be
$16.6 billion, amounting to a 40.4-per-cent
share of the total provincial budget of $41.1
billion.
“CIHI says Alberta’s per capita health-care
spending is 35 per cent higher than the
national average, yet its wait times are an
average of three weeks longer,” Esmail says.
Another Fraser study, The Unfunded Liability of Canada’s Healthcare System, says
that future obligations of the national system, for those currently 18 years and older,
exceed anticipated revenues by $538 billion.
All of which indicates that big improvements in health care are unlikely to occur
anytime soon, Esmail says. Despite all the
public spending the Canadian system is utterly failing in its primary goal of providing
equal access for all, he says.
“In the presence of waiting lists, preferential access to health care is a reality,” he says.
As evidence, he cites the current Alberta
public inquiry into VIP queue jumping, as
well as the growing number of people leaving the country for treatment.
He says both those avenues to care are
out of reach for most people and proof of
the evolution of a two-tiered system that’s
the antithesis of what Tommy Douglas had
in mind when he led the drive for universal
medicare in Canada in the 1960s.
Jesse Stein, president of Landmark
I’m definitely seeing a trend to people
going outside their
means to access care.
— Jesse Stein,
Landmark Collaborative Health
Collaborative Health, says that, from her
perspective, the Fraser estimate of one per
cent of patients leaving Canada for care
seems low.
“Medical tourism definitely has increased
in the last few years,” and she says Landmark regularly helps patients to assess costs
and identify any insurance offsets that may
be available.
Stein says there’s a clear dividing line,
based on income, between those who elect
to seek foreign treatment options and those
who don’t. But she adds there’s also a point
at which exigencies outweigh financial considerations.
“I’m definitely seeing a trend to people going outside their means to access care.”
Other costs that tend to separate Canadians into two tiers are optical, dental and
drug expenses, which are not insured under
the Canada Health Act. Canadians must
purchase private insurance for care in these
areas, acquire it through employer plans —
or pay it out of pocket as best they can. But
the same services are typically part of basic
coverage in many European countries with
mixed public/private medicare systems.
Esmail says defenders of the status quo in
Canada have portrayed medicare as a choice
between Canadian-style health care and a
demonized version of the U.S. system.
“That completely ignores what’s going on
in the other 27 developed countries,” Esmail
says. “There’s a lack of understanding (in
Canada) of how other countries simply do
universal access better.” He says Austria,
France, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands
and several other countries “all deliver
universal health care with no significant wait
times.” They do it with a combination of:
n Public and private health insurance;
n Competition between public and private
hospitals; and,
n A modest level of user fees.
Conversely, he says, wait times are common in countries, such as Canada, that have:
n No user fees;
n A government monopoly on hospital
services; and,
n Lump-sum funding of hospitals, rather
than payments for procedures performed.
— Thinkstock photo
Imaging technologies help diagnose and fight disease
By BRIAN BURTON
A
n array of technologies has enabled
doctors to peer inside the human
body and advance the science and
practice of medicine in innumerable ways.
These imaging systems have saved
countless lives, yet many of their beneficiaries would be hard-pressed to say
exactly what they are, how they work or
which ones are used for which specific
purposes.
Key developers of the X-ray, the related
CT scan and magnetic resonance imaging
(MRI) have all received Nobel Prizes in
Medicine.
Developers of the X-ray flouroscope
were nominated for the Nobel and ultrasound developers won the prestigious
Lasker Award. But despite daily, worldwide use of these technologies, patients
often know little about them.
X-rays were first isolated and made useful by a long list of scientists, including
Marie Curie of Poland and France, beginning around 1900. The first practical
applications of medical ultrasound were
achieved by Scotsman Dr. Ian Donald in
the 1950s. And magnetic resonance imaging — MRI — was developed between
1950 and 1980 by several scientists, with
American Dr. Raymond Damadian first
demonstrating the ability to distinguish
between normal and tumourous tissues in
1971. In 1980, General Electric built the
first commercial MRI scanner.
The X-ray fluoroscope was first used
for fetal assessments in the UK in 1964.
X-ray computed tomography, or CT scan,
came into experimental use in the United
Kingdom in 1971 and was in wide use by
the early ’80s.
But what are all these gadgets and how
do they work?
In the late 1800s, scientists discovered
that high-energy radiation could be produced by passing high-voltage electricity
through a vacuum tube.
Around 1896, Wilhelm Roentgen of
Germany discovered these rays would
pass through various substances to illuminate a photographic plate and that when
he placed his hand in the path of the
beam the result was an image of the bones
in his hand, which had absorbed the Xrays, while tissues did not. The medical
implications were obvious.
By the outset of the First World War,
Marie Curie, discoverer of radium, polonium and their related radiation, was cajoling wealthy friends into building vans
to carry X-ray machines onto battlefields
and was credited with saving thousands
of lives.
(Curie then moved on to capturing
radioactive radon gas for implantation
of tiny capsules into patients’ bodies to
destroy diseased tissues. Over a lifetime of
constant, unshielded exposure to radiation, Curie developed aplastic anemia and
died in 1934.)
The fluoroscope enables X-rays to be
used to produce a moving picture rather
than a still snapshot. A patient is placed
between a continuous X-ray source and a
fluorescing screen to produce a real-time,
moving picture of bones — or of organs
illuminated by ingesting or injecting barium. Movement of surgical tools through
the body can also be traced.
The first fluoroscopic experiments were
carried out around 1900 but by 1903,
concern for health effects, due to researchers’ constant exposure to radiation,
led Thomas Edison and others to abandon
fluoroscopy research and it was another
60 years before safe, high-resolution fluoroscopy was developed.
The CT scan also relies on X-ray pictures, plus the use of mathematical data
manipulation, to capture cross-sectional
pictures of targeted portions of the body
or to assemble a large number of crosssections into a three-dimensional image.
X-ray-based technologies produce images when dense materials impede the
passage of radiation.
As a result, X-rays are best for examining bone, spotting some cancers or locating bullets or shrapnel but less useful for
examining tissue.
Over many decades, scientists have
developed detailed schedules for safe exposure to X-rays, while greatly improved
receptor materials have enabled them to
capture clearer pictures from much lower
X-ray emissions.
But two image technologies work without radiation.
See ULTRASOUND, Page 12
Options | Spring 2013
7
PROFILE
– CORPORATE PROFILE –
All of our practitioners
are here because
they believe in this
philosophy of
collaboration in
maximizing the
administration and
execution of
preventative medicine.
This is ultimately the
forum of health care
moving forward.”
Provital Physician & Co-Owner
Sarit Sengar
Ryan Hobday, an avid extreme sports athlete, took his health into his own hands and joined a private, collaborative clinic.
— Wil Andruschak photo
‘I really didn’t understand how sick I was’
By COLLEEN BIONDI
R
yan Hobday, 34, had been an extremesports athlete all his life and was used
to bumps and bruises. But in 2006,
when he got hit from behind and into the
board playing lacrosse, he knew something
terrible had happened.
“I’ve never had an injury like this and
have had a whole schwack of problems as a
result,” he says.
For the first few years he was hurting, but
still functional, while trying to get an accurate
diagnosis. He was running a successful landscaping business and still playing lacrosse,
hockey and squash. Finally, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans on his shoulder
in 2009, diagnosed a tear in his rotator cuff,
damage to the acromioclavicular (AC) joint
and three other damaged spots, requiring
surgery to essentially reconstruct it.
But the symptoms continued — his legs
would give out, he had terrible headaches and
back pain. “I really didn’t understand how
sick I was; I thought I was just recovering.”
8
Options | Spring 2013
An MRI on the back located a thoracic arachnoid cyst. In 2010, he had surgery again.
After this surgery, it took Hobday three
months to walk again and he took opiates to
get through the day. It was difficult to even
be out of the house for a few hours. “The surgeon was pleased I was not in a wheelchair;
my other symptoms were being dismissed.”
No longer able to manage the physicality
of landscaping he switched to the insurance
business, but eight months into that practice
his headaches and back pain were so extreme
he could no longer work. Since the summer of 2011, he has been unemployed and
focused on looking for solutions to getting
well, and becoming a productive member of
society once again.
He’s been frustrated with the traditional
system. No one seemed to know what to
do with his unique case, specialists weren’t
talking to generalists and no one was willing
to help him research treatment options. “It is
a very unprofessional approach to medicine.”
Hobday wanted his life back. His situation
was taking a toll not only on himself but
the people he loves. He knows there may be
some limitations as to what he will be able
to do in the future, but he wants to know
what they are, how to mitigate symptoms
and how to manage his condition effectively.
He wants to work with a team that shares his
dream to live again.
“That is what landed me on the doorstep of Landmark Collaborative Health,”
he explains. A good friend of his, who is a
kinesiologist there, suggested he take a look
at the newly-opened facility.
What he found was a quality of staff and
service of the highest order. There are a variety
of therapists working in one location, willing
to come together to discuss cases and find
solutions. It is a “group think” environment
with the emphasis being human health.
At the time of writing, Hobday had completed a comprehensive, three-day assessment
with Landmark — they examined his physical
and mental health, his diet and biomechanics
level (i.e. flexibility, strength, body fat) — and
was awaiting the results and follow-up plan.
”I see Landmark as a real opportunity to get a
If you are not getting
the answers you want,
take your health into
your own hands.
full rehabilitation plan going.”
The membership cost for ongoing services
will be between $500 and $700 per month
(this is a significant reduction from the
$1,200 he currently spends for treatment).
Hobday’s medical expenses are covered
through his partner’s corporate health plan
and his own private plan. His parents and
sister are also helping him financially.
“If you are not getting the answers you
want, take your health into your own
hands,” recommends Hobday. “There are options. Landmark is one of them.”
(L-R) Dr. Mariette VanWyk, COO Gary Iley, Dr. Donovan Kreutzer and Dr. Sarit Sengar.
Provital – A new way of practicing medicine
It has now been three years since
doctors Donovan Kreutzer and Sarit
Sengar opened the doors of Provital Health
and Wellness.
Working together since 2004 in a typical
hybrid type family walk-in medical practice,
it became readily apparent that the patient
and physician experience was deteriorating.
Operating a practice where patients wait
several hours to have five minutes with the
doctor resulted in an underwhelming experience for the patient
and led to decisions regarding medical
management based on “snap
judgments.”
Due to the increased congestion of practice, simple administrative functions like
filing papers sending out referrals to outside
specialists were delayed.
They knew that there had to be a better
way where the practice of medicine could
be more efficiently implemented and where
medical care could be provided within a
much more nurturing environment; where
the focus of medicine is not only on the
problem at hand but also more broadly
towards risk management and prevention.
To this end, Kreutzer and Sengar believe
they have found that happy medium.
Provital Health and Wellness operates in
Marda Loop. The clinic has grown with
the area and not only has it become the
community family medicine clinic serving
local patients but its central location enables
patients from all over the city easy access.
Its focus is based on a more holistic approach to health care utilizing the expertise
of its team of family physicians, naturopath
physician, chiropractor, psychologists, dietitian, massage therapists, exercise kinesiologists, a pedorthist and pharmacist. Timely
and expedient referrals are made to outside
specialists as well.
“So many health concerns are interrelated that it makes sense to collaborate and
integrate care with our team of practitioners,” says Sengar.
Patient’s have access to their physicians
24/7. Initial assessment involves a complex
examination and history involving all practitioners and the subsequent plan is tailored
to the explicit needs of the patient.
It is a fluid and flexible plan that evolves
as the health concerns of the patient
changes.
Provital Health and Wellness is now open
on Saturdays thus allowing for greater
convenience for its patients. As well, blood
work is drawn on site via appointments
resulting in less wait times.
Access to Provital’s team of practitioners, including workshops and boot camps,
involve an annual fee.
Many packages are available that meet
the needs of its patients. Discounted rates
are available for snowbirds and students.
Furthermore, Provital administration
staff work diligently with the patients and
their insurance benefit providers to maximize claims for much of the cost of their
fees, if not entirely.
“It has been an exceptionally gratifying
experience being able to practice medicine
like I had been trained to do in medical
school,” says Kreutzer. “It is a viable option
for all those who want to take a more active
role in their health-care execution.”
“All of our practitioners are here because
they believe in this philosophy of collaboration in maximizing the administration and
execution of preventative medicine” says
Sengar.
“This is ultimately the forum of health
care moving forward.”
Name: Provital Health and Wellness
Location:
Suite 204, 2031 33rd Ave. S.W.
Calgary, AB, T2T 1Z5
Contact info:
Phone: 403-685-4520
Fax: 403-685-4525
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.provital.ca
Services: Providers of thorough
and collaborative health care
services to individuals, families and
corporate clients. Provital provides
timely, preventative & proactive
health care, with the services of
family physicians, naturopathic doctor, chiropractor, nurses, dietitian,
exercise kinesiologists, psychologists, massage therapists, pedorthist and pharmacist on site — plus
numerous allied specialist partners.
Options | Spring 2013
9
– CORPORATE PROFILE –
– CORPORATE PROFILE –
MRI scans invaluable in diagnosing soft-tissue injuries
“We’ve seen patients
with no symptoms
come here to get
a Coronary CT
Angiography as
a mere precaution,
and it’s a lucky thing
they did because
this scan showed
potentially lifethreating blockages
of these tiny vessels.”
Mayfair Diagnostics radiologist and
co-director Dr. Stephen Valentine, left.
Mayfair Diagnostics: Images that save lives
A picture, they say, is worth a thousand words. Mayfair Diagnostics couldn’t
agree more.
Mayfair’s dedicated team of diagnostic
imaging professionals at Calgary’s first and
only physician-owned and operated private MRI and CT facility genuinely cares
about the health and wellbeing of everyone who lives in Calgary — a community it
has been serving for more than a decade.
The images taken at Mayfair’s clinic
hold the potential to save lives, and there
is nothing the team there takes more seriously. They believe early detection of disease is the key to living a longer, healthier
life. To ensure the information patients get
is as accurate as it is fast, Mayfair strives
for the best images possible across the
entire range of its diagnostic services.
This is the time of year when thoughts
turn to spending quality time with loved
ones. Thoughts may also turn toward
heart health as February — Heart Month
— shines the spotlight on your most vital
organ.
Heart disease is one of the leading
causes of death for Canadian men and
women. The most common form of heart
10
Options | Spring 2013
disease is coronary artery disease (CAD),
where the small arteries of the heart narrow and sometimes become blocked by
plaque that impedes oxygen-rich blood
from reaching your heart. As this plaque
builds up or if it breaks free, it can potentially block the vessel and cause a heart
attack.
The traditional procedure for determining if someone has CAD is coronary angiography, where a physician uses a catheter
to inject dye into the coronary arteries. The
dye makes the arteries visible in X-rays.
There are potential health risks that come
with this type of exam, and any amount of
risk may be too much when it comes to the
heart and overall wellbeing.
As such, Mayfair Diagnostics is proud
to be the first private facility in Alberta to
offer the 64-slice Coronary CT Angiography. Beyond its high precision, this scan
doesn’t require the fasting, hospital visit,
sedation or insertion of a catheter that
a conventional angiogram can. The scan
also uses less radiation.
To maximize the scan’s effectiveness, a
nurse administers medication that slows
the heart rate just enough to allow images
to be taken between heartbeats. After the
scan is completed, a Mayfair radiologist
reviews the images and sits down with the
patient to discuss any concerns.
According to Mayfair Diagnostics
radiologist and co-director Dr. Stephen
Valentine, this simple test can save lives.
“We’ve seen patients with no symptoms
come here to get a Coronary CT Angiography as a mere precaution, and it’s
a lucky thing they did because this scan
showed potentially life-threatening blockages of these tiny vessels.”
Coronary artery disease is a silent
killer. Individuals concerned about this
disease should talk to their doctors about
this simple non-invasive scan of the most
vital organ. Is there any better investment
than one’s own life?
Heart disease is among the leading causes of
death in Canada. Mayfair Diagnostics can
effectively detect coronary artery disease using a
Coronary CT Angiography. This scan is far less
invasive than a traditional coronary angiography,
which can require fasting, a hospital visit and
sedation. Mayfair Diagnostics is the first private
facility in Alberta to offer the scan. These images
of a healthy heart, at right, were obtained using
Coronary CT Angiography.
As winter’s end draws ever nearer, outdoor
enthusiasts are squeezing every second they can
out of this year’s snow season. Whether they’re
skiers or snowboarders, amateurs or pros, their
bodies can pay a high price for alpine fun. No
one is immune to injury.
Mayfair Diagnostics specializes in musculoskeletal radiology (MSK). It uses MRI images to detect
bone, joint, muscle and tendon abnormalities.
When needed, Mayfair also performs a specialised
imaging exam — the arthrogram — before the
MRI to look for specific injuries like labral tears.
Of course, MRI isn’t just for sports-related
injuries. For anyone who has suffered an injury
from a fall on an icy sidewalk or from a work-related repetitive stress injury, an MRI scan is often
their doctor’s most effective tool for assessing the
severity of the injury and determining the most
effective treatment.
Mayfair Diagnostics radiologist and co-director
Dr. Sarah Koles,
who specializes
in MSK imaging,
says: “We know
how frustrating
these types of
injuries can be
because they can
really affect your
day-to-day life. It
often takes a long
time to diagnose
the problem, and
many patients
have exhausted their treatment options. An MRI
is one of the best ways to clarify the problem and
determine what treatments, including pain injections, are best for each injury.”
Mayfair sees many patients who’ve injured
joints, muscles or tendons but may face long waits
to receive MRI scans in the hospital. Mayfair
Diagnostics can see most patients within 48 hours,
and the images will be promptly interpreted by its
highly qualified and experienced radiologists.
It’s easy to see why Mayfair Diagnostics is
the official diagnostic imaging provider of the
Calgary Flames and the Calgary Stampeders.
Mayfair has also provided imaging support for
other sports professionals including the Canadian Alpine Ski Team and teams competing in
the World Junior Hockey Championships.
Getting back on track after a sports injury
needn’t be an uphill battle. If these high calibre
athletes trust Mayfair with their diagnostic imaging needs, others can be assured they will be in
good hands.
Make health a priority for 2013 and experience quality service without the wait at Mayfair
Diagnostics.
“We know how frustrating these types of
injuries can be because
they can really affect
your day-to-day life.
An MRI is one of the
best ways to clarify the
problem and determine
what treatments, including pain injections, are
best for each injury.”
Mayfair Diagnostics radiologist
and co-director Dr. Sarah Koles, right.
Name: Mayfair Diagnostics
Location:
120 Mayfair Place,
6707 Elbow Drive S.W.
Calgary, AB T2V 0E3
Contact info:
Phone: 403-777-4MRI(4674)
Fax: 403-777-3198
www.mayfairdiagnostics.com
Services:
n Computed Tomography (CT)
n Magnetic Resonance Imaging
(MRI)
Mayfair Diagnostics is part
of Radiology Consultants
Associated.
www.radiology.ca
Radiology Consultants Associated
also offers the following imaging
services at its 11 locations around
the city.
Book your appointment at
403-777-3000
n X-ray
n Image-guided pain therapy
n Mammography
n Fluoroscopy
n Bone densitometry
n Ultrasound
n Nuclear imaging
n Exercise stress test
n Echocardiography
n Vascular centre
Patients with joint, muscle or tendon injuries can sometimes face long waits for diagnostic
MRI scans. Mayfair Diagnostics offers a welcome alternative for anyone suffering from
a soft-tissue injury. They can see most patients within 48 hours, and their radiologists
promptly interpret the MRI images.
Options | Spring 2013
11
PROFILE
– CORPORATE PROFILE –
‘It has forced me to look
at my whole lifestyle’
By JACQUELINE LOUIE
B
ill Hutton has seen the
light when it comes to the
benefits of healthy living.
Since signing on as a client with
Preventous Collaborative Health
in Calgary, Hutton has taken off
40 pounds, and he smokes much
less than he did before.
“They taught me I should be
focused more on living a healthy
life and being proactive. That’s
why I stay with them — because
it works,” says Hutton, 63, who
has been a Preventous client for
several years.
“They take very much more of a
holistic and preventative approach
to things, and as I worked with
Preventous I really saw the benefit. That was a real eye opener for
me. I used to think the solution to
my weight problem was working
out more, and it obviously is not
the whole solution.”
Hutton and his wife Debra became connected with Preventous
through Dr. Sarb Grewal, a physician at Preventous. Hutton had
been looking for a family physician after retiring in 2005 (he is
now back in the workforce), and
was finding it difficult to find one
in Calgary.
“That created the initial impetus
to go to Preventous.”
Grewal set Hutton up with both
a nutritionist and a kinesiologist,
who “put me on a proper workout
program that was far better than
what I was doing previously.”
And the nutritionist, Fabijana
Jakulj, “was the one that really
got me to ‘see the light’ when it
came to nutrition, which was the
biggest contributor to my corresponding weigh loss. I give these
guys all the credit,” Hutton says.
“It was their persistence that
finally got me to realize I had
to take a more holistic view of
this, and really have a more bal-
12
Options | Spring 2013
They taught me I
should be focused
more on living a
healthy life and
being proactive.
That’s why I stay
with them —
because it works.
anced lifestyle.”
Hutton had previously had
physicals through his workplace,
which provide thorough annual
physicals to senior executives.
Before that, he only went to see a
doctor when he was sick.
Now, with Preventous, Hutton
goes in every year for a physical,
and he checks in regularly with
his trainer or kinesiologist, who
will assess him and make adjustments to his workout routine.
Preventous has changed his
interaction with the medical
community from what it used to
be — a fix-the-problem type of
transaction — to a strong focus
on preventive health and living
well.
“It’s more these guys are like my
consultants,” says Hutton, who
is president of ConAgra Foods
Consumer Foods International,
a major North American food
company.
“It has been wonderful. It has
forced me to look at my whole
lifestyle and improve my health,
as opposed to fixing symptoms.”
Now that he’s come out of
retirement and is back in the
workforce, Hutton is still with
Preventous because of the benefits
he sees.
He also appreciates having
access to the health care professionals at Preventous whenever he
needs it, and having the option of
choosing private health care.
At the same time, however, Hutton thinks the Canadian public
health care system is very good.
“I think it’s a challenge right
now,” he adds.
“The problem I observe with the
system is that it’s underfunded
and overburdened, and as a result
doctors don’t have enough time
with patients — they’ve got to
churn patients through.
“I wish the Canadian government would adequately fund the
health-care system and properly
manage it. I’m an optimist, and
am hoping things will go in that
direction.
“But I’ve got to be pragmatic
about it; I’ve got to take care of
my own health-care issues.
“Preventous for me has been
much more than I expected. It has
actually changed the way I look at
my life.”
— Thinkstock photo
Ultrasound uses high-frequency
sound waves to see inside the
body, just as ships use sonar to
see beneath the waves.
ULTRASOUND, from Page 7
Ultrasound uses high-frequency (20,000 or more vibrations
per second) sound waves to see inside the body, just as ships use
sonar to see beneath the waves. Frequencies vary, with lower
frequencies providing lesser resolution but greater penetration
into the body. Sound waves bounce off anatomical structures and
return to a scanner to be processed into an image. Images are realtime, moving pictures that can also be captured as snapshots. The
absence of radiation makes ultrasound ideal for fetal monitoring.
The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine is a dualwalled cylinder with a series of powerful electro-magnets
between the walls. The patient is placed inside the cylinder
and the main magnet produces a magnetic field that causes
hydrogen atoms of the body to become magnetically aligned.
Short radio-wave pulses cause some of these atoms to briefly
reverse alignment and then return to their former positions.
This movement causes energy emissions that are captured by
computer and turned into cross-sectional images. The use of
multiple magnets produces 3-D images. Best of all, scientists
have discovered that various organ tissues return to magnetic
equilibrium at different rates, enabling the computer to differentiate very clearly between tissue types. This makes MRI
ideal for soft-tissue examination, spotting tumours, infections
of the brain, spine or joints, torn ligaments, torn rotor cuffs in
shoulders and cysts or bulging or herniated discs in the spine.
No single imaging technology serves all needs. But the
combined array gives doctors increasing ability to diagnose
and fight diseases and injuries of all kinds.
We take the time to
know each of our
clients personally. We
work with each
client to create a
custom plan that fits
their health-care needs
and ensures they meet
their health-care goals.
Jesse Stein, President
Landmark Collaborative Health
Pictured L to R: Dr. Bobby Sreenivasan; Dr.Lisa Keen; Sarah Willis, RN; Lindsay Bumanis, sales; Jesse Stein, president; Danica Heidebrecht, psychologist; Dr. Ingemaud Gerber;
and Dan McCaw, kinesiologist.
At Landmark, it’s ‘your health, your choice’
Landmark Collaborative
Health opened in September 2012,
becoming Calgary’s fourth private healthcare clinic with the aim to provide a new
level of personalized health care.
Operating under the slogan, ‘Your
Health, Your Choice,’ Landmark offers
health care packages to meet the personal
needs and preferences of each client, says
company president Jesse Stein.
“We build each client a custom package that’s completely tailored to their
needs,” Stein says.
Landmark offers a number of packages
designed for adults, students and children.
Three adult packages differ in the number
of services included. Custom packages are
also designed for corporate groups and
clients with unique situations. Couples receive a 10 per cent discount when both are
registered and services to children are free
when at least one parent is a client. Each
package provides a variety of services and
appointments with Landmark’s team of
family doctors, chiropractors, psychologists,
life coaches, naturopathic doctors, dietitians,
massage therapists, physiotherapists, holistic
nutritionists, and kinesiologists.
Each package includes the services of
a family doctor, a comprehensive health
assessment and appointments with their
choice of clinicians.
The comprehensive health assessment
is an in-depth exam that includes assessments with a family doctor, registered
nurse, psychologist, kinesiologist, dietitian
or holistic nutritionist, and massage therapist. Then, based on personal goals and
needs identified by the health assessment,
each client chooses the add-on services
of other clinicians they want included
in their package. The bronze package
includes a total of 48 non-family doctor
visits, while the gold package offers 108
non-family doctor visits. The bronze, silver and gold packages, range from $3,800
to $6,800 in the first year and from
$3,200 to $6,200 in subsequent years.
The majority of Landmark’s clinicians
are available on an “a la carte option” basis
as well. Here, clients can book individual
appointments with clinicians on a one-time
or recurring basis. The 70-point complete
health assessment is also a popular choice
for people just looking for an in-depth
assessment of their health and where they
may need to make improvements.
“No one is pigeon-holed into services
they don’t need,” Stein says. “We ask
clients what they want to achieve and
we develop a personalized plan to help
them reach their goals. Our system is
really driven toward the services clients
want.” Best of all, she says, the cost of
Landmark services can be partially or
fully recovered from employer health
plans that typically provide coverage
for the add-ons Landmark offers. If a
couple are both employed and both have
health insurance through work, the cost
of the bronze package can typically be
fully recovered from insurance, she says.
With one insurance plan, half the cost is
normally covered.
“Many people are able to obtain our services at no charge by effectively using their
employee plans,” she says. “That is a big attraction, when people realize they can have
this level of care at no cost to themselves.
“At Landmark, we book longer appointment times with our family doctors
and clinicians to allow clients adequate
time to review medical history, progress,
and discuss any and all new concerns.
“You actually have a chance to have a
conversation,” she says. “It is a more proactive and preventive approach that aims for
better overall health, rather than intervention after people become ill or injured.”
In most cases, Stein says, same-day
appointments can be arranged. Landmark also works with corporate human
resources departments to provide preventive health care for employee groups.
At Landmark, it’s ‘your health, your
choice’
Name: Landmark Collaborative Health
Location:
Cambrian Wellness Centre
Suite 310, 2000 Veteran’s Place N.W.
Calgary, T3B 4N2
Contact info:
Phone: 587-779-2690
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.landmarkhealth.ca
Services: Landmark’s extensive team of family
doctors and health-care clinicians provide a
variety of services including complete health
assessments, family medicine, massage therapy,
psychotherapy, naturopathic medicine, chiropractic treatment, kinesiologist assessment
and tailored exercise programs, physiotherapy,
registered dietician plans to aid in the prevention and management of disease, food allergies,
sports nutrition, vegetarian and vegan diets, and
holistic nutrition coaching and counselling.
Options | Spring 2013
13
PROFILE
– CORPORATE PROFILE –
CDC looks forward to
building on the history,
strengths and best practices of both CML and
CDC going forward as
one organization,
completely committed
to giving patients
the best experience
in its clinics.
CDC Medical Director Dr. Benjamin Wong
Laurie Watson and George Koch fought Laurie’s cancer with help from surgeons in Kalispell, Mont.
— Wil Andruschak photo
‘It is like getting your life back’
By COLLEEN BIONDI
L
aurie Watson, 50ish and president
and creative director of Merlin Edge
Inc., went to her doctor as a result of
a “nagging irritation” near her breastbone in
November 2011. Nothing could’ve prepared
her for what would happen next.
A full-body ultrasound found a lesion on
the liver and a mass on the pancreas. Watson and her husband, George Koch, paid
for a private computed tomography (CT)
scan which resulted in a speedy and frightening diagnosis — she had an aggressive
form of pancreatic cancer. A biopsy was
taken so that treatment at the Tom Baker
Cancer Centre could begin, but when the
biopsy came back inconclusive, treatment
could not proceed.
That was not good enough for Watson
and Koch who took matters into their own
hands. They went online and found Timely
Medical Alternatives, out of Vancouver,
who put them in touch with the Kalispell
Regional Healthcare System in Montana. “It
was pure luck that they matched us with the
14
Options | Spring 2013
doctors there,” says Watson.
They saw a surgical oncologist at the facility a week before Christmas. After reviewing
the CT scan he said, “I’ve operated on a lot
of pancreatic cancer. You don’t have it.” An
endoscopic biopsy was booked for the next
day and three pathologists examined the
results. On his day off the surgeon delivered
the news. It wasn’t, in fact, pancreatic cancer,
but a recurrence of ovarian cancer Watson
had had in 1993.
A “tumor board” met to discuss treatment
and surgery plans for Watson. “We were
astounded as to how quickly everything
was moving and how much time they spent
with us,” she says. “You literally go from
believing you have six months to live to
walking into someone’s office and hearing
that is not the case. It is like getting your
life back.”
In January 2012, Watson began chemotherapy in Kalispell and concluded it in
Calgary. During therapy, a positron emission
tomography (PET) scan was done and the
tumors were radically reduced. Her surgeon
in Kalispell warned her not to be overly
optimistic; chemotherapy drugs can affect
imaging results. Instead, he recommended
she have another PET scan two months after
completing chemotherapy.
In August, this second PET scan found a
blood clot on her lung, requiring an immediate trip to the hospital — as well as “active
areas” of cancer. Calgary specialists said this
was a new cancer, which meant additional
assessments and more waiting time. The
Kalispell surgeon disagreed, saying it was the
same cancer as what was found in November
2011 and recommended surgery proceed at
Kalispell Regional.
The surgery took place in October 2012.
Watson was in hospital for 10 days — getting off the pain killers, learning to walk
again, getting her appetite and energy
back.
“From the surgeons to the nurses to the
nursing assistants, we were amazed at how
incredibly professional it is there.”
At a follow-up appointment in November,
she enjoy burgers and fries at restaurant.
“I felt awesome. At that point, I knew I was
going to make it through.”
Kalispell truly meant
the difference of life
and death to me.
The cost for medical services and all
incidentals in Montana was $62,000 (US).
”It is a lot of money,” concedes Watson, but
when you are encountering a life-threatening
illness you need options.
Watson and Koch appreciated the support
and help they received here in Calgary, but
feels the system is unwieldy.
“We have good doctors up here but they
are overwhelmed and the system is overstressed. You can’t work well in a pressure
cooker,” says Watson.
“Kalispell truly meant the difference
between life and death for me. You need
people on your team that you trust and
whom you have confidence in. We had that
in Kalispell.”
Technician Shannon Price with Dr. Jay Zelazo, director of CT for Canada Diagnostic Centres.
Canada Diagnostic Centres: Expanding
‘Exceptional Patient Care’ in Alberta
CANADA DIAGNOSTIC CENTRES
(CDC) is a leader in both public and private medical diagnostic imaging services in
Alberta. CDC has now expanded from six to
15 clinics in Alberta with the acquisition of
CML HealthCare diagnostic imaging clinics
in Alberta.
CDC is a multi-modality service provider,
and is committed to delivering Exceptional
Patient Care to the public through 2-D, 3-D
and 4-D real time ultrasound, mammography,
pain management, bone densitometry, fluoroscopy, and X-ray services and also to private
patients with MRI and CT services. Private
MRI and CT scans offered include a wide array of preventative health scans including full
body, joint, lung and heart scans and virtual
colonoscopies.
In addition to these services, CDC offers
three specialized services: women’s focused
imaging, pediatric imaging and pain management. Calgary Women’s Imaging Centre provides seven services targeted toward women:
bone mineral densitometry, core biopsies, cyst
aspirations, galactography, mammography,
needle localization and ultrasound.
CDC also offers additional dedicated pediatric and adolescent X-ray and ultrasound
exams. Lastly, CDC offers pain management
therapy using fluoroscopy, a form of X-ray
technology to guide the delivery of medication into a joint that is causing pain. This
therapy is helpful for treating chronic tendonitis, osteoarthritis and post-traumatic injuries
such as chronic pain in healed fracture joints.
CDC clinics are designed with patients’
experience in mind. Its clinics are conveniently
located close to most major medical centres
and family clinics. Once in a CDC clinic,
patients are taken care of by highly trained
health care professionals, dedicated to ensuring
that patients are comfortable from the time of
check in to the completion of their exam
CDC’s team of radiologists is headed by
the Medical Director Dr. Benjamin Wong,
(BSc, MD, FRCPC), one of Canada’s leading
MRI specialists with fellowship accreditation
in musculoskeletal, cardiac and general MRI
including neurological and body MRI.
As former head of MRI at the Ottawa
Civic Hospital, assistant professor of radiology and head of adult cardiac and body MRI
at the University of Alberta Hospital, Dr.
Wong brings his years of experience across all
modalities to CDC and to its patients.
“CDC looks forward to building on
the history, strengths and best practices of
both CML and CDC going forward as one
organization, completely committed to giving
patients the best experience in its clinics.”
says Wong.
Formerly known as Western Canada MRI
Centres, CDC opened its doors in Calgary
as the first non-hospital private MRI in
Western Canada. In the following 15 years,
Western Canada MRI Centres expanded
into affiliated locations in Mississauga,
Toronto, Hull, Vancouver and the company
adopted the new name Canada Diagnostic
Centres.
Since 2004, CDC has expanded to 15 locations, 20 dedicated radiologists and more than
100 highly trained technologists in Alberta.
From the beginning as a private–only
MRI centre to today’s multi-modality service
provider, CDC continues to uphold its Exceptional Patient Care standards and leading
edge diagnostic imaging reputation while
working towards a healthier future.
By building on Canada Diagnostic Centres’
core strengths, and its relationships with
Alberta’s medical professional community,
together CDC will be the premier diagnostic imaging solution in Alberta, providing
Exceptional Patient Care to a larger physician
and patient base in the communities and surrounding areas of Edmonton and Calgary.
Name:
Canada Diagnostic Centres
Locations: Nine in Calgary and
Okotoks, six in Edmonton
CDC Chinook
1-6020 1A St. S.W.
Calgary, AB T2H 0G3
Phone: 403-212-5855
1-877-420-4CDC (4232)
Email:
[email protected]
Web:
CanadaDiagnostics.ca
Services:
Diagnostic medical imaging,
magnetic resonance imaging
(MRI), women’s imaging, pediatric imaging, computed tomography scan (CT Scan), preventative health scans, heart scan,
lung scan, virtual colonoscopy,
2-D ultrasound, 4-D ultrasound,
bone mineral densitometry
(bone density), gastrointestinal
studies (GI studies), mammography, pain management
injections, pain management
therapy, fluoroscopy, X-ray.
Options | Spring 2013
15
PROFILE
Immediate response to Michael Tanouye’s cardiac issues lead to a complete lifestyle change.
— Wil Andruschak photo
‘It literally saved my life’
By COLLEEN BIONDI
I
n the fall of 2011, Michael Tanouye, now
52, had a good life going.
He was employed in Calgary’s oil and gas
industry as a geologist, was happily married to
his wife, Helen, and had two grown daughters
of whom he was very proud.
Sure, he was overweight, there were
pressures at work and his mother had
recently become very ill. But everyone deals
with these kinds of issues, right?
What happened next doesn’t happen to everyone. A day after his mom became sick, he
was walking to work from the LRT platform
when he had chest pains. They went away
but the next day they came back at the same
location — and with a vengeance, almost
bringing him to his knees.
When he got to work he called his doctor
at Copeman Healthcare Centre, a multi-disciplinary health services clinic, where he’d been
receiving services — costing $3,200 per year
(he pays this out of pocket through budgeting
and small sacrifices) — since 2008.
16
Options | Spring 2013
His doctor brought him right in for an
onsite electrocardiogram (ECG).The results
were normal and similar to a baseline test
of almost a year prior. Tanouye was prescribed anti-anxiety medication for what was
thought to be an anxiety attack. He resumed
his life and the chest pains never came back.
In April 2012, he was having his regular,
annual check-up and the ECG came back
abnormal as did an externally-conducted
echocardiogram.
“That is when the red flag went up for me,”
says Tanouye.
His doctor was equally concerned.
“We need to figure this out and soon,” said
Dr. Tom Szabo, who is also the clinic’s medical director. Within weeks, Tanouye was
having an angiogram at Foothills Hospital,
where they found a main artery which was
90 per cent blocked.
It was in a complicated location, so the
recommendation was bypass surgery. Tanouye
almost went into shock when hearing the news.
“I was completely floored. I’d had no further chest pains or symptoms.”
Medical personnel kept Tanouye in hospital (said I was “a heart attack waiting to
happen”) and on the day the surgery was
booked, he got great news. A team of cardiac
specialists had taken a second look at his file
and recommended a less-intrusive angioplasty with stent procedure instead.
Immediately after that procedure, Tanouye
was breathing easier on every front. The artery
was now 55 per cent unblocked. Since then he
has committed to a complete lifestyle change.
“This experience scared me close to death,”
he explains.
He continues to work with Copeman professionals in the following areas:
n Better eating habits. He is consulting a dietician to integrate more fruits and
vegetables and portion control into his diet.
“We’re really dialed into healthier eating.” He
has lost 30 pounds to date.
n Exercising more. He spends time with
a kinesiologist on a program plan involving
brisk walking and using resistance bands for
strength development.
On an unrelated matter, he also works with
I was a heart attack
waiting to happen.
the clinic’s neuropsychologist because of a
concussion history from sporting injuries.
Tanouye left work in the spring of 2012
to spend time with his mother, who had by
then moved into a hospice environment (she
died that May). He figures his stress levels,
which at extremely high rates can be liabilities to heart health, have shrunk from 90 per
cent to about 10 per cent.
Tanouye joined Copeman Healthcare Centre initially because of its collaborative approach to health and because he was beginning to feel rushed at his family doctor visits.
He had no idea the facility would ultimately
impact him the way it has. Copeman works
faster, is more comprehensive and detailed
in their clients’ health-care assessments, he
says. “It literally saved my life.”
Options | Spring 2013
17
MEDICAL
TECHNOLOGIES
Kalispell Regional Medical Centre’s Dr. Richard Taylor, left, and Dr. Robert Rogers with the da Vinci robotic surgery system
— courtesy Kalispell Regional Medical Centre
New medical technologies attract Albertans to U.S.
By BRIAN BURTON
Claims for robotic
surgery are that it
eliminates the larger
open incisions of
conventional surgery,
involving no large
scars, few if any
transfusions, lower risk
of infection, less pain
and faster recovery.
18
Options | Spring 2013
T
he number of Canadians travelling to
Kalispell, Mont. for medical treatment
has doubled in the past 12 months,
says Mary Strauss.
In 2012, more than 150 Canadians were
treated at Kalispell Regional Medical Centre
(KRMC), where Strauss is the concierge
for out-of-state patients. She attributes the
growth in Canadian business to increasing
awareness of the Kalispell option — as well
as to new technologies.
“Word-of-mouth is huge for us up in
Calgary,” she says.
Some 85 to 90 per cent of KRMC out-ofstate patients are from Alberta, she says. But
Canadian patients come from as far away
as Ontario to bypass queues for diagnostic
imaging, hip and knee replacements and
various other procedures.
Increasingly, Strauss says, they come
for minimally invasive spinal surgeries,
robotic hysterectomies or prostatectomies
and for endoscopic ultrasound procedures;
technologies that may involve wait times in
Canada.
While some 1,600 robotic surgery systems
have been installed in American hospitals,
Canada has just 11 such units, four of
which are in Alberta. Viewed another way,
the United States has one da Vinci robotic
surgery system for every 194,000 people,
while Alberta has a robotic unit for every
924,000 people and the rest of Canada,
excluding Alberta, has one for every 4.3
million people.
In robotic surgeries, the surgeon controls
up to three remotely operated, computerassisted arms equipped with surgical
instruments, as well as one arm with a
light-and-camera assembly. The robotic
arms are inserted into the patient’s abdomen
through tiny incisions of less than two
centimetres (half an inch) and the surgeon
conducts precise operations with the aid of a
magnified on-screen view.
Robotic surgery is usually slower than
traditional open surgery or conventional
laparoscopic procedures, but advantages are
considerable.
Claims for robotic surgery, in use
worldwide since 1999, are that it eliminates
the larger, open incisions of conventional
surgery, involving no large scars, few if any
transfusions, lower risk of infection, less
pain and faster recovery. Compared with
conventional laparoscopy, doctors report
that robotic controls are far more natural and
easier to use.
KRMC acquired one da Vinci unit in 2011
and recently bought another — at more than
$1.2 million each — in order to meet the rising
demand for lower-impact hysterectomies,
prostatectomies and other procedures.
Strauss said hysterectomies are >>
>> typically performed to eliminate
excessive menstrual bleeding or painful
endometriosis (scaring of the uterus).
Prostatectomies are done to remove
cancerous tumours or to relieve constriction
of the urethra.
Total cost for a robotic hysterectomy is
in the area of $15,000 to $19,000, she
says.
KRMC also offers minimally invasive
procedures as an alternative to traditional
spinal surgery.
Traditional open-lumbar surgery requires
a five- or six-inch incision through back
muscles, muscle retraction and associated
scaring, loss of blood, transfusions and
blood vessel cauterization.
Accordingly, it involves five or more
days in hospital following surgery
and narcotics for post-operative pain
management.
Minimally invasive spinal surgeries
(MISS) use conventional (non-robotic)
laparoscopic techniques, mechanical arms
inserted into the back through tiny incisions
(1.5 centimeters or half an inch), and
microscopic magnification for precise work
around the nerves of the spinal column.
No muscle is cut, there’s less postoperative pain, reduced need for narcotics
and recovery is much faster. In many cases,
patients are released the same day.
MISS can be used to treat degenerative
or herniated discs, deformities such as
scoliosis, infections, spinal stenosis or
narrowing of the spinal canal, spinal
instability and compression fractures, all
of which can be debilitating and intensely
painful.
Depending on the type of procedure,
Strauss says, costs run from $8,000 to
$40,000.
She says the third technology attracting
increased demand from Canadian patients
is endoscopic ultrasound. This procedure
inserts an ultrasound probe through the
mouth into the esophagus to gain enhanced
views of the esophagus, stomach and nearby
organs, including the lungs, liver, gall
bladder and pancreas.
A probe can also be inserted through the
rectum for colon cancer screening. As with
all ultrasound technologies, high-frequency
sound waves are interpreted by computer to
provide detailed pictures of the anatomy.
Endoscopic ultrasonography provides
better definition of tumours or lesions
in targeted organs than can typically be
achieved with X-ray or CT scan and it can
often be performed without medication.
Whenever any discomfort is anticipated,
sedation is provided.
In Calgary, wait lists for colonoscopy
screening extend to three years at the Forzani
and MacPhail Colon Cancer Screening
Centre and have come under scrutiny by the
provincial VIP queue jumping inquiry.
We believe our commitment
to excellent care extends to
our community, which is why
EFW Radiology is a proud
partner of:
2008 photo of Paige Nickason, who at age 21 had a tumour removed
from her brain with the assistance of neuroArm, a surgical robotic system
developed by a team led by Dr. Garnette Sutherland, a Calgary Health Region
neurosurgeon and professor of neurosurgery in the University of Calgary
Faculty of Medicine.
— Calgary Herald Archive
neuroArm robot a
Canadian marvel
By BRIAN BURTON
Canada has only a dozen
robotic surgery systems from
coast to coast — but one of
them is a one-of-a-kind, madein-Canada marvel, specifically
designed to perform brain
surgery.
NeuroArm is the world’s
first surgical robot designed
for neurosurgery and to work
inside the magnetic field of a
three-dimensional MRI machine,
using real-time MRI images to
guide brain surgery. It uses nonmagnetic surgical instruments
to prevent mutual interference
between the MRI and the surgical
unit.
The machine provides
neurosurgeons with a realistic
sense of touch for their delicate
work. Precision controls are
accurate to within five onehundredths of a millimeter and
tremor suppression technology
eliminates the tiniest quiver of
even the steadiest human hand.
Originally funded by Calgary
oil and ranching millionaires
Daryl, B.J. and Don Seaman
in 2007, developers at the
University of Calgary were led
by Dr. Garnette Sutherland
and worked with MacDonald,
Dettwiler and Associates
(MDA), the creators of the
Canadarm used in the U.S. space
shuttle program. Additional
funding came from the Canada
Foundation for Innovation,
Alberta Advanced Education and
Technology and Western Canada
Economic Diversification.
The first surgery was
performed May 12, 2008,
successfully removing an eggshaped tumour from the brain of
then 21-year-old Paige Nickason.
Since then, dozens of procedures
have been performed using the
one-armed neuroArm prototype,
which is capable of manipulating
and dissecting tissue, suturing,
aspirating, irrigating, electrocauterizing and performing
biopsies.
The neuroArm technology has
since been acquired by IMRIS
Inc. of Winnipeg and developers
are working on a dual-armed
version of neuroArm for
commercialization.
(403) 541-1200
efwrad.com
Options | Spring 2013
19
9 CALGARY & AREA LOCATIONS
*
MRI & OPEN MRI
Walk in X-ray
Ultrasound
Mammography
Bone Density
Pain Management Therapy
G.I. Studies
Pediatric Imaging
Women’s Focused Imaging
* services vary by location
Women’s Imaging Centre
20 Richard Way SW
Phone: 403.685.3123
Fax: 403.685.3235
Westhills
200A Stewart Green SW
Phone: 403.685.6175
Fax: 403.685.6199
Sunridge
3-2675 36 Street NE
Phone: 403.291.3315
Fax: 403.291.9308
Pacific Place
959-999 36 St NE
Phone: 403.215.2900
Fax: 403.215.2920
Marlborough
411 Marlborough Way NE
Phone: 403.273.9002
Fax: 403.569.8097
Brentwood
830-3630 Brentwood Rd NW
Phone: 403.338.4000
Fax: 403.210.0075
Glenmore Landing
D270-1600 90 Ave SW
Phone: 403.252.5882
Fax: 403.640.2948
Chinook
6020 1A Street SW
Phone: 403.253.4666
Fax: 403.301.2073
Okotoks
141-31 Southridge Dr
Phone: 403.995.2727
Fax: 403.995.2737