ECMS Newsletter Sept/Oct 2021

Physician Advocacy Since 1873

Bulletin

SEPT/OCT., 2021 VOLUME 51, NO. 5

Editors: Dawn Hannah, D.O. | Erica Huffman, Executive Director www.escambiacms.org

President’s Message

Contents Page 4 - Medical/Legal Page 12 - Foundation

Each September, ECMS holds an activity for Women in Medicine, honoring The American Medical Association initiative to recognize the contributions of women in the field of medicine. According to AAMC.ORG, for the year 2020-2021, 53.6% of entering 1st year students are women. There can be no argument that in preceding times the path to medicine for women was less than equitable.

Each month, the president will tell you, we struggle with blog topic selection. As I sat at our last ECMS board meeting, it was clear that my peers were to be my muse. This newsletter, I wanted to use my platform to highlight your ECMS female physician leaders.`

a wealth of knowledge and wisdom from the many hats she has worn throughout her career. She is a retired Navy Captain, and former commanding officer of Navy Hospital Pensacola. Currently she serves as the Medical Director University of South Alabama Family Residency Program.

Dawn Hannah, DO brings wonderful energy to our board. She has joined the ECMS leadership tract by serving as your Secretary / Treasurer role. In addition, she is director of MFM at West Florida Hospital and is the Associate Program Director of Obstetrics and Gynecology residency.

Both of our members at large this year are women, Caroline Wolverton, DO and Meridith Shaddix, MD. Dr Wolverton is a Family Practice doctor in the Gulf Breeze area and Dr Shaddix is a Trauma and General Surgeon at Ascension Sacred Heart.

I can think of no better way to celebrate Women in medicine, than by highlighting your current leadership board. They are leaders.

I am honored to have served this year with them. I have learned something from each one of you and am thankful for this time.

Kacey Mongomery, MD is your future president elect. What a great leader she is. I look to her during board meetings, as she always provides balanced and thoughtful input. In addition to her leadership role at ECMS, she is Medical Director of Clearway pain management. I look forward to celebrating her at the upcoming inaugural ball (1/22/22 - Mark your calendars!)

– Dr. Casey Mickler

Maureen Padden, MD currently serves us in the capacity of Vice President of ECMS. She brings

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Yet another of Florida’s medical liability insurers has transitioned from focusing on doctors to focusing on Wall Street. This leaves you with an important question to ask: Do you want an insurer that’s driven by investors? Or do you want an insurer that’s driven to serve you—one that’s already paid $120 million in awards to its members when they retire from the practice of medicine?

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Member Updates E.C.M.S. Bulletin The Bulletin is a publication for and by the members of the Escambia County Medical Society. The Bulletin publishes six times a year: Jan/Feb, Mar/ Apr, May/Jun, Jul/Aug, Sept/ Oct, Nov/Dec. We will consider for publication articles relating to medical science, photos, book reviews, memorials, medical/ legal articles, and practice management.

Vision for the Bulletin: • Appeal to the family of medicine in Escambia and Santa Rosa County and to the world beyond.

• A powerful instrument to attract and induct members to organized medicine.

Mission:

Advancing physicians’ practice of medicine in our community.

New Members David Evheverri, M.D. Baptist Medical Group Family Medicine 5100 North 12th Avenue, Suite 201 Pensacola, FL 32504

Janelle Bennett, M.D. Baptist Medical Group Hematology/Oncology 1717 North “E” Street Suite 231 Pensacola, FL 32501

Kristy Nguyen, M.D. Baptist Medical Group Family Medicine 9400 University Parkway, Suite 409 Pensacola, FL 32514

Wesley Mayes, M.D. Baptist Medical Group Orthopedics 5100 North 12th Avenue, Suite 102 Pensacola, FL 32504

Ashley Hunter, M.D. Ascension Sacred Heart Family Medicine 13137 Sorrento Road Suite B Pensacola, FL 32507

James White The Women’s Group OBGYN 2114 Airport Boulevard, Suite 1000 Pensacola, FL 32504 850-476-3696

Suraj Patel, M.D. Baptist Medical Group Internal Medicine 1717 North “E” Street, Suite 422 Pensacola, FL 32501

Heather Ross, M.D. Baptist Medical Group – Pine Forest Primary Care Family Medicine 2115 West Nine Mile Road, Unit 2 Pensacola, FL 32534

James Henderson, M.D. Baptist Medical Group Urgent Care Family Medicine 1500 North 12th Avenue, Suite 101

Editor Dawn Hannah, D.O. Executive Director Erica Huffman 4771 Bayou Blvd. # 157 Pensacola, FL 32503 Ph: 850-478-0706 Fx: 850-474-9783 Email: info@escambiacms.org www.escambiacms.org

2021

CALENDAR

SEPTEMBER WOMEN

Ad placement Contact Erica Huffman at 478-0706 Ad rates 1/2 page: $350 · 1/4 page: $200 · 1/8 page: $150

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OCTOBER ECMS

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MEDICINE

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FOUNDATION

FUNDRAISER

NOVEMBER OPIOID

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View and opinions expressed in the Bulletin are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the board of directors, staff or advertisers. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit or reject any submission. www.escambiacms.org | 3

Medical/Legal

Prevent, Communicate, Document: Medical Malpractice Data Help Us Manage Risk David L. Feldman, MD, MBA, FACS, Chief Medical Officer, The Doctors Company and TDC Group

The good news about medical malpractice is that there isn’t very much of it—which is the classic oxymoron of drawing insights from medical malpractice claims to improve patient safety. Nevertheless, medical malpractice data can focus our search for ways to succeed at three key aims of physicians, practices, and health systems: (1) prevent adverse events, (2) prevent lawsuits if adverse events do occur, and (3) prevail in lawsuits when all else fails.

Admittedly, analyzing medical malpractice data comes with obvious downsides. For one, many undesirable outcomes, adverse events, and near misses never result in a claim, so the claim data set, relative to the quantity of care provided that does not proceed optimally (or is perceived as not proceeding optimally) is quite small. And when compared to the total volume of care, it is miniscule. Further, if we wish to study closed claims, we must wait: By the time an event becomes a claim that completes the legal process, it is typically four to five years out from the originating event.

Still, the advantages of medical malpractice claims as a data source are indisputable—and powerful enough to overcome the drawbacks:

Relative to alternatives like peer review or root cause analysis, medical malpractice claims provide a much richer source of data. It is a sad yet helpful truth that people bare their souls when they are sued.

Because medical malpractice data have a direct correlation to large sums of money, it is easier to use medical malpractice claim–related findings to drive tangible, system-wide improvements to patient safety that no one wants to pay for.

Prevent, Preclude, Prevail My approach to risk management is the three Ps: Prevent adverse events. “We can’t fix what we can’t see,” says Dana Siegal, RN, CPHRM, CPPS, director of Patient Safety Services for CRICO Strategies.

The Doctors Company employs CRICO’s Comparative Benchmark System when we code medical malpractice claims for our closed claims studies. She continues, “When we view that data across collective and comparative data sets, we validate the repeated patterns and trends across the care system, allowing us to focus resources and improvement initiatives on the most vulnerable risks.”

P. Divya Parikh, MPH, CAE, vice president of Research and Education for the MPL Association, agrees: “Medical malpractice data offer insight into high-risk specialties, medical conditions, and procedures that result in claims,

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allowing physicians and healthcare systems to direct their risk management programs for safer delivery of care.”

This last point is key—that healthcare systems can and do direct resources to improving patient safety based on insights derived from medical malpractice data—because it is easier to convince large systems to change when they can see not only a patient safety benefit, but also a strong financial incentive.

Preclude lawsuits with good communication. “Communication issues are a great example of the power of studying malpractice data to shed light on the multiple factors contributing to errors and harm,” says Ms. Siegal. When we analyze closed medical malpractice claims across specialties and settings, communication gaps crop up again and again. Those gaps can stem from medical team members miscommunicating with each other or with families. While the former may result in an adverse event (see the first P: Prevent), the latter may result in a lawsuit. A patient’s desire to pursue litigation after an adverse event frequently derives from a misunderstanding about possible outcomes. As a mentor once told me, “When you talk about potential complications before surgery, that’s informed consent.

When you talk about them after the procedure, that’s an excuse.”

A New York Times article sifted decades’ worth of studies to conclude, “Doctors sued most often were complained about by patients twice as much as those who

Medical/Legal were not, and poor communication was the most common complaint.” Note that poor outcomes was not the most common complaint—it was poor communication.

If your institution participates in a disclosure program, follow it carefully when responding to adverse events.

A swift, compassionate, effective response to a patient’s needs in the aftermath of an adverse event or undesirable outcome is both ethically superior and practically advantageous for all parties, when compared to a lawsuit as the likely alternative.

Prevail when there are lawsuits via documentation. While undesired outcomes—even those that fall within the realm of a known complication for the treatment or procedure—may motivate patients to sue, it is often poor documentation that motivates a

plaintiff ’s attorney to take a case. The Doctors Company’s Vice President and Associate General Counsel Richard F. Cahill, JD, addresses this potential pitfall in “The Defensible Medical Record”: Patient grievances may be filed based on an individual’s faulty recollection of events, or a failure to understand the course of treatment or the underlying reason that an adverse consequence occurred. When a medical record is well documented, many allegations are often readily resolved—frequently before a formal administrative process is even initiated.

All of this is otherwise phrased as: Prevent, Communicate, Document

way, we have an opportunity to learn how to prevent the next claim. Ms. Parikh summarizes: “Every claim is, in essence, a patient complaint, and therefore an opportunity to learn where improvements can be made.”

The guidelines suggested here are not rules, do not constitute legal advice, and do not ensure a successful outcome.

The ultimate decision regarding the appropriateness of any treatment must be made by each healthcare provider considering the circumstances of the individual situation and in accordance with the laws of the jurisdiction in which the care is rendered.

Experience has taught us that patients may bring suit either in the presence of actual medical error or in their perception of medical error. Either

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Medical/Legal

Open Notes in Healthcare: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the Cures Act Chad Anguilm, MBA, Richard F. Cahill, JD, and Kathleen Stillwell, MPA/HSA, RN On April 5, 2021, a requirement of the 21st Century Cures Act went into effect: Patients must be able to access information in their EHRs “without delay.” (This requirement does not apply to paper records.) The Cures Act prohibition against information blocking, often referred to as an “open notes” provision, provides patients with transparency in the outcomes of their healthcare via convenient access to information in their EHR, which can positively or negatively impact the patient-doctor relationship.

Patient access to records is not new, and neither is the Cures Act, which dates to 2016. What is new is the requirement that patients have electronic records access that is fast and easy. This requirement is expected to result in more patients—still a small proportion overall, but more patients—accessing additional EHR information, including providers’ notes.

The requirement to provide patients with EHR access raises questions for healthcare practices. Some questions are logistical, and some are relational.

Concerns include the potential for increased time for patient education, or patient requests for changes to their records that the clinician cannot support.

Healthcare providers should understand the good, bad, and ugly implications of the Cures Act open notes provisions so they can meet the requirements and reap their benefits, while avoiding the potential for fines or sanctions based on noncompliance, or other negative impacts.

Good News About Open Notes Many patients feel better about their provider after reading a note.

Positive effects on the patient-provider relationship may be most significant among vulnerable patients, such as those with fewer years of formal education.

Further, open notes have positive impacts on patient engagement and understanding. Patients report that reading notes is a way to better understand and feel more in control of their healthcare.

They also say it builds trust with their provider. The nonprofit organization OpenNotes (not a part of the Cures Act) cites helping laypeople maintain trust in scientific medicine as one benefit of the transparency created by the Cures Act open notes provisions.

Bad News About Open Notes Concerns about open notes mainly revolve around the potential for conflicts with patients and potential time conflicts.

Concerns include: Timing: The originally planned implementation date for the open notes provisions in the Cures Act was November 2020. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, this was pushed back to April 2021. However, many providers and practices are still feeling the pandemic’s effects, leading to the question: “Will new demands never end?”

Uncertainty about the documentation process: Most patients will not understand clinical shorthand, and providers may need added time for explanation. Providers are wondering: “How can I make my

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notes comprehensible to patients while still writing them quickly?”

Technology: Some EHR vendors are still racing to provide services that allow practices to remain in compliance with the Cures Act. It may be necessary for a provider to call their EHR vendor and say, “What are you doing to ensure my interoperability compliance?”

Meanwhile, secure drop box options for records requests provide a workaround.

Ugly News About Open Notes Some patient requests for record amendment are legitimate and easily handled. Some patients, however, will request removal of material they find embarrassing, even though it is accurate.

More frequent requests for records changes from patients could increase already weighty administrative burdens on providers. Worse, some of these requests will be for changes providers cannot support, and making time for careful conversations with patients and providing written responses for requests that are rejected will be a challenge. Inevitably, some of these conversations will not go well, whether through the patient feeling the provider did not adequately respond to their concerns, or through the patient insisting on unreasonable demands. These negative relationship outcomes will add emotional stress on both the patient and the provider, as well as a reputational threat to providers from angry patients posting negative reviews online.

More tangibly, noncompliance with the open notes requirement carries the potential for fines, penalties, and/ or sanctions from medical boards.

Medical/Legal The specifics of potential penalties are not yet known—there are more changes coming with the Cures Act.

Making Changes in Open Notes Patients will ask providers to amend their medical records. Be familiar with what the patient has the right to ask, what the provider can grant and/or refuse, and how to amend notes. Here are some highlights: Patients have the right to request amendments to their medical records: The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires a signed, dated request from the patient regarding what they want changed and why.

Providers have the right to determine whether the requested amendment will be made: The provider must respond, in writing, within 60 days of receipt of the patient’s request.

Common reasons to deny a patient’s request include that the provider who received the request did not create the record entry, or that the medical record is accurate as is.

Exceptions Unless an exception applies, clinical notes must not be blocked, but the Cures Act allows for a fairly long list of specific, well-delineated exceptions. For instance, a record can be blocked if a provider believes that viewing a note presents a substantial risk of harm to the physical safety of the patient or someone else. The Cures Act also recognizes exemptions that apply to certain caregiving situations, such as when parents attempt to access confidential parts of an adolescent child’s records.

For information regarding exceptions to open notes, please see What Open Notes Exceptions Does the Cures Act Allow?

Seeing Open Notes as Part of High-Touch, High-Value Care While many physicians and other providers have anticipated open notes with dread, most outcomes so far have been positive.

Patients have reacted well to clarity. They

have used open notes as a tool to improve their own understanding of and adherence to care instructions. When patients have noted valid issues or miscommunications, they have appreciated being able to quickly clear them up. More than an administrative burden, open notes present an opportunity to improve documentation, patientprovider relationships, and patient safety. By improving patient adherence to treatment plans, open notes have the potential to improve provider satisfaction, as well.

Chad Anguilm, MBA, is Vice President, In-Practice Technology Services, Medical Advantage, part of TDC Group.

Richard F. Cahill, JD, is Vice President and Associate General Counsel, The Doctors Company, part of TDC Group.

Kathleen Stillwell, MPA/HSA, RN, is Senior Patient Safety Risk Manager, The Doctors Company, part of TDC Group.

The patient’s request and the provider’s response both become part of the patient’s medical record.

Strategies for Success When composing notes, certain simple strategies will raise the odds that notes will be well understood and well received.

Beyond being clear and succinct, strategies for success include composing at least a portion of the note as instructions directly addressed to the patient—“Start taking lisinopril and check your blood pressure twice a week,” vs. “Initiated lisinopril and instructed her to check her blood pressure twice a week”—and providing a list of commonly used medical terms and abbreviations.

For an in-depth review of strategies for success when composing notes, see 12 Strategies for Success With Open Notes in Healthcare: The Cures Act.

www.escambiacms.org | 7

ECMS Event

Controlled Substance Prescribing in Florida

NOVEMBER 9, 2021 | 2.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)

TM

SPEAKERS: Susan Griffee-Belcher, M.D. & Jeff Buchalter, M.D. Sanders Beach 913 South I Street 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM | Sign in and Buffett 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM | Presentation Audience: All FL prescribing practitioners registered with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and authorized to prescribe controlled substances.

space is limited, RSVP by 11/1 email: director@escambiacms.org or text 561-414-6113 LEARNING OBJECTIVES | Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to: ·Comply with the Florida Controlled Substances Bill (CS/CS/HB 21). ·Identify the requirements of the HB 21 including but not limited to: opioid abuse by establishing prescribing limits, requiring continuing education on controlled substance prescribing, expanding required use of Florida’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, and E-FORCSE. ·Review CDC guidelines for treating acute and chronic pain. ·Implement best practices in the administration of treatment plans in compliance with the controlled substance laws.

Hosted by: The Escambia/Santa Rosa County Medical Society & The Florida Academy of Family Physicians This Community event is brought to you in part by:

Disclosure: The planners and speakers of this educational activity have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose Accreditation Statement: The Florida Academy of Family Physicians is accredited by the Florida Medical Association to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Designation Statement: The Florida Academy of Family Physicians designates this live activity for a maximum of 2.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

The FAFP has been approved by the designated state licensing boards to present this course.

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ECMS Event

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Header Medical/Legal

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2022 MEMBERSHIP DUES Advancing Physicians' Practice of Medicine in our Community

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Foundation

ESCAMBIA COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY FOUNDATION October 2021 is already here. It is hard to believe that 2022 is just around the corner.

Unfortunately, much of what plagued us last year continues even now. Physician stress has not lessened, as we had hoped, but has been even more prolonged.

The ECMS Foundation is gearing up to offer the Stress Management and Resiliency Training (SMART) program again early next year. We try to offer this program at a reduced cost to encourage doctors to take this course. The Foundation is preparing for our Halloween fundraiser and our Christmas wreath sale. These events are vital to raising funds, enabling us to offer and promote our programs, including the SMART course and the physician wellness visits.

Please consider attending our family friendly Halloween fundraiser at The Blue Wahoos stadium. It is fun for the entire family but it is also fun for those of us whose children have already launched off the parental pad. Erica received a lot of positive feedback on the Halloween event last year for the festiveness of the evening and the numerous activities for the kids to enjoy. She is planning for a bigger and better event this year. This event is open to anyone who supports the medical profession. Please save the date of October 28th for an evening of fun and frivolity.

Our Christmas wreath sale and fundraiser is a joint venture with Fiore, a well-known local florist, renowned for high quality floral arrangements. I ask that you consider ordering wreaths as decorations for your home or office, presents for family and friends, or all of the above. It is a fundraiser, after all. I am certain these wreaths will bring joy to your heart, and the hearts of others, as you help the Foundation fulfill our commitment to the physicians and the economically stressed patients of our community.

Erica will be sending out invitations and reminders to encourage you to take advantage of these great opportunities to help the Foundation and enjoy quality family time.

We Care Program: dedicated to helping the elderly, poor, and uninsured patients access care. This is only achievable because of our member physicians who generously donate their time and skill. Please consider joining this effort.

Go Seniors Program: dedicated to helping the underprivileged elderly see their doctor on a regular basis by covering transportation expenses.

Pensacola State College Endowment: dedicated to funding scholarships of students attending Pensacola State College who are interested in health-related fields of study.

1873 Society: dedicated to funding all of the initiatives/ programs of the ECMS Foundation. This is made possible through the generous donations of our physician colleagues.

Please consider becoming a member of the 1873 society. We need you!

Physician Wellness Program: dedicated to helping our physician colleagues who may be suffering personal and professional angst. Member physicians may access three private sessions with a highly skilled psychologist.

SMART program: dedicated to Stress Management and Resiliency Training. Our physician instructor is Dr. Rohit Amin who will teach a 90 minute class each week over nine weeks. Most physicians would benefit from learning skills which may help them to handle stress more appropriately and be more resilient when rising to meet life’s challenges.

Our goal at the ECMS Foundation is to help needy patients and the physicians who care for them. We appreciate your support.

Ellen W. McKnight, M. D.

Just a reminder of the many things we do at the ECMS Foundation: Blood Pressure Cuff Program: dedicated to helping patients monitor their blood pressure at home by providing free blood pressure cuffs.

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Foundation

Foundation

THE 1873 SOCIETY Since 1873, Escambia and Santa Rosa County Medical Society physicians have dedicated themselves to their patients and the people of Escambia/Santa Rosa County. To further our mission and build on the loyal support of our members, the Board of Directors approved the formation of The 1873 Society, a special recognition opportunity to formally honor physicians who contribute to our organization and have demonstrated a long-term commitment to the quality of health care and well-being of our community.

As a member of The 1873 Society your good name as a physician will be honored in our community

forever – entwined with the good works of the medical society in a cherished legacy.

Membership in The 1873 Society is for physicians who have chosen to pledge $3,000 to Escambia County Medical Society Foundation, Inc. This can be accomplished through a single gift or a recurring gift of $1,000 over three years, THREE IN THREE! The 1873 Society members are recognized and awarded with their names permanently engraved on a traveling Wall of Honor to be displayed in the ECMS office and at ECMS and ECMSF events.

THE 1873 SOCIETY MEMBERS

The individuals listed below are both founding members as well as others who have joined The 1873 Society since its founding. We thank you for joining their distinguished ranks.

Joanne Bujnoski, D.O.

Jennifer Miley, M.D.

Michael Riesberg, M.D.

Kurt Krueger, M.D.

Jack Kotlarz, M.D.

Robert Sackheim, M.D.

Ken Long, M.D.

Hillary Hultstrand, M.D.

Michelle Brandhorst, M.D.

Ellen W. McKnight, M.D.

Brett Parra, M.D.

Steve Ziller, M.D.

Who is the Escambia County Medical Society Foundation?

The Escambia County Medical Society Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing healthcare services on a volunteer and funding basis through its members. The Foundation was created in 1994. The primary goal is to assure access to adequate healthcare for the medically indigent citizens of the area, to study and promote improved methods and facilities for healthcare, to pursue the protection of public health, implement the means of financing healthcare at reasonable costs, to cooperate with other organizations and institutions interested in pursuing these goals, and disseminate information concerning healthcare in general. Current Foundation programs include “We Care” and “Go Seniors!”

Contact the ECMS Foundation for more information | 850.478.0706 or info@escambiaCMS.org

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Community Baptist Medical Group Opens New Primary Care Clinic in Pine Forest Baptist Medical Group opened Baptist Medical Group Primary Care – Pine Forest in August. It is the newest clinic in the extensive multispecialty BMG network and is currently staffed by Tammy Pruse, D.O., and Jodi Holz, APRN-C. The clinic is located at 2115 West Nine Mile Road, Suite 2 in Pensacola.

Baptist Medical Group Welcomed Three New Physicians in August Fellowship-trained endocrinologist Suraj Patel, M.D., has joined Tareq Khairalla, M.D., at Baptist Medical Group – Endocrinology. Dr. Patel earned his medical degree from St. George’s University School of Medicine in Grenada, West Indies. He completed a residency in internal medicine at the University of Tennessee College of Medicine Chattanooga in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and a fellowship in endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Baptist Medical Group Primary Care – Airport welcomed family medicine physician David Echeverri, M.D. Dr. Echeverri joins Baptist from Foley,

Alabama, where he completed his residency in family medicine at South Baldwin Regional Medical Center. He earned his medical degree from Ross University School of Medicine in Portsmouth, Dominica, West Indies.

Board-certified family medicine physician Kristy Nguyen, M.D., has joined Baptist Medical Group Family Medicine – Nine Mile. Dr. Nguyen earned

South Alabama Family Medicine in Mobile, Alabama. She also holds a Master of Arts in clinical psychology from Roosevelt University in Chicago.

Baptist Heart & Vascular Institute Earns Re-accreditation by Intersocietal Accreditation Commission Baptist Heart & Vascular Institute (BHVI) was the first in the nation to earn accreditation in both cardiovascular catheterization and cardiac electrophysiology through the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC) in 2017. BHVI

has now earned re-accreditation in adult diagnostic catheterization, percutaneous coronary intervention, valve interventions, structural heart interventions, testing and ablation, device implantation, chronic lead extraction, echocardiography, stress echocardiography, transesophageal echocardiography, nuclear studies, carotid ultrasound, upper and lower extremity abdominal aorta, venous and arterial duplex studies, and venous reflux. BHVI cardiac catheterization and electrophysiology team members are also fully certified through Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI). BHVI’s cardiac sonographers are 100% dual registered in echocardiogram and vascular studies through either Cardiovascular Credentialing International (CCI) or American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS). All nuclear technicians have also obtained either American Registry of Radiologic Technologist (ARRT) or Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification (NMTCB) as well as accreditation in Myocardial Perfusion Imaging studies (MPI).

her medical degree at the American University of the Caribbean in Cupecoy, St. Martin, and completed her residency at the University of

Dr. Katarina Gambosova, a board-certified pediatric endocrinologist, has

joined the faculty of the University of Florida College of Medicine, which is affiliated with Studer Family Children’s Hospital at Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola. She comes to Pensacola from Stormont-Vail Hospital in Kansas, where she developed the pediatric endocrinology

Cardiologist Dr. Sergey Kachur has joined Ascension Sacred Heart

Pensacola.

Dr. Mallory Lewis has joined Ascension Medical Group Sacred Heart. She

program for 10 years.

practices at Pace Medical Park, 3754 Hwy. 90, Suite 300, in Pace.

Dr. Heather Nolan, pediatric surgeon, and Dr. Kristen Ann Newcomer, pediatric hospitalist, have joined the team at the Studer Family

Dr. Cory Lebowitz has joined Ascension Sacred Heart Orthopedics and the office of Dr. David Fiedler. Dr. Lebowitz sees patients in the Hand Center

Children’s Hospital.

Maternal-fetal medicine doctor and geneticist Dr. Melissa S. Mancuso has joined the Ascension Sacred Heart Regional Perinatal Center in Pensacola. Dr. Mancuso served most recently as director of Akron

Children’s Hospital Fetal Treatment Center, as well as chair of maternalfetal medicine and an associate professor at Northeast Ohio Medical University College of Medicine.

at Ascension Sacred Heart Health Center at Summit, 1890 Summit Blvd., Suite 240, in Pensacola.

Dr. Scott Stewart, orthopedic surgeon, has joined AMG Sacred Heart.

He sees patients at the Orthopedics office at 4541 N. Davis Hwy. in Pensacola.

Dr. Frank Farokhi, neurosurgeon, specializes in minimally invasive spine surgery and joins the office of Dr. Maria Toledo, Dr. Ann Carr, Dr. Nathan Kohler, Dr. Christopher Villar and pediatric neurosurgeon Dr. Gus Perez.

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