MDNews - Minnesota

COVER FEATURE IT NEW CENTER FOR HYPERBARIC MEDICINE By Marian Deegan TAKES ONLY ONE step to cross the threshold into the new Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) Hyperbaric Medicine Department, but as the doors close quietly behind you, there is the distinct impression that you have entered a serene aquatic world miles away from the bustle of the hospital's lobby. Diffused light from sleek, modern fixtures illu- minates a palette of soothing grays and silvers. Rippling blue light undulates The Medical Director of HCMC's new, state-of-the-art Center for Hyperbaric Medicine is Cheryl Adkinson, M.D., an emergency medicine physician at HCMC, associate professor at University of Minnesota and specialist in hyperbaric medicine with more than 25 years of experience. Hennepin County Medical Center's over the gleaming surface of the massive hyperbaric chamber. The space is almost hypnotically calming. "This update has been a long process," says Cheryl Adkinson, M.D., Medical Director of the Center for Hyperbaric Medicine. "We were coping with severe space shortages in our old facility, and we were two blocks away from the hospital. The distance cost us time, as well as discomfort and some risk in transporting fragile patients. We didn't have easy access to support services such as respiratory therapy, radiology, lab or the pharmacy. It was clear that if we were going to grow this practice and serve our patients, we needed more patient care space, and we needed to be in the main hospital building." Capital funds committed by HCMC, along with a legislative allocation of federal stimulus funds, made the new facility a reality this year. The department's new location on the hospital's first floor better serves the many outpatients negotiating distances in walk- ers and wheelchairs for daily treatment. Convenient, first floor access means these patients no longer have to navigate long hallways, stairs, snow or ice. Over the last 10 years, HCMC's number of hyperbaric treatments has grown from 1,300 to 3,400 annually. With the new facility, Dr. Adkinson expects the number of treatments delivered to increase rapidly. Safety and efficiency were priorities in the new department's footprint and the custom design of the new hyperbaric chamber. A triple backup system for compressors and electrical power protects patients in the event of a power outage. The headphone communication system

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