Summer Scrubs Program visits AOC

Summer Scrubs program at AOC

Summer Scrubs 2009
A free camp for high school students considering careers in healthcare visited AOC last week.

Summer Scrubs is an intensive career exploration opportunity for rising 10th, 11th and 12th grade students in Mobile and Baldwin counties who are considering careers in healthcare. It is a project of the Bay Area Healthcare Coalition, a volunteer-driven organization of South Alabama healthcare providers and educators, working together to address current and projected shortages of qualified healthcare professionals in our community.

We thought AOC was a perfect site to host this curious students because our staff represents a wide range of health care careers. We have various clerical healthcare positions in the business office and medical records departments. We have Medical Assistants, LPNs and RNs working side by side with physicians treating patients during office hours. RNs are also represented in our Outpatient Surgery Center. We have many RNs working in the operating room assisting with surgery and RNs taking care of patients pre-op and post-op. We also have scrub techs and nurse anesthetists in the OR. In our therapy department, we have Physical Therapists, PT Assistants, Occupational Therapists and OT assistants. We also have one Certified Athletic Trainer.  We have x-ray techs and physicians in various specialties. Orthopaedics, Radiology, Anesthesiology, Pain Mgmt, etc.

I believe AOC’s Summer Scrubs presentation was outstanding! The staff was extremely courteous and very helpful to the students. I gained a lot of knowledge that will help me in my future medical career. I may even ask to intern at AOC next summer!
Thanks again,
Jacob Taylor
Alabama School of Mathematics and Science, Class of 2010

If you interested about learning more about summer scrubs visit www.summerscrubs.com
To see more about AOC please visit alortho.com

2009 AOC ANNUAL PUMPKIN DECORATING CONTEST

The Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic (AOC) annual pumpkin decorating contest. The very creative David Allen Caveman was created by one of PT department and features a well known song and a Pumpkin as as Jack Daniels Jug. Thanks to everyone who participated, you all did a great job. Enjoy!

Click Here to see full video of David Allen Caveman!

18 + 2

AOC has two new physicians starting this summer.

Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic, P.C. is proud to announce the addition of Dr. Donahoe and Dr. Barber to our staff. With this addition we now have 20 of the region’s finest orthopaedic specialists offering our patients the most comprehensive and technologically advanced care available.

D. Kevin Donahoe, MD

D. Kevin Donahoe, MD

Education
University of Alabama – Bachelor of Science
University of Mississippi School of Medicine – Doctor of Medicine
University of Mississippi Medical Center – Orthopaedic Surgery & Rehabilitation Residency
University of Mississippi Medical Center – AO/ASIF Spine Fellowship

Areas of Specialty
Adult Spine Surgery
Orthopaedic Fracture Care
General Orthopaedics

Work History
Capital Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Center, Flowood, Mississippi
Orthopaedic Surgeon: August 2006 – June 2009

Dr. Donahoe grew up in Dothan, AL and has recently moved from Jackson, MS with his wife Laurie and their three children. Dr. Donahoe is Board Certified in Orthopaedic Surgery and will begin practicing with Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic in the middle of July 2009.

Matthew D. Barber, MD

Matthew D. Barber, M.D.

Education
Bachelor of Science (Biomedical Sciences) – University of South Alabama
Doctor of Medicine – University of South Alabama College of Medicine
Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Training – University of South Alabama Hospitals
Fellowship (Joint Replacement) – Arizona Institute for Bone and Joint Disorders

Areas of Specialty
Adult Orthopaedics
Joint Replacement
-Total Hip and Knee Replacement
-Partial Joint Replacement
Fracture Care
General Orthopaedics

Dr. Barber is a Mobile native and graduate of Murphy High School. He and his wife Tara, a local attorney also raised in Mobile, have three young children. They look forward to returning home to Mobile at the conclusion of his fellowship training. Dr. Barber will begin practicing at Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic in August of 2009.

Please visit our website at alortho.com where you can take a virtual tour of our magnificent facilities – get information about the extraordinary services and care that we offer our patients – and read the distinguished resumes of all of our orthopaedic specialists.

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FREE AOC SEMINAR – New Technology in Total Hip Surgery

Dr. Michael Granberry

Tuesday, July 14 • Noon – 1 p.m. • Gerald Wallace Auditorium
Dr. Michael Granberry, Orthopaedic Surgeon ~ Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic
The newest advance in total hip replacement is the Anterior Approach Total Hip. A new operative table, available only at Springhill Medical Center, allows surgical exposure to the hip with a pure muscle sparing approach. The new approach provides a faster recovery, less pain and more stability of the hip in the post surgical period. FREE Light lunch provided.

Call 251.460.5447 to register. Space is limited so register early.

RETIREMENT OF JOHN E. SEMON, MD

Dr. Semon of Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic

Dr. John E. “Manny” Semon, the oldest practicing orthopaedic surgeon in Mobile will be retiring from Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic after 43 years of great service. Dr. Semon is 74 years old and continued to take call until he was 72 years old. Even today, he continues to perform surgery and will be greatly missed by his colleagues at AOC. Dr. Semon has had the same nurse for the past 27 years and the same secretary for 39 years. Mrs. Pat Borrego and Mrs. Brenda Burns continue to work for AOC.
Dr. Semon will begin working for the Veteran’s Administration clinic in Mobile as the Chief Orthopaedic Surgeon after his retirement from AOC.
Before Dr. Semon became a physician, he was a professional musician. He and several friends from Mobile started the band “Royal Street Seven – Dixie Land Jazz Band” for more than 25 years. They played in many venues in Mobile area and in New Orleans. The band members (Dr. Herb Allen, Dr. Charles Chambliss, Judge Warren Hammond, Wesley Nichols, Rod Slater and George Sullivan) continued to play together as a hobby while pursuing careers as physicians, an architect, a banker and a judge. Four of theoriginal band members are still alive today.
Prior to his musical career, Dr. Semon served in the U.S. Army. He completed his medical internship in the Medical Corps at Tripler U.S. Army Hospital in Honolulu from 1960 – 1961 and served as a 1st Lieutenant. He was a battalion surgeon with the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, KY from 1961 – 1963. He also completed his first year of orthopaedic residency at Fort Campbell US Army Hospital.

Getting Called Up To The Bigs.

Article by Clayton G. Lane, M.D.

As the team physician for the Baybears, one of the perks is that I also get invited to assist with Spring Training for the Arizona Diamondbacks in Tucson. While I have covered many athletic teams at all levels, it is always interesting to get another perspective on the medical care of athletes. I’ll take you though a typical day of Spring Training.

The athletes and trainers report to the clubhouse at 6:30AM. Breakfast is served and the athletes begin their preparation for the day. By 7:00AM the training room is hopping. Seven trainers juggle the needs of the athletes as they file in and out over the next hour. Some get myofascial release therapy (medical jargon for an aggressive massage), while others have trainer-assisted stretching or maintenance rotator cuff exercises. Still others need taping and other applications. The athletes and trainers must keep moving in order to be on the field in full uniform for group-stretching at 8:00AM.

The army of athletes consisting of what will become two minor league teams and one major league team is quite impressive. Once stretching is complete, the team splits up for position specific drills. Drills last most of the morning.

After lunch, there are four scrimmages; three minor league games on the practice fields and one major league game open to fans in the stadium. While I was in town it was the Rockies and the Angels.

After the games, the training room gets busy again with icing, more myofascial therapy and cuff maintenance. The adjacent weight-room gets busy as well. The strength trainers bounce around between athletes directing their exercise whether it be core strengthening, balance or cardio.

The energy level and tempo is very high throughout the day. This is of the innate competitive nature of professional athletes, but also because all are being evaluated at every moment. Particularly at the beginning of Spring, technically no one’s spot is secure whether they signed on for $6 million or $1000. So demonstrating a good work ethic as well as performing on the field is crucial. Even the trainers want to shine in front of the medical coordinator so that they might secure a spot in the Majors. I stayed with the trainers in the clubhouse until 9pm on Friday night, long after the players were gone, going over exam techniques and manipulations. I learned more from the trainers than they learned from me and was impressed with how eager they were to do this despite knowing they had to report at 6AM the next morning.

I look forward more to the Baybears’ season this year now that I know more about where they came from, how talented they are, and what they are driving for.

If you would like more information about Dr. Lane , the other Sports Medicine specialist, as well as the comprehensive and technologically advance care available at AOC, go to alortho.com.

Meet Dr. Suanne White-Spunner

In this brief video Dr. White-Spunner gives a brief tour of Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic, P.C. in Mobile, Alabama as well as a discussion on the role of orthopaedic physicians and the aging process. She focuses on arthritis, joint pain and how we can feel and look younger with healthy bones and joints, as well as options for treatments for pain.

For more information like this please visit our website at alortho.com.

Filmed at AOC by Hummingbird Ideas: hummingbirdideas.com

Stinger

Dr. Clayton G. Lane, MD

One half of college football players will experience a stinger injury at some point during their career. Because, it sometimes results in temporary paralysis of the arm, it can be quite concerning for the athlete, coach and family members. In most cases however, there are no permanent limitations following the stinger (or Burner) syndrome episode.

All of the nerves that go to the arm come from a web of nerve roots exiting the spinal cord at neck level called the brachial plexus. This web of nerve roots coalesce into a nerve just like the roots of a tree into a tree trunk. Therefore, any injury to the brachial plexus results in variable nerve dysfunction in the arm dependent on which roots or cords are injured.

The stinger is almost exclusively a football injury because of the nature of the game. The brachial plexus runs to the arm just deep to the clavicle. Therefore, every time a player puts his shoulder into a tackle the plexus is at risk. The classic stinger injury occurs when the player takes a hard hit to the top of the shoulder while the head is turned to the opposite side. This places a stretch on the brachial plexus which can result in simple stretch, partial tearing or complete tearing of the nerves. The player typically experiences instantaneous burning pain in the arm. This pain may be associated with weakness of the arm that is apparent immediately or may present over the next few hours or days.

In most cases in which only a stretch has occurred, the athlete has resolution of pain and weakness within 15 minutes. The athlete should only be allowed to go back into the game if he has no pain and full strength on examination by a physician or trainer. In a small amount of cases recovery of full strength can take two weeks with partial tearing or up to a year with complete tearing of nerve tissue. With all stingers there is a recurrence rate up to 90%, so preventative measures should be taken.

High quality shoulder pads, ‘cowboy collars’ and shoulder strengthening have all been recommended as prevention strategies. If an athlete experiences recurrence despite these measures, a full evaluation by an orthopedist for cervical spine abnormalities should be performed. Also, any athlete experiencing symptoms of pain or weakness in both arms at the same time should be placed on spinal precautions for possible spinal cord injury, because stingers do not occur in both arms at the same time.

For more articles like this visit alortho.com.

Backpacks And Back Pain

Dr. Thomas R. Dempsey, MD

With the beginning of school, orthopadeic surgeons anticipate not only visits for the athletic injuries, but also a common recent complaint from children with back pain, according to Dr. Thomas R. Dempsey of the Alabama Orthopaedic Clinic, P.C. It seems that student backpacks now are a source of concern as a possible contribuitor to upper and lower back discomfort in children. A load of 30-35 pounds of books for a fifth or sixth grader weighing 70-90 pounds can represent almost one-third of their body weight. So the question of whether of not backpacks contribute to back pain has become a common question for the orthopaedic surgeon.

Carrying the Load

By coincidence, there have been several studies done in the last year looking at large numbers of children who carry backpacks on a regular basis and children who use a locker for their books. “Unfortunately, a lot of our schools have abandoned the locker policy, and require children to carry their books throughout the day,” notes Dr. Dempsey. “It has been shown that there is a statistically higher rate of back pain in the children who carry the backpacks on a daily basis. This can range from achy pain between the shoulder blades to nagging pain in the lower back. Seldom is it severe enough to require any acute treatment, but it is a source of concern.”

No Long-Term Problems

Recent studies byt the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons hace shown that, although carrying the backpacks may cause some discomfort, it does not cause any permanent damage or lead to any problems in the long run. “The one question we are commonly asked is, ‘In children who have deformaties of the spine, this, scoliosis (curves) or kyphosis (humps), does it increase the curve or the hump?’ The answer to that question is no,” said Dr. Dempsey. Pain is often an early warning of our body’s protective mechanism.

If the pain persists, have it checked out by your physician. back pain in children is common. For it to persist is not. Pain that prevents children from participating in their normal activities, whether it is the back or any other joint, should be attended to immediately.

Helpful tips in dealing with children and backpacks:

1. 1.) Make sure that your children only carry the books that are necessary.
2. 2.) Buy a good quality backpack that is well fitted to your child.
3. 3.) Make sure the backpacks are worn properly. Often children will sling on strap over the shoulder and let it dangle. This creates an unbalanced situation for the spine.
4. 4.) If your child truly has a spine condition, have your physician write a letter to the school system so that he or she may consider an alternative to a backpack, i.e. a rolling suitcase cart as an option.
5. 5.) Children who are in good physical condition have fewer musculoskeletal aches and pains than children who are not. This includes back pain. Encourage your children to be physically fit.

If you have questions about back pain, visit alortho.com.

Orthopaedic Questions? Orthopaedic Answers.

Check out our NEW website alortho.com

AOC always uses the latest medical technology to better serve and treat our patients. We have launched a new website with the same goal in mind. The NEW alortho.com has the basic information that one would expect but we are extremely excited to include online services and news features to better serve you.

New Site Features:

• Patients can make an appointment request online
• On-line bill pay – Coming Soon
• Patient forms
• Audio and video presentations by AOC physicians on orthopaedic conditions, injuries and treatment
• Updated articles regarding orthopaedic conditions, new treatments and new technology
• Physician Bios
• Virtual tour of AOC facilities

A visit to alortho.com can be your first click to recovery.