Vim & Vigor - Summer 2020 - CH - 54

54

SPOTLIGHT: St. Catherine Hospital

Your
Neighborhood
Diabetes Experts
ST. CATHERINE HOSPITAL RECOGNIZED
FOR ADVANCED INPATIENT DIABETES
CARE THAT RANKS AMONG THE BEST

BY DEBRA GRUSZECKI
It was the height of the
flu season and every chair
was filled in the waiting
room in the Emergency Department
at St. Catherine Hospital in
East Chicago.
When Bob, 40, stumbled in looking pale and confused, triage staff
swiftly assessed him and determined
that he had more than the flu.
Testing revealed that he had bacterial
pneumonia and diabetic ketoacidosis, a life-threatening condition that
can lead to coma or even death.
From a suite in the Intensive
Care Unit, a multidisciplinary team
of diabetes champions began to
monitor Bob's blood sugar levels,
rehydrate his body with fluids and
electrolytes and provide insulin
therapy to get him out of danger.
Within 48 hours, his blood chemistry had returned to normal levels.
Symptoms of DKA can be
masked by the illness that is causing
it, so having a team in place that
could make a quick diagnosis and
start treatment right away was key.

Diabetes Expertise
Close to Home

St. Catherine Hospital is recognized
as one of the top hospitals in the
nation for excellence in inpatient
diabetes care. In 2016, the hospital

was the first in Indiana to earn
advanced accreditation following
a rigorous on-site review by The
Joint Commission. The hospital,
reaccredited for the third consecutive time in November 2019, is one
of less than 1.2 percent of the more
than 6,500 hospitals nationwide to
have earned this distinction.
"Management of diabetes requires
a collaborative team approach by
physicians, nurses and educators,
but also the patient," says Virginia
Ait Said, a clinical nurse specialist
and team leader in the certification
process. "Communication by the
care team is essential for positive outcomes."

Diabetes is a condition in which
the body does not properly process
food for use as energy. It is the
nation's seventh leading cause of
death, accounting for more than
80,000 deaths annually. It also
contributes to deaths from heart
disease, kidney failure and stroke.
There are three major types of diabetes: type 1, type 2 and gestational.
Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90 to
95 percent of all cases.
The Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) estimates
that 30.3 million people in the
United States, or about 1 in 10,
are living with diabetes. Of that
number, the CDC says about 7.2
million or 23.8 percent have not
been diagnosed. Another 84 million
people are considered prediabetic, a
condition that if left untreated will
typically become type 2 diabetes
within five years.
"The disease runs rampant here,
in part, because people lack access
to care and education," says endocrinologist Adil Alavi, MD. "Diabetes
continues to be a big burden for the
patients as well as for caregivers,
whether they be family members,
doctors, nurses or allied health
professionals. So it's extremely
important to have protocol-based

Clinical nurse
specialist Virginia
Ait Said consults
with Alex Goetzke,
RN, Intensive Care
Unit, about his
patient recovering
from diabetic
ketoacidosis, a
life-threatening
condition that
affects people
with diabetes.

SUMMER 2020 VIM & VIGOR

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3/30/20 6:13 PM
Vim & Vigor - Summer 2020 - CH

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