January 2012

Volume VII

January 2012

Young Man Emerges From Coma

Angel Baby Defies Odds

Chandler Resident Wins Big

Raffle Returns In February

Happy Birthday, Barrow

Bret Michaels Donates Music Room

New Cancer Center

Toys Replenished at St. Joseph's

Twenty-One-Year-Old Emerges From Coma At Barrow

Just weeks after a car accident left him with a near fatal brain aneurysm and other life-threatening injuries, Sam Schmid, 21, is walking and talking. Only hours away from being pulled from life support, Schmid miraculously awoke from a deep coma and now is rapidly recovering from extensive brain damage at St. Joseph's Barrow Neurological Institute.

Schmid was in a fatal five-car accident in Tucson in October while on his way home from coaching a fourth-grade basketball team. The University of Arizona junior was not breathing at the scene of the accident, but was revived and taken to a local hospital where doctors detected a traumatic brain aneurysm in addition to broken femurs, facial fractures and internal injuries. Because the brain aneurysm was complex and life threatening, Schmid was flown to Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's in Phoenix.

Schmid underwent immediate surgery at Barrow to remove the aneurysm from his brain, but remained unconscious. Nearly one week later, with no responsive signs from Schmid, his family and the medical team began to discuss quality of life and whether to remove Schmid from life support.

"Sam was as close to brain dead as one can be," says Robert Spetzler, MD, neurosurgeon and director of Barrow.

However, Dr. Spetzler believed Schmid would recover and recommended keeping him on life support for one more week. That night, Schmid began following commands by holding up two fingers, and days later, he was in Barrow's Neuro Rehab relearning how to walk and talk.

"We went from talking about organ donation to rehab within days," says Sam's older brother, John Schmid.

Schmid's aneurysm occurred from an injured blood vessel in his brain caused by the force of the car crash. It's an injury that is very complex, rare and usually fatal. The location of the aneurysm was causing the brainstem to act as if it were dead.

"Sam's case is unique and incredible, and he may very well recover completely," says Dr. Spetzler, who has operated on more brain aneurysms than any surgeon in the world. "Angels must have been watching over him."

"Sam had a brain injury that many did not believe would be repairable, but Dr. Spetzler saw something that no one else did," says Sue Regan, Schmid's mother. "I'm grateful to have my son alive."

Angel Baby Defies Odds, Goes Home

A baby born at 26 weeks and weighing just 2 pounds at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center has made an amazing recovery and was able to celebrate his first Christmas at home after spending nearly three months in the hospital's Nursery Intensive Care Unit (NyICU).

Miguel Angel Nieva Buelna was born prematurely in September, just days after his mother's water suddenly broke. She was transferred to St. Joseph's, which is known for its high-risk OB medical care, where doctors delivered the tiny baby. Buelna was immediately put on a ventilator and, at just one day old, underwent major surgery to remove a part of his intestine that was causing a deadly infection. Soon after, Buelna began having respiratory problems and developed pneumonia. At 67 days old and after fighting off pneumonia, the baby underwent a second surgery to reconnect his intestine and began to thrive.

"My baby is a miracle," says mother Nancy Buelna of her first child. "I was shocked when my water broke at 26 weeks and was so scared my baby would not survive."

Now at a healthy 6 pounds, baby Miguel went home just a few days before his original due date.

"I received a very special Christmas gift this year," says Nancy Buelna. "He is my little angel."

St. Joseph's NyICU treats some of the most severly ill infants from throughout the Southwest and cares for nearly 700 premature babies every year. These infants often weigh less than one pound at birth and stay in the hospital for weeks or even months before they are able to go home.

Chandler Resident Wins Big In Fall 2011 Raffle

Frank Ramirez of Chandler has entered St. Joseph's Health & Wealth Raffle many times in the past. He's even won a few prizes over the years, including a digital camera. But he never expected to receive a call from Kathy Rice, executive director of St. Joseph's Health & Wealth Raffle, telling him he had won a 2012 Chrysler 200 convertible plus $10,000 cash.

"When Kathy called, I was surprised," said Ramirez. "I buy raffle tickets always hoping I'll win, but never really expect to. It was exciting to find out that I won a new car."

Immediately after he hung up the phone with Rice, Ramirez told his wife the good news.

"My wife was shocked," added Ramirez. "She looked at me and said, 'What are we going to do with a convertible?' I don't think she believed me at first."

After some discussion, Ramirez and his wife decided to keep the Chrysler convertible and give their current car to their daughter.

"Our daughter was thrilled with our gift to her," said Ramirez.

"We continually hear stories from people, like Frank, who enter the Health & Wealth Raffle never expecting to win a prize," said Rice. "Participating in the Raffle is a true win-win; we're able to surprise people with exciting prizes and help the hospital raise much-needed funding at the same time."

Ramirez said he will continue to enter St. Joseph's Health & Wealth Raffle in an effort to support the hospital - and maybe win another prize in the process.

St. Joseph's Health & Wealth Raffle Returns In February

St. Joseph's Health & Wealth Raffle will return this spring, with the 18th raffle celebrating Barrow Neurological Institute's 50th Anniversary.

Barrow's golden anniversary will be honored with a truly brilliant grand prize - one million dollars in gold. To make it even more exciting, the lucky winner will have the option of taking the gold or choosing $1 million in cash.

By purchasing a ticket, raffle participants are given the unique opportunity to be connected to the amazing things happening at St. Joseph's and Barrow, while having a chance to win an incredible prize.

"Funds raised during the raffle make an impact on individuals across the state who are treated at St. Joseph's and Barrow," said Kathy Rice, executive director of St. Joseph's Health & Wealth Raffle. "When someone purchases a ticket in the raffle, they're doing their part to help keep high-quality healthcare in our state, which may ultimately help someone close to them."

Starting with the grand prize, many of the prizes in this raffle were purchased to reflect the raffle's golden theme. Prizes include a trip "down under" to the Gold Coast of Australia and a Golden Gate Getaway, and there's even a golden ticket to Harkins Theatres.

"The best part of my job is calling the top raffle winners to tell them what they've won," said Rice. "I look for the wow factor when selecting prizes, like luxury vacations and the latest vehicles. I like to feel the winners' excitement coming through the phone when I make that call."

Celebrating Barrow's revolutionary impact on the medical field and in our state, Arizona residents will once again come together to support this special project. The prizes are waiting to be won, and we're just weeks away from launch.

Happy Birthday, Barrow!

Barrow Neurological Institute celebrates its 50th birthday this year. We hope you'll join the festivities by visiting a special website dedicated to Barrow's golden anniversary, www.Barrow50.org, which will launch January 30.

Be sure to visit the "50 Faces of Barrow" section of the website. Here, you can watch videos starring patients, physicians, nurses and others who've been impacted by Barrow. You'll meet Helen Roy, who was on track to becoming one of the world's youngest wine experts when she was sidelined by a stroke; Ilya Morch, who flew all the way from Denmark for brain surgery at Barrow; and Mackenzie Saunders, who made an amazing recovery at Barrow after a soccer accident left her paralyzed at age 11. Hear their stories in their own words, and you'll understand why Barrow is so important to so many people around the world. On Jan. 30, Barrow50.org will feature several of these remarkable stories and, by year's end, will include 50 or more stories.

Honor Barrow for its 50 years of service to patients like Helen, Ilya and Mackenzie by making a gift to Barrow Neurological Foundation today. Your tax-deductible gift will help build an amazing future for Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's.

Bret Michaels Contributes Music Room To Hospital

Bret Michaels, rock star and former patient at St. Joseph's and Barrow, is creating the Bret Michaels Hospitality and Music Room for patients' families.

"I want to give something back to the hospital that helped save my life," said Michaels.

In April 2010, Michaels was rushed to Barrow with a subarachnoid hemorrhage, a life-threatening type of stroke that causes bleeding in the fluid-filled spaces around the base of the brain. After his release from Barrow, Michaels made a rapid recovery and went on to win Celebrity Apprentice in 2010 and enjoy a successful national concert tour. Earlier this year, he returned to St. Joseph's for a heart procedure.

Michaels' new music room, located near patient rooms in the Barrow Neuroscience Tower, will be designed to include music listening stations and relaxation areas. It is expected to be completed this year.

"This room will be a very welcome addition for the families of our patients," said St. Joseph's President and CEO Linda Hunt. "Bret has demonstrated that he is a good friend to this hospital, and we thank him."

Read The Latest Issue Of Barrow Magazine Online

Read the Barrow Magazine online for the the latest news coming from Barrow Neurological Institute. You can also watch a video recap of giving to Barrow and St. Joseph's in 2011.

University of Arizona And St. Joseph's Join Forces For Cancer Care

Two leading Arizona healthcare entities, The University of Arizona Cancer Center, the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center headquartered in Arizona, and St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center/CHW have entered into an agreement to form an innovative collaboration in Phoenix.

The vision is to create an affiliation that leverages the strengths of both organizations, in collaboration with community-based oncologists, to transform the delivery of cancer care and to establish a premiere center for ambulatory and inpatient oncology, with an emphasis on high quality, patient-centered, evidence-based multidisciplinary care, and clinical/translational research.

"We envision our operations in Phoenix, at St. Joseph's and at our future outpatient facility, as a national and international model of integrated healthcare to fight cancer," says David S. Alberts, MD, University of Arizona Cancer Center Director.

Since 1976, The University of Arizona Cancer Center (UACC) has conducted research toward cures for and the prevention of cancer. The UACC is one of just 40 NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the United States and the only such center based in the state of Arizona. St. Joseph's also has a long history of cancer research and innovative care for some of the most challenging patients in the country.

"I think it's only fitting that this affiliation blossoms just as the state is starting to celebrate its centennial," said Linda Hunt, senior vice president of operations for CHW-Arizona and president and CEO of St. Joseph's. "Both UA and St. Joseph's have national reputations for excellence, and both attract medical talent and patients from around the world."

St. Joseph's, an established healthcare leader in the Valley, would serve as The University of Arizona Cancer Center at Phoenix's primary inpatient clinical site. St. Joseph's also will provide outpatient clinical facilities at its central Phoenix medical center campus, with eventual expansion of Cancer Center outpatient activities to a multi-story, 250,000-square-foot outpatient center to be constructed on the downtown Phoenix Biomedical Campus.

The Arizona Board of Regents has endorsed the affiliation and at its Dec. 2 meeting in Tucson approved the construction of a UA Cancer Center facility on the Phoenix Biomedical Campus. Construction will begin this year.

This alliance will provide invaluable opportunities for Arizona's cancer patients, advocates, health practitioners and students to address a broad variety of oncology problems, and let the organizations work together to provide innovative solutions.

St. Joseph's Thanks The Community Who Helped Replenish Stolen Toys

Thanks to a tremendous outpouring of support from the community, patients at St. Joseph's Children's Rehabilitative Services (CRS) were able to celebrate Christmas after a real-life Grinch stole approximately $20,000 worth of toys intended for the children during the holiday season. The community quickly offered their support to replace the stolen items for children with chronic and life-long medical conditions.

"Every year, Santa visits CRS to provide each patient with a toy," says Lori Takeuchi, child life coordinator at St. Joseph's CRS clinic. "Many of our patients aren't able to visit with Santa in the community due to their illness, so CRS provides a healthy environment for them to spend time with Santa. Thanks to the community, our patients were able to celebrate Christmas this year."

St. Joseph's is very appreciative of the community's quick response and incredible generosity in replenishing the toys.

CRS offers diagnosis, treatment and management of complicated medical disorders and has become a second home to many of its patients and their families. The clinic's patients range in age from birth to 21 years of age, and many receive continued treatment at CRS throughout their childhood.

Watch the video of the CRS toy distribution.

2012 Amazing Women: Be Your Best Self Event

We are proud to announce our 2nd Annual Amazing Women: Be Your Best Self Event. The event will be held on Thursday, April 5, at the US Airways Center in partnership with the Phoenix Suns.

This year's event will feature keynote speaker Abby Rike, who embarked on a very public journey of healing and wellness when she went on Season 8 of the NBC hit reality series "The Biggest Loser." The event will also feature St. Joseph's physicians presenting on topics from skin care to menopause.

An amazing marketplace will give attendees a place to relax with a glass of wine and enjoy tasty hors d'oeuvres as they wander among a variety of specialty vendor boutiques.

To learn more or register, call 1-877-602-4111.