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UA grad students work with neurology practice to provide rehabilitation services to Akron patients
By Cheryl Powell
Beacon Journal medical writer
Published on Tuesday, Aug 14, 2007
Whether Jerry Haynes wants to see his doctor or get help with talking or walking, he doesn't need to go far.
In fact, the 68-year-old stroke victim from Akron gets most of the medical treatments and rehabilitation services he needs under one roof.
Neurology and Neuroscience Associates Inc. is partnering with the University of Akron to provide speech and audiology services while training future specialists.
The evolving partnership is part of the Neurology & Neuroscience Associates' mission to bring together everything required by a patient with neurological problems, practice administrator Fred Luecke said.
It reflects a growing trend in the medical industry toward providing a customer-friendly, ''one-stop'' approach to care.
Doctors in Akron and nationwide increasingly are expanding their practices to include other related services.
Supporters say patients can get quicker and sometimes cheaper access to better-coordinated care, while the doctors can pocket more profits at a time they're facing lower reimbursements and rising costs.
''We used to just diagnose and treat,'' Luecke said. ''Now we can rehabilitate some of the neurological conditions. . . . It offers more coordinated care.''
The practice's 10 doctors diagnose and treat a variety of brain and neurological disorders, such as brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, stroke, Parkinson's disease and other conditions.
Because of their conditions, many patients require help reclaiming or strengthening their speech skills, Luecke said. Problems with balance or dizziness also are common.
''We wanted to expand rehabilitation services, and we knew we wanted a full, multidisciplinary team,'' he said.
At the same time, students in the University of Akron's School
of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology need to work with real patients under supervision to develop their clinical expertise and meet requirements for graduation and certification.
So about two years ago, the university agreed to start providing speech services on a contract basis at the practice's main location on West Exchange Street.
Graduate students in speech language pathology work with patients while a certified, licensed speech language pathologist from the University of Akron staff supervises and assists as needed.
On a recent afternoon, second-year graduate speech language pathology students Danielle Lucido and Samantha Hartsock greeted Haynes when he arrived for a therapy session.
''Did you do all your homework?'' Lucido asked, referring to a list of words he was supposed to practice.
''Yes,'' he responded. ''Some of them, I had problems with.''
''Why don't we try going through them and see which ones you had problems with,'' Lucido said with a smile.
The two students then patiently helped Haynes work through a list of multisyllable words, such as ''prophecy'' and ''flirtations.''
Nancy Harris, a licensed speech and language pathologist and clinical supervisor at the University of Akron, watched her students and occasionally offered tips.
''First break it all into syllables and then pull it all together,'' she reminded them.
Haynes is working to overcome motor-processing problems, which make it difficult for him to form some words, even though he can read and understand them.
He said he likes that his doctor and therapists are in the same location.
''They're great,'' he said. ''Good people here.''
And the students said they enjoy the chance to work with Haynes and other patients.
''I love it,'' Lucido said. ''It's a real-life setting. It's what we could be doing this time next year. It really exposes us to a lot of different types of clients.''
''The university's a lot more sheltered in the clients you see,'' Hartsock agreed. ''These are real clients, real problems.''
Now the venture is expanding to include testing to find the root causes of dizziness and balance problems.
Supervised doctoral students in the University of Akron's joint audiology program with the Cleveland Clinic and Kent State University test patients to help determine whether their balance problems are caused by inner-ear disorders or problems in the brain and nervous system.
Students in both programs continue to see patients in a university-run clinic on the campus.
But much of the ''real-world'' experience they're getting comes from the Neurology and Neuroscience Associates partnership, said Roberta DePompei, director of the University of Akron's School of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology.
''The actual practice of doing what they're taught in the classroom happens here,'' she said.
The neurology practice started to increase its services a couple of years ago, when it completed a $3 million construction project that more than doubled the size of its main location.
In addition to the main office in Akron, Neurology and Neuroscience Associates has satellite locations in Brunswick, Fairlawn, Green, Hudson, Massillon, Medina and Ravenna.
With the expansion of the Akron office, the practice has space to offer occupational and physical therapy, as well as therapy in a warm-water pool designed to enable disabled patients to exercise more easily.
In recent years, the practice also added advanced testing equipment, neuropsychologists to offer counseling and a clinical research nurse to help patients get involved in clinical trials for new treatments.
The need for neurological services is expected to increase as the population gets older and baby boomers approach their senior years.
As a person ages, his or her risk of developing one of many neurological problems increases, including strokes and Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.
Cheryl Powell can be reached at 330-996-3902 or chpowell@thebeaconjournal.com.
Whether Jerry Haynes wants to see his doctor or get help with talking or walking, he doesn't need to go far.
Get the full article here.
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