Shannon Medical Center | Health Beat | Fall 2014 - page 5

me an hour or minutes before my appoint-
ment, which is really helpful.”
Kyrouac works with Brown’s physicians
and obtains information from them on topics
such as cholesterol and nutrition, which he
then passes on to Brown.
“I asked him to teach me more about
reading food labels, and he helped me with
that,” Brown says. “I also have Michael’s
phone number, and I can text or call him
whenever I need him. I’ve had to text him
on several occasions about my appointments,
and he has asked me about my medica-
tions. It’s nice to have that personal line of
communication.”
FOR
PERSONAL
CARE
MEANINGFUL PATIENT RELATIONSHIPS
Both LaBauve and Kyrouac’s health coach-
ing experiences have been more than just
reinforcement for their medical school
applications. e students have relished
the experience of communicating and
developing relationships with the patients.
“I think I’ve learned more about com-
munication since starting this program
than I have in my life,” LaBauve says. “I’ve
learned the technical aspects of how health
care functions, but I’ve also learned how
powerful human relationships are. Pa-
tients might not need ‘special’ treatment,
just ‘specialized.’ It may be required of the
physician to do something unorthodox like
having a student visit the patient’s home.
Aside from all that, I’ve learned so much
from Frank. He is very wise. I’ve learned
how to communicate in a genuine and real
way, which exceeds medicine and a ects
other parts of my life as well. I’m excited
to see where the program goes. I think this
is going to change the culture of medicine
and how we interact with future patients
and just people in general.”
Kyrouac echoes LaBauve’s enjoyment
with participating in the program.
“I’ve seen Lillian improve through
diet and through other means than just
medication, and her organization has also
improved,” he says. “I’ve enjoyed seeing
people bene t from my e orts. A lot of
undergraduate education is just learning
and studying, and with this program, we
are actually able to apply what we’re learn-
ing while helping someone improve their
life. I’ve also realized how much of medi-
cine I don’t know and how much there is
still to learn.”
A er the completion of their internship,
the students no longer receive formal credit
fromparticipation in the program. But they
do have the option to continue their work
with patients until they leave San Angelo for
medical school. Both LaBauve and Kyrouac
plan to continue visiting their patients, and
Delrio is looking forward to continued visits
from his health coach.
“ is program is the greatest thing,”
Delrio says. “I just hope that people will
open up and realize there is help and people
who care. I hope this program goes further
and grows bigger. ere’s still a lot for me
to learn and for Peyton and I to do. is is
helping me overcome grief. I hope no one
has to go through what I’ve gone through
to be a part of this program, but it helps. It’s
helped me realize I need to be healthy, and
I’m passing that on to my family.”
ABOVE:
Health coach and ASU student Michael Kyrouac teaches program participant
Lillian Brown about her new medication box.
FAR LEFT:
Sandra Morales, RN, MSN, CCM, Shannon Care Coordination nurse coordina-
tor, and Irv Zeitler, DO, vice president of medical affairs at Shannon and course director
for the Shannon Care Coordination program, review a case study with students during the
“Community Healthcare from Theory to Practice” seminar course at ASU.
LEFT:
The first class of the Shannon Care Coordination program, a partnership between
Shannon and ASU, included 22 students. Pictured with the students are program facilita-
tors Diane Zeitler, BSN, MS, CPHQ, assistant vice president of Shannon Quality Resources;
Sandra Morales, RN, MSN, CCM, Shannon Care Coordination nurse coordinator;
Russell Wilke, PhD, professor and department of biology chair at ASU; and Irv Zeitler, DO,
vice president of medical affairs at Shannon and course director for the program.
RIGHT:
Irv Zeitler, DO, speaks with students of the “Community Healthcare from Theory
to Practice” seminar course at ASU.
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