CONGRATULATIONS! Kristen Sefcik, RN, is a recent
Daisy Award recipient. In her nomination, the patient
wrote, “She was very attentive in all ways of my care,
and I will always be grateful.”
Kidneys play a vital part in
keeping your body healthy.
But what happens when
they stop working properly?
Fortunately, dialysis
can perform the work of
the kidneys. During treat-
ment, blood is cleansed and
waste and excess water are
removed. For patients with
end-stage renal disease
(ESRD), dialysis is a lifesav-
ing treatment.
How much treatment
each patient needs var-
ies and is prescribed by a
doctor. Typically, dialysis
treatments are scheduled
three times per week, four
hours at a time. If patients
have to travel, they are de-
voting almost a full day to
each treatment. Shannon
and the Heart of Texas Me-
morial Hospital in Brady
recognized the need for a
dialysis treatment facility
outside of San Angelo—
more than 20 patients from
Brady and the surrounding
area were traveling to San
Angelo or San Antonio for
treatment.
Shannon Dialysis Ser-
vices, located inside Heart of
Texas Memorial Hospital in
Brady, offers a convenient,
hospital-based choice for
patients newly diagnosed
with ESRD and those in
need of maintenance treat-
ments. The center includes:
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Six dialysis stations
equipped with individual
televisions and Wi-Fi.
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An isolation room for
patients with special needs.
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A relaxing, warm at-
mosphere equipped with
modern technologies.
Maintaining and im-
proving the overall health
and quality of life of each
patient is the goal of the
Shannon Dialysis Services
staff. The center has access
to licensed health care pro-
fessionals, including:
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A b o a r d - c e r t i f i e d
nephrologist.
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Certified hemodialysis
technicians.
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Two nurse practitioners.
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Nursing staff.
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Social workers.
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Dietitians.
Re c e i v i n g t r ea tmen t
Shannon Dialysis Ser-
vices treats adult patients.
Patients are accepted by
referral.
The center also wel-
comes inquiries about
potential transfer to Brady
from patients currently
receiving dialysis treatment
at other facilities.
The center plans to open
in January for its Pilot
Patient project, which is
required to receive full
licensure. Upon receipt of
state and federal licensure,
the center will begin accept-
ing referral of new patients.
Be in the knowabout kid-
neys, dialysis andmore! Visit
Each month, in numerous
hospitals and medical fa-
cilities around the country,
nurses are nominated by
their nurse administrators,
peers, physicians, patients
and families for providing
extraordinary care.
The honor, called The
DAISY Award, is part of a
nationwide effort to rec-
ognize the skill, care and
compassion of nurses. It
was started by a foundation
formed by the family of
J. Patrick Barnes, who died
NEW
PROVIDERS
We l c om e
Raj Cheruku, MD, oncology/
hematology
Dr. Cheruku received his
medical degree from Kakatiya
Medical College in Warangal,
Andhra Pradesh, India. He then
completed his internship at
St. Louis Hospital in St. Louis,
Mo., and his residency at Edward
Hines, Jr. VA Hospital and Foster
McGaw Hospital of the Loyola University in Illinois.
Dr. Cheruku also completed a fellowship in the divi-
sion of hematology/oncology at Wayne State Univer-
sity School of Medicine in Detroit, Mich. Dr. Cheruku
returns to Shannon Clinic, where he practiced from
1995 to 2007, from Brenham. He is accepting patients
at his office in the Shannon Oncology Center, 102 N.
Magdalen, Suite 110. For an appointment, please call
325-481-2025
.
Scott Huard, DO, anesthesiology
After receiving his bachelor’s
degree from Creighton Univer-
sity in Omaha, Neb., Dr. Huard
earned his medical degree from
the College of Osteopathic
Medicine of the Pacific at the
Western University of Health
Sciences in Pomona, Calif. He
then completed his anesthesiol-
ogy residency at the University of Connecticut School of
Medicine in Farmington.
Dr. Huard is certified by the American Board of
Anesthesiology. He joins Shannon from Anesthesia As-
sociates of New Haven in Connecticut. For more about
Dr. Huard and other physicians at Shannon, please visit
Extraordinarynurses
at age 33 of complications
of idiopathic thrombocyto-
penic purpura. His family
created The DAISY Award
for Extraordinary Nurses
in 2001 to say thank you to
nurses around the country,
since they believe they are
truly “unsung heroes.”
“I think the program is
beneficial because it serves
as a way for patients and
families to recognize nurses
for that special moment that
touched their lives,” says
Becky Fuentes, RN, MSN,
administrative director of
nursing. “Many of those
moments go unseen—they
often happen during pri-
vate, quiet times in patient
rooms, but they have a
great impact on the patient
or family members.”
There are more than
1,500 DAISY Award part-
ners worldwide. Shannon
Medical Center has been a
part of The DAISY Award
program since 2009.
The DAISY Award is
open to any nurse em-
ployed by ShannonMedical
Center who spends at least
80 percent of his or her
time in direct patient care.
Each month, the winner
receives:
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A certificate, proclaim-
ing her or him an “Extraor-
dinary Nurse.”
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A DAISY Award pin.
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A unique hand-carved
Shona stone sculpture
titled “A Healer’s Touch.”
Nomination forms can
be downloaded at
www
.shannonhealth.com
and
are available in patient
waiting areas. Forms may
be sent to Fuentes at
becky
fuentes@shannonhealth
.org
. For more information,
please call
325-657-5050
.
Exceptional kidney care close to home
Shannon Dialysis Services at Heart of Texas Memorial Hospital
2
H E A L T H B E A T
W I N T E R 2 0 1 4
N E W S , V I E W S & T I P S
H E A L T H T A L K
