ENDO ALL STARS

St. Luke’s Digestive Disorders Team, St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center

The Digestive Disorders team at St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center in Sioux City, Iowa, was honored with their facility’s first service excellence award in May 2003. Nominated by hospital employees and staff physicians, the team was recognized for their excellence in service for quality of care and attention to serving hundreds of patients each month.

The St. Luke’s Digestive Disorders team of All Stars includes four gastroenterologists, 14 registered nurses, four GI techs and two LPNs representing 444 years of experience. The unit is equipped with eight private procedure rooms, five GI endoscopy labs, a 12-bed post-procedure recovery area and a scope cleaning room.

This team was profiled in the Sioux City Journal “Health Wise” section for their dedication to superior patient care.

“Many patients come in feeling nervous, and we work to put their fears to rest,” says Collette Bird, digestive disorders nurse. “We’ll have really sick people come in to have a tube inserted for eating. Eight months later you see them come back and you can’t believe they are the same person — they look so much healthier. That’s very rewarding to know you did something to dramatically help their recovery.

Getting to know patients who return for follow-up exams is one of the most enjoyable parts of our jobs.”

Honorary All Star: Katie Couric

In March 2000, TODAY show anchor Katie Couric underwent a colonoscopy live on national television. In the following weeks and months, the number of people across the country having colonoscopies increased more than 20 percent, says a study by researchers at the University of Michigan Health System and University of Iowa.

Using her celebrity status to champion the cause, Couric has made a tremendous impact on the screening rate and the public awareness of colon cancer. In conjunction with the Entertainment Industry Foundation, Couric established the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance (EIF’s NCCRA). Researchers following the trend published a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine, which found that the higher rate of colonoscopies was sustained for almost a year after the show aired. Researchers officially dubbed the phenomenon “the Katie Couric effect,” demonstrating the impact celebrities can have in influencing public behavior and attitudes.

As Couric says, “Don’t put it off.” Early detection is the key to saving lives. Colorectal cancer is curable 90 percent of the time with early detection.

March 2004 marked the grand opening of the Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell. The center is named in honor of Couric’s late husband, who died of colon cancer in 1998 at the age of 42. Couric’s commitment to improving the treatment experience for patients and their families — by providing all necessary resources under one roof — led to the Center’s creation.

The Entertainment Industry Foundation’s National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance, which Couric co-founded, provided funding for the Center.

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