Everyone has heard that time heals all wounds, but the truth is that without advanced therapies, some wounds can take years and even decades to heal while others that do not respond to treatment may lead to amputation in extreme cases.

On May 26, Scotland Memorial Hospital opens the Scotland Wound Healing Center to offer the community state-of-the-art specialized wound healing care.

The Scotland Wound Healing Center is located in the Community Health and Rehabilitation Center, on the hospital’s campus.

Patients and visitors may enter the building’s main entrance and proceed to the Rehabilitation Services area.

"There is a great need for a specialized care center that can treat the ulcers associated with diabetes, as well as help patients with other skin, bone and tissue conditions caused by illness or injury," said Dr. Brian Parkes, general surgeon and the Center’s Medical Director. "All of the Center's doctors and clinical staff are skilled in the latest therapeutic methods in wound management and stay abreast of leading information through continuous training. Patients are treated with state-of-the art technology, including one of the Wound Healing Center’s two hyperbaric oxygen chambers."

To establish the center, Scotland Memorial Hospital partnered with National Healing Corporation, which manages wound healing centers nationwide with

Wound center opens an average healing rate of 80 percent attained in 12 to16 weeks of therapy.

Although the centers treat patients with chronic and advanced conditions that have not responded to previous therapies, the rate of limb amputation for non-responsive wounds is less than two percent.

Paula Davis, the center’s director, explains, "We utilize a methodology with an impressive record of healing wounds that others thought hopeless. After performing a full diagnosis on a patient's first visit, we take photographs of the wound at each subsequent visit to evaluate the therapy's progress. Our treatments are evidence based and best practice driven, meaning our patients do not undergo any treatment or progress to a new level of treatment until the need is clearly indicated."

Likely candidates for treatment are those suffering from diabetic ulcers, pressure ulcers, infections, compromised skin grafts and flaps, and wounds that haven't healed within 30 days. The center's hyperbaric oxygen chambers can also be used to treat patients suffering from such uncommon ailments as cyanide poisoning, gangrene, carbon monoxide poisoning, brown recluse spider bites and the “bends,” or decompression sickness.

Patients covered by Medicare, Medicaid and most insurance plans may self-refer to the Scotland Wound Healing Center. However, one of the center's missions is to build relationships with patients' primary care physicians.

"We become a partner in the patient's medical care," continued Dr. Parkes. "While we dedicate our efforts to healing the patient's wound, the primary care physician can focus on treating the underlying cause or disease. Through regular communications, we work with the patient’s doctors and other experts in the program to develop a total approach to treatment and care.

“One of the highly specialized treatments offered at the center is hyperbaric oxygen therapy,” commented Dr. Parkes. “This works by surrounding the patient with 100 percent oxygen at higher than normal atmospheric pressure. This increases the amount of oxygen in the patient's blood and, in the case of wounds, allows red blood cells to pass more easily through the plasma into the wound to heal it from the inside out. Diabetic foot wounds are an excellent example of wounds that may benefit most from this type of treatment.”

Relaxing on a bed encased within a large see-through acrylic shell, patients can watch movies on televisions and VCR players mounted above the chamber while hearing the movies and conversing with others outside the chamber through a speaker system. The only physical sensation resulting from the treatment is a slight pressure on the eardrum, such as that felt when a plane lands, as the air in the chamber is compressed.

An open house is scheduled for Thursday, June 2, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. The public is invited to attend at that time and tour the Scotland Wound Healing Center.

For information call Paula Davis at 291-7711.