Nicholas Bird,
MD, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of the Diver’s Alert Network (DAN), Durham, NC,
has been added to the Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS) accredited 40-hour
Introduction to Hyperbaric Medicine course faculty for the training to be held
7-11 February, 2013 at Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC), East Meadow,
NY. This training for physicians and allied health professionals is one of four
(4) LST hyperbaric medicine courses scheduled in year 2013.
Under
guidelines issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS),
accredited training in Hyperbaric Medicine is required for physicians who
supervise hyperbaric medical treatment if they wish to receive payment from CMS
for their services. The LST Introduction to Hyperbaric Medicine course meets
this CMS training requirement.Nicholas Bird, MD, is a fellowship-trained, board-certified hyperbaric physician. He has been with DAN since June 2009. Prior to this position, he served as the Medical Director of Hyperbaric Medicine at Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George, Utah. Additionally, Dr. Bird served in the United States’ Air Force as a Flight Surgeon and received his initial training and experience in hyperbaric medicine at Travis Air Force Base, CA, while working as the Deputy Flight Commander of the Hyperbaric / Wound Center. He was honorably discharged with the rank of Major after serving as the final Commander of the Base Hospital in Jordan during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Dr. Bird is a
Clinical Instructor in Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Care. He is an active
member of the UHMS, works as part of the UHMS accreditation team, has authored
articles and book chapters in diving medicine, is a member of the UHMS Diving
Medicine Committee, and he has both attended and presented at multiple
conferences on diving and hyperbaric medicine. Additionally, he is the Course
Director for the DAN Diver Medic Technician (DMT) course and author of a
revised series of DAN educational programs.
The Divers
Alert Network (DAN) is the diving industry’s largest association dedicated to
scuba diving safety. Serving scuba divers for more than 30 years, DAN provides
emergency assistance, medical information resources, educational opportunities
and more.
Other Introduction
to Hyperbaric Medicine course dates and venues at LST partner medical
facilities are: April 19-23, 2013 at St. Francis Hospital & Medical Center,
Mt. Sinai Campus, Hartford, CT; June 7-11, 2013 at Good Samaritan Regional
Medical Center, Suffern, NY; October 4-8, 2013 at Winthrop University Hospital,
Mineola, NY.
Health
professionals may register for any of LST’s hyperbaric medicine courses by
completing the registration form on LST’s website. See below for details.
LST’s 40-hour Introduction to
Hyperbaric Medicine course is conducted over a 5-day period. The current course
has been developed from the original, which was taught by hyperbaric medicine
pioneer Eric P. Kindwall, M.D.
LST
hyperbaric medicine courses are accredited by the Undersea & Hyperbaric
Medical Society (UHMS) and also by the National Board of Diving & Hyperbaric
Medical Technology (NBDHMT). The UHMS and also the American College of
Hyperbaric Medicine (ACHM) set standards and are the certification boards for
physicians who wish to supervise human hyperbaric medical treatment. The NBDHMT
sets standards and is the certification board for allied health care
professionals who are involved with hyperbaric medical treatment of people, and
animals, including horses and small animals.
Physicians (MD and DO) who attend
and participate in the entire course are awarded 42 Continuing Medical
Education (CME) credits, which are granted by the UHMS. Allied health
professionals (including those who are DPM, PhD, NP, PA, EMT, Paramedic, RN,
LPN, RT, RRT) who attend and participate in the entire course are awarded 40
Continuing Education Units (CEU), which are granted by the NBDHMT.
Hyperbaric
Medical treatment involves putting a patient in a specially designed vessel
known as a hyperbaric chamber that can be pressurized greater than atmospheric
pressure. The patient breathes 100%
oxygen while under increased pressure. Monoplace hyperbaric chambers are the most
common and are designed to treat one patient at a time. Multiplace chambers are
purpose-built and can accommodate as many patients as they are built for.
Hyperbaric chamber construction standards are established and published by the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Pressure Vessel for Human
Occupancy (PVHO) Committee.
Hyperbaric
medicine is a growing field that is used adjunctively with Wound Care, another
expanding specialty.
Course faculty consists of
recognized experts in their fields, each of whom are board certified in one or
more specialties. The Course Director is Glenn Butler, CEO and founder of LST. Course
Clinical Directors are Scott Gorenstein, M.D., Clinical Director of Hyperbaric
Medicine at Winthrop University Hospital, Mineola, NY, and Edward Golembe,
M.D., Skin Integrity Director at Westchester Medical Center, Valhalla, NY.
Physician guest lecturers include
Jody DiGiacomo, M.D., FACS, Medical Director, Wound Treatment and Hyperbaric
Medicine, CentraState Medical Center, Freehold, NJ; Laura Sudarsky, M.D., Chief
of Plastic Surgery, Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, Suffern, NY; Jay G.
Levine, D.P.M., Podiatric Surgery Section Chief, Good Samaritan Regional
Medical Center, Suffern, NY.
Non-physician lecturers include
Michael W. Allen, LST Senior Vice President for Operations and Safety; Donna
Hangan, ANP, CHRNC, CWS, Hyperbaric Unit Coordinator, Nassau University Medical
Center, East Meadow, NY; Christian Calise, CHT, RRT, Neonatal Pediatric
Specialist, North Shore LIJ Hospitals, NY; Peter P. Delaney, Product Specialist:
Transcutaneous Oxygen and Laser Doppler Equipment, Perimed, Inc., Ardsmore, PA;
Bernie Chowdhury, CHT, LST Training Director.
For more information see:
Diver’s Alert Network (DAN)
http://www.diversalertnetwork.org
Undersea
& Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS)
http://membership.uhms.org/National Board of Diving & Hyperbaric Medical Technology (NDBHMT)
http://www.nbdhmt.org/
About the Life Support Technologies group (LST)
http://www.lifesupport-USA.com
Life
Support Technologies Group (LST) is a Tarrytown, NY-based medical and
life-support engineering company that was founded 20 years ago by Glenn Butler,
CEO. LST specializes in Advanced Wound Care and
Hyperbaric Medicine and currently provides services to 9 hospitals in
the greater NY-region.
Glenn
Butler, CEO
Life
Support Technologies Group(914) 333-8412
