ALS patie
ce their challen
ce, s en
6 herwood'8
:
Meet one of the faces of success
Daniel Newman, M.D., director of
the Harry J. Hoenselaar ALS
Clinic at Henry Ford Hospital in
Detroit, is board-certified in neu-
rology and a member of the Henry
Ford Medical Group. He talks
about his work with ALS patients.
The multidisciplinary ALS clinic at
Henry Ford Hospital sees patients
with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,
commonly known as "Lou Gehrig's
Disease."
Patients see each member of the
care team at each clinic visit,
including a psychologist, speech
therapist, physical therapist,
occupational therapist, dietician,
nurse, and a social worker from
ALS of Michigan. I am the
neurologist in this group. We are
a "go to" team, and we get quite
attached to our patients.
It's an experienced team that's
been together for years. We
typically spend four to five hours
per visit with a patient, in one loca-
tion. This type of multidisciplinary
care has been shown to improve
the quality of life and extend
survival time by 15 — 20 percent,
compared to care in the communi-
ty, where the patient goes from
doctor's office to doctor's office.
This type of care has more of an
effect on their survival than drugs.
When I see patients who have just
been diagnosed with this incurable,
progressively debilitating disease,
I make every effort to spend as
much time as possible with them.
The support of the Department of
Neurology allows me to practice
like this. It's almost as if the ALS
clinic is an island of old-fashioned
care, although we use leading-edge
technology.
This disease can bring out the best
in people. An elderly patient of
mine was not concerned about her
own illness, but was worried
about her adult son. She was still
parenting, planning how to help
him deal with her death.
I realized that we continue to live
and learn. We teach our kids how
to live, and now I see patients
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The people I
meet teach us
all how to live,
as they face the
challenges through the course of
their illness with grace. The ones
that stand out as magnificent
examples of humanity are those
who are not blinded by the tragedy.
I remember a patient who taught
at a university. As his disease
progressed, he began to have some
slurring of speech, with certain
consonant blends more difficult to
say. During his lectures, he was
thinking of synonyms of upcoming
words he knew he would have
trouble saying, so that his simpler
words could be understood.
It's time for holiday framing!
As a member of an ALS
Association Committee, I'm part of
the planning for an assembly of
national and international experts
in respiratory management of ALS.
We will meet in January to create a
consensus of best practices. Our
continuing goal is to set national
policies for standards of care for
ALS patients.
Whether for your
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The amazing part of my work with
ALS patients is that, despite having
a disease characterized by progres-
sive weakness, the enduring mental
images I have of so many of these
people are of incredible strength.
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November 26, 2006
Shoot for a Cure, an annual event
benefitting research and treatment
of neurological diseases at Henry
Ford Hospital, will be held at
6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9 at the
Andiamo Italia Banquet Center in
Warren. The evening includes an
auction, raffle, dinner, and a
performance by the Spinners, the
popular Motown group originally
from Detroit. For more informa-
tion, visit henryford.com/shoot or
call (313) 874-4088.
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teaching their
family, co-
workers and
even their
health care
team how to
face this phase
of life.
For more information or to make an
appointment call 1-800-HENRY:FORD or
visit our Web site www.henryford.com
28
utique.
117.5690