Health Magazine | Spring 2022

Photo of a person and a dog in front of a blue sky

Up Front: Reliable information for your COVID-19 questions

Prevent the spread

  • Please get fully vaccinated, including your booster, if you’re eligible. 
  • Wash your hands often and give other people lots of space.
  • Stay home when you are sick, even if it feels like a mild cold.
  • If you are at higher risk or live in a high-risk area, wear a mask indoors and in public spaces.

If you get sick

Most people have mild or moderate symptoms and can recover at home.

  • Get plenty of rest.
  • Drink lots of fluids.
  • Take over-the-counter medicines, like acetaminophen or ibuprofen, to reduce fever.
  • Stay away from others in your home as much as possible. If you must be near others, wear a mask.
  • Monitor your symptoms. If they get worse, call your primary care provider for advice.
  • Please do not come to the hospital unless you have an emergency warning sign, such as:
    • Trouble breathing
    • Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
    • New confusion
    • Inability to awaken or to stay awake
    • Bluish lips or face
    • Other severe symptoms

Find answers to questions about COVID-19 symptoms, treatments, testing and more.

Emergency Care

A. Check for fever with a home thermometer of any kind. If your baby is less than 3 months old, go to an emergency room for temperatures above 100 degrees. If your baby is 4 months old or older, give a dose of acetaminophen, following the directions on the bottle. Offer fluids and comfort. If the fever improves, call your child’s provider in the morning. But you know your child. If you feel something is wrong and needs care urgently, you shouldn’t hesitate to come to an emergency room. At Hillsboro Medical Center, we can provide inpatient care for children with common conditions and diseases. If needed, we can transfer children to OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital.

Rachel Castelli, M.D.
Hillsboro Medical Center
503-681-1111

A. Don’t wait. Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. There can be many reasons for chest pain or pressure, and not all are related to your heart. Time can be important, so the sooner you are treated, the better. When you arrive, you will get an ECG, chest X-ray and bloodwork to help us understand what is causing the pain. If it is related to your heart, our cardiac specialists can intervene quickly. Even if your symptoms are mild, it’s best to get to emergency care as soon as possible.

Marcus Chiodo, M.D.
Adventist Health Portland
503-257-2500

Four locations, one emergency team

OHSU Emergency Medicine providers staff the emergency rooms at Adventist Health Portland, Hillsboro Medical Center, OHSU Hospital and OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. That means you receive the same high quality of care at the location nearest you. For health issues that need attention soon but aren’t an emergency, OHSU Health has multiple urgent and immediate care locations in the Portland metro.

Numbers to know

Post these contact numbers in your home:

Innovations: Bringing the newest treatments to Oregon

Incisionless brain surgery for tremor is now possible

Using ultrasonic sound, the latest technology at OHSU offers life-changing relief to people with essential tremor and tremor-dominant Parkinson’s disease. Sound waves pass through the skull without cutting.

This method, called focused ultrasound, has instant results.

A surgeon uses MRI to identify the tiny spot in the brain that needs to be changed to improve the tremor. Then, the surgeon uses converging beams of sound energy to create a lesion.

There is no blood loss, no pain and little risk of infection. Patients go home the same day or the next day.

“This is an exciting step forward,” says Ahmed Raslan, M.D., an OHSU neurosurgeon. “We’re taking a very complex surgery and making it easier on the patient to get great results with much less risk and fast recovery.”

OHSU is the only location in Oregon to offer this method for treating tremor.

Ahmed Raslan, M.D., is part of a multidisciplinary team that provides care for tremor at the OHSU Brain Institute.
Send an evaluation request to focusedultrasound@ohsu.edu, or call 503-494-4314.

Heart Smart: Managing heart disease

A. Yes, there is a big role for devices to help heart failure symptoms and prolong life. There are three types we often use: pacemakers, defibrillators and biventricular pacemakers. A pacemaker helps protect your heart from slowing down. A defibrillator is a backup if your heart suddenly goes into a risky rhythm. It will shock the heart back into normal rhythm. A biventricular pacemaker helps sync the electrical system of the heart and improve the heart muscle. There have been many advances in this technology. We can closely monitor the devices and patients remotely. If there is a problem with the device or an alert of an abnormal rhythm, we call and check on the patient. We can step in early to help before the problem worsens.

Bassel Beitinjaneh, M.D.
Hillsboro Medical Center Cardiology Clinic
503-844-8280

About one in two people have high blood pressure

Nearly half of American adults have high blood pressure, according to the American Heart Association.

“It’s far more common than people think, and it’s not well-controlled in most people,” says Dr. Nandita Gupta, a cardiologist and associate chief medical officer at Hillsboro Medical Center. “In the long term, high blood pressure can lead to heart failure.”

People of all races have about the same risk of developing high blood pressure as they age.

“However, people of color are about 30% less likely to have good control of it,” Gupta says.

Most people don’t have symptoms of high blood pressure. Normal blood pressure is 120/80 and lower. Above 130/80 is considered hypertension.

“Know your numbers,” Gupta says. “If your blood pressure is high, discuss your options with your provider. Blood pressure can improve with a healthy diet and regular exercise, but you may also need other treatment.”

Nandita C. Gupta, M.D., is part of a multidisciplinary team serving cardiovascular disease patients at Hillsboro Medical Center Cardiology Clinic and the OHSU Center for Women’s Health.
503-844-8280

Tips for controlling high blood pressure

  • Take medication as prescribed. If needed, set an alarm to make sure you don’t miss a dose.
  • Follow the DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) with foods rich in nutrients that help control blood pressure, such as potassium, calcium and magnesium.
  • Sodium, like table salt, can increase blood pressure. Processed foods often contain high amounts of sodium, so be sure to read labels.
  • Regular exercise can lower blood pressure. Aim for 30 minutes of aerobic exercise most days. It’s OK to break those total minutes into shorter sessions.
  • Maintain a healthy weight.
  • Find ways to release stress, such as meditation, breathing exercises, hobbies and play.

Living with heart failure

When your heart isn’t pumping as well as it should be, you can become tired, have shortness of breath and other symptoms of heart failure. This is a chronic condition, but you can learn ways to adapt your lifestyle to help.

OHSU and the American Heart Association have created the Oregon Heart Failure Guide with videos and information for leading a healthier life with heart failure.

100 recipes

The Heart Protection Kitchen cookbook has recipes collected from OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute’s cooking classes. Find healthy versions of classics to more adventurous dishes.

Featured meals are quick, affordable and heart-healthy. It's available at Powell’s Books, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

727 heart transplants performed

Since 1988, OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute continues to be the largest and longest-running cardiac transplant program in Oregon.

Living Well: Are you due for a cancer screening?

Early detection key for more treatment options

By catching cancer early, we give people the best chance of treatment and cure.

Every person is unique, so there can be different risk factors that affect when you should start screening for some cancers.

Talk to your provider about which screenings are right for you and the right age for you to begin regular screening.

We always encourage self-awareness. If you notice something that doesn’t seem right — a lump, new discomfort, a mole that is changing shape — don’t delay seeking advice from your provider. The way we find and treat cancer is changing all the time!

The best way to catch cancer early is to get screened on schedule.

Johanna Warren, M.D.
Primary Care

OHSU Center for Women's Health
503-418-4500

Getting hospital care from home

OHSU Health Hospital at Home makes it possible for some patients to get individualized, hospital-level care delivered where they feel most comfortable: their own homes.

For more than 10 years, thousands of patients in the U.S. have found hospital at home to be a safe, tested and trusted option. OHSU Health’s Hospital at Home patients can expect the same level of compassionate care at home as they receive in our hospitals.

OHSU Health partner, Adventist Health Portland, began offering hospital at home in 2020. Located on Adventist Health Portland medical center campus, the virtual unit recently expanded across the OHSU Health system.

Patients say they enjoy having more control over their space, meals and activities at home. They also prefer being with their loved ones and pets and sleeping in their own beds.

Studies show this home-based model can reduce recovery time with fewer readmissions to the hospital.

How hospital at home works

Getting started: The care team screens hospital patients interested in hospital at home. If their needs are a fit, patients can leave the hospital when they’re stable. A care team visits their homes the same day to set up a virtual unit. They bring all the supplies patients may need. Then they provide all the medical care patients need, individualized for each patient.

Daily communication: Patients have daily video visits with a provider or nurse. They can also reach a team member 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Hospital at home provides a tablet for video visits and a direct-line phone. Patients can always talk to their care team if needed.

All equipment: Hospital at home provides FDA-approved medical devices to monitor patients’ health. This allows the care team to check temperature, breathing and pulse regularly. The team brings any other equipment patients may need, like an oxygen machine.

Daily home visits: In addition to video and phone calls, care team members visit patients’ homes at least once a day or more as needed. The team can provide services such as IV fluids, labs, mobile imaging, medications or physical therapy.

Delivered meals: Patients have the option to have all their meals and snacks brought to their home.

Discharge: When patients are ready, the care team releases patients to their primary care providers with a full report.

Check your child’s symptoms day or night

What should you do if your child has a fever, cough, vomiting, rash, sore throat or head injury?

The OHSU Doernbecher MD 4KIDS mobile app makes it easy to manage your child’s health from the palm of your hand with Apple or Android devices. It’s available 24/7, so you can turn to the app at any time — nights, weekends, or when you’re working or traveling.

The app can help you decide whether to get emergency care, see a provider within 24 hours, or wait for office hours. With the app, you can:

  • Find symptoms of common conditions, including colds, flu and COVID-19.
  • Check medication dosage charts for your child.
  • Get expert advice for common parenting concerns.
  • Make an appointment with your child’s primary care provider.
  • Log on to your family’s MyChart account to connect with your provider.

Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room right away if your child is having a medical emergency.

To download the free app, go to the Apple App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android).