ST. PETER’S ALS REGIONAL CENTER How You Can Help ... · PDF fileSt. Peter’s ALS...
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ALS REGIONAL CENTER Lewis Golub MDA/ALS Clinic 19 Warehouse Row Albany, New York 12205 518-525-1629 ST. PETER’S ALS REGIONAL CENTER Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Regional Center [email protected] | sphp.com | sphcs.org How is St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center Funded? There is no charge for most services provided directly by St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center. Medicare, Medicaid and other third-party medical insurance reimbursements are accepted forms of payment for physician and rehabilitation staff services. St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center is a program of St. Peter’s Hospital and also receives financial assistance from the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). The center receives funding through individual and corporate gifts, memorial donations and fundraisers. We are grateful for the generous contributions of patients, families and others. Contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. How You Can Help Your help can sustain the efforts of St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center. • Tell someone you know about the ALS center. More than half of the people who have come to St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center for help have heard of us through family and friends. • Support the ALS center. Your contribution can help make a difference in the lives of people with ALS and their families. Donations can be mailed directly to the ALS center or made online at www.givetostpeters.org/donate. • Join a dedicated group of volunteers who organize events to benefit the ALS center. Volunteer support is vital. • Attend a benefit for St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center or become an underwriter for an event. Please visit our website at www.sphcs.org/ALSRegionalCenter.com to learn more about how you can help. To donate to the center, visit www.givetostpeters.org/donate. The ALS Regional Center is committed to serving the needs of people with ALS and will continue to bring quality care and hope with your support. 10/14 500 M
Transcript of ST. PETER’S ALS REGIONAL CENTER How You Can Help ... · PDF fileSt. Peter’s ALS...
ALS REGIONAL CENTERLewis Golub MDA/ALS Clinic
19 Warehouse RowAlbany, New York 12205
518-525-1629
ST. PETER’S ALS REGIONAL CENTER
Amyotrophic LateralSclerosis (ALS)Regional Center
[email protected] | sphp.com | sphcs.org
How is St. Peter’s ALSRegional Center Funded?There is no charge for most services provideddirectly by St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center.Medicare, Medicaid and other third-partymedical insurance reimbursements areaccepted forms of payment for physician andrehabilitation staff services. St. Peter’s ALSRegional Center is a program of St. Peter’sHospital and also receives financial assistancefrom the Muscular Dystrophy Association(MDA). The center receives funding throughindividual and corporate gifts, memorialdonations and fundraisers. We are grateful for the generous contributions of patients,families and others. Contributions are taxdeductible to the extent allowed by law.
How You Can HelpYour help can sustain the efforts of St. Peter’sALS Regional Center.
• Tell someone you know about the ALS center. More than half of the people whohave come to St. Peter’s ALS RegionalCenter for help have heard of us throughfamily and friends.
• Support the ALS center. Your contributioncan help make a difference in the lives of people with ALS and their families.Donations can be mailed directly to the ALS center or made online at www.givetostpeters.org/donate.
• Join a dedicated group of volunteers whoorganize events to benefit the ALS center.Volunteer support is vital.
• Attend a benefit for St. Peter’s ALS RegionalCenter or become an underwriter for anevent.
Please visit our website atwww.sphcs.org/ALSRegionalCenter.comto learn more about how you can help.
To donate to the center,visit www.givetostpeters.org/donate.
The ALS Regional Center is committedto serving the needs of people with ALSand will continue to bring quality care
and hope with your support.
10/14 500 M
als brochure 4col_brochure 10/29/2014 10:37 AM Page 1
St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center in Albany,New York, was established in 1988 toprovide people with ALS and their familieswith a comprehensive and specializedblend of services and resources.
The center provides both a medical and an emo-tional system of support to help maintain qualityof life throughout the course of the disease.
Once considered a rare disease, it is estimatedthat more than 30,000 Americans have the disease at any given time. Approximately 6,500people in the United States are diagnosed eachyear. Men are affected more often than women,usually between ages 35 and 70.
ALS affects people of all racial, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. Some of the more well-known people affected by ALS are: baseball’s LouGehrig and “Catfish” Hunter, composer DimitriShostakovich, actors David Niven and MichaelZaslow, renowned physicist Stephen Hawkings,and former U.S. Senator Jacob Javits.
What Is ALS? Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), sometimescalled Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a degenerative neuromuscular disease affecting motor nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Typically, the firstvisible signs of ALS are weakness in the hands orlegs, or slurring of speech. Eventually, the diseaseleads to paralysis of the “voluntary” muscles with loss of speech, swallowing and breathingcapabilities. ALS can progress rapidly or canplateau for unpredictable periods of time.Throughout the course of the disease, the mindremains alert in most cases. Cognitive changesmay occur. Vision, sensation, hearing, taste, smell,sexual function, and the muscles of the eyes,bowel and bladder are generally not affected.
What Causes ALS? Although ALS was first described in detail in 1869,its cause, cure and means of prevention are stillunknown. ALS may be an autoimmune disease, or the result of a biochemical or metabolic abnor-mality, or a slow acting virus. Scientists are alsostudying environmental toxins and genetic components as other possible causes. Currently,the FDA has approved a drug, RILUTEK®, whichappears to help prevent excessive accumulation ofglutamate. Combination drug therapies and stemcell research are areas of intense study at thepresent time.
Is ALS Hereditary? The most common form of ALS in the UnitedStates is known as “sporadic.” It may affect anyone, anywhere. Only 5 to 10 percent of per-sons with ALS have a familial or hereditary form.In those families, 50 percent of the children areexpected to have the disease. In 1993, researchersfound a defective gene that appears to be thecause of 20 percent of the cases of familial ALS.Genetic studies continue.
St. Peter’s ALS RegionalCenterThe ALS Center is staffed with nurse case man-agers who work closely with an interdisciplinaryteam. The team includes ALS nurses, physicians,social workers, physical therapists, occupationaltherapists, speech pathologists and respiratorytherapists. Neurologists, pulmonologists and gastroenterologists are available for consultation.
Our Services The services offered by the ALS Regional Centerinclude:
• Individualized assessment and programmingon both an inpatient and outpatient basis.
• Individual and family counseling.
• Nursing Case Management.
• Home visits by various team members,when possible.
Our Services continued…
• Telephone and at-home consultation topeople throughout the 17-county region inupstate New York served by the center.
• An educational support group for peoplewith ALS, their families and caregivers.
• A monthly caregiver’s support group.
• A monthly ALS patient support group.
• A website.
• Medical equipment (including powerwheelchairs and augmentative communi-cation devices) are available on loanthrough the center at no charge.
• An article, book and video lending library.
• Bereavement follow-up.
• In-service training, consultation and education about ALS for health care professionals and agencies.
• Local and national awareness and advocacy.
• Support to ALS research.
• Collaboration with MDA (MuscularDystrophy Association) Services.
als brochure 4col_brochure 10/29/2014 10:37 AM Page 2
St. Peter’s ALS Regional Center in Albany,New York, was established in 1988 toprovide people with ALS and their familieswith a comprehensive and specializedblend of services and resources.
The center provides both a medical and an emo-tional system of support to help maintain qualityof life throughout the course of the disease.
Once considered a rare disease, it is estimatedthat more than 30,000 Americans have the disease at any given time. Approximately 6,500people in the United States are diagnosed eachyear. Men are affected more often than women,usually between ages 35 and 70.
ALS affects people of all racial, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. Some of the more well-known people affected by ALS are: baseball’s LouGehrig and “Catfish” Hunter, composer DimitriShostakovich, actors David Niven and MichaelZaslow, renowned physicist Stephen Hawkings,and former U.S. Senator Jacob Javits.
What Is ALS? Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), sometimescalled Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a degenerative neuromuscular disease affecting motor nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Typically, the firstvisible signs of ALS are weakness in the hands orlegs, or slurring of speech. Eventually, the diseaseleads to paralysis of the “voluntary” muscles with loss of speech, swallowing and breathingcapabilities. ALS can progress rapidly or canplateau for unpredictable periods of time.Throughout the course of the disease, the mindremains alert in most cases. Cognitive changesmay occur. Vision, sensation, hearing, taste, smell,sexual function, and the muscles of the eyes,bowel and bladder are generally not affected.
What Causes ALS? Although ALS was first described in detail in 1869,its cause, cure and means of prevention are stillunknown. ALS may be an autoimmune disease, or the result of a biochemical or metabolic abnor-mality, or a slow acting virus. Scientists are alsostudying environmental toxins and genetic components as other possible causes. Currently,the FDA has approved a drug, RILUTEK®, whichappears to help prevent excessive accumulation ofglutamate. Combination drug therapies and stemcell research are areas of intense study at thepresent time.
Is ALS Hereditary? The most common form of ALS in the UnitedStates is known as “sporadic.” It may affect anyone, anywhere. Only 5 to 10 percent of per-sons with ALS have a familial or hereditary form.In those families, 50 percent of the children areexpected to have the disease. In 1993, researchersfound a defective gene that appears to be thecause of 20 percent of the cases of familial ALS.Genetic studies continue.
St. Peter’s ALS RegionalCenterThe ALS Center is staffed with nurse case man-agers who work closely with an interdisciplinaryteam. The team includes ALS nurses, physicians,social workers, physical therapists, occupationaltherapists, speech pathologists and respiratorytherapists. Neurologists, pulmonologists and gastroenterologists are available for consultation.
Our Services The services offered by the ALS Regional Centerinclude:
• Individualized assessment and programmingon both an inpatient and outpatient basis.
• Individual and family counseling.
• Nursing Case Management.
• Home visits by various team members,when possible.
Our Services continued…
• Telephone and at-home consultation topeople throughout the 17-county region inupstate New York served by the center.
• An educational support group for peoplewith ALS, their families and caregivers.
• A monthly caregiver’s support group.
• A monthly ALS patient suport group.
• A website.
• Medical equipment (including powerwheelchairs and augmentative communi-cation devices) are available on loanthrough the center at no charge.
• An article, book and video lending library.
• Bereavement follow-up.
• In-service training, consultation and education about ALS for health care professionals and agencies.
• Local and national awareness and advocacy.
• Support to ALS research.
• Collaboration with MDA (MuscularDystrophy Association) Services.
als brochure 4col_brochure 10/22/2014 8:06 AM Page 2
