Good Samaritan Brings Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy to Schuylkill County

Comprehensive Wound Healing Center Opens at Medical Center

POTTSVILLE (June 11) -- Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center’s President and Chief Executive Officer Bernard G. Koval announced today that the hospital has opened Schuylkill County’s first comprehensive center offering wound healing and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy. 

The Wound Healing Center at Good Samaritan focuses on the treatment of chronic, non-healing wounds associated with inadequate circulation and diabetes.  More than 5 million Americans suffer from non-healing wounds, a serious disorder that can lead to amputation of limbs and dramatically impaired quality of life.  

In addition to proven wound healing practices like surgical intervention, the use of artificial skin products and offloading, The Wound Healing Center at Good Samaritan offers Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy.   This simple noninvasive, painless treatment enhances the body’s natural healing through the inhalation of pure oxygen under increased atmospheric pressure within a full-body chamber. Oxygen saturation promotes the body’s immune system to fight infection and stimulates tissue growth.    

The Wound Healing Center at Good Samaritan is staffed by physician specialists and wound healing technicians who are trained to administer Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy.  The Medical Directors of the program are Drs. Gary Cortese, Neil Fisher, and Mohamed Meeran.

"With the rising rate of diabetes in Schuylkill County and beyond, there is a great need for a specialized care center that can treat the ulcers associated with the disease as well as help patients with other skin, bone and tissue conditions caused by illness or injury," said Dr. Meeran, a vascular surgeon. 

“Non-healing wounds on the feet and lower legs can lead to loss of function through amputation,” said Dr. Cortese, a podiatrist.  “Through the utilization of proven wound care practices and advanced clinical approaches such as Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, more patient lives and limbs will be saved, thus restoring a higher quality of life for those patients and their families.”

The Wound Healing Center at Good Samaritan is located on the Medical Center’s fourth floor.  The 1730 square foot space contains one treatment room, two exam rooms, and two hyperbaric oxygen chambers.  Patients covered by Medicare, Medicaid and most insurance plans may self-refer to The Wound Healing Center at Good Samaritan or can be referred by their primary care physician. 

"We are partners in the patient's medical care," said Dr. Fisher, a general surgeon.  "While we dedicate our efforts to healing the patient's wound, the primary care physician is free to focus on treating the underlying cause or disease. Through regular reports and phone calls, we work with the patient's doctors and other experts in the program to develop a total approach to treatment and care."

Those wishing to make an appointment at the The Wound Healing Center at Good Samaritan should call 570-621-4380.