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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (May 18, 2016)
Wallowa Memorial Hospital welcomes orthopedic surgeon By Kathleen Ellyn Wallowa County Chieftain Dr. Adrian T. Davis, MD, has joined the Wallowa Me- morial Hospital part time as its orthopedic surgery and sports medicine specialist. Dr. Davis is sharing his time with Wallowa Memorial and Grande Ronde Hospital in La Grande. “Coming to Northeast Ore- gon after living in the Midwest my entire life was a major life decision,” Davis said. “It’s al- ways hard to know what to expect when moving to a new place, let alone moving across the country.” Adding to his uncertainty, Davis had just finished his resi- Courtesy photo Dr. Adrian Davis, MD. dency and fellowship training at the time of his move and found practice “very stressful” at first because of his desire to make the right treatment decision for his patients and have good surgical outcomes. Now, with a little experience under his belt, he can relax a bit. The move has been good. But he is just as ded- icated as ever to make the right decisions for his patients and do excellent surgery. Top quality tools are essen- tial to achieve that goal, he said. “We rely heavily on the in- struments, arthroscopic equip- ment and implants that we use to obtain these goals. Updated, more contemporary equipment LPSURYHVHI¿FLHQF\LQWKH2SHU- ating Room), helps avoid compli- cations, and saves money in the long run. It also makes my job easier and more enjoyable. The OR equipment upgrades not only make my job easier but, most im- portantly, it improves patient care and satisfaction.” In a recent speech before the Mens Guild 100, Davis said he sincerely appreciated the ef- fort and contributions the group makes to Wallowa Memorial Hospital. “It’s encouraging to know people like you are willing to support an outsider from the Midwest and make him feel wel- come in a new place.” And he has felt welcome. “I decided to become an orthopedic surgeon so I could help people return to doing the things in life they love or things they simply need to do to live a normal life. Your kindness and generosity plays a significant role in helping me to do so,” Davis told the guild. Making the right choices the easy choices By Kenneth Rose and Emily Sheahan For The Chieftain Wallowa Memorial Hospital has been focusing on the health and wellness of our community over the past few years in part by providing the Complete Health ,PSURYHPHQW 3URJUDP &+,3 and now by focusing on helping our community become a “Blue Zone.” Dan Buettner is a world renowned explorer and author who has written several books on the “Blue Zones,” the focus in a National Geographic article that GHVFULEHG WKH ¿YH %OXH =RQHV around the world where there are more people who are living active lives well into their 100s. Buettner subsequently has done a lot of research into what were some commonalities be- tween the lifestyle habits of these ¿YH %OXH =RQHV +H IRXQG QLQH common habits or practices called the “Power Nine,” which include moving naturally, having a pur- pose, eating a plant-slant diet and having strong social ties. Courtesy photo Dr. Kenneth D. Rose In his most recent book, “Blue Zone Solutions,” he shares how they have incorporated the nine practices into communities across the United States in order to help people live longer and healthier lives. “It’s not just how long we live, it’s also how well we live,” Buettner writes. “People in the Blue Zones cultures not only live longer lives, they often live better lives, with health, meaning and love — dying young as old as possible.” Buettner emphasizes that the majority of those living over 100 years in these Blue Zones are not trying to do so, they just do it be- cause their cultures are such that “the healthy choice is the easy choice. ... The path to a long, healthy life comes from creating an environment around yourself, your family and your community that nudges you into following the right behaviors subtly and relentlessly ...” If Americans could follow the examples of the people in the Blue Zones they could lose an average of 20 pounds, cut their rates of heart disease in half and suffer about a ¿IWKWKHUDWHRIGLDEHWHVDQGFHUWDLQ cancers. With those kinds of health EHQH¿WVZKRZRXOGQ¶WZDQWWROLYH in that kind of environment? On Feb. 9 a team from the Or- egon Blue Zones Project shared a presentation at Cloverleaf Hall in Enterprise. To become a Blue Zone, a com- munity must involve individuals, city departments, businesses, gro- cery stores and restaurants in pledg- ing to make changes to what we eat, how we exercise and relate to one another. A Blue Zone community requires a pledge and action from 20 percent of citizens, 50 percent of top 20 employers, 25 percent of independent restaurants, 25 percent of public schools and 25 percent of grocery stores. The pledge includes a checklist of lifestyle changes, community and business projects, as well as menu and product chang- es to promote healthier lifestyles. As health care practitioners, we are excited to take part in continu- ing to help our community make healthy choices for a longer and healthier life. This is an exciting opportunity for our community and we are hoping that individuals, businesses and schools will join the movement. We encourage you to JRWRWKH%OXH=RQHZHEVLWHZZZ bluezonesproject.com) and learn more about how each of us can get involved. Kenneth D. Rose, MD, is a general surgeon at Mountain View Medical Group in Enter- prise. Dr. Emily Sheahan, MD is Family Medicine/Obstetrics specialist at Mountain View Medical Group. 10 || Family Health Guide 2016
