Wound Healing Center

Allied Health Services
812.353.2870-- 2920 McIntire Drive, Suite 103, Bloomington

Bloomington Hospital's Wound Healing Center offers a range of intensive therapies for treatment of wounds - these advanced therapies are not available anywhere else in southern Indiana.

NEW! Meet one of our patients and learn about our services.

The regional wound care professionals at the center provide a multidisciplinary approach to wound healing. The team includes physicians, nurse practitioners, hyperbaric technologists, registered nurses, physical therapists, and others. It offers aggressive and comprehensive wound management, while working in partnership with your health care provider.

Wounds are carefully assessed using laboratory testing, vascular diagnostics, nutritional screening, and radiographic imaging. Transcutaneous oxygen monitoring is another service unique to the center that can measure oxygen in the tissues. This assessment can be useful in wound management, to assess the appropriateness of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, to assess the ability of the tissue to heal itself, and as part of a complete vascular work-up.

Treatment options offered at the Wound Care Center include:

• Hyperbaric Oxygen Chamber
• Innovative wound care techniques (such as growth factors)
• Application of the latest in wound care products
• Total contact casting for pressure related wounds in the extremities
• Negative pressure wound therapy
• Compression therapy
• Onsite Physical therapy
  

Hyperbaric Oxygen Chamber
The Bloomington hospital wound healing center has the only hyperbaric chamber in south central Indiana. It is a state-of-the-art Sechrist 3200 monolplace chamber, capable of comfortably treating an array of patients. The patients are monitored at all times by a hyperbaric technologist and treatment response is evaluated by a nurse practitioner and/or physician.

The wound healing center prefers that you be referred by your health care provider to maintain a collaborative approach to your wound management. The following referral types are available:

• Evaluation with recommendations (for the referring health care provider to follow).
• Evaluation and wound management by the wound care practitioners.
• Evaluation and recommendations relating to hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
• Evaluation using transcutaneous oxygen monitoring.

Referrals can be made by calling 812.353.2870 or 800.718.0220; Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

REPRINT FROM AdvancingHealth, Summer 2007:

Wound Healing Center offers innovative, advanced treatments
Patients travel from across Indiana for care

“There are people who do walk with two prostheses, but I don’t want to be one of them,” says Larry Yarnell.

Since the age of 15, Larry Yarnell, of Brazil, Ind., has had to cope with diabetes and many of its side effects.  In his early 40’s, Yarnell’s kidneys shut down forcing him to endure dialysis treatments for 15 months before receiving a kidney from his eldest daughter.  Nine years later, he developed a diabetic ulcer on his left foot, and today uses a prosthesis on his lower left leg and foot in order to walk.  Currently, Yarnell is working with Bloomington Hospital’s Wound Healing Center to treat a new ulcer on his right foot, with the goal of healing the wound completely and saving his foot.

“There are people who do walk with two prostheses, but I don’t want to be one of them,” says Yarnell.

Since the ulcer on his right foot developed in November 2006, Yarnell has had four surgeries on his foot, during which two infected bones were removed.  After working with a podiatrist in Terre Haute for about four months, Yarnell decided to transfer his care to Bloomington Podiatrist Matthew Parmenter, D.P.M., who recommended hyperbaric therapy in order to help the ulcer begin to heal.

While a center in Terre Haute offers a hyperbaric chamber for patients like Yarnell, he chose Bloomington Hospital’s Wound Healing Center and its hyperbaric chamber for care.

“Dr. Parmenter referred me to the Wound Healing Center and within an hour staff from the Center had called me to set up an appointment for the next day.  I met with them to make sure the type of care they provide would be appropriate for me, and the following day I had my first treatment in the hyperbaric chamber,” Yarnell says.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is one of the most advanced services offered at the Wound Healing Center.  Patients with diabetic non-healing wounds, like the one on Yarnell’s right foot, are most often treated in the chamber, but those suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning, bone infections that are not responding to surgery or antibiotics, or muscle or skin damage from radiation are also candidates for treatment with the hyperbaric oxygen chamber.

The healing power of the hyperbaric oxygen chamber simply stems from oxygen itself.

“The air we breathe is comprised of about 21 percent oxygen at one atmosphere of pressure.  In the hyperbaric oxygen chamber, patients breathe 100 percent oxygen at a pressure of two to three atmospheres,” explains Dr. Parmenter.  “This allows more oxygen to be dissolved in the blood’s plasma and increases the amount of oxygen that is carried to tissue throughout the body.  The result is improvement in the body’s ability to respond to infection, grow tissue, heal wounds and eliminate certain poisons.”

After receiving 35 treatments in the hyperbaric oxygen chamber, Yarnell’s wound is well on its way to healing.He continues to work with the nurse practitioners at the hospital’s Wound Healing Center to stimulate tissue growth and further heal the ulcer.

“Right now, we’re using a bioengineered skin substitute called Apligraf to promote the healing of Larry’s wound,” says Angela Hipskind, NP, nurse practitioner at the Center.

Yarnell’s wound is monitored weekly by the nurse practitioners at the Wound Healing Center, and treatment plans are adjusted according to his needs.

“I like that the Wound Healing Center is innovative and trying new things.  These treatments aren’t done everywhere,” says Yarnell.  “And, the people are wonderful.  They’re helpful and kind and don’t treat me as just a number.  They make me feel like a human being because I know they care about me.  It’s one of the best experiences I’ve had.”

In addition to hyperbaric oxygen therapy, Bloomington Hospital’s Wound Healing Center offers innovative wound care techniques, application of the latest wound care products, total contact casting for pressure-related wounds, negative pressure wound therapy, compression therapy and on-site physical therapy.