Larkin Community Hospital, Inc.

FORT MYERS, Fla., July 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute, LLC (FCS) is pleased to announce that board-certified hematologist and medical oncologist Francis Matuszak, DO has joined the statewide practice. He is providing care to patients at the FCS Ocala Cancer Center, 4945 SW 49th Place, Ocala, FL 34474 and our FCS Ocala office, 1630 SE 18th St. Ste 602, Ocala FL 34471. Continue Reading Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute welcomes Francis Matuszak, DO to its Ocala office locations. Dr. Matuszak will be providing care to patients at the Ocala Cancer Center and Ocala office. Nathan H. Walcker, FCS chief executive officer, said, "We are delighted to welcome Dr. Matuszak to our team of top cancer experts in Marion County, where FCS is proud to provide a comprehensive range of services and the most advanced treatments that enable patients to achieve the best possible outcomes." Dr. Matuszak received his medical degree from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton, Florida. He completed internal medicine residency training and a fellowship in hematology and oncology at Larkin Community Hospital in Miami and was named chief resident and chief fellow. He has specialized training as an HIV specialist from the American Association of HIV Medicine. FCS President & Managing Physician Lucio Gordan, MD said, "Dr. Matuszak joins us with solid credentials and a commitment to supporting patients and their families through every step of their treatment journey." To learn more about Dr. Matuszak, click here. About Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute, LLC: (FLCancer.com) Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute (FCS) offers patients access to more clinical trials than any private oncology practice in Florida. The majority of new cancer drugs recently approved for use in the U.S. were studied in clinical trials with FCS participation.* Recognized for our research, FCS is a recipient of the national Clinical Trials Participation Award presented by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). FCS physicians, trained in prestigious medical schools and research institutes, are consistently ranked nationally as Top Doctors by U.S. News & World Report. Celebrating its 40th year in 2024, FCS has built a national reputation for excellence that is reflected in exceptional and compassionate patient care, driven by innovative clinical research, cutting-edge technologies and advanced treatments, including targeted therapies genomic-based treatment and immunotherapy. Our highest values are embodied by our outstanding team of highly trained and dedicated physicians, clinicians and staff. *Prior to approval SOURCE Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute

MIAMI, June 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Larkin Community Hospital Palm Springs Campus (LCHPSC) announced the opening of a new cardiac catheterization lab that will provide rapid and comprehensive care to hundreds of heart patients every year for life-threatening emergencies and scheduled cardiac procedures. The cardiac catheterization lab, will transform treatment for patients in the growing community of Hialeah by vastly improving access to cardiac care in the surrounding area. Dr. Brian Valle, has been named the Director of the LCHPSC Catheterization Lab and leads a team of twenty specialists including interventional cardiologists, nurses, and technicians. The hospital's interventional cardiologist are some of the most experienced in Miami Dade County. "Our team is thrilled that LCHPSC will now be a destination for world class cardiac care, by offering the advanced cardiac services of elective and emergency coronary intervention 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," explains Dr. Brian Valle. A catheterization lab or "cath lab" is critical for treating heart attack patients whose artery suddenly becomes blocked, leading to loss of blood flow in the heart muscle. They require an urgent, minimally invasive stenting procedure called percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) that is performed in the cath lab. The stent serves as a scaffold to open the blocked artery and restores blood flow to preserve heart muscle function; otherwise, the heart may be permanently damaged. The life-saving and usually painless stenting procedure offers a quick recovery and return home, and improves a patient's quality of life. The LCHPSC Catheterization Laboratory also provides a variety of elective procedures for hundreds of additional heart patients. These include stenting for severely blocked coronary arteries that cause chest pain or shortness of breath; catheterizations to measure function in heart failure patients to better manage their symptoms; and implanting pacemakers and defibrillators in patients with abnormal heart rhythms. The experienced cardiac team at LCHPSC can also take care of STEMI patients. STEMI which stands for ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction, is a serious heart attack caused by lack of blood flow to large areas of the heart. Our STEMI team is composed of Techs, Nurses, and Doctors all with extensive years of treating these complicated STEMI patients. Patients experiencing these critical types of heart attacks can get potentially lifesaving care by re-opening blocked arteries in less than 90 minutes, which is the national standard. "Larkin Community Hospital Palm Springs Campus has made significant strides in enhancing its cardiac care services. By expanding its Cardiology Division to include a full-service catheterization laboratory and taking care of STEMI patients, the hospital is equipped with advanced technology and highly trained staff to promptly diagnose and treat heart attack patients," says Yoely Hernandez, CEO at Larkin Community Hospital Palm Springs Campus. "This accomplishment not only demonstrates the institution's commitment to providing quality healthcare but also showcases its resilience in bouncing back from the challenges posed by the pandemic, especially in a city like Hialeah, which was hit particularly hard. It's indeed a remarkable achievement that reflects the dedication and efforts of everyone involved in our Hospital." SOURCE Larkin Community Hospital Palm Springs

The US Government Accountability Office has made four recommendations to the FDA and HHS to improve their oversight of institutional review boards’ (IRBs) own inspections of research studies, according to a new report . IRBs are meant to keep a sharp eye on the ethics and safety of research studies involving human patients, from behavioral studies to clinical trials, including overseeing overall conduct and maintaining data integrity. The FDA and the HHS’ Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) oversees IRBs using either routine or for-cause inspections to make sure the IRBs, in turn, are following federal laws when they’re reviewing research that involves humans. The issue with the current system, according to the GAO, is that “few” of the 2,300 US-based IRBs are inspected by the HHS and FDA each year. The agencies also lack self-reflection, the GAO says in its report — the agencies haven’t taken a look at themselves to see if they are doing the necessary number of inspections or if how inspections are done should be changed to reduce risks to patients during trials. OHRP’s “aim” is to do three or four IRB routine inspections each year and the FDA has done, on average, 133 inspections annually between fiscal years 2010 and 2021. That might not be enough, according to the GAO. Neither agency is doing internal reviews to make sure that their work overseeing the IRBs is effective, with the report adding that “Such an approach would be consistent with federal risk management principles.” The GAO made three recommendations for HHS, including that the assistant secretary for HHS should make sure that protocol data collected in OHRP’s IRB registry are accurate and ensure that the OHRP conducts an annual risk assessment to determine whether the agency is doing enough routine IRB inspections. The secretary of HHS should make sure that the FDA and HHS look at whether the IRB is effective in protecting human patients by bringing together multiple stakeholders and potentially implement effectiveness measures or peer audits of IRB meetings and decisions, according to the GAO. The FDA is also included in the recommendations — the GAO says the FDA commissioner should conduct a risk assessment annually to make sure the agency is inspecting IRBs frequently enough. Just last month, the FDA warned an IRB in South Florida after the agency found the Larkin Community Hospital Institutional Review Board went against requirements by reviewing and approving research at meetings that did not have a majority of members present.