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SPRINGFIELD – Mercy Health – Springfield announced April 4 it will begin offering Interventional Neurology to help diagnose and treat diseases of the brain, spinal cord, nerves and muscles.

As part of this service line expansion, Mercy Health is proud to welcome aboard Dr. Jody Short as well as nurse practitioners Michelle Caesar and Erin Jordan.

“The arrival of these new providers is very exciting, as it marks the beginning of a new aspect of care that Mercy Health can now offer Springfield and surrounding areas,” said Chase Collins, Director of Neurosciences at Mercy Health – Springfield. “Not only does this give patients more choice when it comes to where they can go to receive care for their cerebrovascular disease, it also means improved clinical outcomes in our community which helps us live up to our mission of providing all patients with the best care possible.”

Interventional Neurology is a subspecialty that utilizes catheters and radiology to diagnose and treat various conditions that impact the central nervous system, such as strokes. Someone in American suffers a stroke about every 40 seconds. It’s a leading cause of death and serious long-term disability in the United States. Strokes are typically caused by an interruption of blood flow to the brain. Many times, the treatment involves a drug to break up the clot and restore blood flow. However, in some cases, neurointerventional radiology is used to assist in restoring brain function.

“We like to say time is brain because stroke treatment is extremely time sensitive. It is important that our program maximizes efficiency so that the appropriate care can be delivered in the shortest time possible, because the faster we can treat it, the greater your chance of survival and future quality of life,” explained Collins.

The new team of providers will be headed up by Dr. Short, a graduate of the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific at the Western University of Health Sciences. He has been practicing medicine for more than two decades. Meanwhile, Michelle Caesar, APRN-CNP, is a highly skilled nurse practitioner with 25 years of health care experience who specializes in vascular neurology. Rounding out the team is Erin Jordan, APRN-CNP, a family nurse practitioner with more than 15 years of experience in vascular neurology, neuro intervention, urgent care, intensive-care, neuro-critical care, and neuroscience.

With this new program, the Mercy Health team will be able to utilize tools that pass through the blood vessels along with advanced radiology imaging and 3D technology to help them see and treat areas within the body via minimally invasive procedures rather than using open surgery.

For example, diagnostics like cerebral angiograms will be available to show how blood is flowing in the patient’s neck and brain vessels to determine if they are diseased, narrowed, enlarged, or blocked. Using a catheter, an interventional neurologist can also stop a ruptured aneurysm from continuing to bleed or remove clots manually to restore blood flow and brain function immediately.

“Saving a person’s life is ultimately the most rewarding. It is also so rewarding to be a part of a patient’s progression following a stroke to help them heal and overcome disability and prevent future strokes,” said Caesar.

Mercy Health – Springfield Regional Medical Center is a Stroke GOLD PLUS achievement award winner – a distinction that recognizes a hospital’s commitment and success ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized and researched-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence. Mercy Health – Springfield also partners with Ohio State Medical Center to ensure a board-certified stroke neurologist is available, 24/7. To learn more about stroke treatment and care options provided at Mercy Health, visit mercy.com.

Info from Mercy Health