Author Archives: Robyn Marlow

There are a lot of things that make Ruleville special. We love the special feeling you get when you walk up to people you know downtown. We take pride in neighbor helping neighbor and rallying around friends in good times and bad. We love that feeling when the hot summer gives way to crisp, cooler fall.

All of these things make Ruleville special to us. But what makes Ruleville truly one of a kind is the Great Ruleville Roast. Just like our town, the little barbeque contest that started in 2005 keeps growing every year. This year’s contest will be our own Ruleville twist on a Hawaiian Luau.

Championship smokers, basters, tasters and everyday eaters will be serenaded by the Trailer Park Disco Band Friday night from 6:30 to 9:30 pm. Then at 9:45 pm check out the fireworks show behind Bumpers on Hwy 8.

If you’re hungry, Saturday morning, the Ruleville-Drew Rotary hosts a pancake breakfast at the historic Depot from 6:30 to 9:00 am. The day is filled with activities for the kids, a classic car, truck and tractor show, a Steak Cook-off with a One-Bite Rice Competition and dozens of other activities. We’ve had more vendors register than ever before, and all of them will do a great job of making sure you stay well-fed and entertained.

Healthy living and healthy appetites go hand in hand. So the 5k Run/Walk is the perfect opportunity to walk off some of the delicious food you eat. Started in 2010, the Great Ruleville Run/Walk is just one way North Sunflower Medical Center encourages everyone in our community to lead a fit lifestyle.

Registration begins early Saturday morning around 7:00 am and park opens at 9:00 am. It will be a full day of live music, including a gospel group, a marching band and all kinds of arts and crafts. The highly-anticipated awards ceremony is at 5:00 pm.

We hope families from across the delta will join our North Sunflower Medical Center to celebrate the town we are proud to call home.

by Dr. Sallyann Jessie Ganpot, MD

This is hardly a new phenomenon, or a new health crisis the entire medical field is just learning about. If you hadn’t noticed, Ruleville gets hot in the summer. Very hot. Even if you come from a tropical environment like I do, coping with Mississippi summer heat can be a challenge.

Heat and heat related illness can be a serious health hazard that disproportionally affects children and older family members. As we get hot, our body tries to maintain its normal temperature by transferring heat by increasing blood flow to the skin and sweating. Heat related illness occurs when our nervous systems can’t keep up with the changes in temperature to keep our bodies cool.

Young children and babies do not produce sweat as easily as the rest of us, and older adults often have conditions that make it more difficult to transfer heat. If your job requires you work outside in the heat, the results can range from rather simple (heat rash, swelling, cramps, fainting) to much more serious. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are serious medical emergencies that can be life threatening even with immediate treatment.

Tips for Beating the Summer Heat

Here are some North Sunflower Medical Center tips to help keep your children cool this summer, and beat the summer heat:

• Hydrate! HYDRATE!! The is no better cooling source than good old fashioned water. The recommended daily amount of fluids is 5 glasses for 5 to 8-year-olds; 7 glasses for 9 to 12-year-olds; and 8 to 10 glasses for 13+ years.
• Plan your day around the heat. Instead of gathering together for a movie at night, catch a matinee – in the air-conditioning – during the hottest part of the day. Have them play outside early in the morning or after sunset.
• Eat cold foods during the day, with snacks and meals that don’t require turning on the oven. Salads and fruits are easier to digest than fatty burgers, which makes us feel sluggish. This will not only help keep their bodies cool but help keep your house cooler as well.
• Have them dressed right for the heat. The best way to cool their bodies is to have sweat evaporate directly from skin to air. Wear loose, lightweight clothes in light colors.
• If kids are stuck in the heat and can’t find get to a cooler place, apply ice cubes wrapped in a towel (or any other cold object) to the neck and wrist. This can make their bodies cool down more quickly and effectively.
• Sunscreen is also very important. A zinc containing, PABA free compound is preferred. It should be applied to the skin before going out and it should also be allowed to dry. If you go in the water, you’ll have to reapply. SPF 30 and higher is usually recommended.
• Remember one childhood sunburn increases your risk of skin cancer by 20-40%.

Other Medical Concerns

For older members of your family living with conditions such as diabetes, heart disease or being overweight all change the way our bodies cool themselves. Some medications reduce blood flow to the skin or cause us to lose our sense of thirst. If you are taking regular medications ask your doctor if your prescriptions might change the way you deal with heat related illness.

For most kids, being out of school with all day to play with friends makes summer the most fun time of year. Taking just a few simple steps can keep your children safe – and out of the hospital – all through the long, hot days of summer.

Remember, Sunflower Clinic is open EVERYDAY 8 am – midnight. Dr. Ganpot is available Monday – Friday, call (662) 756-1788 for an appointment.

UPDATE!!!

Thanks for visiting this page. These job openings are from June 2017. Please go to our Careers page to see the latest jobs that are available.  And tell your friends to keep checking back from time to time.  We are always looking for outstanding people who want to help be part of the North Sunflower family.

We Need Your Help. Lots of It.

North Sunflower Medical Center is on a hiring spree. We just re-launched our Careers page.

Truth be told, this is not the first time we’ve gone on a hiring binge. Over the past year, North Sunflower Medical Center created quite a few new jobs. We also work hard to provide training and advancement opportunities so we can provide the best care anywhere. That means we are frequently looking to fill the positions of people who have moved into higher level jobs and improved their careers.

Some hospitals may see that as a problem. At North Sunflower Medical Center, we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Jobs at North Sunflower Medical Center offer good pay and even better benefits. As our website says, If you work at North Sunflower long enough, people say everybody starts to treat each other like one big family. We share a commitment to providing our patients with the best care possible. We all work hard to get better at our jobs every day and agree that you are never too old to stop learning. And we feel part of the Ruleville community because it is so connected to who we are. If that sounds like you, then we’d love to have you become one of us.

ICMY (In Case You Missed It): The Aster Awards

You might have noticed our latest round of advertising around town. Well, you’re not alone. A few weeks ago, North Sunflower Medical Center was awarded seven Aster Awards, honoring excellence in healthcare advertising. We were particularly proud of the recognition we got for the design of the Great Ruleville Roast T-shirt, but the Aster committee took special notice of a number of our community outreach campaigns including two of our TV commercials (“Man on the Street”, “Man on the Street 2” ), Dr. Jason Morris’ educational video (“Central Venous Line Placement”) and even our post last Christmas on this blog (“Blue Christmas: Four Tips for Reducing Anxiety During the Holidays”).

The Aster Awards is a medical marketing awards program recognizing healthcare marketing professionals for outstanding excellence in advertising.

You can view a complete list of Aster Award winners here: (https://www.asterawards.com/winners/).

You know that feeling when a relative gets married, and all the sudden it feels like you’ve got a whole new part of your family. Pretty soon, you find out you have more in common than you knew. Before you know it, you feel like you’ve been part of the same big family all along?

We started the Mississippi Center for Advanced Medicine in 2016 because we saw too many families all over Mississippi not able to get specialty care close to home. Wait times are long, and many families can’t afford to drive to Jackson, Memphis or Little Rock so their children could meet with medical specialists.

Having a child with an illness puts an incredible strain on a family. Now add a four or five-hour car ride on top of the financial stress every time your son, daughter or grandchild needs see a specialist. We knew that getting great care right here in the Delta would not only make for healthier children, it would make happier families too.

There has never been a children’s pediatric subspecialist in the Mississippi Delta to our knowledge. Too many families in the Delta are forced to let their children’s serious diseases go untreated for too long. That means time out of school and long-term impacts on the child’s health and wellbeing. But mostly, it’s just hard to be a kid when you’re sick.

When we wanted to help tackle this problem, there are a bunch of reasons North Sunflower Medical Center just jumped off the page for us. We immediately recognized them as a center of excellence in the Delta. And mostly, their commitment to Ruleville and the surrounding communities was heartening to us.

The team at North Sunflower understand how hard childhood illness can be — on not just parents and their children, but also the strain brothers and sisters as well. When their parents focus all their attention on caring for a sick child that has an impact on the whole family.

Anyone can see North Sunflower Medical Center’s commitment to constant innovation and to find new ways to provide the best care possible. They saw this problem just like we did, and we wanted to work with them to help fix it. If you are interested in our new services at North Sunflower Medical Center, you can make an appointment by calling us at (601) 499-0935 or in Ruleville at (662) 756-4000.

We are thrilled to be in Ruleville and to be part of the new — slightly bigger — North Sunflower family.

By Robyn Marlow

One thing we all love about being part of the North Sunflower Community is the feeling of family. We enjoy giving a little bit of ourselves to help one another.

Even when household budgets make it hard to give to all the charitable causes we would like, those of us in the North Sunflower family find a way to help one another when they need it most. This week is a great example of how anyone can help your neighbor without it taking too much time, or breaking your budget.

Mississippi Blood Services Blood Drive

Mississippi Blood Services will be holding a blood drive at North Sunflower Medical Center. Supplies of platelets, O+ and B+ are facing a severe shortage, and supplies of O- are critically low.

The Blood Drive is on Thursday, March 23^rd at 840 N. Oak Ave from noon to 6:00. It usually takes about 30 minutes, and we always have friendly staff on hand to provide juice and cookies after you’ve donated.

Mississippi Blood Services Blood Drive

At North Sunflower Medical Center

840 N. Oak Ave, Ruleville, MS

Thursday, March 23^rd from noon to 6:00

How Giving Blood Helps

We all see huge blood drives when there is a natural disaster in faraway places in the world. But blood is such an important part of how we treat patients. The need for blood donors is constant right here in Mississippi. And because blood can only be stored for a limited amount of time, there is a constant need for regular donations.

Giving blood helps you as well – not just other people. Giving blood is a great opportunity to get a mini-checkup, check your pulse and blood pressure, and check your iron and hemoglobin levels. Your blood will be checked for any infectious diseases, like West Nile virus. If anything shows up, you’ll be notified immediately. All for free.

Blood donated this week at North Sunflower Medical Center will go to help women with complications during pregnancy, children with severe anemia; accident victims with severe trauma, and many complex medical and surgical procedures we do right here at North Sunflower.

Studies show that three lives can be saved by one donation. Even if you are not type O or type B, or if you don’t know what type blood you have, the blood you give will help save a life.

A message from North Sunflower CEO, Sam Miller:

We are honored beyond description that the Mississippi Nurses’ Association, and the Mississippi Nurses’ Foundation this week recognized North Sunflower Medical Center as their Hospital of the Year. Of course, it’s always a blessing when others take notice of your commitment and dedication. But the Nightingale Award was particularly exciting for our family here at North Sunflower.

North Sunflower Medical Scholarship Program

This award happened because the entire North Sunflower community made a commitment to providing the best care available by hiring good people, and training them to be their best. The North Sunflower Scholarship Program is just one part of that commitment. As Sandra Britt has said, “We want to keep everybody growing and learning. Growing never stops.” As Chairman of the North Sunflower Foundation’s Scholarship Committee, Sandra often says she just loves to “watch people sprout wings and grow.”

Nightingale Award is a Team Effort

Of course, we’re proud of every member of the North Sunflower family. We value the commitment they make to providing the best care anywhere. Awards like this are a team effort and the honor is spread equally throughout this entire community. We know that nurses are most often on the front lines of providing quality health care and personalized service. The commitment and sacrifice to help others is an inspiration to me and everyone else who works here.

But it takes a very strong team around them — from the housekeeping staff, to the administrative team, to the doctors and practitioners — all working together with nurses to provide each individual patient the best care possible. That’s what makes this award so special.

By Ginny Pantin, LCSW

It feels like just weeks ago, we were ringing in the new year and making resolutions to do better in 2017. Now that the champagne bottles have been carted off, confetti has all been swept up, and you’ve gotten back into your normal post-holiday groove, late January is usually the time people start to fall off their New Year’s resolution wagon.

by Virginia Pantin, LCSW

As the old song goes, It’s the most wonderful time of the year. The Holidays are a time to be together with family, exchange gifts and reminisce about Christmases past.

Wow, that’s a lot of pressure.

We all love the holidays, but the difference between what Christmas is supposed to be and what it usually is can create real anxiety. In spending time with family, there is a tendency to focus on who is NOT with you, instead of enjoying those who are.

I talk with a lot of people around the North Sunflower family who tell me they miss the days when Christmas was a time to be a kid again. The parents and grandparents we celebrated with when we were younger are no longer with us, and our own children grow up and start their own families. That can create a sense of loss as we remember the warm glow of Christmases past.

Throw on top of that, the pressure of tightened family budgets, the need to give to many charitable causes this time of year and the natural desire to get that perfect gift for everyone on your list, December can turn us all into a bundle of nerves. Ugh.

How to Fight Off Holiday Anxiety

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

First, know that we all feel this way.

To begin to untie that ball of anxiety, understand why its stressful, and know that you are not alone. Talk to any friend, and you’ll find more than likely they feel the same way. Knowing you are not the only one in the world who finds the holidays can be less than postcard perfect may be the best stress reliever there is.

Be mindful of what is causing anxiety so that you can accept the pressure and create a plan to make it better.

Shorter days and less sunlight impact all of our moods in ways that we don’t immediately recognize. Take time throughout the day to get out and see the sun. Go for a short walk around the North Sunflower Medical Center walking track during lunch or go out for coffee during the day. Do that with a friend and not only are you combatting the lack of sunlight, but you’re also fighting off loneliness that hits people this time of year. And exercise can give you a sense of control and power over anxiety any time of year.

If seeing your friends picture perfect posts on social media gives you a fear of missing out, limit your time on Facebook or Twitter.

Use that time to talk to the people around you and hear more about how they are feeling this time of year.

Lastly, own your feelings.

It’s perfectly acceptable to be stressed out over holiday decorations, finding the right gift and getting the decorations just like you want them to be. Enjoy those close friends that are with you instead of lamenting those that can’t be with us. Talk to friends about how you feel. And if you don’t feel like talking to a friend, call us here at North Sunflower Behavior Health Services (662-756-1630). We’re always happy to talk.

It is a magical time of year.  But even Christmas Miracles can’t happen without someone – or something – being in need of a miracle.  Knowing that even Christmas isn’t perfect is the best way to fight off the Holiday blues.

Nancy Moon
Director, Sunflower Diagnostic Center

Have you ever taken your mom and sister out for a day at the spa, or an afternoon shopping, or maybe just a girls lunch with the women in your family? Well, what I’m going to suggest is not as fun or relaxing as any of those, but it is much more important.

Studies show that if a member of your family (sister, mother, or grandmother) has breast cancer, your chances of developing the disease yourself double. That’s right. Double.

So, no, I’m not going to try to tell you that an afternoon getting mammography’s with the girls can be like a day at the nail salon. But you should do it anyway, as a family.

At North Sunflower Medical Center, we do everything we can to pamper our patients, treat your family like our family, and make it a relaxing, positive experience for everyone that walks through our doors.

Because October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, women can get a mammography for $75. We work with several insurance companies and other local programs to get the cost even lower. We have some of the most advanced medical screening equipment in the Delta, and we have worked hard to make our facilities feel warm and welcoming.

And because we know people just don’t have a lot of time, we can make appointments for mammographies, bone density scannings, pelvis ultrasounds and pap smears all on the same day.

All of us at North Sunflower Medical Center want to make sure that no mother, sister or grandmother ever has an excuse to NOT get a mammogram.

If you had a late pregnancy, no pregnancy, have a family history of breast cancer, or meet other risk factors, your insurance company may pay for annual mammograms over the age of 35. Either way, all women over 40 should have a mammogram annually.

Early detection is the key. Our technology can detect a small cancerous mass in the ducts, before it reaches the nodes of a breast, and long before it spreads to other parts of the body. That can make all the difference.

That’s why North Sunflower Medical Center is offering mammograms for $75 during breast cancer awareness month. And the rest of the year they are $99. We work hard to keep preventative health affordable. Because, like I said, we want to take away every excuse to NOT get a mammogram.

Richey Wood – Certified Physical Trainer

“How could my child have a concussion? He was never knocked out.”

As a certified Athletic Trainer, I’ve seen otherwise caring parents push their child back into a competition, believing their young athlete to be fine. Our parents and coaches used to tell us, “you just got your bell rung”. We now know it’s much more serious.

The clearest sign we can offer of an athletic head injury is the feeling that something just isn’t quite right. Some symptoms are more obvious. It’s easier to spot a headache or dizziness. But frequently, only family members can detect the most troubling signs of a head injury. They know their young athlete is reacting or behaving ‘off-their-game’.

With the fall season, a host of youth sports activities return. Coaches, trainers, and school administrators have been closely studying the impact of head trauma related to soccer, softball, diving, cheerleading and a host of other competitive collision sports following the growing awareness of football concussion dangers.

Concussion Guidelines

Certified Athletic Trainers work with schools and athletic leagues. They help protect our young men and women competing in any sport from injury. Every year, the Mississippi High School Activity Association (MHSAA) updates their concussion policy and protocol for any head injury involving a young athlete.

These guidelines will continue evolving as we learn more about the causes and impacts of concussions. For these guidelines to be most effective, parents and family members must be aware of concussion signs and symptoms. Familiarity will help identify when the child should see the doctor. It also aids collaboration with the coach, who ensures schools follow proper protocols and procedures at school.

With any injury, rest is the most effective treatment. Resting a brain means avoiding stimulation from brightly lit rooms, video games, cell phones, and other electronic devices.

Well-established guidelines for return-to-play exist across the state. Unfortunately, research around return-to-learn is still evolving for student-athletes. Forcing athletes to miss a test or skip homework because they were injured in an extracurricular activity is academic punishment. When is it OK to start exercising the brain after an injury? For now, the answer is unknown.

Richey Wood is a Certified Athletic Trainer with the Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center. To request an appointment at MSM’s Ruleville clinic at North Sunflower Medical Center, go to www.mississippisportsmedicine.com.

I wanted to take a minute to tell you about a pretty special day we had this week. On Tuesday morning, a good number of the amazing people on what we like to call “Team North Sunflower” took a few minutes to celebrate North Sunflower Medical Center being named the Mississippi Hospital Association’s Outstanding Rural Hospital of the Year.

In the Beacon Wellness Center, we welcomed MHA president and CEO Timothy Moore, a number of local dignitaries from all across the Delta and some from even further across Mississippi. We had some wonderful cake and summer-tea. I especially enjoyed sharing my sincere thanks with the truly dedicated professionals who consistently come to work every day fully committed to making North Sunflower what it is today. They make real the vision of Mr. Billy Marlow, our Executive Director. He is a very humble and capable soul who has been the architect of our entire system. Thru his dedication and tireless efforts have improved the lives of so many.

Mississippi Hospital Association – Outstanding Rural Hospital Award Video from Jim Burt on Vimeo.

The Highest Levels of Service and Quality

And then (as soon as lunch was over) we went right back to work, providing the highest levels of service and quality – EVERYDAY, EVERYWHERE, TO EVERY PERSON, IN EVERYTHING WE DO.

You see, we recognize there are a number of good healthcare providers in the Delta. But you put your trust in us. To keep it, North Sunflower Medical Center will continue to invest in technology and specialty services. Our goal is to enhance the overall health of Sunflower County and the many surrounding communities.

We believe in exceptional patient-centered care, utilizing current clinical best practices, expanding clinical services through partnerships, and remaining a vibrant Community Health Organization centered on improving the lives of people in the Delta. We maintain our commitment to provide excellent, predictable and measurable health care services delivered by competent and compassionate professionals.

As an old man once said, “If we’d wanted applause, we’d have joined the circus”. We’re proud of the recognition, happy that people beyond Ruleville see our hard work, and are always pleased to celebrate as a team. We know sustaining your trust is a tall order. Our dedicated team members commit themselves to consistently maintaining these principles. They show up daily, work hard and are passionate about our mission. And I’m truly blessed to be a part of their team.

Thank you.

Sam Miller, CEO

There’s no question you have to be a little creative to be a small-town hospital these days.

At North Sunflower Medical Center, we believe people in small towns in Mississippi have the same rights to quality treatment as people living in Jackson or Biloxi. We also believe quality care means providing as many services as possible.

The way we see it, it’s not quality care if you can get treatment in Ruleville for some things but then still have to drive to Greenville or Memphis for others. That’s why we want to provide exceptional care for as many ailments, illnesses, maladies, accidents, aches, pains or general discomforts as possible – no matter how many (or how few) patients need them.

That’s where the creativity comes into play.

Mississippi Sports Medicine Comes to North Sunflower Medical Center

When Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center reached out to us looking for clinic space, we jumped at the chance for a partnership. By listening to our patients, we knew Ruleville needed quality orthopedic care. Mississippi Sports Medicine is the only full-service provider of specialized orthopedic care in the state. They share the North Sunflower passion for providing the highest quality of care available.

Their commitment to professionalism and improving technologies make them a great fit for the North Sunflower Medical Center family. And so, starting July 12, you’ll be able to get the best orthopedic care in the state, from the most advanced orthopedic specialists in Mississippi right here in Ruleville.

We’re proud Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center saw Ruleville as a good fit for them. And we’re even more proud that patients in our community can continue to get the best care right here in Ruleville.

Requests for appointments can be made online at www.mississippisportsmedicine.com, via phone at (800) 624-9168, or from the MSM mobile app for iOS and Android.

Jeff D. Almand, M.D.
Hip & Knee Total Joint Specialist

Walter R. Shelton, M.D.
Lower Extremity – Hip and Knee Specialist

James W. O’Mara, M.D.
Lower Extremity – Hip and Knee Specialist

E. Rhett Hobgood, M.D.
Upper Extremity Shoulder and Elbow Specialist