Men are notorious healthcare avoiders.
Women are 100% more likely to visit a doctor for annual exams and preventive services than men, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That is likely a factor in that, according to the CDC, men have higher rates of heart disease, cancer, stroke, and suicide, among other health issues.
We want to change that.
WellSpan offers leading-edge care for your heart, your brain, your colon, and your prostate. We offer care for your emotional health. We have programs to keep you fit and healthy.
Men, take care of yourselves! We are here to help. Here is how:
Heart and stroke care
WellSpan hospitals have been awarded top honors by the American Heart Association for their cardiac and stroke care. Our patient care is aligned with the latest evidence and research-based guidelines. As a participant in the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines programs, WellSpan hospitals demonstrate their commitment to improving quality care.
Our life saving care, leading-edge research, and comprehensive programs are just some of the reasons we are ahead of the game when it comes to heart care.
Just ask Lanny Winters, our very own “miracle man” who survived a devastating heart attack with high tech care, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, emergency open-heart surgery, and complex care from a group of specialists who offered a personalized approach that kept Lanny’s family at the center of their work.
When it comes to stroke care, our trained specialists know that “time is brain,” which is why we have comprehensive and primary stroke centers certified by the Joint Commission or another group called DNV GL Healthcare. Stroke teams arrive at a patient’s bedside within 15 minutes of arrival at each WellSpan hospital and have access to advanced imaging systems and expert stroke physicians, to allow for faster care.
Cancer
WellSpan offers a treatment called a “milestone” in the care of prostate cancer. Called TULSA-PRO, it is a minimally invasive procedure, performed under anesthesia, which uses ultrasound to produce very high temperatures to precisely ablate or destroy cancerous prostate tissue in men with prostate cancer of a certain size and that has not spread beyond the prostate. The high-tech treatment uses a robotic-guided instrument and MRI imaging. WellSpan has performed over 35 successful TULSA-PRO treatments and was just the eighth site in the nation to offer this therapy.
Does the idea of a colonoscopy make you squirm? Rich Creeger, a local genial country music disc jockey, knows how you feel but chose to talk openly to his listeners about getting colonoscopy at WellSpan, and why he’s glad he did it. WellSpan offers an assessment and information that arms you to stay free of colon cancer.
Lung cancer causes more male deaths than any other cancer. WellSpan York Hospital recently added new robotic technology to help detect lung cancer during bronchoscopies. Called Ion, it allows physicians to perform minimally invasive lung biopsy procedures, via a thin, maneuverable catheter that can reach all areas of the lung, even the hard-to-reach sections where more than 70% of cancerous nodules are found. This allows the team to reach, biopsy and diagnose potential cancer, and prepare the area for treatment in the same procedure. When cancer can be detected and diagnosed earlier, it leads to improved treatment outcomes and survival rates for patients.
Parkinson’s disease
The risk of developing Parkinson’s disease for men is 1.5 times higher than it is for women.
WellSpan offers an advanced surgical treatment called deep brain stimulation, which also is used to treat other movement disorders such as essential tremor. A surgeon implants wires in the brain that are attached to a pacemaker-like device implanted in the chest. The wires send impulses to the brain that help to regulate brain activity and lessen symptoms from Parkinson’s disease.
Watch a before-and-after demonstration of how the surgery impacted Kevin Nell, who says the treatment calmed his trembling hands, allowed him to button his shirts, and drive his beloved hot rod again. His wife, Sydney, said, “It gave him his life back.”
Mental health
A total of 6 million men are affected by depression every year, according to Mental Health America, and it often goes undiagnosed with men more likely to report fatigue, irritability, and loss of interest in work or hobbies, rather than a feeling of sadness.
Men also are less likely to seek help for depression, substance abuse, and stressful life events due to reluctance to talk, downplaying symptoms, and social norms, MHA reports.
We know the need for behavioral health care is high across our country and our region, which is why we have expanded access to care with renovations to our facilities. Every year our behavioral health services team serves 64,000 patients with programs that helps patients address mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, attention deficit disorder, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder and more.
Sleep
Studies show that sleep apnea – which can cause loud snoring and even periods when a person stops breathing during sleep – is much more common in men than in women, with men being two or even three times as likely to have the problem. Sleep apnea causes not only daytime sleepiness and headaches but also increases men’s likelihood of high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. It can even increase the risk for motor vehicle accidents.
Take a sleep apnea risk assessment to if you have the signs of this condition. We offer a variety of additional services to diagnose and treat this and other sleep conditions, including an at-home sleep test, sleep lab studies, an insomnia clinic, and a variety of therapies.
Staying healthy
Because men are not the most likely to seek health care, we have compiled 6 everyday tips that every man should know to stay healthy.
Go here to see a list of wellness events we host, or search for others by category.
