Jersey Shore Hospital Tournament Proceeds to Benefit Community

Earlier this year, Jersey Shore Hospital hosted its 17th Annual Golf Tournament. The turn-out was one of the strongest in recent years and now the hospital is finding a beneficial way to put the golf tournament revenue to use.

For years the hospital’s educational outreach program and marketing department have done numerous community events to educate the public about their healthcare through offering various screenings. One of the communities’ favorite screenings has undoubtedly been the bone densitometry screening, which checks a patient’s heel to test how strong their bones are.

However, the equipment used has been through hundreds of screenings and thousands of people. Wear on the machine has become noticeable, and as the years have gone by the machine has also become a nuisance to carry around because of its large frame and heavy weight (around 80 pounds).

All of that is about to change. With the proceeds from this year’s golf tournament, the hospital is finding a way to better the community by offering to them a brand new densitometry machine.

The machine is called the Lunar Achilles Express and it is an ultrasonometer that evaluates a person’s risk of osteoporotic fracture and monitors bone changes. The machine is extremely accurate and weighing in at 22 pounds, it will be much easier to handle.

Also, because the Lunar is an ultrasound machine, there is no radiation, making it possible to test all patients, at least 25 years of age, including those who are pregnant, which was not an option before with the previous machine.

Tests are performed by having an individual place their heel into the machine. Once placed, the machine calculates the individuals STIFNESS Index, which compares the patient’s bones to that of a young adult, and using aged-matched references, it provides an accurate T-score and Z-score.

The T-score is the number of standard deviations above or below the mean of a healthy young adult’s bones that is the same sex and ethnicity of the patient. The Z-score is the number of standard deviations above or below the mean for the patient’s sex, age and ethnicity.

The machine then makes a print out of the patient’s test results which is used to demonstrate to the patient where their bone strength compares to that of a young adult. A copy of the test results are sent directly to the patient’s family physician so that they can keep a record on file.

Be on the look-out for Jersey Shore Hospital’s booth in upcoming community health fairs to get your free osteoporosis screening and try out the new Lunar Achilles Express!