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Wound Care President Becomes Chair of Local Chapter of American Diabetes Association

by Wound Care Clinic in News

Paula Kreissler, President of the Wound Care Clinic -ESU, is the newest Chairperson of the Leadership Council for the Savannah Chapter of the American Diabetes Association. Kreissler has an extensive fundraising background and plans to use her experience to help increase funds and visibility of the organization in Savannah. The position with the ADA is a natural fit for Kreissler since many patients at the Wound Care Clinic are diabetic.

The staff at the Wound Care Clinic-ESU is working to educate the public about diabetes which is the 5th leading cause of death by disease in the United States. Diabetes claims over 225,000 lives a year. In Georgia, there are 750,000 people who have diabetes. Approximately 249,000 diabetics don’t even know they have the disease. The most common form of diabetes, Type 2, can be prevented by maintaining a proper weight, improving nutritional intake, and increasing physical activity. A patient who is diabetic often develops a loss of sensation (neuropathy) to the feet and legs. With the lack of sensation, the patient often ignores a wound until it worsens or becomes infected. The diabetic disease process slows the healing process of these wounds and the patient develops a chronic diabetic ulcer. If the wound does not heal, the wound can lead to amputation. Treatments at the Wound Care Clinic-ESU often prevent amputations. Paula Kreissler has already worked as a volunteer with the Savannah chapter of the ADA. She was one of the sponsors for Savannah’s Walk for Diabetes on November 4th. The Wound Care Clinic – ESU team was the number two team, raising over $4000 for the ADA. She’s also traveled to Washington, D.C. to lobby for stem cell legislation to help find a cure for diabetes. Kreissler plans to work with existing fundraisers like Kiss a Pig, and add others to help increase the revenue and help find a cure for diabetes. She also plans to participate in the Diabetes University on January 27, 2007, sponsored by the Savannah Chapter of the American Diabetes Association. This is a half-day education program with sessions and exhibits for everyone affected by diabetes. The theme is “Educate Yourself — Improve Your Health.” Before working with ADA, Paula Kreissler spent a lot of time and energy with NO/AIDS Task Force in New Orleans, LA to reduce the spread of HIV infection, and provide services for HIV-affected individuals. She also volunteered with the United Way and March of Dimes.

The Wound Care Clinic-ESU sees physician-referral patients and accepts Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance, as well as treating those from the underserved or uninsured populations. The facility is staffed with medical professionals headed up by Family Nurse Practitioner, Melanie Finocchiaro, APRN, BC with Debbie Hagins, MD as a collaborative physician. The Wound Care Clinic – ESU, Inc. is located at 815 East 68th Street, Suite 2, in Savannah, Georgia 31405. It offers standard treatment for wound care along with electrical stimulation and ultrasound as additional therapies to enhance wound closure.

Paula Kreissler Traveled to Chicago for National Leadership Council Meeting of ADA

by Wound Care Clinic in News

(SAVANNAH, GA) Paula Kreissler, the Leadership Chair for the Savannah Chapter of the American Diabetes Association, traveled to Chicago this month to attend the National Leadership Council Meeting for the ADA. She was one of 16,000 people from all over the world at the “67th Scientific Sessions” sponsored by the ADA.

The three-day event began Friday, June 22nd with an opening reception. There, the more than 200 ADA leadership council members gathered to meet and greet one another. It was also an opportunity for them to network. The following day, Kreissler and the others heard from Stewart Perry, the Chair of the board-elect for the National Leadership Council. They also received updates from the interim ADA CEO and heard from the ADA Secretary and Treasurer.

One of the highlights of the event, Kreissler says, was hearing from Dr. Richard Kahn, the Chief Scientific and Medical Affairs Officer for the ADA. He talked about the advancements in diabetes research and gave an update on the possible treatments for diabetes. He also talked of the staggering numbers in the research area. So far this year, more than $24 million has been raised for research, compared to a total of $40 million last year.

“Those numbers are huge. Research is so important when it comes to diabetes. We’re learning more and more about it every day and those funds are crucial to learning more about the disease.” Kreissler says.

In addition to the updates, Kreissler also got some other important information.

“I think the biggest benefit was seeing how other chairs run their organization. Now, I can take what I’ve learned and make suggestions to Savannah’s Leadership Council of the American Diabetes Association.”

In addition to her duties for the Savannah Chapter of the American Diabetes Association, Kreissler is also the President of Wound Care Clinic – ESU, Inc. in Savannah. Many of Wound Care’s patients are diabetic. Kreissler says her jobs of running Wound Care and being the Leadership Chair “just seem to go hand in hand.”

The American Diabetes Association is the nations leading non-profit health organization providing diabetes research, information, and advocacy. Founded in 1940, the ADA conducts programs in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, reaching hundreds of communities. The mission of the association is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of the people affected by diabetes. To learn more, log on to diabetes.org.

Wound Care Clinic – ESU, Inc. is Proud to Announce Grand Opening of the Newest Location in Pooler

by Wound Care Clinic in News

(SAVANNAH/POOLER, GA) Paula Kreissler, President of Wound Care Clinic – ESU, Inc., is proud to announce the grand opening of the newest Wound Care location in Pooler. The event is slated for September 6, 2007, at 11:30 a.m.

“We are so excited about this new office,” says Kreissler. “Our Savannah location just got too busy, so this new office will be good not just for us, but our patients too… especially those that live in the Pooler area.”

Perhaps the most advantageous are those patients who will no longer have to make the 20-30 minute drive into Savannah. It might sound simple to the ordinary driver, but for those with a non-healing wound, this new location will make treatment much more convenient for the nearly two dozen patients who live in and around the Pooler area. This new location also has other conveniences. Each of the five treatment rooms is very spacious, with a bed and chair in each room. This not only contributes to physical comfort but also emotional and mental comfort as well.

“We’ve been told a number of times by our patients that our office doesn’t actually feel like an office,” says Wound Care’s president, Paula Kreissler.

“When you have a condition of any kind, you what to be comfortable where you’re being treated. Our Savannah office has a feeling of “home,” and we’re striving to do the same thing in our Pooler location.”

Wound Care patients, employees, and business associates will attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony. To help with the ribbon cutting will be Pooler Mayor Mike Lamb. Also expected to attend is Senator Regina Thomas.

Wound Care Clinic – ESU Inc. Raised Money for the American Diabetes Association

by Wound Care Clinic in News

(SAVANNAH) Paula Kreissler, President of Wound Care Clinic – ESU Inc., and her team of more than 40 people raised the most money at the American Diabetes Association’s “Step Out to Fight for Diabetes Walk” held in mid-October. The contest doesn’t officially end until December 3rd, so Kreissler and her crew are still pulling out all the stops to raise even more money to fight diabetes.

“So far, we’ve raised more than $7,000,” says Kreissler.

“It felt so good to know our team raised the most money, but it feels even better to know that we’re still raising money until the deadline and each and every penny is going toward the fight against diabetes.”

Diabetes is America’s fastest-growing disease, affecting 21 million children and adults in the United States.

Formerly known as America’s Walk for Diabetes, Step Out to Fight Diabetes is the sole fund-raising walk of the American Diabetes Association (ADA). Step Out to Fight Diabetes is a one-day walk in more than 200 cities nationwide. Motivated by their drive to defeat diabetes, participants reach their fund-raising goals by asking friends, family, and co-workers for donations.

This year, the event drew a large contingency of teams, comprised of families, friends and corporations, all walking and raising money in support of ADA.

Kreissler, who also serves as the Leadership Chair for the Savannah Chapter of the American Diabetes Association, says she asked any and everybody to support the ADA and her team. They, along with the other teams, pulled through, and so far, they’ve raised $7419.00.

The American Diabetes Association is the nation’s leading nonprofit health organization providing diabetes research, information and advocacy. Founded in 1940, the American Diabetes Association conducts programs in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, reaching hundreds of communities.

To learn more about the ADA or diabetes, log on to diabetes.org.

Stepping Out to Support Diabetes

by Wound Care Clinic in News

Stepping Out to Support Diabetes

From left: Rev. Clarence Williams, Rebecca Jackson, Kim Jones, Dave Smith, Cindy Meagher, and Paula Kreissler are members of the Wound Care Clinic ECU walkathon team, and they will be raising money in the American Diabetes Association\u2019s 2009 Sunsplash Outdoor Fitness Celebration. (John Carrington/Savannah Morning News)

Published in the Savannah Morning News, Aug. 23, 2009

The Rev. Clarence Williams is walking proof that it’s possible to control Type 2 diabetes with a healthy lifestyle and still enjoy your favorite foods.

“I can eat pretty much anything that I want,” said Williams, the pastor at First Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church on Alice Street. “I just have to do so in moderation.”

Now 50, Williams said he’s had Type 2 Diabetes – which usually affects adults – since 1992. He takes insulin daily, exercises several times a week at the St. Joseph’s/Candler Wellness Center, and undergoes treatment at the Wound Care Clinic on East 68th Street.

Williams, who has a deep callus on his left foot that must be monitored, plans to walk with the Wound Care Clinic team in the 2009 Sunsplash Outdoor Fitness Festival, an Oct. 17 fundraiser that will benefit the American Diabetes Association.

This will be the fifth year that the clinic has participated in the event, said Paula Kreissler, its president and CEO.

Last year, she said, the Wound Clinic had 44 walkers on its team and raised more than $11,000, the most of any participating team. This year, she hopes to have more than 50 walkers and to raise the most money again.

However, she’ll face quite a challenge as the annual fundraiser, which had been just a walk, has been expanded to include cyclists and kayakers.

The event has taken place for about 16 years and at several locations, including Forsyth Park and Oatland Island, said Suzanne Willis, the associate manager of the Diabetes Association’s Southeast Georgia and Coastal Carolina office.

“We’re attracting a way bigger audience” for the enlarged event, said Willis.

In recent years, the fundraiser has had about 1,500 participants and raised around $100,000. “This year,” Willis said, “we’re hoping for 2,000.”

Williams, Kreissler and the other walkers will take in a scenic course along the Skidaway River in their 5K challenge. Cyclists can choose from 10-mile, 20-mile, or 40-mile routes that will wind through Skidaway Island and The Landings, and the kayakers will enter the water at Butterbean Beach and then paddle 3 miles down the Skidaway River to the University of Georgia Marine Extension Service Aquarium.

After the athletic events, a celebration will take place at the aquarium. It will include, Willis said, food by Tubby’s Tank House, live bands, about 50 health vendors, and activities for children.

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