National Holidays

March 30 2018

National Doctor’s Day: Dr. Hathorn

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March 30^th is National Doctor’s Day, and Victoria ER wants to shine the spotlight on one of our amazing physicians. Dr. Joseph Hathorn is an emergency physician at Victoria ER and has been practicing emergency medicine in Texas for over 15 years. To learn more about Dr. Hathorn and his experience, we were able to ask him some questions about why working at an emergency facility like Victoria ER is so special.

Tell us about an average day in the life of an ER Doctor.

“I generally start the day by checking the patient log from the previous day. These are patients that I will need to do call backs on for that day. We call back all of our patients to follow-up with them and see how they are doing. I generally start calling patients from the previous day during the late morning or early afternoon hours. “After checking the patient log, I will eat breakfast and mentally prepare myself for the shift. Throughout the day, when there is down time, I will generally catch up on anything that I wasn’t able to take care of on the previous day.”

What is your favorite part of your day?

“I enjoy the early morning and late shifts the most, as strange as that might sound. Those are quieter times of day, when I can catch up on my patient files and make sure we’re ready for the rest of the day and night. It is relaxing!”

When did you know that you wanted to be a doctor?

“I knew in high school. I had a Physics teacher during my junior year, who told me to consider medicine as a career. Having that kind of encouragement had an effect on me, and early on gave me some direction. I found my passion for it in medical school when I got to connect with patients and start to really practice medicine, instead of just studying it.”

How do you think your work at your facility is making the healthcare industry better?

“Our goal is to make the ER more accessible for patients, and to focus on giving them the treatment they deserve. The idea is to place the highest value on their time by getting them treated quickly, and value them as individuals by giving them respect and dignity. Patients generally don’t get this in the hospital environment because of the overcrowding and sometimes inadequate resources.”

How has working in medicine changed your life?

“Medicine has made me appreciate things that most people may take for granted. This may be because of what I have seen over my almost 18 years of ER practice. The little day-to-day mishaps that may be trivial for some are having a bigger impact on others as I continue practicing emergency medicine. The importance of healthy living and taking care of yourself has become clear to me as a must for balance and success in life.” Victoria ER is proud to have Dr. Hathorn practicing on our medical team. This National Doctor’s Day we appreciate and honor all that he does at our facility.

Dr Hathorn obtained his medical degree from the University of California, Davis School of Medicine. He completed his Emergency Medicine Residency from the King Drew Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA. Dr Hathorn has been in Emergency Medicine clinical practice for the past 17 years. Dr Hathorn is Board Certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine. He currently resides in Houston, TX. His wife is a Board Certified Ob-Gyn practicing in Houston, TX. They both have 2 children, ages 4 and 7.

Nutex Health, Inc. supports you and your family’s health. Come visit Victoria ER or any one of our concierge-level freestanding facilities for the emergency care you deserve, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

March 13 2018

Mind Diet Recipe: Gumbo Z’Herbes

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This week is Brain Awareness Week, and we wanted to share one of Victoria ER’s favorite Mind Diet recipes to celebrate. The Mind Diet is a series of guidelines for your family’s diet that promote brain health and help to prevent conditions like Alzheimer’s later in life. Incorporating some of these techniques into your meal prep can do wonders to improve your brain’s health.

This recipe comes just in time for the spring crawfish season. Following in the footsteps of famous Cajun chefs like Susan Spicer, Emeril Lagasse, and Leah Chase, Gumbo Z’herbes is a great way to celebrate this Gulf Coast tradition, with significantly less sodium and fat than other kinds of gumbos. By using vegetable stock and turnips, you can get the same hearty taste, but with all the vitamins your brain could ask for! You can even add in some sautéed mushrooms if you feel adventurous.

Bring this great twist on a creole classic to your next crawfish boil to help promote brain health with all your family and friends.

GUMBO Z’HERBES

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:

½ cup olive oil
½ cup Einkorn or whole wheat flour
2 medium onions, chopped
2 green bell peppers, chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
2 medium turnips, peeled and chopped
1 cup chopped scallions
2 Tablespoons chopped garlic
2 cups coarsely chopped turnip greens (or collard greens)
2 cups spinach
2 quarts vegetable stock
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 batch of seasoning mix

Seasoning mix:

1 Tablespoon sweet paprika
1 Tablespoon dried mustard
1 Tablespoon dried sweet basil
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon black pepper
¼ – ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Heat oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat until almost smoking. Carefully whisk in the flour to make your roux and continue stirring until the roux has a caramel color.

Add the onions, bell peppers, celery, turnips and garlic. Stir to coat vegetables with the roux, about 5 minutes. Stir in ½ of the seasoning mix and add the stock. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer. Cover and cook for about one hour, or longer if you want the flavors to have more time to come together.

Add the turnip greens, spinach, and scallions and cook for about 10 – 15 minutes until wilted. Add more of the seasoning mix to suit your taste and preferred spice level.

Serve over brown rice, with a few splashes of hot sauce, if you want an extra kick.

This blog post was written by Maggie Berardo, Content Writer at Nutex Health. Maggie has a passion for food writing and is excited to share some of her recipes with our facility.

Nutex Health, Inc. supports you and your family’s health. Come visit Victoria Emergency Room or any one of our concierge-level freestanding facilities for the emergency care you deserve, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

February 13 2018

Reducing Heart Disease

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Our hearts might all be fluttering this Valentine’s Day, but February is also American Heart Month. At Victoria ER, we want to make sure that the only reason your heart skips a beat is because your sweetheart has given you the best Valentine’s gift ever. Heart disease should never play a part.

This year, the CDC Division of Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention, in conjuncture with Million Hearts, is focusing American Heart Month on younger adults. National trends are showing that heart disease death rates are declining more slowly than they have in past years. This means that heart disease related deaths in adults age 35-64 are not going down as much as they should. More adults are dying from heart disease, compared to past years and statistics.

What can we do to prevent heart disease, then? How can we all work to keep our hearts in top condition?

Stay Active

First, it is always important to stay physically active. We hear it all the time, how much working out does for our bodies. But let’s take a closer look.

150 minutes of activity per week, at least. That is 2 hours and 30 minutes, about as long as one move. If you want to have even greater physical health, then try to aim for 5 ours of physical activity per week. Exercises can be mixed of aerobic and strength raining, both moderate and vigorous. Read here at the CDC for more details about what kind of work outs you should incorporate into your routine.
Yoga can be great way to reduce stress and lower blood pressure while still getting physically active. If your monthly budget is tight, try following some reputable Youtube instructors or Hulu’s daily burn program in lieu of a studio or gym membership if your monthly budget is tight.
It is okay to split your workouts up into 10-minute segments. If you have a busy schedule, then finding time for physical activity can be difficult. Instead of searching for one hour every day to work out, why not look for 10-15 minutes? If you can find 10-15 minute exercise windows three or four times every day, then you will still be doing wonders for your long term heart health.
Cardio is great to quickly get your heart rate up, but strength training with moderate weights can also be just as effective in exercising your heart. As long as your heart is being exercised, what matters most is that you find an enjoyable and easy way to incorporate it into your daily routine.

Eat Good Food

Our hearts need good fuel, and to maintain good heart health, we have to make sure we eat the right foods. Avoid high sodium and trans fats to help you maintain your cholesterol. Then look for foods that promote good heart health such as:

Salmon, tuna, or trout.
Walnuts, almonds, or cashews
Raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries.
Chickpeas, lentils, and other legumes
Oatmeal and barley
Olive or canola oil
Dark chocolate (yes, even the right kind of chocolate can be good for your heart!)
Red grapes
Avocados

All of these ingredients can help to promote heart health and incorporating more of them into your diets can be a tasty way to stay healthy.

Cut Out Bad Habits

No, we don’t mean stop binge-watching Netflix original series on the weekends. The kinds of bad habits that affect your heart are habits like smoking and heavy drinking.

Smoking cigarettes or other tobacco products can affect nearly every organ in your body including the heart. Quitting smoking for good can add years of health back to your heart. The same goes for heavy drinking. Both of these unhealthy habits can be difficult to quit on your own, so Victoria ER recommends calling 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669) if you or your loved one needs help and support to quit these addictive habits.

Our emergency room is open 24/7 and always available for observation care if you go into a medical emergency while you are getting clean.

These three steps might seem basic, but these everyday health habits can have major affects on your heart. Stay healthy this month by making a few healthier diet choices throughout the year while you’re at it. If you combine that with some regular exercise, your heart will be thanking you for the rest of your life!

Nutex Health, Inc supports you and your family’s health. You can depend on Victoria Emergency Room or any one of our concierge-level, freestanding emergency facilities to deliver the emergency care you deserve, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

February 6 2018

Victoria ER Celebrates the Winter Olympics 2018

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Victoria ER is proud to support The Winter Olympics! TEXAS STRONG!!

December 14 2017

Celebrating National Doctor’s Day With Q&A

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There are over 45,000 emergency physicians in the U.S., and at Victoria ER, we have the some of the best of these doctors practicing at our facility.

Since it’s National Doctor’s Day, we’re going to hear from of our physicians, Dr. Joseph Hathorn, on why he become a physician and how Victoria ER bridges the gap between a traditional emergency department and concierge-style care.

What made you want to become a physician?

When I was in high school, I had a Physics teacher encourage me to consider a career in medicine. It was always a consideration but I didn’t really seriously focus on the possibility until after that point. Having a well-respected teacher who believed in me like that had a huge effect. When I entered college I had already made my mind up that I would be pre-med. I think going into college knowing exactly what I wanted to do helped me to become impervious to the typical distractions that college kids, especially freshmen, can easily fall prey to.

So, what’s a typical day at the facility look like for you?

My day at the facility typically starts at 9am. When I first come in, I check with the outgoing physician to see if there are any patients that need to be signed out so that I can assume care. If there are patients, we will go over the patient’s history and current status in the facility and see if there are any pending test results.

After that is done, I will go to my call room and get myself ready for the day. I will usually eat breakfast and get myself settled in for the day. I will do patient callbacks, something that the oncoming physician must do, usually during the first portion of the shift.

If there is any down time or a period where there are no patients, I may try to catch up on reading or spend some time on anything that needs my immediate attention.

How does Victoria ER differ from other emergency departments?

Working at this facility is a “breath of fresh air” when compared to a typical hospital ER. Unlike at the hospital, I can see patients very quickly and give them the quality time and service that they truly deserve. Patients are very appreciative of this and we know it makes a difference in their care experience.

I also like the fact that test results come back much faster when compared to the hospital. This means our patients are on their way to feeling better, faster. Our staff is motivated by the positive patient experience and in return, they’re able to perform their jobs optimally. It is a win-win for the patients and the staff taking care of them.

Victoria ER is a state-of-the-art facility with CT scanner, X-Ray and ultrasound in addition to our comprehensive list of lab services. Our ER trained and experienced physicians are committed to providing with you the no-wait, exceptional emergency care experience you deserve 24/7. Your health and satisfaction is our priority.

Want to learn more about the services we provide? Check out this page.

Nutex Health, Inc. supports you and your family’s health. Come visit Victoria Emergency Center or any one of our concierge-level freestanding facilities for the emergency care you deserve, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.