Center offers treatment options
Heartburn can often be a sign of a larger issue
Heartburn is something that rarely turns heads outside of the medical world, but Jillian Faulkner of the Grand Lake Heartburn Center believes more people should be keeping an eye on it as a precursor or part of a larger problem.
Faulkner works for Grand Lake Health System as a nurse coordinator and works hard on its main focus. It’s not something she figured she’d ever be involved in, but it is something she has turned her full attention towards.
“I have grown to have a passion over heartburn now, something which I never thought I would’ve said before,” stated Faulkner. “But it is really quite expansive into what our heartburn all entails and how it effects people so differently.”
The center has a many physicians, nurse practitioners and other positions dedicated to learning how heartburn operates within individuals, and how they can treat it from person to person. They’ve only been open for a short while now, but they’ve done good work since then.
“This center opened in December 2021 when a need was
found in the community to do so,” Faulkner explained. There are plenty of people within a certain radius of the center that suffer from heartburn despite medications that would benefit from it being here. “That is where the need is to target that population to help them find some sort of relief.”
The center runs ] different tests and treatments in order to find what works best for each individual patient. Faulkner and the other members of the staff are especially concerned over situations like GERD.
GERD, which stands for gastroesophageal reflux disease, where stomach acid ends up backs into the esophagus on a frequent basis, resulting in heartburn. People who get it end up with different symptoms, which includes heartburn, regurgitation, chest pain, difficulty swallowing, chronic cough, asthma, hoarseness and generally feeling like something is stuck in their throat.
“And GERD, for many of those that are severe, is a life limiting disease,” said Faulkner about the condition. It can be caused by a lot of different factors, such as diet, smoking and whatever else may cause the esophagus to become compromised. “GERD can also go along with esophageal cancer.”
GERD has a strong relationship with the formation of Barrett’s esophagus, a condition where atypical cells that shouldn’t be in the esophagus are there, which increases the risk of cancer. This is why they are very careful when diagnosing the issue, especially in the long term.
“If GERD is what the diagnosis is, we are well versed in multiple therapies to deal with it,” said Faulkner about their medicinal treatments that work in most cases, alongside some lifestyle changes alongside it. There is also the option of surgery, which is usually chosen in case the medications don’t work. “If you fail medical therapy, there are other options.”
The staff at the heartburn center are always open to help out people that believe their symptoms might be signs of a serious issue, so it’s encouraged to contact the Grand Lake Health System when they can.
In other news, the St. Marys Rotary announced the winners of the Four Way Test Essay Contest for the Holy Rosary students, with the top three winners coming to be presented a check by Tim Benjamin as part of their winnings. The winners from third to first won $50, $75 and $100 respectively for the work they put in.
The first place winner of the contest was Ella Schlarman, with Olivia Tester and Jackson Remmel winning second and third place respectively. Her essay focused on environmental issues, which she read aloud to the members in attendance.
The St. Marys Rotary Club meets weekly and participates in many events in the city of St. Marys. To learn more about the organization and what events it participates in, feel free to look them up on their Facebook page and at their website at StMarysRotary.org.