Caci CaseChattanooga: A Hotspot for Health Care
Chattanooga’s rapidly expanding health care industry plays a key role in driving our region’s economy, not only through primary health care providers, but from recognized industry participants like Unum, the world’s biggest disability insurer, to startups like 3D Ops, which uses CT Scans and MRIs to build 3D printed organ models.The health care industry serves as a major source of jobs in Chattanooga. Of the area’s top 15 employers, six are health care organizations, which together employ nearly 19,000 full- and part-time employees. These organizations include:* Erlanger Health System: the seventh largest public health system and second largest employer in the region* BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee: the state’s largest health insurer* Parkridge Health System: a network of five Chattanooga hospitals, and part of the larger HCA system, offering a range of services from orthopedics, cardiology, behavioral health and obstetrics* CHI Memorial: a regional referral center with more than 3,500 associates and more than 650 affiliated physiciansWith proximity to these anchor health care companies, and resources like the INCubator, the third-largest business incubator in the country, more startups are launching to combine technology and health care.Chattanooga-based startup American Exchange provides health insurance enrollment services in Tennessee and around the country, offering its services free to customers as its revenue comes from insurance companies who pay the business for every sign-up. The company traces its origins to local venture incubator Lamp Post Group.Even companies that aren’t part of the health care sector find ways to innovate in that area. Thompson Engineering offers employees a wellness portal to log exercise for incentives. The higher the level an employee reaches, the lower their health insurance costs are, as Thompson Engineering is self-insured. Insurance premiums have been unchanged for more than two years.From promoting healthy hearts to 3D-printing them, Chattanooga is not only an internet hot spot, but also a hub for health care.
Caci Case says she loves every aspect of her life. She's married to "an incredibly supportive husband," and is the mother of "two amazing, highly energetic boys." In addition to working for a local transportation company, Case loves to work with children at her church, sing with her church's praise and worship team and play French horn with various ensembles.
Despite all the activity and excitement, Case's harmonious life hit a sour note several months ago when she noticed a lump in her left breast.
"Since it was sore and had come up so quickly, I assumed it was just a benign cyst," Case says. "But I decided that I should be cautious just in case, so I made an appointment with my OB-GYN to have it checked out."
Case's doctor recommended an ultrasound and biopsy, as well as a mammogram, as Case, at 38, hadn't had one before. Alone at the time, Case called her husband to have him meet her.
"I was in my car by myself waiting on my biopsy appointment when my cell phone rang," she says. "It was one of the nurses at the Center for Breast Health at Erlanger East. She was a breast cancer survivor, and just wanted to reach out to me to give me hope. Not many places care enough about their patients to get personally involved on that level. That was priceless to me."
Diagnosed with multiple forms of cancer, Case needed a bilateral mastectomy and other treatments including infusions and chemotherapy. Per her request, she received all treatment at Erlanger East Hospital.
"I had already given birth to two children there, and was comfortable with the location," she says. "Also, the nursing staff had always been friendly and knowledgeable. Cancer is a bit intimidating, too, so having a smaller hospital that was still large enough to handle everything I needed brought me comfort."
With all her office visits and most of her procedures performed at Erlanger East, Case says she's thankful for all of the "amazing" doctors, nurses and staff members who cared for her.
"I absolutely love my 'wellness team'," she says. "They always take time to answer the million questions I have, and they never rush me through our chats. They are encouraging, optimistic and extremely knowledgeable about cancer and all of my treatments."
Now recovering well from chemo and radiation treatments, Case says the whole experience has changed her life.
"Cancer changes your perspective on everything you do," she says. "I no longer sweat the small things like I used to. God has taught me so much through this process. My prayer life has gotten much stronger, and my hope is that I can use my experience to help other people going through the same thing."
A Lifestyle Hospital
Erlanger East Hospital, long an integral part of Erlanger Health System and a vital medical resource for our community, grows into something even bigger this year.
Erlanger East Hospital has expanded in recent years to a multifaceted campus serving a range of health needs with physicians' offices, a surgery center, an infusion center, a 24/7 emergency room and a comprehensive women's breast health center.
Services at Erlanger East Hospital have grown alongside East Hamilton County. With the continued growth of Tennessee's largest retail shopping area right down the street, as well as the addition of Volkswagen and other major employers who moved into nearby Enterprise South, Erlanger East Hospital transforms yet again.
"When we opened our ER three years ago, we quickly noticed that the demand for medical care in this area was overwhelming," says Kevin Spiegel, President & CEO of Erlanger Health System. "It was soon clear that Erlanger East Hospital would need to expand even more. Once the facility is open, the impact is going to be dramatic."
Slated for completion in December, the $50 million expansion transforms Erlanger East Hospital into our region's first lifestyle hospital, featuring:
* Four new operating rooms, for a total of eight Erlanger East operating rooms
* A new Cardiac Cath, Vascular, Neuro and Interventional Suite providing a broad range of leading-edge heart, vascular and interventional radiology care
* A 58-bed patient tower, bringing Erlanger East's total patient beds to 107, with a six-room intensive care unit. Each room is complete with private bath and shower, large flat-screen TV and multiple USB outlets. The ultramodern unit provides the same level of care found at larger, more metropolitan hospitals, and accommodates patients' families
* Expanded food service operations, and, once a donor is identified, a demonstration kitchen for classes on healthy cooking and eating
* Hotel-like amenities ranging from larger patient rooms to a 1-mile, campus wide walking trail open to the community
"This will be unlike any hospital in the area," says Dr. Phil Jackson, CEO of Erlanger East Hospital. "To be a lifestyle campus means we will meet the many needs families have as they grow and thrive through every life stage."
For the latest news on the Erlanger East Hospital expansion project, visit Erlanger.org/east.