Updates at the hospital

Cumberland ENT Expands
Doctors thank donors for helping meet patient needs
AMHERST, NS (October 2, 2009) When Dr. Tim Wallace, a specialist in the field for Ear, Nose and Throat (more formally known as Otolaryngology) began his practice, he wondered if there was enough patient demand in the area.  “It didn’t take long for me to put that thought to rest,” said Dr. Wallace, “within the first year there was a six-month wait for appointments and the list was growing longer”. 

The Cumberland ENT Clinic located on the second floor of the Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre provides treatment and management for persons suffering from upper respiratory illnesses of the head and neck, including patients with cancer, related to those areas such as skin or thyroid.

The demand for the both the availability and skill of the young ENT specialist grew to a point where the appointment wait-period grew to thirteen months for the patient.  “Due to that demand, we needed another specialist to join the practice,” he said, “and we’re extremely fortunate that Dr. Gerard MacDonald made that important decision to become a partner at the Cumberland ENT Clinic to practice.”  

MacDonald, a native of Antigonish had started his career in Canada and then had relocated to the United States for sixteen years to practice.  “I’ve come full circle,” he said, “my wife, children and I are happy to be back in Canada after having decided that Cumberland County is the right place for us.  The facility is not only beautiful but has the updated resources to treat patients.”   MacDonald is also one of very few specialists in Atlantic Canada performing a unique procedure for the treatment of sinusitis called “balloon sinuplasty”.

Sinusitis is an infection or inflammation of the passages that drain each of the sinuses around the nose and eyes.  Chronic drainage, nasal congestion and facial pain are common symptoms of the illness.  Current surgical treatment is done using endoscopic sinus surgery.  

Balloon sinuplasty offers a minimally invasive approach for some sinus surgery patients as well.  This procedure involves the insertion of a flexible, small balloon catheter to open up sinus passageways which may have become blocked.  Once the balloon is inflated, it helps to widen and restructure drainage paths of the sinus.   The balloon is then deflated and removed.  The recovery period is usually rapid with minimal discomfort.

“We’re excited to also be part of the national pilot for transnasal esophagoscopy,” said Wallace, “it’s done in the clinic without the need for IV sedation or general anesthetic.”    Transnasal esophagoscopy looks at the food tube (the esophagus) that goes from your mouth into your stomach.   The test may be performed to determine the cause of problems with the voice, heartburn or other symptoms.   A small flexible viewing tube is passed through the nose and back of the throat into the esophagus where pictures may be taken or a small sample of tissue removed.  

A traditional esophagoscopy requires the use of sedation with the patient often having to spend hours preparing for and recovering from the procedure.  With transnasal esophagoscopy, the procedure time is 3-5 minutes and is easier on the patient for both preparation and procedure time.

Shown is the Cumberland ENT Clinic’s Team: (Front from left) Administrative support members Shelley Taylor, Kelly Hurley and Irene Chevarie. (Back from left) Specialists Dr. Tim Wallace and Dr. Gerard MacDonald.

“We’d both like to say thank-you to Foundation donors and the hospital Auxiliary for making it possible for us to continue to grow and help patients with their healthcare needs,” said Wallace, “the third operating room, the updated equipment and the availability of the facility overall has given us the resources we need to treat patients.  We realize that it would have been much more difficult in being able to provide the level of service and expertise if these things weren’t made possible by the community.”

Both surgical specialists chose to join the medical profession due to playing sports and having an exposure of doctors in the community.  “I was injured playing sports and had to be treated,” explained Wallace, “that contact with the treating physician was an initial point in my decision to pursue medicine – it highlighted the opportunity to utilize both skill and knowledge to help others.” 

For MacDonald, his exposure came from playing sports with other local children whose parents were in the medical field.  “Like Dr. Wallace, I didn’t come from a family with a history of doctors”, he chuckled, “but the doctors I did meet during childhood were parents of friends who encouraged me to explore my career choices.  It was a good thing for me to have them as role models in the community.”