HARLINGEN – For diabetes patients in the Rio Grande Valley, taking a few simple steps – such as checking their feet for abnormalities and seeking early treatment for any wounds – can save them from potential tragic complications, such as having to have an amputation of a foot or leg.

This was the message of Dr. Luis R. Venegas, DPM, ABPM, Podiatrist and Medical Director of the Wound Healing Center at Harlingen Medical Center. His message is particularly timely, considering that April is “National Foot Health Awareness Month”.

Dr. Venegas recommends that diabetics check their feet every day, using a mirror if necessary, to look for lesions, abrasions, abnormal calluses (thickened, hardened sections of skin), and other signs of trauma and infection.

If a diabetic is not able to clearly see the bottom of his or her feet, Dr. Venegas suggests asking a family member to check their feet on a regular basis for ulcers or other problems.

In addition, Dr. Venegas says it’s important for patients to check their shoes each morning, to make sure that a foreign object has not fallen into one of the shoes. Since many diabetics can’t feel sensation in their feet, they may walk around for days — not knowing there is an object in their shoe – whether it be a pebble or piece of metal, such as from a stapler.

“Once your feet become numb, it’s hard to tell if you have any injuries, or to feel something that may be damaging your foot,” Dr. Venegas said.

Even worse, once their foot is damaged, such a patient may lose the protection of their skin underneath their foot – making them prone to infections from bacteria, fungus and viruses, which could eventually lead to destruction of the tissue in their foot.

Complicating these problems even more is a high-cholesterol, high-fat diet, which can result in arteries becoming clogged – and reduce blood circulation in the feet and legs. Reduced blood circulation means it takes longer for the body to heal from an injury.

The consequences of not taking care of foot problems can be life-altering. Tragically, patients who must have a foot or leg amputated often become disabled, and in some cases, dependent for care on family members.

“A foot amputation can interrupt a patient’s whole life – including affecting their personal life and family life – and make them unable to return to work,” Dr. Venegas said. “This is why it is so important to have simple foot ulcers treated in a timely manner.”

Fortunately for such patients, the Wound Healing Center at Harlingen Medical Center offers some of the most advanced, comprehensive treatments available to help heal such injuries, starting with basic local care of the wound and if necessary including hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Dr. Venegas says the hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) helps “in an incredible way” in many diabetic patients, by increasing the level of oxygen in damaged tissues.

“We are up-to-date with the latest technology in various treatment modalities, including using bioengineered tissue, such as tissues which are grown out of placenta cells or skin,” Dr. Venegas said. “These bioengineered tissues keep us a step ahead on treatment of these wounds … basically they help to shorten the duration of the wound. By shortening the wound duration, it helps make sure the person doesn’t develop further complications or deeper infections, such as infections of the bone, in many cases. Our goal is to close these wounds in a timely fashion, within 120 days in most cases.”

Additional treatments at Harlingen Medical Center include surgical treatment of wounds; skin grafts; wound “debridement,” which involves removing dead tissue and contaminated substances; and antibiotic therapy to stop infections.

In addition, Dr. Venegas said one of the main goals is to relieve pressure on the foot, which in some cases may require the patient to use special shoes or added padding on their shoe — or even to use crutches or a wheelchair temporarily, until the wound is healed.

Depending on the needs of each individual patient, other components of the treatment plan may include pain management, nutrition management, infectious disease management, physical therapy, nuclear medicine/radiology, vascular and laboratory evaluations, and diabetes education.

HARLINGEN — Keys Academy is hosting a fun family event with the aim of alerting the public to the growing problem of child abuse.

The 3rd Annual Child Abuse Awareness Walk/Run is an awareness fundraising event to benefit Prevent Child Abuse Texas, said Brenda Garcia, organizer and director of the Teen Parenting Program for the Harlingen school district.

PCA Texas, a statewide 30-year-old nonprofit organization committed to healthy children and families, invites the community to participate in the Saturday event.

Garcia said its one of the largest events in the state, beating out Dallas in attendance.

There, families with children, seniors and others are welcome to participate in a 5K walk/run to support safe, happy and healthy children.

This event will be an opportunity to alert all people in the community of the importance of commitment to child abuse prevention, Garcia said.

The event will begin at KEYS Academy, 2809 N. 7th St. The 1-mile run/walk will begin at 8 a.m. and the 5K run/walk will begin at 8:30 a.m. Registration on Saturday will be $25 for adults 12 years of age or older and $10 for kids under 12 years.

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HARLINGEN — Maria Guadalupe “Lupita” Gonzales ended her tenure at La Hacienda Healthcare yesterday with staff and residents celebrating her retirement after 40 years at the facility.

Lupita, who began working at La Hacienda in 1976 as a Certified Nursing Assistant, ended her career at age 87.

“She’s loyal, she’s dedicated, she’s obedient, she’s patient and she’s very caring,” said Ricardo Rodriguez, administrator at the 120-bed nursing home and rehabilitation center. “She’s a great example for all of us.”

Rodriguez said he marveled at all the different positions and roles she mastered over her 40-year career.

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SAN BENITO — The San Benito Greyhounds are no strangers to close games this district season, so they were right at home in their latest outing.

After erasing a 3-0 deficit and taking a one-run lead in the bottom of the third inning, San Benito Greyhound relief pitcher Erik Arizpe held the Harlingen Hawks scoreless the next four innings, securing a 4-3 win for the ’Hounds Tuesday night in San Benito.

While Greyhound head coach RamPartida enjoyed the win, the tight games and cold bats early in games has been a too close for comfort.

“Erik came in and did a great job to pick up a win, but looking at that big inning, our kids keep fighting and that’s something we need to keep doing,” Partida said. “I tell the kids not to test the waters to see if it’s hot or if it’s cold, just jump in and have fun—that’s one thing we have to learn at the plate.”

The win evens out the Greyhounds’ district record at 3-3, while South falls to 1-5.

Full story at RGVSports.com

SAN BENITO — Every day in the United States, an estimated 3,000 babies are aborted.

To those involved with the Pregnancy Resource Center of the Rio Grande Valley, that’s heart breaking.

Tomorrow, a local faith-based nonprofit organization, the PRC is inviting the public to Life Awakening, a prolife awareness and benefit event with guest speaker Pam Tebow.

“Every day in the United States we remember the tragedy of 9/11 when nearly 3,000 lives were lost. At PRC, our heart breaks for the 3,000 babies that are aborted every single day in the U.S.,” Nicole Hoff, executive director of PRC said.

“We are seeking a Life Revival in the Rio Grande Valley and across our nation. We believe this night will be just that — a night where we can speak life and make a difference in the pro-life movement together.

“We are expecting guests from all over the Valley that will join with us to help save lives both physically & eternally. We would like to invite our community to join us.”

Special guest speaker Pam Tebow has a well-known name and a very well-known son.

She is coming to share her remarkable testimony at the Life Awakening event.

When pressured to abort her fifth child, Pam rejected the doctor’s recommendation and placed her faith in God.

“A few months later, she gave birth to a healthy baby boy, Tim Tebow, who grew up to become an All-American quarterback, Heisman Trophy winner, and player in the NFL,” said Grace Curiel, the Weslaco PRC center director, who has served counseling women in crisis or unplanned pregnancies for 17 years.

Today, the Tebow family performs missions work all across the world.

PRC officials are excited to have Tebow unite with them for this cause to stand for life in the community.

The Sing to Save Worship Band is a new outreach of PRC.

Melissa Sanchez, the visionary of the band and PRC’s center director in Mission said, “We will start our event with worship because we recognize that the most important commitment we can make to save lives of the unborn is through the act of prayer and worship together.”

The band is made up of worshippers from all across the Valley, including some of the PRC staff, uniting together in song.

“I love in Matthew 18:20 where it says ‘For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I with them’ and so we anticipate His presence at this event,” Sanchez said.

The Pregnancy Resource Centers of the Rio Grande Valley is a 27-year-old faith-based nonprofit formerly known as Pregnancy Testing Centers (PTC).

The mission of the Pregnancy Resource Centers is to reach out with the love of Christ to those in unplanned pregnancy situations by informing them of positive alternatives to abortion, providing life-affirming physical, mental, and spiritual health care, encouraging abstinence outside of marriage, and providing necessary resources to those who have chosen life, as well as compassionately embracing those who have suffered the trauma of abortion.

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — Visitors to the Island now have more room to park, and more reason to ride The Wave.

The Island Metro, known as The Wave, is a free, fixed-route bus system that operates within the city and connects to an expanded parking area near the end/entrance of the causeway.

The new parking area can accommodate 125 cars. It is the first phase of a new multimodal facility that will serve as a one-stop transportation hub for the Island.

“It’s a great addition for the city,” said Bill DiLibero, SPI city manager. “It gives visitors the opportunity to leave their vehicle and take public transportation to the beach or visit the city without having to drive.”

Its location at the end of the causeway ensures visibility to travelers coming off the causeway and onto the Island.

Construction of the facility is scheduled to begin this fall and should be completed in 2017. It will be located between the access road and Padre Boulevard in front of the Pearl South Padre.

“It’s (parking lot) a great start to having the facility that we’re working on,” DiLibero said.

The recent improvements to the Multimodal Park & Ride area are benefitting users with more available parking and a central transfer point for the metro busses, Island officials said.

The park and ride area has continued to remain at capacity as drivers have chosen to avoid traffic congestion and park their vehicles.

The South Padre Island Transit Department recently secured $3.5 million in grant funds for the second phase of the multimodal hub. The hub will include a transfer station used by regional transit systems and charter buses.

Additional passenger amenities, driver amenities, administrative offices, the city’s Visitors Center and Chamber of Commerce also will be included within the facility.

In its entirety, the project supports the connection of the Rio Grande Valley’s commercial areas and addresses passenger services and amenities for residents needing to access intercity travel.

The project will complete the transportation network in the Lower Rio Grande Valley and ensure that all transit users in the area have safe and efficient transportation.

SAN BENITO — The San Benito school district is eager to begin its five-year strategic planning process.

This Saturday, officials will kick off planning with the first of five meetings for the Re-Imagine 2021 Strategic Plan.

Individuals from the district and community, including staff, parents, students, religious officials, business leaders and members of the media, have been invited to partake and provide their input to the plan.

It’s a complete cross section of people, said Superintendent Dr. Adrian Vega.

More than 100 people responded to the invitation, but more than 200 people were considered.

During Saturday’s meeting that Vega said will last most of the day, participants are expected to hear from Vega and discuss the main areas of concern.

Those include curriculum, finance, facilities, communications and other areas.

Presenters will be on hand to give committee members more information as needed, Vega said.

Once everyone has found an area of concern they are most passionate about, the group will be broken up into subgroups and each table will have a facilitator and note taker.

During the following meetings in the coming weeks, Vega said together they will identify the key areas of concern and tackle the issue.

“By summer, we should have a plan to take to the school board,” he said. “Then we can start to implement the plan at the start of fall 2016.”

Vega, who is willing and eager to do what is necessary, said it’s going to be a lot of work.

“I see no alternative. We cannot start the school year without a new plan,” he said.

Even though the group faces weeks of work, Vega said it’s an exciting time for the district.

“It’s a great moment in history,” he said. “The last time we had a plan like this was from 1998 to 2003.”

HARLNGEN — Even a classic look like a Dairy Queen doesn’t last forever.

The DQ at 1613 N. 77 Sunshine Strip is in the midst of a $280,000 makeover.

Yesterday, crews were busy at work on both the interior and exterior of the building.

As crew chief Cesar Sanchez looked over blueprints for the project, at least a half-dozen workers were busy from the roof down on the project that initially was supposed to be completed by the first of this year.

Although the company is headquartered in Edina, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis, Texans are some of Dairy Queen’s best customers and the state leads the nation in the number of DQ franchises.

In all, DQ has 6,400 restaurants in 27 countries.

Dairy Queen has another franchise at Loop 499 in Harlingen, and franchises in Raymondville, Los Fresnos, Elsa and Brownsville.

Efforts to reach the owner of the franchise were unsuccessful.

HARLINGEN — He was just a teenager when his mother died, but the tragedy laid the foundation for Dr. Nabeel Sarhill’s life as a physician.

Sarhill, who specializes in oncology and hematology at Texas Oncology, said his mother died from wounds suffered in an accident when he was 15 years old. The lack of medical services that could have saved her — possibly something as simple as adequate blood supply — convinced him to become a doctor.

“There were not too many doctors to take care of people there,” said the Syrian-born doctor. “That time I decided to see if I could help people.”

Sarhill’s dedication, like that of so many physicians and nurses throughout the Valley and the United States, is being recognized today as part of National Doctors’ Day, says the www.doctorsday.org website.

The first observance took place in 1933. In 1990, National Doctors’ Day became an official day every March 30.

“It’s a day to celebrate the contributions of physicians who serve our country by caring for its citizens,” says the website.

Of course, the day recognizes doctors so there’s nothing about nurses. But Dr. Nolan Perez, a gastroenterologist, said more attention should be given to his team members.

“In my mind it’s more about the team,” said Perez, who is also president of the Harlingen school district Board of Trustees.

“I can’t do what I do without my technician, without my nurse, without my anesthesiologist,” he said.

His procedure nurse, Brenda Campos, said Perez makes her and the other team members feel appreciated.

“I think he’s wonderful with his staff,” she said, adding he shows a great deal of respect toward her and the other assistants.

Perez does feel gratitude for today’s recognition.

“It’s greatly appreciated that the facilities and the folks that I work with on a daily basis go out of their way to show they appreciate me and my work,” he said.

However, the strongest satisfaction comes from the care of his patients — and their responses.

“For me that’s the greatest compliment that I can receive is when a patient that I’m caring for goes out of their way to send me a nice note or leave me a nice message at my office,” he said.

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