Daniel Yoshor, MD, the Charles Harrison Frazier Professor and chair of Neurosurgery; John Y. K. Lee, MD, MSCE, medical director of the Gamma Knife Center; Dan Wilson, MBA, BSN, RN, FABC, interim CEO; Suneel Nagda, MD, chief of Radiation Oncology at PAH; and Kitty Sweeney, MSN, RN, CMSRN, clinical coordinator.
Everyone who works in the Gamma Knife Suite at Pennsylvania Hospital (PAH) knows Susan. Just seeing her there every day can bring a smile to their faces. Susan is the unit’s shared plant – a peace lily gifted from a patient nearly three years ago, as a thank you for the team’s care. The plant serves as a constant reminder of the unit’s commitment to patient-centered care, which has now been enhanced thanks to the Gamma Knife Suite’s recent renovation.
Opened in 2005 at PAH, the Gamma Knife Suite has treated more than 5,000 patients with a wide variety of conditions including benign or malignant brain tumors, blood vessel malformations, and tremor. Despite its name, the tool is not actually a knife. It’s a method of radiosurgery that sends a powerful beam – too weak to damage any healthy tissue – to the targeted spot in a patient’s brain, halting the growth of a tumor or lesion.
As part of the renovation, which was celebrated at a grand reopening on March 2, the Suite underwent an upgrade to its radiation system, installing a new device called ICON. Every few years, the Gamma Knife Suite must replace its radiation source as the radiation diminishes with age, which can slow down treatment. What used to take an hour for treatment can now be done in half the time with ICON.
“Some patients come in once for treatment, but others return for multiple visits, or even over years to treat recurring brain tumors,” said Kathryn (Kitty) Sweeney, MSN, RN, CMSRN, clinical coordinator for Gamma Knife/Spine Procedural Area. “We truly bond with them, and we consider them part of our family.”
Sweeney recalls one patient who bonded with her over hair. To prep a patient for the noninvasive procedure, the team must attach a lightweight frame to the head and tie any long hair back so it’s out of the way for treatment. This prevents the head from moving during treatment and ensures that the radiation beams are precisely directed to their target.
“One man had long hair and I had to put it in pigtails. After the procedure, he said he was keeping the pigtails in for the rest of the day,” said Sweeney. “We gave him a new style every time he came back for an appointment.”
In addition to a head frame, the team can apply a frameless mask, which molds to the patient’s face – a new option offered with the new ICON machine. The Suite has also installed an extra patient bay to its original three-bay setup, two ceiling lifts – to help transition patients from their beds to wheelchairs – along with a refreshed appearance to its nursing stations, supply room, and utility room.
“Our patients were just as happy as our staff to have the renovation. This new, modern look brought new life to the unit,” said Sweeney. “We’re all so proud of how far we’ve come since we opened. We may be a small unit, but we’re mighty.”