FEATURED, FROM LEFT: Edinburg City Councilmember Jason DeLeón; Edinburg City Councilmember Dan Díaz; Edinburg Mayor Ramiro Garza, Jr.; Edinburg Mayor Pro Tem Johnny García; and Edinburg City Councilmember David White. De León, Díaz, and Garza were sworn in to their respective four-year terms during ceremonies held on Monday, December 20, 2022, outside of Edinburg City Hall.
Photograph Courtesy CITY OF EDINBURG FACEBOOK
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2nd Annual “Wipe Out Colon Cancer” 5K Run/Walk, set for Saturday, March 19, 2022, being hosted by DHR Health Advanced Care Center, receives support from Edinburg City Council
By DAVID A. DÍAZ
[email protected]
The 2nd Annual “Wipe Out Colon Cancer 5K” Run/Walk, set for Saturday, March 19, 2022 from 7:30 a.m. to noon at the Edinburg Municipal Park, was supported and endorsed by the Edinburg City Council during its Tuesday, March 15, 2022 regular meeting.
The city leadership approved a request from April Chapa, Community Outreach Coordinator, DHR Health Advanced Care Center in Edinburg, for a special use permit, which includes the city government waiving almost $1,100 in city fees.
Those fees represent the estimated costs for the event’s application fee, police security, use of the pavilion and six large trash cans at the Edinburg Municipal Park, located at 714 South Raúl Longoria Road.
The profits from the event, which is being hosted by DHR Health Advanced Care of Edinburg, will provide financial assistance through theRenaissance Cancer Foundation, which provide financial help to uninsured cancer patients in the Rio Grande Valley.
The Renaissance Cancer Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 2008.
DHR Health Advanced Care Center, located at 2717 Michael Angelo Drive in Edinburg, has served thousands of cancer patients of all ages come through its doors to receive oncologic care, including chemotherapy, infusion, and radiation treatments, according to the center’s website.
“Since March is National Colorectal Cancer Month, to raise awareness, the DHR Health Advanced Care Center is hosting to 2nd Annual ‘Wipe Out Colon Cancer’ 5K event,” Chapa explained to the city council.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevent (CDC):
• Colorectal cancer is a disease in which cells in the colon or rectum grow out of control. Sometimes it is called colon cancer, for short. The colon is the large intestine or large bowel. The rectum is the passageway that connects the colon to the anus.
• Sometimes abnormal growths, called polyps, form in the colon or rectum. Over time, some polyps may turn into cancer.
• Screening tests can find polyps so they can be removed before turning into cancer. Screening also helps find colorectal cancer at an early stage, when treatment works best.
https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/colorectal/basic_info/what-is-colorectal-cancer.htm
“It’s very important that we get this (information about colorectal cancer) out there, because we have been seeing a lot of diagnoses in younger patients, which is heartbreaking,” said Chapa. “It usually occurs in people age 45 and older, but I lost a friend last year, and she was 36. She had colon cancer.”
In general, a diagnosis is the the process of identifying a disease, condition, or injury from its signs and symptoms. A health history, physical exam, and tests, such as blood tests, imaging tests, and biopsies, may be used to help make a diagnosis.
“Early detection can save lives, and that’s what we are really promoting. We want to remove this stigma of embarrassment for our culture, for a colonoscopy or a stool test,” Chapa emphasized. “We want let people know that it doesn’t have to be invasive, and it also doesn’t have to be embarrassing, and it is something that we need to talk about with our communities.”
As part of its public service on behalf of deep South Texas, DHR Health Advanced Care Center – which is part of the Edinburg-based DHR Health System – has been promoting, through the region’s news media and its own Facebook, information about colorectal cancer, including the following highlights:
According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 106,180 individuals will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the United States this year.
• One in 24 people develop colon cancer.
• Colon cancer is the second-deadliest cancer.
• Colon cancer affects men and women.
• Colon cancer is preventable, treatable, and beatable with an early evaluation.
Regular colorectal cancer screenings are the best way to determine if cancer is present and to find out before symptoms occur.
Colon cancer is a type of cancer that begins as growth in the large intestine. These growths are called polyps and can change into cancer over time. Not all polyps are cancerous, which is why screening is very important. It can take a polyp 10 to 15 years to develop into cancer, and a screening can help doctors detect polyps and remove them before they have a chance to turn into cancer.
Colon cancer typically affects older adults, though it can affect individuals at any age. The recommended age to begin screening for colorectal cancer is 45, unless there is a family history.
While colon cancer doesn’t always have symptoms, some may experience changes in bowel habits, changes in stool consistency blood in the stool, and abdominal discomfort. It is important for a person to talk to their doctor about risks, especially if one has a strong family history of cancer.
DHR Health Gastroenterology Institute provides high-quality care. Its team works with patients to coordinate colorectal screening and can navigate patients from the initial screening and diagnosis to a treatment plan that best suits them.
If an individual is experiencing any symptoms, have a family history of colon cancer, are 45 or older, talk to your doctor and insurance provider about the options available to help prevent colon cancer.
Anchored in southwest Edinburg on a 130-acre site, with a growing presence in neighboring McAllen, Rio Grande City, Mission, and Brownsville, DHR Health offers some of the most comprehensive medical care on the U.S. southern border, with more than 1,400 nurses and other health professionals, plus an additional 600+ physicians providing care in 70+ specialties and sub-specialties.
DHR Health is the flagship teaching hospital for the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine and encompasses a general acute hospital with the only dedicated women’s hospital south of San Antonio, a rehabilitation hospital, a behavioral hospital, more than 70 clinics Valley-wide, advanced cancer services, the only transplant program in the Rio Grande Valley – and as of September 8, 2021, the only 24/7 Level One Trauma Center south of San Antonio.
On Tuesday, November 16, 2021, Driscoll Health System, in partnership with DHR Health, held a groundbreaking ceremony for Driscoll Children’s Hospital Rio Grande Valley, located at 2820 W. Michaelangelo Drive in Edinburg, which is being built on the site of the DHR Health campus, next to DHR Health’s The Women’s Hospital at Renaissance.
The new, independently operated, eight-level pediatric hospital will further the mission of Driscoll Children’s Hospital founder Clara Driscoll to provide medical care to all the children of South Texas. The building is expected to be completed in Spring 2023.
The facility represents a combined investment of more than $105 million. Driscoll Children’s Hospital Rio Grande Valley will operate with more than 500 employees, creating significant economic impact and new job opportunities for clinical, ancillary and support staff in the Valley.
Doctors Hospital at Renaissance, Ltd (“DHR”) and its general partner, RGV Med, Inc. (“RGV Med”) own and operate a 519 licensed bed general acute care hospital located at 5501 South McColl in Edinburg. The facility is one of the largest physician-owned facilities in the United States that began as an ambulatory surgery center in 1997.
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS RIO GRANDE VALLEY HOME TO DOCTORAL PROGRAM IN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s Department of Occupational Therapy has transitioned its master’s program into a doctoral program, UTRGV officials recently announced.
As part of the university’s College of Health Professions, the Occupational Therapy program provides student-centered instruction to prepare future practitioners for working with people anywhere on the life span continuum who need physical, sensory or cognitive assistance.
This new program replaces UTRGV’s Master of Occupational Therapy in an effort to meet unique demands in healthcare and create entry-level clinical doctoral practitioners in the field.
The first cohort of 14 students was admitted June 1, said Dr. Shirley Wells, Professor, Chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy and OTD program coordinator, and enrollment gradually will increase to 32 students per cohort over five years.
The small class sizes make the program ideal for future practitioners looking for a more one-on-one learning environment, she said.
“Everything in Occupational Therapy has expanded the demands of what our practitioners need to do, and we need to make sure they’re ready for this environment,” Wells said.
Since Occupational Therapy is such a diverse field, most applicants who hold a bachelor’s degree can apply to the new program if they have the required prerequisites, which include Anatomy and Physiology I and II, Introduction to Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Life Span Development, Statistics and Biomechanics.
John Luna, Assistant Professor and Occupational Therapy program coordinator, said the new program means students in the Rio Grande Valley and beyond will have access to an occupational therapy degree at the doctoral level.
“Graduates of the program bring opportunities for health, wellness and participation in different settings across the life span to the communities they return to serve,” Luna said. “We have a lot of graduates both from the Valley and elsewhere.
“It’s rewarding to see students return to their communities as occupational therapists and make an impact as leaders and agents of change,” he said. “They can make the differences that are so important to them and the people they serve.”
Although the program attracts students from all over the country, the curriculum is heavily focused on the unique needs of and services within the Valley.
“We will now be producing practitioners with this next, higher level of focus on the Hispanic population and the specific needs of the area,” Wells said. “We have everything here to produce quality practitioners who go into the community and provide clinical services, and also become leaders in developing new programs.”
For more information or to apply, contact the department at[email protected].
About UTRGV
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was created by the Texas Legislature in 2013 as the first major public university of the 21st century in Texas. This transformative initiative provided the opportunity to expand educational opportunities in the Rio Grande Valley, including a new School of Medicine, and made it possible for residents of the region to benefit from the Permanent University Fund – a public endowment contributing support to the University of Texas System and other institutions.
UTRGV has campuses and off-campus research and teaching sites throughout the Rio Grande Valley including in Boca Chica Beach, Brownsville (formerly The University of Texas at Brownsville campus), Edinburg (formerly The University of Texas-Pan American campus), Harlingen, McAllen, Port Isabel, Rio Grande City, Weslaco and South Padre Island. UTRGV, a comprehensive academic institution, enrolled its first class in the fall of 2015, and the School of Medicine welcomed its first class in the summer of 2016.
GOV. ABBOTT REAPPOINTS FRANK PARKER, JR. TO CAMERON COUNTY REGIONAL MOBILITY AUTHORITY
Gov. Greg Abbott has reappointed Frank Parker, Jr. of Brownsville as the presiding officer of the Cameron County Regional Mobility Authority for a term set to expire on February 1, 2024.
The regional mobility authority is a political subdivision that allows local transportation planning and project delivery leaders to partner with the state to deliver transportation infrastructure projects that will serve Cameron County.
Parker is President and CEO of Parker & Company.
He is a board member of the South Texas Manufacturing Association, the McAllen and Brownsville Chambers of Commerce, and the National Association of Customs Broker Forwarders Freight Forwarding Committee.
Additionally, he is a former chairman of the Brownsville Economic Development Council and the Brownsville Chamber of Commerce, former president of the Brownsville Propeller Club and former board member of the Border Trade Alliance.
He is also a former member of the Board of Directors of Mercantile Bank N.A.
He is a member of the Rio Grande Metropolitan Planning Organization and a former member of the Brownsville Metropolitan Planning Organization.
Parker received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from The University of Texas at Austin.
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Victoria Brito Morales contributed to this article. For more on this and other Texas legislative news stories that affect the Rio Grande Valley metropolitan region, please log on to Titans of the Texas Legislature (TitansoftheTexasLegislature.com).
