Health on a budget

Lions' early detection program cuts costs for seniors

Sonographer Michael Shah looks over a senior citizen?s sonograph.Louie Traub/View louie traub/VIEWSonographer Michael Shah screens Mike Haight for any abnormalities that might warrant further medical care. Advertisement

Most Lions chapters are known for helping the blind. But the Las Vegas International Lions chapter is helping detect medical conditions before the person's health is compromised. Its nonprofit offshoot, the HealthFirst Foundation, offers area senior citizens screening exams that range from a reduced cost to free.

The screenings look for abnormalities in areas such as the carotid artery, the abdominal aorta, the kidney, the liver, the spleen and the gallbladder.

"It's the same equipment you find at most diagnostic clinics," said James Bartel, co-founder and president of Lions HealthFirst Foundation.

Charges for the screenings vary according to people's incomes and are determined according to federal guidelines, said Sol Lee, a former hospital employee who now volunteers to help coordinate the program.

The service can save seniors significant sums of money, she said. For instance, an echocardiogram conducted through the program might cost an individual $150, compared to a cost of about $800 if done through a doctor's office.

The program began on April 21, when the club took its equipment to Clark County's Whitney Community Center and screened about 20 people. Normally, screenings are conducted by appointment at the Lions' HealthFirst Foundation offices at 5040 Edna Ave., reachable at 739-6393.

To undergo a screening, clients lie down on a portable massage table. The test involves running a wand over gel-covered skin.

The equipment is operated by sonographers, under an agreement with the American Institute of Medical Sonography, which provides the technicians.

"When I schedule people, I tell them to wear something comfortable like a T-shirt so they can just lift it up," said Lee. "But if they forget, we have those paper tops."

Loida Harrington, now president of the chapter, has a family history of heart ailments, so last year she underwent an ultrasound preventive health screening performed by a company out of Ohio.

At the time, she didn't have medical insurance and the Las Vegas International Lions Club had not yet created its HealthFirst Foundation. It was discovered that her mitral valve -- which controls blood flow between the left atrium and the left ventricle -- was leaking.

"I was referred to a cardiologist," Harrington said. "I thought he was just going to insert a needle and mend it."

She ended up having open-heart surgery and a mechanical valve replaced her faulty one.

The ultrasound equipment cost the chapter $60,000 to purchase. It consists of a computer screen, a keyboard and the diagnostic wand. The unit sits on a stand and is about the size of a small barbecue. HealthFirst also has use of a smaller unit that fits in a large suitcase.

Lee underwent the screening. Even though she was feeling fine, the sonographer found she had gallstones. She took the results to her doctor, and soon after, she underwent laproscopic surgery to remove them.

"You don't want anything to show up, but you're glad to find it early," Lee said.

The results of the screenings are viewed by a radiologist and are available for clients in about a week. Bartel said about 20 percent of the time, the screenings show an abnormality, mostly gallstones.

For more information, call 739-6393 or visit www.lionshealthfirstfoundation.com.