Mercy Wound Care Center® Recognizes American Diabetes Month by Offering Free Foot Screenings to the Public This Friday

Rogers, AR (November 14, 2006) - November marks American Diabetes Month. A condition that affects nearly 17 million Americans, diabetes may lead to serious complications such as diabetic neuropathy, which blunts perception, allowing for chronic non-healing wounds to develop on a patient's foot or lower limbs.

In order to raise awareness about diabetic neuropathy and promote proper foot care among diabetic patients, Mercy Wound Care Center® is offering complimentary foot screenings on November 17, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at 1105 W. Chestnut Street in Rogers.

Mercy Wound Care Center® is an important resource for the Northwest Arkansas community. Nationally, approximately 6 million people suffer from chronic, non-healing wounds—a serious disorder that can lead to amputation of limbs and dramatically impaired quality of life. Associated with inadequate circulation, poorly functioning veins and immobility, non-healing wounds occur most frequently in the elderly and in people with diabetes—populations that are sharply rising as the nation ages and chronic diseases increase.

"We are excited to offer this free foot screening to the members of our community in conjunction with American Diabetes Month" says Dr. Traci Ivey, Mercy Wound Care Center® Medical Director. "The Wound Care Center® serves to aid in the treatment and prevention of chronic non-healing wounds in order to positively impact the health of our community."

Mercy Health System of Northwest Arkansas and Ann Cantrell, Program Director are working with Wound Care Centers, Inc., the nation's pioneer and leader in wound management with more than 100 centers nationwide. They use Wound Care Centers Inc.'s innovative techniques that focus on not just treating the wound's symptoms, but healing it entirely by taking a disease management approach that eliminates the cause. This yields some of the best outcomes available: an average healing time of 31 days for stubborn wounds that have resisted treatment on average for six months, an 88% limb salvage rate and a 97% patient satisfaction rate.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact the Mercy Wound Care Center® at (479) 878-2550.

Mercy Health System of Northwest Arkansas, a not-for-profit faith-based health system, provides healthcare services to residents in northwest Arkansas and southwest Missouri. The System includes St. Mary's Hospital, The Gardens at Osage Terrace Assisted Living Facility and Mercy Medical Clinics in 22 locations throughout northwest Arkansas and southwest Missouri. Mercy is currently constructing a state-of-the-art medical campus just east of Interstate 540 off of New Hope Road in southwest Rogers. When completed in January 2008, the campus will include a 350,000-square-foot medical center with 200 beds and a medical office building to accommodate 90 physicians.