ALS Center Opens Doors for Patients and Families
By James Klein, Communications Specialist

Over 200 people celebrated the official opening in March for the Center for ALS Care, a multidisciplinary facility combining the highest-quality medical treatment, support services, and research efforts in a single location at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

The opening day program March 10, 2007 at Cedars-Sinai’s Harvey Morse Auditorium featured a ribbon-cutting ceremony and presentations by government officials; The ALS Association, Greater Los Angeles Chapter representatives; Cedars-Sinai physicians; and nationally-recognized experts in ALS treatment, advocacy, and research.

The ribbon-cutting was conducted by Kathleen Rasmussen, Chair of The ALS Association, Greater Los Angeles Chapter Board of Trustees; Billie Greer, Director of the Office of the Governor, Los Angeles; Assemblyman Mike Davis; Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky; Fred Fisher, President and CEO of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter; Dr. Stefan M. Pulst, Director of the Division of Neurology at Cedars-Sinai; and Dr. Jeannie Fontana, Chapter Trustee.

Kathleen Rasmussen reminded the audience that The ALS Association, Greater Los Angeles Chapter and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center have been working together for three years to create the groundbreaking, multifaceted facilitythe first of its kind in Southern Californiawhich she hopes will become, “the premiere Center in the country.”

Chapter President and CEO Fred Fisher underscored the urgent need for the facility, which he hopes will grow to serve many of the 1,100 PALS in the Chapter’s six-county service area. He also recognized people who helped make the ambitious Center a reality, including the former Chapter Chairperson, Carol Ann Econn, whom Fisher described as, “the one person who started this all.”

Research Advancements
Dr. Robert Brown of Harvard University, the day’s Keynote Speaker, described a number of advancements in the treatment of ALS, including promising clinical drug trials currently underway. “This is an incredibly exciting moment for all of the ALS community, not just for people in Los Angeles,” declared Dr. Brown, who said the new Center offers, “a unique opportunity for research because of the high concentration of potential research subjects.”

Director of the Center for ALS Care, Dr. Abirami Muthukumaran (aka “Dr. Abi”), gave a thorough overview of current ALS research. Dr. Ian Wilmut of the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Regenerative Medicine emphasized the promising role stem cell research plays in the search for a cure to ALS.

Expert Presentations
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s physicians introduced the Center’s many treatment facilities and services in special “Ask the Experts” sessions with Pulmonologist Dr. Ashraf Elsayegh, Neuropsychologist Dr. Enrique Lopez, and Physical Therapist Susan Vereb. Their presentations sparked some lively audience participation during the Question and Answer periods, and several attendees waited outside the auditorium to continue questioning the experts afterwards. Dr. Lopez gave a particularly memorable demonstration of the brain-process affects of ALS using an interactive game that resulted in laughter and bewilderment as audience members experienced what it might be like, as many PALS do, to have your own brain work against you.

Benefits of Integrated Care
The Center emerged from a desire to consolidate medical care, support services, and research, making it much easier for PALS and FALS, who often travel long distances to access the variety of physicians, therapists, and support services ALS patients frequently require. The new Center will enable PALS to see a range of specialists in a single day, and ALS patients will not have to go from one area of a hospital to anotheror even leave the room. “Patients will be able to stay in one room, and all the physicians will be able to cycle through that room,” Fred Fisher explained in a Los Angeles Times profile of the Center in March.

The Center for ALS Care is also designed to become a regional hub for research and education. Patients, families, and medical professionals will have access to up-to-the-minute treatment information, while respected physicians and researchers will be attracted to work at the Center, providing better care for patients and advancing efforts to find a cure. PALS will also have greater opportunities to receive new treatments, and contribute to research advancements, by participating in clinical trials.

Chapter Highlighted
The ALS Association, Greater Los Angeles Chapter contributes staff and support resources to the Center, including having at minimum a case manager present every clinic day to meet with patients and families. The Chapter also helps initiate clinical research activities, and its highly-skilled Patient Services Team works with Cedars-Sinai’s respected physicians and staff to provide integrated care and support to PALS and FALS. A patient care representative from the Chapter is assigned to the team of physicians and others who manage a patient’s care, and members of the patient services staff are available for outpatient assistance.

At the opening day ceremonies, Fred Fisher expressed his hope that the new facility will be designated as an “ALS Center of Excellence” by The National ALS Association, headquartered in Calabasas. No facilities have received the designation in the Los Angeles region, though there are 30 Centers of Excellence nationwide, including two in Northern California.

The Greater Los Angeles Chapter thanks everyone who helped celebrate the opening of their Center for ALS Care. There are many people who made the event possible, but we would like to extend special thanks to The H.P. Sophia Taubman Foundation, Dean and Kathleen Rasmussen, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Superior Mobility, Dynavox, Words Plus, Home Respiratory Care, LivHome Senior Care, Silverado Hospice, and Continuity Care Home Nursing.

The Center for ALS Care will require ongoing financial support to continue delivering the highest quality care and support to PALS and FALS. The Chapter has launched a campaign to fund the Center and expand patient services throughout the region. Every gift helps make this dream come trueplease consider a gift to the Chapter today.

For more information about the Center for ALS Care, please call (818) 865-8067.