February 24, 2012

Mayo Clinic in the News is a weekly highlights summary of major media coverage. If you would like to be added to the weekly distribution list, send a note to Emily Blahnik with this subject line: SUBSCRIBE to Mayo Clinic in the News.

Thank you.

Karl Oestreich, manager enterprise media relations
oestreich.karl@mayo.edu

Star Tribune, Mayo to put $700M a year into new projects
by Jackie Crosby

The Mayo Clinic said Thursday that it will invest $700 million a year in capital projects over the next five years, ramping up spending after cutting back when the financial crisis hit. More than half the money will go toward projects the Rochester-based health system already has in the works, such as jump-starting a proton beam therapy program for cancer patients. But executives said they're ready to put hundreds of millions of additional dollars into new projects, many aimed at finding ways to put promising medical breakthroughs on a fast track by channeling more people, equipment, research or technology toward the effort. “We want to make sure we're focusing on the outputs that are most likely to transform the way health care is delivered,” said Dr. John Noseworthy, Mayo's chief executive.

Circulation: The Star Tribune Sunday circulation is 496,039 copies and weekday circulation is 296,605. The Star Tribune is the state’s largest newspaper and ranks 16^th nationally in circulation.

Context: At a news conference Feb. 23, Mayo Clinic reported a solid performance in 2011 and shared plans for growth in services and programs to meet the needs of tomorrow’s patients in new and different ways.  Mayo Clinic creates, connects and applies integrated medical knowledge to deliver the best health care, health guidance and health information to people everywhere,” says John Noseworthy, M.D., Mayo Clinic president and CEO. “Our employees make the impossible possible for our patients every day. Their dedication to our mission makes me confident about how we will redefine the future of health care.” Click here to view the entire news release and here for video and audio of the news conference.

Public Affairs Contacts: hanson.nicholas@mayo.edu, oestreich.karl@mayo.edu

 

Minnesota Public Radio, Mayo reports strong income and revenue growth in 2011
by Elizabeth Baier

ROCHESTER, Minn. — For the second consecutive year, the Rochester-based Mayo Clinic saw increases in both net income and revenue. Clinic officials announced Thursday they will use that financial boost to move forward with several construction projects across the health system. In 2011, the Mayo Clinic hospital system brought in a profit of 18.4 percent, to just over $610 million.

Reach: Minnesota Public Radio operates 43 stations and serves virtually all of Minnesota and parts of the surrounding states. MPR has more than 100,000 members and more than 900,000 listeners each week, which is the largest audience of any regional public radio network.

Context: This story was reported from a news conference Feb. 23 where Mayo Clinic reported a solid performance in 2011 and shared plans for growth in services and programs to meet the needs of tomorrow’s patients in new and different ways. Click here to view the entire news release and here for video and audio of the news conference.

Public Affairs Contact: hanson.nicholas@mayo.edu

Additional coverage of Mayo Clinic’s 2011 performance: Pioneer Press, Pioneer Press, Post-Bulletin, MPR, WRAL Techwire, Finance and Commerce, MedCity News, Post-Bulletin, Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal, KIMT, KTTC, InvestorStemCell, Fiananznachrichten, Toronto Telegraph

 

FOX News, On the Job Hunt: Who's hiring this week?

Cheryl Casone has the scoop. Mayo is highlighted at 02:15 in the piece.

Reach: Fox & Friends is the number 1 rated morning cable news show.

Context:  Mayo Clinic was one of five companies featured in the story which ran during the morning broadcast of Fox and Friends.

Public Affairs Contact: anderson.bryan@mayo.edu

 

WCCO, MN Boy Suffers From Unusual Skin Allergy To The Cold
by Aristea Brady

One family in southwestern Minnesota is grateful the first big snow fall didn’t arrive until Monday. It’s because their 12-year old son is allergic to cold weather. Grant Schlager constantly needs to bundle up, be careful with cold drinks and pace himself with summer swimming. Schlager is from the small southern Minnesota town of Jackson…Research shows one in 2,000 people suffer from cold urticarial. “So it’s not quite as uncommon as people think it is,” Dr. Martha Hartz said.

Reach: WCCO 4 News is the most-watched newscast in the Twin Cities, in 5 out of 7 newscasts. WCCO 4 News is #1 in 5 out of the 7 newscasts for all viewers in the 25-54 age range and WCCO 4 News is #1 in 7 out of 7 newscasts for female viewers in the 25-54 age range.

Context: This story was noted recently in USA Today and continues to garner coverage. Dr. Martha Hartz, is a pediatric allergist and immunologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

Public Affairs Contact: hanson.nicholas@mayo.edu

 

Wall Street Journal Feds Announce U.S. Alzheimer’s Plan, But Will it Have an Impact?
by Shirley Wang

The Department of Health and Human Services unveiled Wednesday the first draft of a national action plan against Alzheimer’s disease, which aims to come up with effective treatment and prevention strategies by 2025… “This is a great jump start, but clearly to get to that huge goal of prevention, treatment, delaying the onset [of disease] … it’s going to take a large investment,” Ronald Petersen, another committee member and head of the Mayo Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, tells us.

Circulation: The Wall Street Journal, a US-based newspaper published by Dow Jones & Company, is tops in newspaper circulation in America with an average circulation of 2 million copies on weekdays.

Context: Ron Petersen, M.D., Ph.D. is the Cora Kanow Professor of Alzheimer’s Disease Research at Mayo Clinic. Dr. Petersen is regularly sought out by reporters as a leading expert in his medical field. Dr. Petersen chairs the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care and Services.

Public Affairs Contacts: kilen.brian@mayo.edu, klein.traci@mayo.edu

 

Star Tribune, Mayo Clinic puts a price on societal impact of youth drinking
by Jeremy Olson

Society pays about $755 million per year to hospitalize U.S. children and teens who suffer illnesses or injuries due to illegal alcohol consumption, Mayo Clinic researchers reported earlier this week in the Journal of Adolescent Health… “When teenagers drink, they tend to drink excessively, leading to many destructive consequences including motor vehicle accidents, injuries, homicides and suicides,” said Dr. Terry Scheenkloth, a Mayo addiction expert and psychiatrist.

Circulation: The Star Tribune Sunday circulation is 496,039 copies and weekday circulation is 296,605. The Star Tribune is the state’s largest newspaper and ranks 16^th nationally in circulation.

Context: Dr. Terry Schneekloth, is a Mayo Clinic addiction expert and psychiatrist. This study was published Feb. 15 in the Journal of Adolescent Health. A copy of the news release is here.

Public Affairs Contact: hanson.nicholas@mayo.edu

Grand Forks Herald, Altru announces major expansion plans, purchase of Doctors Hospital
by Ryan Johnson

President Casey Ryan said Altru’s relationship with the Mayo Clinic has improved the health care network’s ability to recruit, and 41 positions will be added to the medical staff this year. “Having done that, we created a very good problem,” he said. “We didn’t have enough space.”

Circulation: The Grand Forks Herald is a daily newspaper published in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It is the primary daily paper for northeast North Dakota and northwest Minnesota. Its average daily circulation is 34,763 on Sundays and 31,524 on weekdays. It has the second largest circulation in the state of North Dakota.

Context:  Altru Health System became the first member of Mayo Clinic Care Network in September 2011.

Public Affairs Contact: anderson.bryan@mayo.edu

CBS Sports, McBriar recuperating from surgery

Punter Mat McBriar is expected to make a full recovery from surgery at the Mayo Clinic last week to remove a cyst in his left knee, which apparently led to the “drop foot” that caused him to end the season on injured reserve. “He's lucky, and I'm lucky because this is what I've been interested in,” Dr. Robert Spinner, who called it a rare condition. “There are lots of reasons why people have drop foot. Most are not related to tumors or this type of cyst.”

Reach: CBS Sports.com bills itself as the premier destination for fantasy sports fans and an average of 6.8 million unique visitors to its website each month.

Context: Dallas Cowboys punter Mat McBriar underwent successful surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., Feb. 7, to remove an intraneural cyst. Mayo Clinic neurosurgeon Dr. Robert Spinner performed the surgery. More background is found here.

Public Affairs Contact: kilen.brian@mayo.edu

CNN, Eat 5, move 10, sleep 8 = healthy heart

John Lisk tells us about a new formula for heart health.

Reach:  CNN.com has 74.2 million unique visitors to its website each month.

Tags: Alcohol and Tobacco, Altru, alzheimer's disease, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Business Relations, Cardiology, Casey Ryan, CBS Sports, Celebrity Patients, CNN, Dr. John Noseworthy, Dr. Martha Grogan, Dr. Martha Hartz, Dr. Robert Spinner, Dr. Ronald Petersen, Dr. Terry Scheenkloth, Finanical, Fox News, Grand Forks Herald, Immunology, Journal of Adolescent Health, Mayo Clinic Care Network, Mayo Clinic Healthy Heart for Life!, Mayo Clinic in the News, Mayo Clinic Rochester, Minnesota Public Radio, Neurology, Pediatrics, Research, Sports Medicine, Star Tribune, The Department of Health and Human Services, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, WCCO, Wellness