In 2015, the Wise Health System Auxiliary and the Wise Health Foundation recognized the importance of providing the innovative CRRT/MARS® unit technology to the Wise County community. Through the generosity of the community, not realizing how far of an impact it would have, the joint team made the purchase of this technology for use at Wise Health System.
At 4:00 pm on New Year’s Eve, Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, TX had an urgent request to borrow Wise Health System’s MARS® Unit, or Molecular Absorbent Recirculating System Unit for a critical care patient.
The MARS® Unit in combination with the CRRT (Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy) component provides liver support and helps remove toxins while enhancing the regeneration of liver cells. According to the manufacturer’s website, “The MARS® system is the most extensively used non-biological liver support therapy in the world.” Wise Health System is one of only a handful of hospitals in Texas that offers this life saving equipment.
“We are truly grateful for the support offered to us in a crucial time. Extracorporeal Liver Support (ELS) using MARS® is a lifesaving urgent therapy in liver failure that is only available in a handful of centers. Texas Children’s Hospital is the largest pediatric center in North America and our outcomes are exemplary, but one of our machines had an equipment failure when a new patient required ELS. That patient is doing well. This was made possible by our colleagues at Wise Health System,” said Dr. Ayse Akcan-Arikan, critical care and renal physician at Texas Children’s Hospital and medical director of the extracorporeal liver support (ELS) program.
Wise Health System sent the MARS® Unit to Texas Children’s via courier, along with a special gift. Two Wise Health System nurses purchased a stuffed bear and packaged it into the MARS ®unit for the patient. The unit was transported to Houston and in use within 4 hours.
The medical profession shares a unique bond in which the care for patients often extends beyond the hospital’s front doors. The generosity of the supporters of Wise Health System Auxiliary and the Wise Health Foundation truly does make a difference.