There was a time not so long ago when people would have laughed in your face if you had asked them to pay for drinking water. Those same people probably would not have bought into the idea of a portable telephone that could act as a camera, music center, GPS and a complete media center.
However, there were people out there 20-30 years ago who were insightful enough to make smart decisions that are buttering their biscuits in 2009.
One such man is Lee Burdine, president of BHS Inc., health-monitoring services, located in Columbus just off Highway 45 North at the former Two Bits location near the old skating rink. (Many of you will remember Two Bits, the video arcade that served spinach salads in clay pots and gummy worms in chocolate pudding.)
Radical, man, totally
In 1977, free blood pressure screening was an idea so new that it was considered by some to be “too out there.” Such medical delving was best left for your physician.
For a few, such as Burdine, the idea gained acceptance. It was a smart move. They saw this tool as a way for people to monitor their own blood pressure.
“They were not diagnosing,” he pointed out, “but rather screening. That is an important difference.”
At that time Burdine worked for VitaStat, which evolved into SpaceLab, and then Lifeclinic. In 1988 Burdine offered to help Mack Howard, local businessman, with VitaStat and then he purchased it in 1993.
“Drug and grocery stores were beginning to realize what a great service blood pressure monitoring could be for their customers,” he said. “It was a natural marketing tool.”
Today Lifeclinic has about 900 monitoring machines in Mississippi, Alabama and Memphis. Nationwide there are over 30,000, providing about three million free blood checks annually.
Big dogs
“About 25 percent of our sales are with work sites,” said Burdine.
Some of the national big dogs who use Lifeclinic are 3-M, Home Depot, Kelloggs, Merriott, Weyerhauser and at least 30 others.
They are also housed in health care facilities, fitness center chains, YMCA”s and in educational institutions such as the University of Mississippi, Alabama State University and the University of Georgia.
Encouraging workers to monitor their own blood pressure, and other physiological components, such as blood glucose, BMI, percent body fat and weight can save companies money on healthcare costs.
Lifeclinic works with both state and federal government entities such as the Mississippi State Department of Health and the National Institute of Health.
The Surgeon General recently awarded Lifeclinic an award for its community health efforts.
“We also work with specific exercise programs such as walking to improve health. More than 1,200 United Methodists pastors are qualified for one of our walking-for-health programs. They have been issued digital pedometers, which monitor and collect data for medical analysis. Out of the 1,200 or so who qualified, 600 are active in the program,” said Burdine.
“We are also working with the Mississippi State Department of Health”s “Stroke Belt Initiative.”
His company performs mass screenings for the military, including the National Guard. Mass screenings, by the way, can cause the ears of the screener to become irritated.
Early monitoring machines in drug and grocery stores were basic and did little else besides report the participant”s blood pressure. However, those simple health kiosks are sophisticated and can perform numerous tasks.
“We now call them health stations,” said Burdine, “and you will see more of these new machines in your local drug and grocery stores in the very near future. There are two models, the LC500 and the LC600. These units have interactive touch screens interfaced with Internet capabilities,” he said. “People can check several vital signs at their work place or home.”
Life for a Lifeclinic worker
With only six employees at the Columbus Lifeclinic, the demands are great. Just in the three counties in the Golden Triangle, and Monroe, there are about 20 machines. One of the workers is Angie Basson, who is a customer service manager.
“I drive a lot,” she admitted. “An average week carries me about 1000 miles, but it can be more.”
Both Burdine and Basson chuckled when I asked if there was any logic to her weekly treks into the Southeast.
“No, not really. I have to take the calls whenever they come in. I might be in Birmingham one morning and then Huntsville that afternoon and some place else to check into a hotel,” said Basson.
Basson is responsible for redoing the electric circuitry, the electronic boards in the machines, cleaning the cuffs and cabinets, and even refurbishing older machines in the office here in Columbus when she”s not on the road.
“These machines are Class 2 medical devices, which means that they are equally sensitive to those in your doctor”s office and clinic. Each machine requires a lot of paperwork, and yes, I have to do that as well,” she said. “And the machines are calibrated regularly.”
Basson reminded me that blood pressure is one of those reading that is hardly ever the same.
“Sometimes people get upset that their blood pressure reading is not what they think it should be,” she said. “But, I have to remind them that they are supposed to remain quiet when conducting the BP reading. Often they will be tending to toddlers or infants, and sometimes they are stressed out from their day”s activities.”
She reported that sometimes she has an eight-hour day, but often a 14-hour day is what happens.
“It all just depends on what calls come into my office,” she said.
Do yourself a favor
Checking one”s blood pressure can prevent all sorts of life-threatening problems. By no means is self-monitoring a substitute for visiting a physician, but it can be a red flag for changes in your body, indicating a problem.
Lifeclinic”s comprehensive Web site can be examined at www.Lifeclinic.com.
Their machines can be found at CVS pharmacies, the local YMCA, and other drug and grocery stores all across the nation.
John Dorroh is a semi-retired high school science teacher, who writes a business column for The Dispatch.
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