Heartburn, indigestion and even nausea can sometimes send you to the pharmacy for quick relief. Complaints related to the digestive tract are some of the most common reasons many people take over-the-counter medications. But a quick fix doesn’t always work and might not be the best solution to what ails you. Gastroenterologists, or "GIs," are medical specialists with extensive training in diseases of the digestive tract.
“Buying over the counter items like Pepcid and Prilosec are okay for temporary relief. But, I see patients that go to health food stores and buy all kinds of medication. Some of these drugs have no scientific basis and can actually be harmful to your body,” explains gastroenterologist Dr. Benjamin Pike.
Dr. Pike is one of the three gastroenterologists that make up the newly announced St. Francis Center for Digestive Disorders. The center combines the experience of Dr. Mark Fortson, Dr. Benjamin Pike and Dr. Richard Robbins. This group of highly qualified physicians has extensive medical training in disease of the digestive tract.
Dr. Pike was Columbus's first gastroenterologist. Dr. Robbins has been practicing in Columbus for nearly 30 years and Dr. Fortson has been in practice since 1994.
“This group venture will allow us, as physicians, to concentrate on what we do best and that is take care of patients,” explains Dr. Robbins.
He goes on to say that patients will benefit by all working together (in a number of ways), one being the ability to collaborate on challenging cases.
Gastroenterologists perform colonoscopies to screen for, and hopefully prevent, the development of colon cancer by removing pre-malignant polyps. The physicians at the St. Francis Center for Digestive Disorders treat many other conditions too, such as diverticulosis, esophageal reflux, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome and ulcers. Gastroenterologists also treat and manage patients with abdominal pain, liver disease, rectal bleeding, diarrhea and gall stones.
Opening the new center will expand technology and services at St. Francis. Recently, St. Francis employed two nurse anesthetists to provide propofol anesthesia during endoscopy. Propofol provides loss of awareness for short diagnostic tests and a surgical procedure. The term "endoscopy" refers to a special technique for looking inside a part of the body. This method of sedation offers completely pain-free endoscopy with rapid recovery and almost no post-anesthesia side effects.
“We also plan to add video capsule endoscopy. This is a small pill camera that is swallowed and allows us to look at video images of the small bowel,” Dr. Fortson says. “Gastroenterology, like many other fields of medicine, is rapidly changing and new technologies are always being developed. Hopefully, by joining forces it will also make it easier to continue to bring new technologies to Columbus.”
