Bingham Memorial Hospital is pleased to announce that their Healing Center and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Center in Pocatello, Idaho, was one of three facilities in the nation recognized in the Super Bowl media kit for their participation in the International Hyperbaric Medical Foundation (IHMF) research study.

The IHMF was established in 2003 to improve public health by disseminating scientific knowledge, promoting, sponsoring, and conducting research of hyperbaric medicine. The study was designed to determine if hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) would aid with the effects of mild to moderate chronic traumatic brain injury, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder among veterans and civilians, who have found conventional drug-based treatments ineffectual or even harmful.

“Bingham Memorial Hospital has one of the largest hyperbaric oxygen therapy facilities west of the Mississippi River,” says Louis Kraml, a retired Navy veteran and CEO of Bingham Memorial Hospital. “Our community has many individuals who have sacrificed to serve in our military, and we were pleased to be selected for a study that sought to identify the best treatments for a devastating condition that impacts military personnel all over the country.”

The Healing Center and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Center, managed by Bingham Memorial, is one of only a few hundred facilities of its kind in the nation, and was the first multi-person chamber in the state of Idaho. “Since 1999, hyperbaric oxygen therapy has been a valuable tool for physicians around the region,” says the owner of the facility, Jeff Hampsten, an Army veteran and deep sea diver. “As a non-evasive, drug-free, and highly successful alternative method of healing for the human body, it has helped heal thousands of non-healing wounds, assisted individuals to regain their mobility, given hope to other incurable conditions, and, in many cases, saved lives.”

Jeff explains how the treatments work with oxygen—a crucial element of healing. “Inside the chamber, air pressure is raised above normal which increases the capacity of body fluid to carry oxygen. When oxygen levels are increased, the white blood cells can kill bacteria, swelling is reduced, and the body’s oxygen requirements for healing are attained quickly.” With repeated treatments, the oxygen flow stimulates the body’s healing processes and allows most patients to experience rapid recovery of cognitive and neurological functioning without surgery or drugs.

The Healing Center and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Center was one of a network of U.S. civilian clinics, over the last three years, to successfully treat over 300 traumatic brain injury (TBI) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder veteran and civilian casualties. The IHMF study helped brain-injured veterans of the recent interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as previous wars, and civilians—athletes, police officers, and fire fighters—achieve a clinically significant recovery after completing 40 treatments of HBOT. The IHMF has had dramatic, life-altering success returning fully-treated patients to a quality of life far above what they could receive from traditional or DOD medicine. A significant number were returned to active military duty, including Special Forces.

According to the study, HBOT is a rapidly evolving branch of medicine which is now beginning to generate interest due to highly successful outcomes in cases of TBI and concussion. Notably, military veterans and athletes who have experienced serious complications due to heavy reliance on habit-forming pain relievers have turned their lives around after HBOT treatments. The FDA has also approved this treatment for a dozen more medical conditions, including carbon monoxide poisoning, air embolism, burns, and crash injury.

“The Healing Center and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Center offers hope and healing,” says Mr. Kraml. “We are committed to excellence and progress, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy is just one of many examples of how we strive to provide high quality, cutting-edge medical services to citizens of southeast Idaho.”

About Bingham Memorial Hospital

Bingham Memorial Hospital is a 501(c)3 non-profit critical access hospital located in Blackfoot, Idaho. Bingham Memorial Hospital is committed to the pursuit of excellence in our endeavor to provide a continuum of quality, compassionate, healthcare services for residents and visitors to east Idaho, in the most efficient and cost effective manner possible. They have healthcare facilities in Blackfoot, Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Shelley, and Soda Springs, Idaho. For more information, visit https://binghamhealthcare.org or call (208) 785-4100.

About the Healing Center and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Center

The Healing Center and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Center, managed by Bingham Memorial Hospital, is located in Pocatello, Idaho. In order to heal chronic, non-healing wounds, or in cases where a wound could become chronic or life threatening, their experienced team of wound care specialists and doctors work in conjunction with local physicians to create a comprehensive healing plan. In addition to the multi-person hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber, the state-of-the-art healing center is equipped with an in-house lab for quick bloodwork and wound culture testing, an advanced wound care products, ten on-site apartments for out-of-town visitors, and a rehabilitation room. For more information, call (208) 237-1151 or visit: https://binghamhealthcare.org/bmh-services/Idaho-Doctor-s-Hospital/healing-center.html

Media Contact:

Mark Baker

Director of Public Relations & Marketing

98 Poplar Street

Blackfoot, ID 83221

208.785.3732 – 208.782.2864 (fax)

[email protected]