MEANINGFUL CONNECTIONS
Invaluable
Partnership:
Burn Care
The only burn center in Hawai‘i is
located at Straub Medical Center, and
it is an invaluable statewide resource.
Straub is called to work with the Honolulu
Fire Department on burn emergencies.
Firefighters respond in the field and our
medical team responds at the bedside,
working together to help a person recover.
The Honolulu Firefighters Foundation
presented a $75,000 check to Straub’s
Burn Center.
The Honolulu Firefighters Foundation (HFF)
has taken that support a step further by
funding the needs of Straub’s Burn Center.
In 2014, a $75,000 grant from HFF allowed
Straub to create a state-of-the-art hydrother-
apy system wet room, which transforms the
traditional tub treatment to a specialized
shower. The showers are more comfortable
for patients and are easier to sterilize,
greatly reducing the risk of infection. In
fact, no hydrotherapy patients have con-
tracted infections since the new system
was installed.
HFF has released another $75,000 grant to
develop the program even more. Straub will
use this money over the next three years
to expand burn life-support classes for first
responders and emergency personnel who
transfer patients to the Burn Center. The
grant will also help purchase specialized
burn-care mattresses which redistribute
patients’ weight to relieve pressure on the
skin, alleviating pain. Lastly, Straub plans to
incorporate “recovery in art” by painting the
rooms in comforting colors and adding im-
ages of nature. These artistic touches have
shown to reduce pain, decrease anxiety and
accelerate the healing process.
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“In the past 34 years we have treated
well over 1,000 critically burned
patients with the success rate equal
to mainland burn care centers.”
D R . R O B E R T S H U LT Z , B U R N C E N T E R D I R E C T O R