St. Lawrence Surgery

11/24/2022

Wishing everyone a healthy and happy holiday.

05/10/2022

This! 💪✔️

PSA: Today I went in and had a routine screening colonoscopy. I’m 47. I have no symptoms, but my doctors told me how this test is the gold standard for preventing/detecting colon cancer. I decided right then that despite the inconvenience of the prep the screening was not worth putting off.

Was the prep hard? Not really. I prepared and changed my diet days before.

Was it fun? Not really, but again, I kept telling myself not to complain because being able to be screened was a privilege and I should be be grateful despite the uncomfortable.

Was th procedure east? Pretty much except it took them three tries to get my iv but again, small potatoes in the big picture.

When it was done the doctor told me I had no polyps, no diverticulitis, no issues and that I can repeat this procedure in ten years barring no issues creep up. He told me to keep taking care of myself because I was doing a good job.

It is so easy for me to put off the uncomfortable and yet, being in this online space I have read over and over about people with colon cancer and their words about getting the screening and encouraging others to do it. In fact, I still remember watching Katie Couric get her colonoscopy on television after her first husband died and that one moment made me say, “let’s schedule it.”

I don’t want to live in regret.
I don’t want to wish I had done it.
I don’t want uncomfortable to keep me from doing what I should.

Take care of yourselves, my friends.
Don’t put off the hard stuff.

Maybe it’s not a colonoscopy that you need to do but perhaps this story will give you the nudge you need to get what you need to get done.

And if you’re in the demographic for needing a colonoscopy - get screened.

Love you all.

And mmmmm eggs and toast tastes so good this morning.

-Rachel


Ps… I wanted to add one thing - I know for some of your the prep is brutal. My reason for sharing my experience is that I don’t want the fear of the prep to stop people from getting the screening. My nurse today said that the reason most people put it off is they are afraid. I told her that I would write about my experience so that there could be this perspective too. ❤️

12/25/2020

Wishing everyone a happy and healthy Christmas. It’s been our honor to provide surgical care to you this year.

05/24/2020

Tune in this Wednesday to Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center’s Facebook Live - our Dr. Kiri Brandy is a cohost!

Join us for a Wound Care Awareness Facebook Live 5.27.2020 at 4 PM EST. www.facebook.com/ClaxtonHepburn

05/10/2020

Take care of your mom today and always. Encourage her to go for her routine health screenings. Screenings can detect problems before they become serious. Sweeten the deal by giving her the gift of your time by offering to go along with her.

05/08/2020

Thank you, Dr. Mike for sharing your appreciation! 💙

04/12/2020

Happy Easter! We know it’s not business as usual, and social distancing is tough, but it’s one of the best things we can do to keep ourselves and others healthy!

03/31/2020

WATERTOWN, N.Y. (WWTI) – Dr. Kiri Brandy, a General Surgeon for St. Lawrence Surgery, River Hospital and Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center, spoke to ABC50’s Alex Hazard regarding how the c…

03/30/2020

Happy Doctors' Day to our surgeons who are to be commended for their acute, chronic and emergency surgical care of our community. They strive to treat and care for our community in a comprehensive and individual way that is best suited to the needs of their patients.

03/14/2020

With the growing concerns around COVID-19 (coronavirus), we wanted to inform you of our response and our continued commitment to our patients and our employees’ health.

We have enhanced our already strict disinfection protocols with particular focus on high contact/traffic areas. Coronaviruses are easily eliminated by routine and careful surface cleaning with disinfectants.

To protect yourself and others, we ask if you are feeling unwell to please reschedule your appointment.

We will continue to monitor this situation closely and will provide ongoing updates as needed. We also encourage our patients to stay up-to-date locally through the St. Lawrence County Public Health Department www.stlawco.org/Departments/PublicHealth/ and Nationally through the CDC /www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.

03/12/2020

Botox prevents migraine headaches before they start, but it does take time to work. We inject around the pain fibers that cause headaches. As the Botox enters the nerve endings near the site where it is injected, it blocks the release of chemicals and other neurotransmitters involved in pain pathways. The treatment is usually covered by insurance. For more information or an appointment, call 315-393-2611.

03/08/2020