Southern Illinois Hand Center Joining Sarah Bush Lincoln

(LEFT TO RIGHT, DR. LISA SASSO, DR. PATRICK STEWART, DR. NASH NAAM, SARAH BUSH LINCOLN PRESIDENT AND CEO JERRY ESKER)

Southern Illinois Hand Center (SIHC) of Effingham is joining Sarah Bush Lincoln on August 2.

The practice, located at 901 Medical Park Plaza, is staffed by three hand surgeons and their team of 20. All are joining SBL and will remain in its current location in Medical Park Plaza. SBL is purchasing the building as well. The phone number will remain the same.

The group includes surgeons Nash Naam, MD, FACS, Patrick Stewart, MD, FACS, and Lisa Sasso, MD, FAAOS. The office of Oral Maxillofacial Surgeon Jay Swanson, MD, FACS, will remain in the building. He is not employed by Sarah Bush Lincoln.

Sarah Bush Lincoln President and CEO Jerry Esker said, “We are so pleased for this renowned surgical group to join Sarah Bush Lincoln. The Southern Illinois Hand Center has earned a wide reputation for excellence and innovation through more than 30 years it has been providing excellent care to the region. We couldn’t be more excited.”

SIHC also will continue to provide hand and occupational therapy services to its patients so they can be assured the best possible recoveries.

Dr. Naam explained, “My vision has always been to devote 100 percent of my time and energy to my patients’ care. The practice became so busy, and the regulations became so complex and confusing that we needed to give the administrative responsibilities to someone else in order to devote ourselves completely to taking care of our patients. We (Dr. Stewart and Dr. Sasso and I) took the time to seriously consider what we could do to maintain and enhance our vision of giving our patients all our time, energy and attention. Sarah Bush Lincoln shares the same patient care vision as us. So, we felt that Sarah Bush Lincoln was a great fit for us. We are very excited to be a part of this team.”

He added, “After many long discussions, we felt reassured that we could trust Sarah Bush Lincoln. The leaders have a level of professionalism that we found refreshing. We found them open-minded and honest and the hospital has a culture that we want to belong to. With the resources of Sarah Bush Lincoln behind us, it is a great opportunity for this practice to continue to grow.”

Dr. Stewart echoed Dr. Naam’s words, “The changing landscape and regulatory burdens of healthcare has put the private practice of medicine on the endangered species list. In response to these changes we looked for an organization with the infrastructure and vision to brighten that horizon by bearing those ever-changing burdens and allow us to concentrate solely on the care of patients. SBL more than fulfilled those needs for us, but as importantly has the reputation and track record we could entrust our future, our patients and our community. It’s unique honesty, integrity and transparency throughout this harrowing process gave us the confidence and trust in this venture. We are excited for all the future holds for SBL SIHC.”

Dr. Naam, the founder of Southern Illinois Hand center, is the president of the American Association for Hand Surgery, and is also a Governor of the American College of Surgeons. Dr. Naam was awarded “Pioneer in Hand Surgery” award by the International Federation of Societies for Surgeries of the Hand. He is also a past president of the American Society for Peripheral Nerve. He was awarded the Effingham Daily News’ “Effingham Citizen of the year” in 2018. He frequently writes a column for the Effingham Daily News. Dr. Naam is certified by the American Board of Surgery, with an added qualification in hand surgery, and is a clinical professor in the department of plastic and reconstructive surgery at Southern Illinois University Medical School, Springfield.

Dr. Stewart is certified by the American Board of Surgery and has an added qualification in hand surgery. He earned his medical degree at the Medical College of Ohio, Toledo OH. He completed residencies at Catholic Medical Center of Brooklyn and Queens in affiliation with Cornell University, NY, and completed a hand surgery fellowship at the University of Buffalo School of Medicine, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY.

Dr. Sasso earned her medical degree at Rush University Medical School, Chicago, and completed her orthopedic residency at Northwestern University Medical Center, Chicago. She completed a hand surgery fellowship at the University of Utah Medical Center, Salt Lake City, UT. She is certified by the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery with an added qualification in hand surgery.