• Mental Health is Health with Dr. Mustafa Mufti
    Jul 10 2025

    Mental illness isn't always obvious. Someone suffering with anxiety or depression can still wear a smile, crack a joke and be successful. On this episode of For the Love of Health, Dr. Mustafa Mufti, Chair of the ChristianaCare Department of Psychiatry, explains how mental health should be treated the same as physical health.

    Mustafa Mufti, M.D., is the chair of the ChristianaCare Department of Psychiatry. In this role, Dr. Mufti focuses on fostering and maintaining a vibrant, successful psychiatry department, including physician performance, quality, research and scholarly activity as well as the administration of all departmental educational, clinical and academic programming.

    Links:

    • ChristianaCare Adult Outpatient Psychiatry & Therapy
    • ChristianaCare Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
    • ChristianaCare Inpatient Psychiatry
    • National Institute of Mental Health

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    19 mins
  • What Your Vision is Trying to Tell You with Dr. Benjamin Chaon and Dr. Tomilade Adepoju
    Jun 19 2025

    Our eyes are working for us every second we're awake. Yet eye health often falls at the bottom of our wellness priority lists, taken for granted until problems arise.

    Keeping your eyes healthy doesn't just protect your vision - it can prevent serious health problems down the road. But when you have a question about your eyesight, should you see an ophthalmologist and an optometrist? ChristianaCare ophthalmologists Dr. Benjamin Chaon and Dr. Tomilade Adepoju join us to discuss the difference between the two types of providers and when to escalate your care beyond corrective lenses. They also share important information about common eye conditions such as dry eye, inflammatory eye disease, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy, along with critical warning signs that everyone should be aware of.

    Don't be left in the dark over what's happening with your vision. Listen now for an eye-opening conversation to protect your precious sight.

    Benjamin Chaon, MD, is Medical Director of the Wilmington Eye Clinic, and member of the Christiana Care Department of Ophthalmology. He specializes in the medical and surgical management of uveitis and ocular inflammatory diseases, such as iritis, scleritis, retinitis, and ocular infectious diseases, as well as the medical treatment of retinal diseases, such as macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and retinal vascular diseases. Dr. Chaon also performs both routine and complex cataract surgeries, using the latest cutting-edge technology.

    Tomilade Adepoju, MD, is an ophthalmologist who specializes in treating patients diagnosed with glaucoma and other related eye diseases. Her focus includes helping her patients with general ophthalmic needs, ranging from diabetic eye care to routine eye exams. She works with her patients and families to understand their eye disease diagnosis and to create a comprehensive eye care plan.

    Links:

    • ChristianaCare News - Why Your Eye Health Is So Important
    • ChristianaCare News - Ophthalmologist or Optometrist? Keep an Eye Out.
    • ChristianaCare Ophthalmology

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    18 mins
  • From Sunscreen to Supervision: A Parent's Guide to a Safe Pool Day with Dr. Dylan McDivitt
    Jun 5 2025

    Summer is officially here, bringing with it backyard pool days, beach trips, and sunshine-filled adventures. But did you know your unprotected skin can be damaged by UV rays in as little as 15 minutes? That tanned complexion many associate with health is actually your body's response to damage!

    Before you head to the pool, take a moment to consider a few summer safety tips with Dr. Dylan McDivitt from ChristianaCare Primary Care at Woodstown. He shares the latest guidance on what kind of sunscreen to use and how often to apply; tips on staying hydrated through summer heat; and the best ways to avoid accidents while swimming. And don't forget the importance of getting trained in CPR!

    Don't let sunburn or heat stroke ruin your day at the pool - a few minutes of prep now will help you enjoy those long, lazy summer days all season long.

    Dylan McDivitt, D.O. is a dedicated and enthusiastic board-certified family medicine physician. In his current role, he works with adult, senior, and pediatric patients to treat their day-to-day non-emergency/primary care needs and to develop strategies for their ongoing health and wellness management.

    Links

    • ChristianaCare News – Put on Your Sun Armor!
    • ChristianaCare News – Don’t Go Out Without Your Water Bottle
    • ChristianaCare News – Eight Essential Water Safety Tips
    • CDC Sun Safety Facts
    • ChristianaCare Primary Care

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    16 mins
  • Navigating the Unseen World of Postpartum Mental Health with Malina Spirito and Spencer Paige Brown
    May 22 2025

    Motherhood doesn't always match our expectations. For many new parents, the journey brings unexpected emotional challenges. In fact, CDC research shows that about 1 in 8 women with a recent live birth reported symptoms of postpartum depression. And that's just one of a multitude of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders that can develop during pregnancy and persist for up to three years after delivery.

    That's where ChristianaCare's Center for Women's Emotional Wellness comes in. Psychologists Malina Spirito and Spencer Paige Brown join us to share their insights on the number one complication of childbirth, discussing how one parent's mental health can have a ripple effect through the entire family, along with the warning signs that family members should be on alert for.

    With early intervention, these issues are highly treatable. Don't wait until things feel "that bad" to seek help. Listen now to take the first step towards reclaiming the joy in your parenting journey.

    Malina Spirito, M.Ed., MA, is a licensed psychologist at the ChristianaCare Center for Women’s Emotional Wellness, specializing in support for women before, during, and after pregnancy. Dr. Spirito provides consultations, assessments, and treatment to women and their families regarding perinatal mood and anxiety disorders.

    Spencer Paige Brown, Psy.D, MS, brings her passion for working with patients from marginalized backgrounds to her role as a dedicated and empathetic licensed psychologist. In her current role as a clinical psychologist at the ChristianaCare Center for Women’s Emotional Wellness, she specializes in treating and supporting adult patients with a range of mental health needs that arise before, during, and after pregnancy.

    Links:

    • ChristianaCare Center for Women's Emotional Wellness
    • ChristianaCare News - Veronica’s Story: The Art of Making Moms a Priority
    • Postpartum Support International
    • CDC Symptoms of Depression Among Women
    • Perinatal Depression - National Institutes of Health

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    15 mins
  • Nursing Excellence in Action with Michelle Collins and Paige Merring
    May 8 2025

    At ChristianaCare, excellence is at the foundation of our nursing practice, having recently secured a fourth consecutive Magnet® designation - the gold standard and ultimate benchmark for measuring quality of care, administered by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Magnet designation signifies belonging to an elite group representing just 10% of hospitals nationwide, and ChristianaCare is the first health system in Delaware to achieve a four-peat.

    To explain the significance of this milestone, we're joined by Michelle Collins, Vice President of Nursing Professional Excellence at ChristianaCare, and Paige Merring, ChristianaCare Nursing Excellence Manager. Michelle and Paige unpack what makes ChristianaCare unique, including the use of a comprehensive system-wide approach; a transformation to a professional practice model that has led to an increased BSN rate to 83% and an increased certification rate to 65%; and a collaborative spirit that encourages teamwork across all disciplines.

    Ready to experience the difference nursing excellence makes? Listen now to discover how ChristianaCare is shaping the future of healthcare through innovation, advanced education, and unwavering commitment to exceptional patient care.

    Michelle L. Collins, DNP, APRN, CNS, ACNS-BC, NPD-BC, NEA-BC, LSSBB, leads ChristianaCare's systemwide efforts to support nursing practice innovation and problem-solving. She also has led ChristianaCare to achieve its fourth Magnet designation, a preeminent excellence designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

    Paige Merring, MSN, RN, CCRN, is the Nursing Excellence Manager at ChristianaCare. In this role, she facilitates strategic planning for nursing, supports professional governance councils to empower nurses, and leads teams to improve patient experience.

    Links

    • Nursing at ChristianaCare
    • ChristianaCare Magnet® Designation
    • ChristianaCare News - Four-Peat! ChristianaCare Achieves Magnet®–the Top Recognition for Nursing Excellence–for 4th Time
    • American Nurses Credentialing Center

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    17 mins
  • The Patient Perspective on Clinical Trials with Dr. Gregory Masters and Robert Robinson
    Apr 24 2025

    According to the National Institute of Health, there are more than 500,000 clinical trials happening right now around the world. ChristianaCare has been nationally recognized for contributions to this work, as clinicians and scientists at the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center and Research Institute collaborate to turn laboratory discoveries into real world therapies.

    On this week's episode of For The Love of Health, we're joined by Dr. Greg Masters, ChristianaCare’s National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) Principal Investigator. Dr. Masters explains how these vital studies work and why they matter - from testing new medications to exploring innovative treatment combinations, each trial represents hope for patients facing difficult diagnoses.

    We're also joined by Robert Robinson, a prostate cancer survivor who himself participated in a clinical trial at ChristianaCare. He shares how his clinical trial not only saved his life, but sparked his mission of talking about men's health.

    For its excellence in clinical trials, the Delaware/ChristianaCare NCORP in 2024 earned the prestigious Platinum Award for Exceptional Achievement from the NCI/NCORP.

    Gregory A. Masters, M.D., has been a ChristianaCare lung cancer specialist since 2003. In addition to his investigative work with NCORP, Dr. Masters serves as an associate professor at Thomas Jefferson University Medical School in Philadelphia, and is a highly published expert and a reviewer for many of the leading oncology clinical publications.

    Links

    • ChristianaCare Cancer Clinical Trials
    • ChristianaCare News - National Leader in Cancer Clinical Trials: ChristianaCare Advances Pioneering Therapies
    • National Institute of Health Clinical Trials Database
    • Hypofractionated Radiation Therapy or Conventional Radiation Therapy After Surgery in Treating Patients With Prostate Cancer (Robert's clinical trial)
    • Robert Robinson's Podcast, The Lions Den

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    15 mins
  • Donating Medical Supplies to Create Greener Hospitals with Deanna Benner and Ashley Oncay
    Apr 10 2025

    Have you heard of the term "health care pollution"? It refers to the waste that hospitals produce while providing patient care, as well as hospitals’ carbon emissions.

    Nurse Practitioner Deanna Benner and Nursing Professional Development Specialist Ashley Oncay discuss how they found ways to decrease ChristianaCare's carbon footprint. What started as a grassroots initiative has transformed into a $1 million sustainability movement. Through the Medical Supply Donation Program and the Landfill Diversion Project, ChristianaCare is helping the community while reducing waste.

    Whether you're a ChristianaCare caregiver or simply someone concerned about the environment, this episode offers practical inspiration showing that one person's trash truly is another's treasure.

    Links

    • ChristianaCare News - Environmental Sustainability Initiatives Keep 7.7 Tons of Medical Supplies Out of Landfills
    • ChristianaCare News - ChristianaCare Team Wins Environmental Excellence Gold Award
    • Environmental effects of surgical procedures and strategies for sustainable surgery
    • Project CURE
    • Habitat for Humanity ReStore Goods Donations

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    14 mins
  • Transforming Community Care Through the Behavioral Health Unit
    Mar 27 2025

    Improving quality of life is a goal in both healthcare and policing. ChristianaCare and the New Castle County Division of Police are working together to change lives in our community.

    The collaboration is called the Behavioral Health Unit, a groundbreaking partnership that pairs officers with social workers to transform crisis response. When 911 calls with mental health components come in, these specialized teams respond together. Officers ensure safety while social workers conduct comprehensive assessments to determine appropriate care possibilities beyond the limited options of jail or emergency rooms.

    On this episode of For the Love of Health, New Castle County Division of Police Corporal Colleen Kearns and ChristianaCare Social Worker Delilah Colon describe the issues that led to the formation of the Unit, share facts and statistics about the people and families the program has impacted, and look forward to how this partnership is serving as a template for the future of policing around the state.

    Links

    • Hero Help – New Castle County Division of Police Addiction & Behavioral Health Unit
    • Wilmington Police Partners in Care Program
    • Newark Police Department Behavioral Health Unit
    • Delaware Public Media, 2020: ChristianaCare to staff New Castle Co. Police Behavioral Health Unit

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    17 mins