Education

Trained individuals are ready to help you in the education process to learn your role in the management of your endocrine needs.  Some helpful handouts can be accessed here: 

24hr Urine Collection instructions

Diabetes Facts

Hashimotos Thyroiditis

Hypothyroidism

Kidney Stone Dietary Prevention

Lowering Cholesterol

Mediterranean Diet

Osteoporosis
Pump Failure Protocol

Osteoporosis is often silent, but a potentially risky condition.   If you fear the life-limiting effects of a fracture and the physicians feel you require a workup, we have an in-house DEXA machine.  By simply laying on the table, Kim can run the scan, allowing the physicians to determine whether you are at risk.  Treatment options are available to ease your concerns and will be crafted with your individual situation in mind.

Being told you have thyroid cancer can be a frightening message.  Our thyroid ultrasound procedure is a non-invasive glimpse into that gland to determine whether there are any abnormalities.  If you have a nodule, we can immediately biopsy it and quickly get the results in order to determine your treatment options.  

If it is determined that your over-active (hyperthyroid) thyroid gland needs ablation, our nuclear medicine team can provide this service.  A small pill with a calculated dose of radioactive iodine is administered by mouth to correct the imbalance in your gland.

There are a variety of circumstances in which the collection of an accurate 24-hour urine sample is clinically important. Examples include calculation of the creatinine clearance, estimation of protein excretion, and measurement of the excretion of free cortisol or steroid metabolites in patients with suspected adrenal disease. The following are a set of instructions for the proper collection of a 24-hour urine specimen. In some instances, you may be asked to collect two or even three consecutive 24-hour urines.

• I want you to collect every drop of your urine during each 24-hour period. I do not care what the volume of the urine is, as long as it represents every drop that you pass. If you need to have a bowel movement, you must separate the urine in time or space.
• Begin the collection at the usual time that you awaken; the preferred time is about 8 AM in patients with suspected adrenal disease.
• At that time, pass your urine, flush it down the toilet, and note the exact time. You will now have an empty bladder and an empty bottle. That starts the collection.
• Collect every drop during the day and night and finish the collection by voiding at exactly the same time the next morning; this last specimen should be added to the bottle.
• The time of the final urine specimen should vary by no more than five or 10 minutes from the time of starting the collection the previous morning. If you have to urinate one hour before the appointed time, drink a full glass of water or more so that you can void again at the appropriate time. If you have to urinate 20 minutes before, hold the urine until the proper time. This is essential to the proper interpretation of the test results.
• You will now have a full first bottle, an empty bladder, and an empty second bottle. A second collection can be begun with the next voiding, following the same instructions. Similar instructions apply to a third collection.

The bottle(s) may be kept at normal room temperature for a day or two but should be kept cool or refrigerated for longer periods of time. The bottle contains a weak acid. If you get acid or urine from the bottle on your skin or clothing, rinse your skin or clothing immediately with plenty of cold water, and you will have no problem.

We will measure a substance called creatinine in your urine. It will tell us whether each urine collection is complete. Unfortunately, that is all that it can tell us because it is excreted more or less constantly during the day, whereas the rate of excretion of other substances, such as adrenal steroids, may vary markedly. Therefore, the loss of two hours of urine at any time of day or night will cause the same loss of creatinine, but the loss of other substances may be great or small. Consequently, we cannot correct the result of an improper collection. We can only recognize that it is improper and disregard the result. This may mean that we have to repeat the test, which can take as long as three additional days.

Proper diagnosis and decision as to appropriate treatment depend entirely upon proper test results. Therefore, I am putting you in charge of making sure that your collections are complete. Do not go anywhere without your collection bottle. Do not let anyone take urine from the bottle or have you collect urine for any other purpose unless you have my permission. This is the single most important thing you can do to assist us in correctly diagnosing and treating your illness.

Our “moderately complex” lab has the capability of running many of the essential laboratory tests in-house.  This means your results are available to the providers more quickly, allowing them the information necessary to develop the best plan for your endocrine needs.

From the moment you walk into the front door, our administrative team will be ready to greet you and direct you to your endocrine provider. Paperwork is available online if you would like to prepare for your first visit 

New Patient

Privacy practices

Medical release form

If you are an existing diabetes patient, you may be asked to keep a log of your blood sugar and bring it to your appointments 

Blood glucose flowsheet

Please have your photo ID and insurance card available when you arrive.   

Community Development Foundation (CDF)

Endocrine Society

Consulting Staff for:

• North Mississippi Medical Center Family Medicine Residency Program
• North Mississippi Medical Center Internal Medicine Residency Program
• Baptist Memorial Hospital Internal Medicine Residency Program