Mercy Fort Smith Adds Neurohospitalists, Expands Care for Hospitalized Patients

Dr. Sujan Reddy , left, and Dr. Jacob Didion have helped expand Mercy Fort Smith's neurohospitalist program.

Mercy Fort Smith has expanded the care it provides for patients suffering from a variety of neurological disorders, thanks to the addition of two new physicians.

Dr. Jacob Didion and Dr. Sujan Reddy joined Mercy to help provide care every day of the year for patients who are hospitalized for treatment of neurological disorders. The addition of the neurohospitalists at Mercy Fort Smith allows the hospital to care for more patients dealing with neurological issues, including:

· stroke

· seizures

· headaches

· multiple sclerosis

· Guillain-Barré syndrome

· myasthenia gravis autoimmune disorder

"The expansion of the neurohospitalists program is part of the ongoing expansion of services planned at Mercy Fort Smith," said Ryan Geib, chief operating officer at Mercy Hospital Fort Smith. "In just two years, we have added three board-certified, fellowship trained neurosurgeons and two ambulatory neurologists, in addition to two neurohospitalists. Our specialized physicians and teams of caregivers now offer the highest level of neurological care in the River Valley."

Patients will benefit from this team's expert levels of care and spend less time in the hospital, Geib continued.

"The presence of 365-day neurohospitalists complements and elevates our growing neurosciences programs, which now includes complete stroke treatment and intervention," he said.

Dr. Sujan Reddy

Providing expanded neurological care in the River Valley means patients can be treated closer to home, Dr. Reddy explained.

"Our goal is to provide in-hospital stroke and neurological care to patients in and around Fort Smith and the River Valley area, so they don't have to travel miles from their home to seek specialist care," he said.

Dr. Reddy completed a residency and stroke fellowship at the University of Texas at Houston, earned a master's degree in public health at the UT School of Public Health in Houston and graduated from Mahatma Gandhi Mission's Medical School in India.

For Dr. Reddy, who joined Mercy in July 2020, the decision to focus on neurology came from an experience within his own family.

"After my grandfather was diagnosed with a meningioma (central nervous system tumor) and seizures while I was in medical school, I decided to pursue neurology to help patients like him," Dr. Reddy said.

Dr. Jacob Didion

Similarly, a growing number of patients in need of neurological care influenced Dr. Didion to enter the field. Dr. Didion joined Mercy in September 2021.

"I chose the field of neurology so I can provide care to a population of patients in great need," Dr. Didion said. "In addition to this, I find this field very interesting and complex, particularly at this time as our management for conditions such as stroke and dementia continues to evolve."

Dr. Didion earned a bachelor's degree in biology from Lyon College and his doctorate from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

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