Capitalizing on the use of innovative technology, the TGF, in late 2022 pursued funding from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to purchase Guam’s first Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) device.  TMS is a treatment technique that uses a magnetic field to influence brain activity.  It can treat depression, depression with anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, smoking addiction, and other brain related conditions. It’s noninvasive and can help when other treatment approaches are not effective. TMS treatment has been widely used in top US hospitals and outpatient centers and is an accepted practice by the US Veterans Affairs, Medicare, and national health maintenance organizations.  The efficacy and safety of TMS has been repeatedly proven, with studies finding TMS to offer patients significant symptom relief. One such study, published in 2015 in World Psychiatry1, examined Deep TMS’s efficacy in patients with treatment-resistant depression. The study was a double-blind, randomized control trial, with 20 different research centers. The study concluded that about one in three participants achieved remission after four weeks of Deep TMS therapy.  The treatment was found to be successful even in cases where patients had found three or more types of antidepressants to be ineffective.

According to TGF President and co-founder,  Lena Calvo-Rodriguez,”Our mental and behavioral health challenges on Guam require out of the box strategies and action. Working with our clinical team and network of our mental health specialist and subject matter experts, we identified the best available TMS device on the market.  Through the support of the USDA Guam and Honolulu offices,  the funds awarded to us made it possible to purchase and install Guam’s first BrainsWay Deep TMS device at the TGF Health and Wellness Center in Tamuning.” 

BrainsWay is a global leader in advanced noninvasive neurostimulation treatments for mental health disorders. The Company is boldly advancing neuroscience with its proprietary Deep Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (Deep TMS™) platform technology which has been shown to improve health and transform lives. Founded in 2003, with offices in Burlington, MA, Cresskill, NJ and Jerusalem, Israel, BrainsWay is committed to increasing global awareness and broad access to Deep TMS. BrainsWay is the first and only TMS company to obtain four FDA-cleared indications backed by pivotal studies demonstrating clinically proven efficacy. The device, which will be available at the TGF Health and Wellness Center can be used to treat major depressive disorder, depression with anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and smoking addiction. The Company is dedicated to leading through superior science and building on its unparalleled body of clinical evidence. 

“We have developed a relationship with Brainsway that will ensure the Todu Guam Foundation is positioned to respond to the unique needs of our community and the Micronesian region. We look forward to bringing this resource to our underserved community, as they are the cornerstone of our mission.  We also look forward to providing this innovative tool to our partners in the military based on Guam and to our veteran population.” Calvo-Rodriguez added.

This treatment application will also be added as another tool to the TGF’s existing Community Approach to Resilience for Students (CARES) programs as an elevated level of care for those needing more intensive, but non-invasive interventions. The CARES Program is another project funded by the Governor’s Education Stabilization Fund, which seeks to strengthen and support the social and emotional needs of students. Based on data reported by the Guam Department of Education School-Based Behavioral Health Program, students within the public school system present with symptoms of Major Depressive Disorder, Anxiety Disorders, and tobacco and substance use, among other clinical diagnoses that are treatable with TMS therapy.

Call our clinic at 671-649-8638 for more information!