A Sound of Hope: Baldwin Health Patients Ring the Bell to Mark Milestones in Alzheimer’s Treatment
10/5/2026
New tradition celebrates patients completing treatment under the care of neurologist Harrison Pearl, M.D.
FOLEY, Ala. — For generations, the sound of a bell has signaled an ending. At Baldwin Health, it now represents something else: hope.
Baldwin Health Neurology has introduced a treatment bell for patients reaching an important milestone in their treatment for early-stage Alzheimer’s disease, giving patients and their families an opportunity to pause, celebrate and recognize the journey they have completed together.
The tradition is inspired by the treatment bells commonly associated with cancer care. The modern medical tradition dates to 1996, when U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Irve Le Moyne completed radiation treatment for head and neck cancer at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Drawing from a Navy tradition of ringing a bell when a job was finished, Le Moyne brought a brass bell to his final treatment and rang it to mark the occasion.
In the decades since, treatment bells have become symbols of perseverance, accomplishment and hope for patients and families navigating difficult medical journeys.
Baldwin Health is bringing that same spirit to neurological care.
“Alzheimer’s is a diagnosis that can bring tremendous uncertainty for patients and the people who love them,” said Harrison Pearl, M.D., neurologist with Baldwin Health. “This bell gives us an opportunity to recognize something worth celebrating. It represents the commitment of our patients, the support of their families and the progress being made in how we can care for people diagnosed in the early stages of this disease.”
Recent advances have changed the treatment landscape for certain patients with early Alzheimer’s disease. Newer disease-modifying therapies target amyloid in the brain and have been shown to slow cognitive and functional decline in eligible patients. While these treatments are not a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, they represent an important advancement and can offer something deeply meaningful to patients and their families: more time.
More time for conversations.
More time for independence.
More time for birthdays, dinners, grandchildren and ordinary moments that suddenly feel anything but ordinary.
That is what the bell at Baldwin Health represents.
For patients, ringing it recognizes the appointments, treatments, testing and monitoring they have experienced along the way. For families and caregivers, it recognizes the journey they have taken beside them. And for the physicians, nurses and team members caring for them, its sound is a reminder of why advances in neurological care matter.
It is not a bell declaring that Alzheimer’s has been cured. It is a bell celebrating progress, perseverance and the opportunity for more time.
Under the leadership of Dr. Pearl, Baldwin Health Neurology continues to expand access to advanced treatment options for eligible patients with early Alzheimer’s disease while emphasizing early evaluation and diagnosis.
And now, when a patient reaches this milestone, the clinic gets a little louder.
They ring the bell.
Their family celebrates.
Their care team celebrates.
And somewhere nearby, another patient beginning the journey may hear it.
For them, that sound can mean something very simple:
There is hope.
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