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FCH to add cardiac catheterization services

Fayette County residents requiring cardiac catheterization services soon will not have to drive to hospitals in neighboring counties for the procedure.

Fayette Community Hospital will move forward with plans to offer adult diagnostic cardiac catheterization services after receiving the state’s seal of approval.

FCH petitioned the Georgia Department of Community Health in January to build an on-site cardiac cath lab. Documenting a 21 percent increase in the number of Fayette patients undergoing the test from 1998 to 2002, FCH convinced the state there is an urgent need to accommodate patients within their own community.

“The addition of a cardiac catheterization lab at Fayette Community Hospital will allow us to continue our mission of delivering quality care to patients,” said Darrell Cutts, President and CEO Fayette Community Hospital. “Fayette residents will now be able to receive state-of-the-art cardiac cath services without leaving the county.”

Cardiac catheterization (also called angiogram, coronary angiography or coronary arteriography) is a diagnostic procedure in which a specially-trained cardiologist inserts a thin plastic tube, or catheter, into an artery or vein in the groin and guides it toward the heart. After injecting a special dye into the catheter, the doctor is able to watch the flow via an X-ray of the heart and the surrounding arteries. A monitor shows how well the heart is pumping, how the valves are working, and if there is any plaque buildup in the arteries. Depending on the results, a doctor may recommend changes in diet and lifestyle or that the patient undergo angioplasty or heart surgery to open blockages.

In addition to the cardiac catheterization lab, Fayette Community Hospital has begun the initial phase of a renovation and expansion project, constructing 12 private rooms in the west wing of the third floor to be completed in early 2005. Soon construction of a four-story clinical building will begin with anticipation of completion in the spring of 2006. These projects will increase the availability of private patient rooms at the hospital as well as add two additional inpatient surgical suites to the current six. The emergency department will be expanding into adjacent vacated space adding up to 21 combined examination and trauma rooms and an expanded waiting area. More than 450 parking spaces are also being created on the hospital campus to accommodate growth.