Hospital focuses on community outreach, life-saving treatments and technologies to battle country’s No. 1 killer
It is estimated that heart disease kills one person every 34 seconds. To better educate the public about our country's No. 1 killer, to prevent the disease in those who don't have it and to better treat those who do, Memorial Hermann Southeast Hospital has renewed its commitment to make heart-disease education, prevention and treatment a top priority by taking a leadership role in heart-related community education events and expanding the heart services available at the hospital.
The hospital's renewed Heart Health campaign began with the 2009 Bay Area Start! Heart Walk on Oct. 17, where Memorial Hermann Southeast donated $25,000 and raised an additional $17,000 in donations from physicians, employees and their friends and families. The American Heart Association says the proceeds from the walk, totaling approximately $170,000 and counting, will fund lifesaving research, as well as public and professional education programs in the community and across America.
Memorial Hermann Southeast not only utilized its presence at the Bay Area Start! Heart Walk to educate participants and their families about heart disease from A to Z, but Memorial Hermann Southeast volunteers also shared the exciting news about the hospital's expanded heart program and new treatments available for patients.
This fall, the cardiac catheterization lab at Memorial Hermann Southeast is expanding and will offer additional services to meet heart patients' needs, whether it is treatment for a blocked artery, an irregular heartbeat or heart attack.
"We are installing an additional room and new imaging equipment, which will give us the space and technology to perform more life-saving procedures such as angioplasty and stenting to fix blocked arteries in a timely manner," said Todd Ginapp, cardiology manager at Memorial Hermann Southeast Hospital.
Also starting this fall, the cardiac catheterization lab will offer electrophysiology (EP) services. EP is a branch of medicine that works with the electrical parts of the heart. Specially-trained Electrophysiologists will be on-hand to implant devices in patients that help maintain a normal heart rhythm and prevent problems, such as cardiac arrest. Electrophysiologists also can perform non-surgical treatments for patients with a rapid heartbeat.