Delta Regional Medical Center

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Delta Regional Medical Center, the ninth largest hospital in the state which serves as the safety-net hospital for the tri-state Delta region held a ribbon cutting in mid September marking the opening of its much anticipated construction project. Over 250 guests attended the ceremonies and guided tours of the new facilities which include DRMC’s new Heart and Vascular Center, the expanded Emergency Department and Maternal Child Center.

 

Heart and Vascular Center

The Delta leads the nation in the death rate from cardiovascular disease (CVD). Seventy-five percent of Delta residents have at least one risk factor for CVD. DRMC’s Heart and Vascular Center will provide the region the most up to date technology and services for treating heart disease. The new eight bed heart center operates under the “same stay” concept. Patients are admitted directly to the heart center where they will have their procedure, recover, and recuperate in the same specialized unit, staying in the same room with the same group of caregivers from admission to discharge. The “same stay” unit maintains a more consistent continuum of care for the patient, thus speeding recovery.

The Heart and Vascular Center’s medical staff includes five of the region’s top cardiologists: Dr. Ben Folk, Dr. Ken Hahn, Dr. John Herzog, Dr. Michael Mansour and Dr. Norrapol Wattanasuwan; the Delta’s only open heart surgeon, Dr. Steven Chapman; a vascular and thoracic surgeon, Dr. Hugh Gamble, II; and a fellowship-trained cardiac anesthesiologist, Dr. John L. Turner, IV.

The Heart and Vascular Center at DRMC will provide Coronary Artery Bypass Graphs (CABG), Transmyocardial Revascularization (TMR), valve surgery, stenting, angioplasty, and pacemakers. Diagnostic services include echocardiography, cardiac catherization, vascular testing, stress testing, pulmonary, peripheral and renal artery angiography.

Emergency Department

With 48,347 visits in 2007, the ER’s expansion is critical to the region’s need for emergency care. The new construction includes a 5,920 square foot expansion of the Emergency Department and renovations to existing space. Private treatment rooms were added, and a much larger lobby and parking area. The ER’s new Chest Pain Center is a self contained four bed, 23-hour observation unit with a separate nurse’s station and specialized cardiac monitoring system. Patients arriving at the ER with chest pain are immediately admitted to the Chest Pain Center for evaluation.

With 955 babies born in 2007 at DRMC, the 3,980 square foot expansion of the Maternal Child Center will provide greater comfort and convenience for mothers and their families. The five added post partum rooms in the new area can handle overflow when existing Labor and Delivery birthing suites are full. The new construction also includes two nurseries that are finished to house a Neo-Natal Intensive Care Unit.

According to the March of Dimes, in 2005 over 18.7% of babies born in the Mississippi Delta counties were born pre-term and over 20% of babies born in the Delta were classified as low birth weight. Low birth weight and pre-term babies and their families need special care and attention for these children to thrive.

Therefore, as DRMC celebrates the grand opening of the Maternal Child Center’s expansion, the hospital, with the support of the March of Dimes will be working to staff a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which will provide critical care to at-risk mothers and their babies in the Delta.

“With these additions, we continue our mission to improve the health of the citizens we serve,” stated Ray Humphreys, DRMC CEO. “By improving the state of the region’s health and by creating jobs and economic growth, DRMC serves as the springboard from which economic and cultural change can take place in the Delta. “