Q: Why should a patient choose Marietta Memorial Hospital for all their heart care needs?

A:  It’s convenient if they live in this community. Our program has been compared by HealthGrades, an independent, unbiased, well respected organization. When HealthGrades compared us against other hospitals’ programs in the country, we turned out to be exceptional in our ability to deliver cardiac care.
We’re ranked as one of the 100 Best Hospitals in the whole country, and that really says a lot because you are talking about being compared to hundreds of thousands of hospitals in the U.S. and we’ve come out being one of the Top 100 Best Hospitals for cardiac care.

Q: How would you explain our HealthGrades rankings to a patient?

A: Every hospital in the country has the opportunity to be ranked by HealthGrades. Every hospital in the country is required by law to submit data to the government. The data is defined by specific information about our patients. The playing field is level. Every hospital in the country has the same chance to be recognized as outstanding by HealthGrades, yet traditionally they only choose 100 hospitals in the whole country to say, “These guys really know what they are doing. These hospitals stand out from the other hospitals and are clearly a cut above the rest.” That’s the position we’ve been thrust in by receiving these HealthGrades rankings. HealthGrades basically says, “We know what you do. We’ve seen your data for the past several years. You clearly are a cut above all the other hospitals in the country.”

Q: Is there any new technology that patients can look forward to utilizing now and in 2013 for their heart?

A: Yes! Stents are changing. Stents have changed throughout the years and are continually evolving. They started out as being heavy metal platforms, then they went to much thinner metal platforms that are coated with medicines. The new technology that is currently being researched are bioabsorbable stents. You implant a bioabsorbable stent into a patient’s artery and in a couple of months they melt away. They are still experimental and a part of research programs right now. Eventually, they will become available on our market. When the bioabsorbable stents are available it will be a tremendous leap forward.

Part of the reason why these bioabsorbable stents are a leap forward is, if you implant a stent that dissolves away in a few months and you don’t require the traditional anti-coagulation (aspirin, etc.), this can be somewhat problematic. Let’s say you just had a stent placed into your heart because you had an emergency. Now let’s say your gallbladder is sick and you need surgery to remove your gallbladder. Well, if you’re on aspirin or another anti-coagulation medicine, and you are now in danger of a heart attack if those meds are stopped. It sometimes can be inconvenient for patients to have to take the anti-coagulation for a long time. This is one of the reasons why in my mind, the bioabsorbable stents are going to be a huge step forward.

The second thing that’s on the horizon for heart care is called renal artery denervation. This is a procedure that we are going to offer here at Marietta Memorial Hospital as soon as it’s approved by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA). Currently, this procedure is only a research protocol. This procedure is geared for people who have high blood pressure. Oftentimes, people who have high blood pressure can be on up to five medications at a time to control their blood pressure. With this procedure, the renal artery is affected by a procedure called an ablation (done with electricity and catheters, no surgery). As a result of doing that, the high blood pressure goes away. Potentially, the patients who have been taking up to five blood pressure pills to control their blood pressure, which in some patients it’s still not under control, now you have this renal artery denervation procedure and all the pills go away and your blood pressure is controlled now. The anticipated time this procedure will be available to be used as a non-research procedure is within a year with FDA approval.

Dr. Mayo's Final Thoughts

Traditionally, when you think of being named one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals you think of Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Harvard Medical Center and John Hopkins. What we’re saying to the community is, “You know what? Just because we're a small hospital doesn’t mean we can't deliver world class care.” That’s exactly what we’re saying here. Even though we are physically, a smaller hospital, our ability to deliver world class care is just as good as The Cleveland Clinic, The Mayo Clinic, and all the other “elite” hospitals because they are also a part of HealthGrades 100 Best Hospitals for Coronary Interventional Procedures, just like us.