Jan. 29, 2003 – Some big changes have taken place over the last two years for heart patients on St. Croix, and people all across the country are learning about them this month.
The January issue of Cath Lab Digest, a publication that reaches health-care providers throughout the nation, carries an article written by Jill Price, the Juan F. Luis Hospital Cardiac Catheterization Lab head nurse.
In March 2000, the first coronary angioplasty, a process that improves blood flow to the heart for heart patients, was carried out at the hospital. Before that, those in need of an angioplasty had to go off island for help or face the likelihood of death.
Since then, Dr. Kendall Griffith, the territory's only cardiologist performing the procedure, has carried out about 30 coronary angioplasties, 10 of them in emergency situations.
The focus of Cath Lab Digest is on new technology in cardiac care, and the St. Croix hospital is fortunate to be in the spotlight for the fist issue of the year, Griffith said.
"This is very important," he said. "This helps show that what we're doing is state of the art and cutting edge. We're just as good as any mainland cath labs and better than some."
The St. Croix hospital lab has the only interventional and preventative program in the Caribbean southeast of Puerto Rico, except for Trinidad, the article notes. "We're the only other English-speaking community out there providing that kind of care," Griffith said.
He said the attention has been a morale booster for everyone at the hospital, and that the administration and community have been very supportive. "It's very positive," he said, "and everyone knows we need a better public image."
Right now, Griffith said, the lab is doing what it can within the constraints of a limited budget. "But imagine what we would be able to do if we had what we needed," he said. "The possibilities are limitless."
Griffith said he hopes the attention from the magazine will help secure funding for a planned cardiac care center that will be located in a new two-story building. The center is intended to serve heart patients not only in the territory but throughout the Caribbean.
Last year, the Virgin Islands got $18 million as its share in a court case settlement by tobacco companies, and about $5.8 million of that was meant to fund the center. But that money was quickly depleted on much-needed infrastructure repairs at Luis Hospital. The center is expected to cost $8 million.
Griffith said he presented information about the cardiac center to the Senate and was promised the funding to facilitate its construction. "I'm still waiting on that," he said.
Publisher's note : Like the St. Croix Source now? Find out how you can love us twice as much — and show your support for the islands' free and independent news voice … click here.
