Cardiovascular
Butler Memorial’s cardiovascular program marks 25th year
Butler Memorial Hospital
Butler Memorial Hospital’s cardiovascular program, now part of the Independence Health System, turns 25 years old this month.
The Heart Center at Butler Memorial has been providing patients with screenings, prevention, treatment, cardiac rehabilitation and surgical interventions for heart disease since its inception in July 1998, according to a news release from Independence Health System.
Before Butler Memorial began performing cardiovascular procedures, patients had to travel long distances to receive these services, creating delayed response times for those needing immediate lifesaving care, the release stated.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says more than 800,000 people have a heart attack annually. By reducing the time to treatment, patients became more likely to recover from them.
Dr. George Davliakos, a cardiovascular surgeon with private practice at Three Rivers Cardiac Institute in Pittsburgh, spearheaded the creation of the Heart Center at Butler Memorial and was named medical director of the program, according to the release.
Davliakos helped develop and train the hospital’s first heart team and continues to lead the cardiothoracic service line at the two hospitals, now as a member of Butler Medical Providers, a multispecialty group serving Independence Health System in the Butler area.
During its first year of operation, the Butler heart team performed more than 300 open-heart surgeries. Over the last quarter-century, the Butler team has treated more than 8,300 cardiac cases of varying types, and provided more than 8,600 thoracic and vascular procedures.
