LAWRENCEVILLE - Gwinnett Medical Center (GMC) was granted formal state approval Thursday to establish an open-heart surgery program that could be operating as early as 2010.
The official green light came in the form of an approved Certificate of Need (CON) from the Georgia Department of Community Health for the new service, which clears the way for the hospital to construct new operating facilities and finalize plans for a collaborative relationship with St. Joseph's Health System.
"An open heart program for this community has been a critical component of Project PATH, GMC's strategic initiative," said Phil Wolfe, president and CEO of Gwinnett Medical Center. "This is not only a point of pride for our organization; it should serve as a point of pride for Gwinnett. Our community rallied around this cause with over 1,000 letters of support and resolutions from leaders throughout the county."
Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC), which has had an open-heart program for more than five years, did not oppose GMC's application.
Jim Gardner, President and CEO of the Gainesville hospital, said earlier this year that with NGMC, Athens Regional and now Gwinnett doing open heart surgery, the whole northeast Georgia area will benefit.
"With those three programs in place," he said, "the region is going to be served for the next 10, 15 or 20 years."
Gardner added it is to Gwinnett's advantage to have partnered with the experience of St. Joseph's.
"The two of them help to consolidate what historically has been a good program at St. Joseph's with a program that is up and running," Gardner added. "I think it will help them from a staffing and development standpoint."
GMC launched its campaign for open heart last October with a dedicated website, www.openheartgwinnett.org and a massive community outreach effort.
The community quickly responded with letters of support demonstrating the need for advanced cardiac care in our community. Clyde and Sandra Strickland of Lawrenceville went a step further by committing $1 million for the program.
In early January, GMC submitted its CON application to the state, which began an intensive review process to confirm that the project is in the public interest. In April, GMC and St. Joseph's announced the formation of Gwinnett Cardiovascular Services, an entity jointly owned and managed by GMC and St. Joseph's that will infuse the new heart program with the highest quality of clinical care from day one.
"Saint Joseph's recognizes that the Gwinnett community is something special," said Kirk Wilson, president and CEO of St. Joseph's Health System. "We are excited about the opportunity to launch a best-in-class program with GMC, and pleased that we can continue to build upon our legacy of expertise in cardiac care."
Barring any appeal of the decision, GMC will immediately integrate open heart facility planning into the construction currently underway on campus. The design process will begin in August and construction is anticipated to begin in July 2009.
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On the Net:
Gwinnett Medical Center. http://www.gwinnettmedicalcenter.org
Open Heart Gwinnett. http://www.openheartgwinnett.org
Friday
July 4th, 2025
5:02PM
