By Ben Antonius | Daily Republic | April 07, 2009
From left to right, Cardiovascualr surgeon Dr. Robert Klingman Jr., Chairman of the Northbay Board Ben Huber and Director of Cardiac Anesthesia, Dr. Fipil Roos, share a laugh during the opening of the NorthBay Medical Center's cardiovascular sugery center Tuesday in Fairfield. Huber said that the opening is a dream decades in the making for the Fairfield facility. Photo by Chris Jordan
FAIRFIELD - Within a matter of weeks, the first open heart surgery will be performed in Solano County.
NorthBay Medical Center on Tuesday unveiled its new cardiovascular surgery center, a $4.6 million project that has existed in concept for decades and in planning for several years.
With it, NorthBay will be the 'first and only provider of advanced cardiac and cardiovascular services in Solano County,' CEO Gary Passama said.
As it is, a Solano County resident suffering a heart attack could either be treated at NorthBay with the traditional method of giving blood thinners or be sent outside the county for surgical options.
'Too many people go too far from home for this type of very specialized care,' NorthBay President Deborah Sugiyama said.
That has not yet changed but will soon.
Hospital officials said they expect a licensing visit within the next week and could conduct their first open heart surgery within a week after that. They will focus on elective surgeries in the short term, with emergency surgeries starting upon the completion of an adjacent cardiac catheterization lab.
See the complete story at the Daily Republic online.
