Cardiovascular Services

The Heart Center at YRMC

The Heart Center at YRMC – a state-of-the-art cardiac surgery program – opened in 2007 on YRMC’s West campus in Prescott, with the goal of improving both the health of our patients and the quality of their lives.

CEO Tim Barnett says that YRMC is particularly fortunate to have nationally recognized cardiac surgeon Pierre R. Tibi, M.D., leading its heart program. “Dr. Tibi’s reputation and qualifications are impeccable,” says Barnett. “His presence alone vaults The Heart Center at YRMC into the top tier of Arizona cardiac surgery programs.”

Dr.Tibi, a founding partner of Phoenix Cardiac Surgery, has the official title of Medical Director of Cardiothoracic Surgery. He earned his medical degree at the University of Pittsburgh and did much of his surgical training at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Years of Thoughtful Planning

“YRMC worked diligently and did a very careful job of building this program,” says Dr. Tibi. “We recruited many experienced nurses, the entire team is highly trained, the equipment and technology is leading edge, and the operating rooms are the best. Everything YRMC did to plan and build The Heart Center is definitely first class.”

Phase I of The Heart Center’s cardiovascular program dates back to 2005. At that time, specialists began utilizing the hospital’s two state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization laboratories to perform percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI). These are minimally invasive procedures that use balloon-tipped catheters (a long, thin, flexible tube that is inserted into an artery and guided to the problems area) and stents (a tiny metal coil or mesh tube) to open blockages in the coronary arteries.

Patients with heart rhythm disturbances or congestive heart failure were also seen during The Heart Center’s Phase I, with YRMC physicians implanting permanent pacemakers, implantable cardioverter defibrillators and cardiac resynchronization devices.

Phase II of the program began with the 2007 opening of The Heart Center and the introduction of open-heart surgery.

An Exceptional Level of Care

Dr. Tibi, who has a long association with Prescott-area cardiologists, says The Heart Center provides local heart patients with an exceptional level of care, and spares them and their families the inconvenience and the stress of having to travel to Phoenix. In addition, cardiac patients often need comprehensive care for a wide range of other health problems, including diabetes, gastrointestinal problems, kidney complications and lung conditions. These patients are best served in a medical center such as YRMC that offers a wide selection of specialized services and programs, as well as the skills of highly trained physicians and nurses.

With the addition of The Heart Center, YRMC is now – more than ever before – able to provide surgery-related benefits that simply aren’t available in a non-hospital setting or in an outpatient surgical center that’s not affiliated with a first-class hospital.

YRMC is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is staffed around the clock to meet practically any emergency that might occur following either an inpatient or outpatient surgical procedure.

Wide Range of Services

At YRMC we are known for our Total Healing Environment, in which we work in partnership with patients and their families to provide peace of mind and peace of heart, as well as physical cure and comfort.

This philosophy of care, combined with the latest technology and expertise in cardiothoracic (heart and chest) surgery, allows The Heart Center at YRMC to offer personalized care and positive outcomes … one heart at a time. The Heart Center’s services cover diagnosis, treatment, surgery, rehabilitation and education, and include:

• Adult cardiothoracic surgery
• A cardiac catheterization laboratory and angiography department
• Interventional radiology services
• Cardiopulmonary services
• Vascular surgery
• Cardiac rehabilitation and preventive medicine
• Critical care services.

“YRMC offers a tremendous selection of surgical services, cardiac and otherwise, as well as a number of high-caliber diagnostic and interventional programs – and together they substantially strengthen our long-standing commitment to quality care,” says CEO Barnett. “It is a commitment that is at the heart of everything we do.”

YRMC Cardiac Service Milestones

• Existing Cardiopulmonary Lab & Cardiac Rehabilitation Program:  Pendelton Centers
• 1997 - Start of Vascular Surgery
• 2000 – Opening of Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory & Angiography Department
• 2005 – PCI Program begins
• 2005 – Expansion of Arrhythmia / Heart Function Program
• 2005 – ELG
• 2006 - Surgical Expansion to include CVOR
• 2007 – Open Heart Surgery begins