For individuals who experience chest pain and other warning signs of heart attack,
the Novant Health Heart & Vascular Institute (previously called the Chest Pain Evaluation Center) at Novant Health Thomasville Medical Center is ready to provide immediate
cardiac care. The institute assesses cardiac conditions and determines if the patient is having a heart-related illness or if it is a
less-threatening illness.
When a heart attack happens, you only have a short amount of time before the heart
muscle is damaged. Knowing and recognizing the warning signs of a heart attack and
getting to the Emergency Department immediately will improve your chances of survival
and recovery.
Thomasville Medical Center's Emergency Department triages patients quickly (the process of determining the priority of a patient's treatment based on the severity of their condition) and they
are then evaluated by Emergency Department physicians. If the patient is experiencing
a heart attack, the Emergency Department physician will consult a board-certified
cardiologist who may recommend immediate treatment in the cardiac cath lab. This
rapid treatment response has proven to increase survival rates for heart attack
patients who arrive at Thomasville Medical Center.
Patients who are clearly not having a heart attack will receive a series of diagnostic
tests to determine their condition. This process will also determine if the pains
are a result of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), gastrointestinal (GI)-related,
gall bladder-related or other cardiac-related illnesses. Patients with any
of these conditions will be released according to the recommendation of the cardiologist.