Delnor seeks open-heart surgery approval

Delnor-Community Hospital in Geneva has started the process of asking the state for permission to do open-heart surgeries.

It has submitted a letter of intent to the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board, which determines if programs are needed. The board does so in an effort to restrain health-care costs by avoiding unnecessary construction or modification of facilities.

The letter is the first official step. The next is to file an application for permit, which Delnor officials expect to do within 90 days.

"We've been essentially growing our (cardiovascular) program," said Philip Duffin, director of cardiovascular program development.

The increasing number of catheterization procedures, such as angioplasties to clear clogged arteries, and the increasing number of referrals for open-heart procedures to other hospitals indicate the need for Delnor to do so.

Open-heart surgeries are those where surgeons open a person's chest, including the breastbone, to get at a person's heart. It includes cardiac bypass surgery, where a blood vessel from another part of the body is grafted to the heart to let blood bypass the blocked artery.

Initially, bypass surgeries are what Delnor would do, according to Duffin. Other open-heart procedures, such as valve replacements and repairs, could be added.

"This has been part of our strategic plan for the last few years," Duffin said.

Delnor opened a catheterization lab just steps away from its emergency room in 2002.

If approved, two of its nine operating rooms would be designated for open-heart surgery.

Hospital officials say the at-risk population in its service area is projected to grow more than 20 percent in the next five years. That's due in part to population growth and in part to the population getting older, as baby boomers have started turning 60, Duffin said.

Open-heart surgeries are already offered at Sherman and Provena St. Joseph hospitals in Elgin and Provena Mercy Medical Center in Aurora.