The $40 million expansion of The Cardiac Centers of Mercy & Unity Hospitals reaches a significant milestone this week with the opening of the most technologically advanced cardiovascular catheterization laboratories in Minnesota.
The new catheterization laboratories, as well as 24 new inpatient rooms and 14 short-stay rooms, are part of a major expansion of the Heart Center at Allina’s Mercy Hospital that began in January 2003. While the entire facility won’t be completed until June, construction was planned to allow the hospital to begin utilizing the new space as it is finished.
“The Heart Center offers our patients the very best in cardiac care,” said Dr. Stephen Remole, medical director of The Cardiac Centers. “It also allows us to expand our capabilities for teaching, research and our continued work with new technologies and procedures.”
Catheterization laboratories, or cath labs, are specially equipped rooms where doctors perform a vast array of minimally invasive procedures to diagnose and treat a variety of cardiovascular diseases. The new center features five state-of-the-art labs, with another shelled in for expansion. Two labs are dedicated to electrophysiology, a cardiac specialty to treat the heart’s electrical systems. All five labs are equipped for coronary interventions - the process of opening blocked blood vessels.
Other highlights of the expansion include: