We've Saved 1000 Lives in Our Community

Since February 2009 when the center opened, the Heart & Vascular Center has performed more than 1000 successful cardiac catheterizations, or angioplasties. The operation entails opening a blocked artery with a balloon-tipped catheter and holding it open by inserting a tiny metal cage, called a stent, into the blood vessel. Thanks to this life-saving procedure being available in Highlands County at the Florida Hospital Heart & Vascular Center, more local lives can be saved when minutes count the most and quicker intervention means more heart muscle is saved. 

We Stop Heart Attacks Faster Than Anyone Can

The Heart & Vascular Center at Florida Hospital Heartland Medical Center has an average "door to balloon" time of 37 minutes, beating the national average of 90 minutes. "Door to balloon" time is the clinical measurement which marks the total time elapsin from entering the emergency department until the cardiac procedure begins. PCI... (also known as angioplasty) uses an inflatable, balloon-like device to widen diseased arteries and increase blood flow to the heart. When the balloon is deflated, a metal mesh stent is left behind to hold the artery open. In the case of a heart attack, the procedure can be lifesaving. Better still, elective PCI can prevent a heart attack in the first place.

Ask Your Doctor for a Stress Test

Your primary care doctor can perform an evaluation of your cardiac health and refer you for further tests at our Heart & Vascular Center.  It's always better to be prepared and to focus on preventing future heart attacks.

Know the Symptoms of a Heart Attack

Please encourage anyone who thinks they might be having a heart attack to ALWAYS call 9-1-1. Surrounding EMS departments in five counties have received special training designed to spot a STEMI patient. Not only does this initiate expert care at the scene, but often if a STEMI is in progress EMS is able to transmit this information directly to our emergency department. This allows a cath lab to be ready immediately upon the patient’s arrival. STEMI patients are typically taken directly to the cath lab from the ambulance.

Male Warning Signs: sudden pressure, squeezing or pain in the center of the chest, fainting, sweating and shortness of breath and/or rapid heartbeat.

Female Warning Signs: shortness of breath, dizziness, fatigue, pain below the left shoulder blade, pain or tingling in the jaw, elbows, arm or throat, and/or nausea or vomiting.

Contact Us

We can be reached at (863) 402-3288 or by fax (863) 402-5340. We are located inside Florida Hospital in Sebring at 4200 Sun ‘n Lake Boulevard, Sebring, Florida 33872.