Morris Hospital Continues Strong Commitment to Advanced Cardiovascular Services
March 5, 2025, MORRIS, IL – For 22 years, Morris Hospital has been providing advanced, lifesaving heart care in its Catheterization (Cath) Lab. This is the location in the hospital where specially trained cardiologists implant pacemakers and defibrillators to help regulate the heart’s rhythm. It’s where interventional cardiologists perform procedures to diagnose and open blocked arteries, such as coronary and peripheral angiography, angioplasty, and stenting. It’s where lives are saved during a heart attack.
Morris Hospital has demonstrated its commitment to continuing a strong tradition of advanced cardiovascular care with the recent installation of a new cardiovascular angiographic system for the Cath Lab. The new Siemens Healthineers ARTIS Icono system was selected for its enhanced image quality, giving cardiologists even better visualization of the coronary and peripheral vessels when diagnosing and treating heart and vascular conditions.
The $1.7 million Cath Lab replacement project is being funded through generous donors to the Morris Hospital Auxiliary & Foundation.
The most dramatic use of this advanced technology in the Morris Hospital Cath Lab is during a STEMI, a type of heart attack in which the coronary artery is completely blocked. Guided by images obtained with the angiographic system, specially trained cardiologists at Morris Hospital are able to open blocked arteries and restore blood flow to the heart during a procedure called coronary angioplasty. Stents – which are tiny, wire mesh tubes – are used with angioplasty to hold the artery open.
“When a patient is having a heart attack, time is of critical importance,” said Jori Christensen, Director of Cardiovascular Services at Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers. “That is why we have a team from the Cath Lab on call and ready to respond at all times in the event that a patient needs lifesaving cardiac intervention.”
“As a resident of Grundy County myself, I believe we are very fortunate that our local community hospital provides such an advanced level of cardiac care. Lives are saved because of the capabilities of the Morris Hospital Cath Lab,” she said.
Morris Hospital’s comprehensive cardiac services also includes cardiac testing to diagnose suspected heart or circulation problems, such as electrocardiography, echocardiography, holter monitoring, tilt table testing, and various types of stress tests.
Morris Hospital’s cardiac rehabilitation program is also an important component of the comprehensive cardiac services. Through monitored exercise, nutrition counseling, and education on lifestyle modifications, the program helps individuals with heart disease recover faster and regain full, productive lives. Cardiac Rehabilitation recently relocated from the Diagnostic & Rehabilitative Center just north of Interstate 80 on Gore Road to the new Morris Hospital YMCA at 2200 W. Dupont Avenue on the west side of Morris.
Central to Morris Hospital’s comprehensive cardiovascular services is Morris Hospital Cardiovascular Specialists, a cardiology practice with office locations in Morris, Channahon, Dwight and Ottawa. The practice includes interventional cardiologists Dr. Syed Ahmed, Dr. Mostafa Ghanim, and Dr. Athar Saeed; general cardiologists Dr. Mary Menz and Dr. Hershel Wix; and cardiology nurse practitioner Sherese Pruss. In addition, Dr. Alexander Green, an electrophysiologist from Loyola University Medical Center, sees patients with heart rhythm conditions in the Morris Hospital Cardiovascular Specialists’ Morris office.
For more information about Morris Hospital’s comprehensive cardiovascular services, visit our Cardiology page.
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