The President of SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Centralia says the hospital is in the process of adding new equipment in Surgical Services to increase capacity not only in volume but to allow new procedures to be brought to the area.
During remarks to the Greater Centralia Chamber of Commerce, Damon Harbison says one new addition is the 3D-Arm.
“The 3D-Arm goes into the OR (operating room) and takes an image for orthopedics, spine, geriatrics, whatever it might be. This technology is state of the art and no one around here has it. This will help us with more efficiency in the OR.”
Harbison says the new equipment will also allow for continued expansion of the spine surgery program.
He reports a brand-new Siemens 128-slice CT Scanner is being commissioned this week. It will join the 64-slice scanner to provide high-quality images with a fast turnaround.
Harbison says they are also refreshing their Outpatient Behavioral Health Offices to deal with a growing need for mental health services.
“It’s a national epidemic and you are definitely seeing it in the rural markets. So we are making sure we are working with the entire community together so we can go further and faster to connect those dots. We are doing a facility update inside the Angela Center adding more rooms and therapists.”
Harbison calls the surgery department the ‘engine’ of the hospital. He says the updated equipment and services mean the opportunity for new jobs in the community including new types of professionals, different types of nursing, and vendors.
