Beginning this fall, Northwest's DeSoto Center campus will become one of only a handful of colleges nationwide to offer training in cardiovascular technology. It will be the first program of its kind in Mississippi.
Cardiovascular technicians assist doctors in the diagnosis of cardiovascular problems.
Cardiovascular disease is a big problem, and it's not going away. The program will fall under the college's two-year associate's degree in allied health services, which currently offers programs in respiratory care, practical nursing and funeral service technology. The money provided equipment for the lab including a cardiac catheterization system, which will allow students to practice sophisticated tests that help determine the condition of a patient's heart and arteries. In fact, Baptist Memorial Hospital-DeSoto opened its catheterization lab last August, said hospital spokesman Debra Timanus. The lab at Northwest will act as a simulator to train students in the functions of the equipment and techniques.