Pineville Community Health Center joins Gill Affiliate Network, Stroke Care Network
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 30, 2024) — UK HealthCare is proud to welcome Pineville Community Health Center to the University of Kentucky Gill Heart & Vascular Institute Affiliate Network and the UK HealthCare/Norton Healthcare Stroke Care Network.
By joining the Gill Affiliate Network, Pineville Community Health Center (PCHC) will gain access to the latest cardiovascular expertise. This partnership will provide PCHC providers and staff with comprehensive cardiac education and training, enhancing their ability to improve the cardiovascular health of patients in Bell County and the surrounding areas.
Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in Kentucky, with the state boasting one of the highest rates in the nation. In response, the UK Gill Heart & Vascular Institute, a leader in cardiovascular care, is working to combat these health challenges through its Gill Affiliate Network. This initiative aims to reduce the prevalence of heart disease by fostering collaborative relationships with health care facilities across the state.
As part of these measures, UK Gill Heart & Vascular Institute works with a large network of regional and community hospitals across the state to enhance access to high-quality cardiovascular care to ensure Kentuckians receive care where and when they need it. The affiliate network includes 25 hospitals. Additionally, Gill supports more than 15 outreach locations and provides cardiac image interpretation services, across the spectrum of imaging modalities, at 12 sites.
“We are thrilled to welcome Pineville Community Health Center to the Gill Affiliate Network. Their commitment to providing high-quality care aligns with our mission to expand access to advanced cardiovascular services across the region,” said Navin Rajagopalan, M.D., heart failure cardiologist and director of the UK Gill Affiliate Network. “Our hope is that this collaboration will allow patients to receive high-quality cardiac care closer to home. Together, we look forward to enhancing outcomes and improving heart health in Pineville and beyond.”
Through the Gill Affiliate Network, PCHC providers and staff will receive specialized cardiovascular education and training, assistance in achieving and maintaining cardiac accreditations, and support for the growth and development of their cardiac program. This collaboration ensures comprehensive heart care — from medical cardiology to vascular and cardiothoracic surgery — is accessible to Pineville residents, enabling patients to receive high-quality care close to home for as long as possible.
As part of the UK HealthCare/Norton Healthcare Stroke Care Network, PCHC will also gain resources to promote stroke-related community and professional education and tools to optimize stroke care. The network’s services are designed to help hospitals provide the highest quality stroke-related clinical care. This mission is supported through comprehensive educational programs for providers, staff and community members, as well as robust continuous quality improvement.
Kentucky has among the highest rates of stroke-related deaths in the country, with more than 2,000 Kentuckians dying from stroke or stroke-related complications each year. Stroke Care Network Interim Medical Director Larry B. Goldstein, M.D., says having more hospitals join the network will contribute to the growth of systems of care across the state to improve stroke prevention and emergent treatment and the best possible outcomes for those who have had a stroke.
“The SCN has been very successful, providing not only individualized programs supporting stroke care to hospitals, but education for providers updating them on state-of-the-art treatment approaches and tools for reaching out to their local communities to enhance stroke prevention and acute responses,” said Goldstein, who is also chair of the UK Department of Neurology and co-director of the Kentucky Neuroscience Institute.
The SCN currently has a total of 41 affiliate hospitals.
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