Health & Fitness
Silver Cross Hosts Ribbon-Cutting for New Endoscopy Center
The new outpatient center is located on the Silver Cross campus, just east of the hospital, at 678 Cedar Crossing Drive.
Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox recently celebrated the completion of its new outpatient endoscopy center with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house. The Silver Cross Endoscopy Center will officially begin seeing patients later this month.
Conveniently located on the Silver Cross campus, just east of the hospital at 678 Cedar Crossing Drive, the center will help the hospital meet the growing demand for endoscopic procedures by offering colonoscopy and flexible sigmoidoscopy to screen for colorectal cancer, and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (upper GI)to diagnose and treat problems of the esophagus, stomach and upper portion of the small intestine. It will feature one procedure room initially, with the ability to expand to three procedure rooms in the future, and nine pre-and post-procedure patient bays.
That brings the total number of endoscopy suites to five, including four at the Advanced Endoscopy Centeron the second floor of the hospital.
“What is truly wonderful about this location is the advantages it offers to people who are scheduled for non-complex procedures – easy parking, expedient service, privacy walls to reduce noise, the latest in equipment, and beautiful décor, all built to hospital standards,” Silver Cross President/CEO Ruth Colby told the assembled guests. “But, most importantly, our patients can expect the same five-star treatment at this center – in terms of safety, high quality and an outstanding patient experience. The team that runs the endo rooms next door (at the hospital) is the same team that will be managing this new Silver Cross Endoscopy Center.”
In fact, patient satisfaction scores related to endoscopy services at Silver Cross are in the top 10 percent of the nation, with more than 90 percent of endoscopy patients stating they would recommend Silver Cross to family and friends.
The center is located in the office building of Southwest Gastroenterology, a practice of seven board-certified gastroenterologists, just east of the hospital. Dr. Zahid Afzal serves as medical director of the new center.
“I appreciate being involved throughout the process and know that this center will be a tremendous success and an excellent addition to the Silver Cross Hospital campus,” Dr. Afzal added.
Since it’s specially designed for the outpatient setting, patients will experience shorter (if any) wait times and spend less time overall at the center.
The ceremony featured several dignitaries and politicians, who also shared their enthusiasm for the new center when addressing the guests. New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann said the village is fortunate to have high-quality healthcare right in its community. “And now with this new service here we are so much better off,” he said. “We are grateful for Silver Cross.”
“I want to say thank you to the nurses and staff, you are what make the hospital work,” added Sen. Michael Hastings (D-19th District). “I believe Silver Cross is going to be growing even more. This provides first-class healthcare to a lot of great residents from Tinley Park to New Lenox, and I can’t be more proud to represent you.”
Rep. Margo McDermed (R-37th District) also addressed the crowd. “What I love about Silver Cross is that Silver Cross and all your leaders, all your staff and doctors are so proactive and have such vision for our institution here to be a real leader in the State of Illinois, and that is just so heartening to me,” she said. “I’m always a big advocate for you.”
“It takes a team to be champions,” Will County Executive Larry Walsh added. “And we want to thank the doctors, the staff, nurses and administration all working together for a common cause. And they surely have succeeded.”
About Colon Cancer Screening
According to the National Cancer Institute, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of death from cancer in the United States. Yet, 90% of colon cancer cases can be cured when found and treated at an early stage, so regular screenings are important. That’s why the American Cancer Society recommends that beginning at age 45, men and women should have a colonoscopy every 10 years. Colonoscopy can catch cancer early, when it’s most treatable, and help prevent cancer by finding abnormal growths called polyps that can turn into cancer. Without a colonoscopy, you may never know you have it.
To emphasize the importance of screening colonoscopy, Silver Cross is encouraging people 45 years and over to add colonoscopy to their “bucket list.” Details are available at www.silvercross.org. Call 1-888-660-HEAL (4325) or visit www.silvercross.org for a referral to a physician on the Silver Cross Medical Staff who performs colonoscopies.
Photo captions:
1: Celebrating the new Silver Cross Endoscopy Center, which will be opening later this month, with a ceremonial ribbon-cutting, from left, Will County Executive Larry Walsh, Rep. Margo McDermed, Sen. Michael Hastings, New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann, Endoscopy Center Medical Director Dr. Zahid Afzal, Silver Cross President/CEO Ruth Colby, Dr. Kamran Ayub, Silver Cross Executive Vice President/COO Mary Bakken, Dr. Doug Lee, Dr. Jeffrey Port and Dr. Tarek Almouradi.
2: The Silver Cross Endoscopy Center is conveniently located on the Silver Cross campus, just east of the hospital at 678 Cedar Crossing Drive.
