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14 economist sunsuntribune health saturday dec 13 2003 paramedic recovering after regions first openheart surgery by lisa queen staff writer ian phythian hopes to be back saving lives in three months in the meantime the york region ems paramedic is happy the lifesaving skills of southlake regional health centres new cardiac team were there for him on monday the 57yearold newmarket resident went home from hospital only four days after becoming southlakes first open heart surgery patient im pretty proud of that happy as hell said mr phythian a couple of hours before being discharged from the cardiovascular intensive care unit im doing excellent thank god i had it at southlake not in toronto he said adding staying at a far away hospi tal in the city would have added to the stress mr phythians triple bypass came five years to the day after the ministry of health made southlake the regional cardiac centre the program serves residents in york simcoe and muskoka mr phythians surgery was per formed by dr byung moon division head for the cardiac surgery program who was assisted by dr richard bauset and the cardiac support team dr moon said he was thrilled to finally perform the first cardiac surgery at southlake after years of planning it was a historic occasion for the southlake team were striving to be one of the best in ontario if not the world said dr moon who helped pioneer part ofthe procedure performed on mr phythian this the cardiac program is not just a project for southlake its a region al program its not like southlake only is on the map were here to serve the whole region were here to stay and were here to look after the patients from the community dr moon used a minimally invasive procedure he developed seven years ago with a team of american doctors to take a vein known as the saphenous vein from mr phythians leg the vein was then used to bypass blocked cardiac arteries to ensure an adequate flow of blood from mr phythians heart traditionally surgeons open up a patients leg to harvest the vein leaving the person with a painful numb and swollen limb theyre all grateful weve done something for the heart but unfortu nately theyre left with great discom fort dr moon said instead his method calls for sur geons to make a tiny incision in the leg to insert an endoscope complete with a ian phythian york region para medic home four days after surgery at newmarket hospital k tv monitor to locate the vein so it can i be removed with minimal impact on the patient one of the things i do it may be a minor aspect but it plays a large portion in the patients life dr moon said the leg to me is part of the quality of life dr moon said mr phythians surgery went off without a hitch its a team that has never worked together coming on to do their first heart surgery he said the team worked like clockwork i was so proud that the whole thing went off as if we had been doing it for years although mr phythian led a healthy lifestyle before his heart problems start ed last may hes confident the surgery will make him feel better than ever caubkeught memorial service light in arkness to celebrate christmas for those who are experiencing grief through mtisic scriptures meditatioiis and prayers a service of reflection for those who have experienced loss and find it hard to he pan of festive celebrations ridge nnehu ho m t 90530585b8 monday dec 15 2003 7cfo pm at chapel ridge funeral home 8911 woodbine avenue markhamonl3r5gl v 3 lights north ofhwy 7 with vocalist irmfhornton igsffifflelergy and volunteers from local churches and the community refreshments will beserved following the service a caring part of ottr community