Houston Heart Doctors Have Set Up Shop Locally
By Gabe Semenza, Victoria Advocate, Texas
Oct. 7–Marjorie Stefka was short of breath. At 84 years old, she thought it was just a part of aging.
She had no idea a valve in her heart was narrowing dangerously — until she blacked out.
Stefka’s son performed CPR and revived the Victoria woman. Days later, she underwent successful heart surgery to replace an aortic valve.
In the hospital, she met Victoria’s two newest cardiovascular surgeons: Dr. Devinder Bhatia and Dr. Taylor Picket. These doctors operated on her.
“She was very incapacitated before surgery,” Bhatia said, noting she struggled to exercise and breathe. “Her valve was barely open.”
Bhatia and Picket, who have offices in Victoria, Houston and Corpus Christi, have performed 64 cardiovascular procedures locally since arriving in late summer, said Dr. Harish Chandna, a cardiologist.
Picket lives in Victoria. Bhatia has a home here and in Houston.
Chandna said the doctors have, in part, performed open-heart surgery and angiograms, and inserted stents into the patients who needed them.
Since their arrival, the number of local heart surgeons has tripled from the one Victoria has had.
“Thirty to 40 percent of the patients had to leave Victoria for care,” Chandna said. “Now, 90 percent of patients are getting it done here.”
The surgeons currently have privileges at DeTar Healthcare System, and are awaiting privileges at Citizens Medical Center, Bhatia said.
In addition to open-heart surgeries, Picket and Bhatia provide perform thoracic and vascular surgeries. By doing so, Bhatia said fewer patients are forced to leave home for specialized medical care.
“You get Houston-quality care in Victoria,” Bhatia said.
That level of care, the doctor said, includes state-of-the-art procedures and techniques.
The new doctors perform coronary artery bypass graft surgery, or CABG, for example, by removing veins using a small endoscope. This is done to replace clogged heart vessels.
By using the endoscope, the surgery requires two small incisions instead of a long surgical wound.
“Using this less invasive procedure, our team can remove the vein in a matter of minutes, which benefits the patient greatly by reducing surgery time and the decreasing the chance of a wound infection,” Bhatia said.
The surgeons’ local office is at 605 E. San Antonio St. inside the DeTar Medical Plaza East.
“It’s a terrible, terrible surgery to go through, but I’m glad it’s over,” Stefka said, adding that having undergone it locally and near family benefited her. “I think others would be very wise in having it here. It’s such a convenience for your family.”
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