Heart Services

Quick Action Saves Heart

“The quick treatment I received at Maury Regional, I believe, resulted in a quick recovery and less damage to my heart."

Symptoms that resembled indigestion awoke Con Vrailas in the middle of the night. The local business leader recalled a civic club meeting a few months earlier. Dr. Kevin Maquiling, an interventional cardiologist with Vanderbilt Heart-Columbia, had spoken to the group about the signs and symptoms of a heart attack and emphasized that calling 911 is the best step to get help quickly.

Mr. Vrailas asked his wife to call 911. A short time later he was in the Emergency Department at Maury Regional Medical Center, where he learned that he had a blockage in an artery of his heart. Dr. Maquiling came to his bedside to explain that he needed to perform a procedure to unblock the artery.

“When I saw him there, I knew I was in good hands,” Mr. Vrailas said of seeing the physician’s familiar face. “There was no doubt in my mind that he’ll take care of me.”

Following the procedure and a brief stay in the medical center, Mr. Vrailas was discharged and returned home. He soon became a member of the medical center’s cardiac rehabilitation program, which helps patients strengthen their hearts through a regimen of monitored exercise and education.

Today, Mr. Vrailas says he feels back to normal and credits calling 911 and the care he received at Maury Regional Medical Center with saving his life.

“The quick treatment I received at Maury Regional, I believe, resulted in a quick recovery and less damage to my heart,” he said.

His advice to others?

“If you’re having a heart attack or a person close to you is having a heart attack, the first thing you do is call 911,” he said. “The sooner you are there, the sooner they can take care of you.”

Heart Services at Maury Regional

Visit the Heart Services section of our website to learn more about heart services available at Maury Regional Medical Center.