Richmond West End clinic opens for heart, lung patients

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- A clinic opened in Richmond's West End on Thursday, offering rehabilitative services to heart and lung patients.

On Thursday, Aug. 28, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Health announced the expansion of the VCU Pauley Heart Center, with the brand-new VCU Health Reynolds Crossing clinic, located at 6605 West Broad Street.

The clinic expands the West End's access to cardiovascular medicine specialists from VCU Health Pauley Heart Center, as well as heart and lung rehabilitation services from Pauley and VCU Health Pulmonology and Critical Care Medicine, per a release from VCU Health officials.

"Heart disease is the leading cause of death in Virginia, but our mission-driven team at VCU Health is determined to counteract this fate by bringing life-saving care to the community,” said Marlon Levy, senior vice president for VCU Health Sciences and CEO of VCU Health System. “The education, exercises and rehab to come from this new clinic will surely support a heart healthier community and Virginia."

According to VCU, the rehabilitation services have only been available at VCU Medical Center in downtown Richmond, while the new Reynolds Crossing rehab facility supports the university's heart transplant program and its new lung transplant program.

“Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality for about a third of the population on the planet. To address that, we need to meet patients where they are,” said Greg Hundley, director of VCU Health Pauley Heart Center. “I think an exciting development for Reynolds Crossing is the co-location of our providers and diagnostic testing, so we can see patients and take care of concerns, [and] couple that with cardiovascular rehabilitation. It’s an opportunity to bring all of that together under one roof to deliver the best care.”

VCU Health Reynolds Crossing clinic is located at 6605 West Broad Street in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo: VCU Health)

The new VCU Health Reynolds Crossing clinic includes a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation gym with a six-minute walking track and exercise equipment as well as on-site diagnostic testing. (Photo: VCU Health)

From left to right: Fay Manolios, member of the VCU Health Board of Directors; Jim Willis, interim president of VCU Medical Center; Randy Reynolds, member of the VCU Health Board of Directors; Hem Bhardwaj, MD, vice chair for operations and quality at the VCU Health Pauley Heart Center; Marlon Levy, MD, CEO of VCU Health System; Greg Hundley, MD, director of the Pauley Heart Center; Michael Elliott, PharmD, chief operating officer of VCU Health System; Patricia Sime, MD, chair of the Department of Internal Medicine in the VCU School of Medicine; Daniel Grinnan, MD, interim chief of pulmonology and critical care medicine at VCU Health, and Deborah Pora, DNP, senior director of operations at the Pauley Heart Center. (Photo: VCU Health)

The new VCU Health Reynolds Crossing clinic includes a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation gym with a six-minute walking track and exercise equipment as well as on-site diagnostic testing. (Photo: VCU Health)

From left to right: Justin Canada, PhD, RCEP, associate professor of internal medicine and cardiology at the VCU Health Pauley Heart Center; Deborah Pora, DNP, senior director of operations at the Pauley Heart Center; Megan Clayton, BSRT, respiratory care manager at VCU Health; Alice Peay, DPT, director of rehab services at VCU Health; Tabitha Nugent, MSN, assistant clinical manager of VCU Health Reynolds Crossing; Danielle Martin, BHA, senior manager of ambulatory operations at the Pauley Heart Center; and Virginia McGhee, MSN, nurse manager of noninvasive cardiology at the Pauley Heart Center. (Photo: VCU Health)

The new VCU Health Reynolds Crossing clinic includes a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation gym with a six-minute walking track and exercise equipment as well as on-site diagnostic testing. (Photo: VCU Health)

The new VCU Health Reynolds Crossing clinic includes a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation gym with a six-minute walking track and exercise equipment as well as on-site diagnostic testing. (Photo: VCU Health)

The new facility features a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation gym with a six-minute walking track and exercise equipment, diagnostic testing -- including pulmonary function testing -- and an on-site lab, according to VCU. Patients will be able to access pulmonary specialists who treat asthma, COPD, interstitial lung disease and pulmonary hypertension.

The West End clinic will feature multiple Pauley Heart Center cardiovascular medicine specialists, with specializations in the following:

• Electrophysiology
• Heart failure
• Interventional cardiology
• Preventive cardiology
• Women’s heart health

“We are expanding our offerings into [patients’] neighborhoods at these sites so their care can be all-inclusive, whether it’s testing or seeing their providers," said Deborah Pora, DNP, senior director of operations for Pauley Heart Center.

The expansion reportedly puts VCU Health among a limited number of hospital systems across Virginia with dual-site cardiopulmonary rehab programs.

The new clinic will welcome its first patients on Tuesday, Sept. 2.