Kathryn Czaplinski
/ Categories: NEWS, 2024

SVMC to offer expanded vascular services, starting in February

Bennington, VT—January 29, 2025— The Heart and Vascular Center at Dartmouth Health’s Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) is expanding services to Southwestern Vermont Medical Center’s (SVMC) Cardiology department in Bennington. This expansion will allow patients to stay closer to home for consultations, relevant testing, and follow-up care.

Starting Wednesday, February 12, SVMC, a Dartmouth Health member, will provide vascular services two days per month, with plans to expand in the future. DHMC vascular surgeons Matthew J. Alef, MD, and Philip P. Goodney, MD, will see patients in the SVMC Cardiology office twice a month, and perform procedures on the second Wednesday of each month.

“Our collaboration with the Heart and Vascular Center will be incredibly beneficial to patients,” said Scott W. Rogge, MD, SVMC Cardiology medical director. “This is an exciting and necessary expansion of services, to keep patients closer to home, which is not only more convenient but also leads to better outcomes.”

Under the new program, Alef and Goodney will perform procedures like vein ligation, phlebectomy, and ablation at SVMC, with more complex procedures managed at DHMC.  

“We are very excited to see patients in Bennington at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center” said Goodney, section chief of vascular surgery at Dartmouth Health. “Patients with vascular disease often have difficulty traveling, and expanding the services we can provide locally will be an important next step. We look forward to providing vein care in Bennington, and also seeing patients for dialysis access, treatment for leg artery blockages, carotid artery blockages, and abdominal aortic aneurysms. We are pleased to continue to build our outreach pathways to include on-site services in Bennington.”

Trey Dobson, MD, SVMC’s chief medical officer and vice president of clinical services, said the vascular collaboration is a benefit of being part of the Dartmouth Health system.

“Bringing the expertise of these accomplished vascular surgeons to SVMC helps us meet an important need in our community hospital,” said Dobson. “Our skilled team at SVMC Cardiology will work closely with the DHMC team to provide the highest quality of care, and we hope to grow this program in the future.”

Physician referrals for vascular services are now being accepted by calling SVMC Cardiology at 802-442-0800. Find more information about SVMC Cardiology by clicking here

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Meet Dr. Disha Spath

Dr. Disha Spath, an internal medicine physician originally from Georgia, was excited to start a new position at Twin Rivers Medical, P.C., in Hoosick Falls, NY, on April 20th. But then COVID-19 struck. As practice appointments plummeted and the potential for a surge of COVID-19 patients rose, Dr. Spath volunteered to take a temporary assignment serving in-patients with SVMC’s Hospital Medicine Department.

SVMC: Already new to the health system, what was it like to have your plans change from practice-based medicine to hospital medicine so suddenly?
DS: Well, to be honest, it was a little scary given the times. I had to come to terms with the fact that I could possibly expose my family to SARS-CoV-2. My husband and I had some tough conversations and came up with a risk-mitigation strategy… [Then] I actually reached out to Trey, [the chief medical officer,] and volunteered to help out in the hospital. I've been a primary care physician recently, but I'm not too far removed from hospital medicine. In fact, I was already planning on picking up some per diem hospitalist work later this year. I just decided to move the timeline forward a bit to help with COVID-19.  This is what I'm trained for. I felt it was my duty to step up and help during the pandemic.  

SVMC: How has it been working with the hospitalists to treat both COVID and non-COVID patients?
DS: The hospitalists have been so kind and generous. They have really taken the time to bring me up to speed with the hospital and have been very gracious with training me on the computer system. I am really thankful that they have included me in their top-notch team. I'm also so very impressed by how involved and thoughtful the leadership is. The way the hospital leadership has ensured adequate PPE for staff and has created the workflows so quickly to deal with COVID-19 is truly inspiring.  

SVMC: What have you noticed or learned about the culture of the health system or the area?
DS: I am really struck by how everyone is so interconnected and how supportive the community is of its healthcare staff. It is very touching to see all the donations of homemade masks, skullcaps, and food to the hospital. I also love that the hospital staff seems to know their patients' home situations and their medical histories so well. 

SVMC: How do you expect your work at Twin Rivers will be affected by your having started your position at the hospital?  
DS: Yes, since hospitalists and primary care physicians often hand off patients, I'm really looking forward to building rapport with the hospitalists. I'm also hoping to meet the specialists I will be referring to. It will be helpful to have an insight into the workflow of the hospital when I refer patients for admission. And I'm already starting to meet some of our lovely patients in Hoosick Falls. Overall, I believe this will be a really positive thing for my work at Twin Rivers. I'm honored to join the area and I hope I can contribute positively to this special community.  

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