(Joplin, MO) – It’s no secret that rural communities across the United States face numerous challenges when it comes to accessing healthcare, with fewer healthcare providers and medical facilities.
Though southwest Missouri is considered a rural area, none of the above applies to Joplin, thanks in no small part to Freeman Health System.
“I wanted to practice in a rural area but most of the rural areas in this country only provide basic cardiovascular care,” said Dr. Christopher Foth, who joined Freeman earlier this year as an interventional cardiologist. “Freeman has the infrastructure and support to provide the majority of the same services that patients would receive in a large city.”
An interventional cardiologist is a doctor specializing in diagnosing and treating heart and blood vessel conditions using minimally invasive, catheter-based procedures.
“When looking at government statistics, this area has a much higher prevalence of cardiovascular disease,” Dr. Foth said. “The people who live in this area have limited access to healthcare, and I often see patients who have been suffering from disease for many years, even decades, before being sent for treatment. This high degree of morbidity allows me to make significant contributions to improving the healthcare in this area.”
The heart, one of the strongest muscles found in the human body based on endurance, has always fascinated Dr. Foth.
“Even though the heart’s sole function is to pump blood, it is like an engine in a vehicle, without it you can’t function,” he said. “And, similar to modern engines, the heart is complicated and there are many facets that cardiologists need to be experts in. This makes it a very interesting field and constantly intellectually stimulating.”
Dr. Foth also has a passion for peripheral vascular disease and is boarded in endovascular medicine.
Dr. Foth graduated from medical school at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton, Florida. He served both his internal medicine residency and his cardiovascular disease fellowship at Palmetto General Hospital in Hialeah, Florida, and his interventional cardiology fellowship at Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
“I think my greatest strengths are my attention to detail and passion to provide the best care that I can,” he said.
During his free time, Dr. Foth likes to keep active through weightlifting, mountain biking, hiking, kayaking, and hunting.
About Freeman Health System
Locally owned, not-for-profit and nationally recognized, Freeman Health System includes Freeman Hospital West, Freeman Hospital East, Freeman Neosho Hospital and Ozark Center — the area’s largest provider of behavioral health services — as well as two urgent care clinics, dozens of physician clinics and a variety of specialty services. In 2020, Freeman earned dozens of individual awards for medical excellence and patient safety from CareChex®, a quality rating system that helps consumers evaluate healthcare providers. U.S. News & World Report named Freeman Health System the Best Hospital in Southwest Missouri for 2020. With more than 320 physicians on staff representing more than 80 specialties, Freeman provides cancer care, heart care, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopaedics, children’s services and women’s services. Additionally, Freeman is the only Children’s Miracle Network Hospital in a 70-mile radius. For more information, visit freemanhealth.com.
Reference:
Kevin McClintock, Media Relations Coordinator
Freeman Health System
417.434.3458
KSMcclintock@freemanhealth.com
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