Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (D-5) toured Adventist HealthCare Fort Washington Medical Center on Wednesday, April 5, a few months after securing funding to support the hospital’s Cardiovascular Center for Diabetic Patients.
The center — which includes a diabetic clinic, diabetic education and resource center, diabetes related vascular screening center, wound care and hyperbaric oxygen center, and cardiovascular clinic — will open with the help of $1,000,000 in facilities and equipment funding secured by Hoyer in the FY2023 Omnibus.
“I am so appreciative of Congressman Hoyer’s support,” said Eunmee Shim, President of Adventist HealthCare Fort Washington Medical Center. “Our community is plagued by diabetes and its complications but lacks adequate access to specialists who can effectively manage the progression of long-term complications. With Congressman Hoyer’s assistance, we aim to not only help pre-diabetic patients reverse the disease but equip and adequately treat those who are diagnosed so they can avoid becoming dependent on hemodialysis, losing a limb or going blind.”
In 2019, the Prince George’s County Department of Health reported that approximately 20.7% of adults between the ages of 45 and 64 live with diabetes. That number increases to 33.2% for adults over 65. Yet the southwestern area of Prince George’s County — where approximately 350,000 residents live — lacks a practicing endocrinologist. This mismatch between disease prevalence and healthcare resources can create a perfect medical desert that leads to distance decay in healthcare outcomes among its residents over time.
The funding secured by Hoyer will provide comprehensive care to patients in the southwestern portion of the county, improve public health and avoid unnecessary hospitalizations.
