Cardiac Care Group
Healing hearts, never too early to understand the warning signs
Despite the loss of its founding doctor, Cardiac Care Group in Cape Coral has transitioned into a new phase. Dr. Louis Scala died in August 2016. He had opened the Cardiac Care Group in 2007 after having completed his residency at Brown University and fellowship at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in California. Scala, who was just 54, was regarded as mythic, a doctor with compassion and character in an age of managed care that generally runs patients through the health system. Instead, the former New Yorker would lighten the practice with humor and relatable stories and become absorbed in consultations and treatments. His business partner, brother-in-law and lifelong friend, Anthony Giordano, says the underlying goal in
cardiology is to ease the fear and fix the problem. “Lou’s job,” Giordano says, “was to keep [patients] out of the hospital, he was more of a preventative and caring doctor. He was an amazing man ... bigger than life. And he ran his business that way―his practice was his stage." Dr. Joseph Freedman came to Cardiac Care Group following his predecessor’s premature death as the practice’s sole physician, understanding that he had big shoes to fill. Feedback from last August forward is that Dr. Freedman has passed critical scrutiny from patients and the office’s staff of 14, Giordano says. Freedman, an affable man who trained at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic, is assisted in the practice by Kelley Prentice, an Adult Nurse Practitioner who is board certified by the American Academy Nurse Credentialing Center. The pair specialize in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases of the heart and vascular system. Cardiologists are essential because so many Americans are affected by heart problems, according to health statistics— 1 in four American deaths is due to heart disease, many of which can be preventable, issues that Cardiac Care Group addresses in its consultations and treatment, Giordano says. While bedside manner is a bonus, the real issue is survival, long term. Freedman says a first barrier in diagnosing possible heart
The best medicine, of course, is a healthy lifestyle, but also preventative care such as regular checkups, even in our 20s and onward.
troubles is understanding symptoms and getting to a doctor, quickly. You’re looking for things such as chest pain/chest discomfort, shortness of breath, fatigue from exertion, palpitations, dizziness/fainting, leg swelling/leg pains when walking, he says. The best medicine, of course, is a healthy lifestyle, but also preventative care such as regular checkups, even in our 20s and onward, researchers insist. It’s never too early to understand the warning signs of a heart attack and stroke. Not all victims experience sudden numbness, and symptoms in women can be different than men, according to health experts. Genetics, of course, are vital in understanding risks. Cardiac Care Group will evaluate and treat vascular and heart diseases, recommend further treatment in conjunction with hospitals and other physicians. Ultimately, Giordano says, the goal at Cardiac Care Group is a happy heart.