Cardiothoracic & Vascular Surgery Clinic

10/21/2025

Most people want to lose weight to improve how they feel or look, but did you know it matters for your heart health, too? Cardiologist Dr. Barry Bertolet shares more, along with some practical tips, at https://bit.ly/42TZ3Qj.

10/17/2025

Neurology Consultants of North Mississippi welcomes Dr. Swathi Beladakere Ramaswamy, a neurologist who specializes in neuromuscular disorders.

Neurology Consultants of North Mississippi is located in Longtown Medical Park, 4381 S. Eason Blvd., Suite 301. For appointment information, call (662) 377-3008 or 1-800-THE DESK (1-800-843-3375).

Dr. Ramaswamy graduated from Mysore Medical College and Research Institute in India in 2015. She completed a residency at the University of Missouri in Columbia and a fellowship at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Before joining Neurology Consultants, she had served as an assistant professor of neurology at Michigan State University in East Lansing since 2023.

Dr. Ramaswamy’s clinical interests include various types of neuropathy, Guillain Barre Syndrome, myasthenia gravis, muscular dystrophy, motor neuron diseases and other neuromuscular conditions.

Among other procedures, she performs nerve conduction studies/electromyography, single fiber electromyography (SFEMG), Botox injections for neurological conditions, occipital nerve block and skin biopsy.

10/16/2025

When Sabrina Wilbanks gave birth to her son Zee, the silence was deafening.

“There was no cry,” she remembers. “Only a peek before my baby was sent off to the NICU team awaiting him. No skin-to-skin, no nursing, no touch… only raw fear as I watched him being rolled away with a tube down his throat.”

Read more of Zee's story (and how miraculously well he is doing today!) at https://bit.ly/4nKLevM.

10/16/2025

North Mississippi Medical Center's Women's Hospital is organizing a reunion for NICU graduates and their families.

10/15/2025

Neurology Consultants of North Mississippi welcomes Dr. Sachin M. Bhagavan, a neurologist who specializes in treating strokes and other blood vessel disorders of the brain, spine and neck.

Dr. Bhagavan graduated from Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute in India in 2015 and completed a neurology residency at University of Missouri Health Care in Columbia. He completed fellowship training in both vascular neurology and interventional neurology at Michigan State University in Lansing.

His clinical interests include treating stroke, brain aneurysm, blocked arteries in the neck and spine, and unusual blood vessel formations in the brain and spinal cord. He also performs specialized procedures to open blocked arteries and treat aneurysms using minimally invasive techniques.

https://bit.ly/42TPGjl

10/14/2025

Congratulations to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at North Mississippi Medical Center Women’s Hospital for ranking No. 7 out of 249 hospitals worldwide during the recent international Babies with Books NICU Read-A-Thon.

During the Read-a-Thon, NICU families were encouraged to read with their baby every day, and each family selected a book to keep as a memento of their time in the NICU. Staff members also participated. Together, our NICU logged 1,995 reading sessions that week.

The NICU family winners were Bryant and Brittany Lambert who read to their twins, Bentley and Adalynn.

Winners-up were Matthew and Jasmine Sorrell, who read to their sons, Micah and Elijah.

NICU staff winners were Savannah Collier and Kira Kelton.

“The more stories you read aloud, the more words your baby will hear and the better they'll be able to talk,” says NICU Nurse Manager Jessica Fears, MSN, RN. “Hearing words helps to build a rich network of words in a baby's brain. Children whose parents talk and read to them often know more words by age 2 than children who have not been read to.”

New children’s books for NICU families may be dropped off anytime at the front desk of NMMC Women’s Hospital, 4566 S. Eason Blvd., Tupelo. For more information, call (662) 377-4948.

10/13/2025

When Jamie Pittman of Maben was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer at the age of 41, her sisters rallied around her.

Jessie Wall, Vickie Anderson and Jennifer Ansley weren’t going to let their baby sister face down cancer alone.

Triple negative breast cancer is considered an aggressive form of the disease. Jamie’s medical oncology team at North Mississippi Health Services Cancer Care in Starkville , along with her family, supported her through aggressive breast cancer treatment and her recovery.

Read more of Jamie's story at https://bit.ly/48hP8r9.

10/10/2025

What happens if you get a mammogram and something is found? Shannon Clifton, RN, with the NMMC Breast Care Center, demystifies the process and tells us more about what happens after a mammogram.

https://bit.ly/3KPNNhr

10/09/2025

Every miracle has a story!

North Mississippi Medical Center Neonatal Intensive Care Unit "graduates" and their families are invited to a NICU Reunion at the NMMC Women's Hospital.

📅 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25 @ NMMC Women's Hospital, Tupelo.

10/09/2025

Embracing an attitude of thankfulness not only soothes anxieties about the future but also brings clarity and contentment to our daily lives. By focusing on what we have, rather than what we lack, gratitude gently guides us toward acceptance, joy and greater connection with ourselves and others.

Read more about how to transform your life by cultivating gratitude from Liz Williams, licensed clinical social worker and program director for the Senior Outpatient Counseling Program at NMMC-Pontotoc.

https://bit.ly/3I4r8gm

10/08/2025

What makes your heart tick? In our latest episode, host Dr. Barry Bertolet sits down with cardiac electrophysiologist Dr. Jim Stone to break down arrhythmias - from the everyday nuisance to the life-threatening.

🎧 Learn how smartwatches are changing diagnosis, why ablation is revolutionizing treatment, and how new tech is making procedures safer than ever.

💬 “We used to ignore AFib. Now we can fix it - and sometimes even reverse heart failure.” – Dr. Stone

📍 Filmed right here in north Mississippi, this episode is packed with insights that could save a life.

🔗 Watch, read, or listen now: https://www.nmhs.net/Blog/Were-All-Heart/Were-All-Heart-Episode-7

📱 Available on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Dr. Jim Stone joins Dr. Barry Bertolet to break down cardiac arrhythmias, including AFib and atrial flutter, and introduces new ablation technology that’s changing lives—often detected first by a smartwatch.

10/08/2025

North Mississippi Medical Center’s Graduate Nurse Residency Program was recently reaccredited by the Practice Transition Accreditation Program of the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Graduate Nurse Residency Reaccrediation 2025
The 12-month program is designed to help new nurses transition from nursing school into clinical practice with confidence.

After two weeks of hands-on skills training, nurses are paired with an experienced preceptor on their unit to continue learning in real-life settings. Additionally, they can shadow experienced nurses on other units, gaining diverse insights and experiences.

Residents attend monthly sessions covering crucial topics such as critical thinking, communication, quality, stress management, ethics, end-of-life care and professional development.

Launched in 2019, NMMC’s program became the first accredited program in Mississippi in 2021, and it remains one of only two programs statewide.

The 2024 cohort graduated in June with an impressive 90% completion rate, as 87 of the original 97 graduate nurses successfully completed the program. This achievement highlights the program’s effectiveness in significantly reduced nursing turnover rates.

Presently, 114 graduate nurses are enrolled in the 2025 cohort and are set to complete the residency program in June 2026.

For more information about nursing opportunities throughout North Mississippi Health Services, email recruit@nmhs.net.