Providence opens standalone heart clinic in Clarkston that also focuses on liver problems

After 17 years of offering care in the Valley Medical Center, Providence has opened a standalone clinic in Clarkston to serve patients with heart and liver disease, as well as patients who need continued cardiac care in the region.

The clinic opened in mid-May and is located on Port Drive in Clarkston, near Costco and WalMart.

For Steve Lee, who lives in Clarkston, the new clinic location is even more convenient.

Lee, who has been an active runner most of his life, had a surprise heart attack back in 2017 and subsequent stroke that landed him in the hospital in Spokane for treatment and rehabilitation. The clinic in his area has saved him from driving up to Spokane at least twice a year for check-ups.

Lee has a stent in his heart, and each year he needs an echocardiogram. He can get that very close to home at the Providence clinic.

Beyond routine care, Lee has also made appointments at the clinic when his medications were leading to abnormal side effects. The physicians at the clinic found that he didn’t have an irregular heartbeat.

“I was able to get off my blood thinners, so now I am back to feeling great again,” he said.

Providing care in the Lewiston-Clarkston area is not new for the Providence team, but the new clinic allows the specialty care team to grow .

“We can take care of almost all of the patients that don’t need high-level procedural care done down in that office in Clarkston,” said Dr. John Peterson, cardiologist and executive of the Providence Spokane Heart Institute.

The Clarkston clinic currently serves about 80 to 90 patients each week. Some patients are referred from local doctors , while others might need regular treatment for congenital heart disease. Others who suffer heart attacks or similar traumas to their hearts or livers, like Lee, could seek their routine follow-up care there, too.

The clinic will be open five days a week, with two cardiology practitioners traveling to see patients. Peterson said eventually the plan is to add a permanent cardiologist who would live and work in the Lewiston and Clarkston Valley.

Liver and pancreas specialists will offer treatment to people with cancerous and noncancerous conditions on certain days at the clinic as well.

Peterson said adults with congenital heart disease and people who were born with heart defects or complex heart problems can seek treatment at the clinic too.

Lee is excited about the clinic’s new location and the care he’s received so far.

“I am very happy with the crew there, and they’re a big part of my health care,” he said.