Last February, Timmy Jones (center) was going into Lafayette Hometown Foods when he saw his wife, Cynthia, coming out. “She told me Macon Community Hospital was offering a heart scan for just $50 and that I should go,” Timmy says. “Her advice probably saved my life!”

A heart scan, also known as a coronary calcium scan, is a specialized X-ray test that detects and measures calcium-containing plaque in the arteries. A score of 400+ indicates a 90 percent chance of an artery being blocked. Timmy had a score of 1,600! Doctors placed a stent in Timmy’s left anterior descending artery, often called the widow maker, which was 95 percent blocked.

After the surgery, Timmy was reluctant about participating in cardiac rehab, but he’d heard that Macon Community Hospital had an excellent program, so he decided to try it out. Once he got started, he attended 36 times, the full program!

“The staff was really good,” says Timmy. “They were friendly, upbeat, and knew exactly what I needed to do. Before the scan, I had no idea there was anything wrong. But now, looking back, there were signs. When I cut a tree on a hillside, I was out of air by the time I topped it off. Today, I’m running my 20-pound chainsaw with no problem. I’m so grateful I took the heart scan. If you’re over 50, you need to have this test!”