Pulmonary Medicine
and Critical Care
Under the medical direction of Dr. Rubal Patel, a board-certified pulmonary medicine and critical care specialist, our team evaluates and treats diseases and conditions of the respiratory system — the lungs and other organs that help you breathe. We also manage patients who need life support and mechanical ventilation. For some relatively short-lasting illnesses that affect your lungs, like the flu or pneumonia, you might be able to get all the care you need from your regular doctor. But if your cough, shortness of breath, or other symptoms don’t get better, you might need to see a pulmonary medicine provider.
Outpatient care is provided at Southwell Medical Clinic in Tifton. Inpatient care is offered at Tift Regional Medical Center in Tifton.
Common Pulmonary
conditions we treat:
- COPD
- Emphysema
- Bronchectasis
- Chronic cough
- Lung cancer
- Solitary pulmonary nodules
- Sarcoidosis
- Interstitial lung disease
- Pulmonary fibrosis
- Pulmonary complications of COVID-19
- Pulmonary infections
Pulmonary testing
and procedures performed:
- Pulmonary function testing
- Bronchoprovocation testing
- Arterial blood gas blood testing
- Flexible and Robotic Bronchoscopy
- Endobronchial ultrasound
- Thoracentesis
- Pleural catheter placement
- Pulmonary rehabilitation
Taking lung cancer detection to the next level
Robotic Bronchoscopy at Tift Regional Medical Center
When to see a Pulmonologist
You might see a pulmonary medicine specialist if you
have symptoms such as:
- Shortness of Breath
- Chronic cough
- Chest discomfort
- Wheezing
Talk to your doctor about a referral.
Common Critical Care conditions we treat:
- Respiratory failure
- Severe infections
- Severe pneumonia
- Sepsis
- COVID-19
- Severe bleeding
- Shock
- Stroke
- Heart attack
- Congestive heart failure
- Kidney failure
Critical Care therapies:
- Catheters, flexible tubes used to get fluids into the body or drain fluids from the body
- Dialysis machines
- Feeding tubes
- Oxygen therapy
- Ventilators
- Tracheostomy tubes
Critical and intermediate care at Tift Regional Medical Center
Our experts provide critical and intermediate care at Tift Regional Medical Center (TRMC). We treat a variety of disease processes and conduct multidisciplinary rounds with providers, nurses, pharmacists, respiratory care therapists, physical therapists, dietitians, and case managers. This collaborative effort is designed to provide optimal care for our valued patients. Intensive care represents the highest level of patient care and treatment designated for critically ill patients with potentially recoverable life-threatening conditions. The Step Down Unit provides an intermediate level of care between the ICU and the general medical-surgical wards.
These crucial services can be found on the fourth floor of the new patient tower at TRMC. A new, advanced Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and Step Down Unit opened in 2021 as part of a multi-million expansion project at TRMC. These new, contemporary facilities were designed with patient comfort and provider efficiency in mind.
