Ashburn Lung Specialists’ Dr. Timothy Ashburn is welcoming new clients to his practice above Battlefield Imaging.
The practice was owned by Hutcheson from September 2012 to October 2015, but recently became an independent business following the medical center’s bankruptcy.
After a nearly yearlong renovation, the practice began seeing patients in its new space July 18, said practice manager Cindy Hale, a native of LaFayette. The business hosted a grand-opening open house several weeks ago.
“We are pretty proud of it,” she said. “We are doing really well. We are blessed.”
Ashburn Lung Specialists treats patients with lung diseases. A native of Middle Tennessee, Ashburn graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine in Memphis.
“We had 100 people for our open house,” Ashburn said. “We are getting the word out that we are back open. We get a lot of referrals from around.”
He already has plans to add to his current staff of six within the next few months.
“We are growing,” he said. “Although we have just been open two months, we are already exceeding expectations.”
Ashburn is board-certified in pulmonary medicine and critical care medicine. When Erlanger had an operating agreement with Hutcheson, he contracted with Erlanger to do pulmonary and critical care at the local medical center now owned by ApolloMD.
“In this part of the country, we have a lot of smoking illnesses like COPD, emphysema and lung cancer,” said Ashburn. “Asthma is exacerbated by secondhand smoke. We try to enlighten people about what causes it. Education is important and we try to incorporate it into our website.”
He said he is the only pulmonologist between Chattanooga, Rome and Dalton’s triangle of care. He sees patients from Catoosa, Walker, Whitfield and Dade counties – whole families, in some cases – with other patients driving in from Fort Payne, Ala., Acworth, Ga., and Cleveland, Tenn.
“If you look at the adult population in Northwest Georgia, about 12 percent have respiratory issues, smoking-related,” said Ashburn. “We test for lung disease in the office. We like being here because patients can get chest X-rays and CT scans and PET scans downstairs. A lot of our patients don’t like traffic and high-rise parking. Some are on oxygen.”
He also has an inpatient ICU practice at Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton.
To learn more about Ashburn Lung Specialists, find the practice on Facebook or visit ashburnlung.com.