Coroner: Teen drowns in Rock Hill pool

ROCK HILL -- 

A 19-year-old Rock Hill man drowned Saturday at an apartment complex pool.

Justin Hines was transported from a Flintwood Drive apartment complex to Piedmont Medical Center around 2 p.m. Saturday, where he was pronounced dead, said York County Coroner Sabrina Gast.

Officials have not confirmed if Hines' death is attributed to water intake or another medical condition. They will know more after an autopsy later today.

Lt. Brent Allmon with Rock Hill Police Department said the department, EMS and the Rock Hill Fire Department responded to the pool on reports of a drowning. Witnesses said Hines had just "went under" the water.

A woman who was at the pool with her husband noticed that Hines swam to the bottom of the pool, according to a Rock Hill police report. She thought nothing of it, but about two minutes later, she realized he had not surfaced.

Her husband got the pool's safety pole and tried to move Hines, who floated to the surface, face-down, according to reports.

Another man who had just arrived at the pool jumped into the water and pulled Hines out. One of the witnesses began to perform CPR, the report stated.

Hines was a Rock Hill High School graduate and a promoter at Club Cascade, located on Riverview Road.

Read more in Monday's Herald.

ROCK HILL | Piedmont Medical Center heart care lauded | The Herald ...

ROCK HILL -- 

Piedmont Medical Center's patient care has been recognized for the second time in three months by the Joint Commission.

The commission, which sets national health care benchmarks, accredited Piedmont Medical Center for its treatment of congestive heart failure - cases where the heart is too weak to pump blood to the body's other organs.

In January, the commission accredited Piedmont's stroke center.

Piedmont Medical Center is one of 29 hospitals nationwide to earn the advanced certificate in heart failure. Only one other hospital in the Charlotte region is accredited, Gaston Memorial in Gastonia, N.C. Only one other hospital in South Carolina is accredited, Trident Health Systems in Charleston.

"This is a difficult to obtain accreditation," said Dr. Harry Hicklin, an interventional cardiologist with Palmetto Cardiology who has practiced in Rock Hill and York County for 20 years. Getting the accreditation took a commitment from doctors, nurses, support staff and the hospital administration, Hicklin said.

More than 5 million Americans have congestive heart failure, according to the American Heart Association. It is the leading cause of death in Chester and Lancaster counties, according to 2008 data compiled by the state. It is the second-leading cause of death in York County, second to cancer.

Piedmont's multidisciplinary Heart Failure Team consists of physicians, registered nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians assistants, dietitians, social workers, case managers, pharmacists and physical therapists. The team develops treatment plans, provides patient care, and conducts follow-up visits for patients with congestive heart failure.

One of the key components the Joint Commission looked at during a Feb. 7 visit was Piedmont's educational efforts to change factors that affect congestive heart failure.

Education begins within 24 hours of admission, Hicklin said. Patients and their families learn the importance of taking their medication, reducing their salt intake, understanding the warning sides of failure and the importance of exercise and diet.

Twenty-four to 72 hours after discharge the heart failure team makes a follow-up visit. A second follow-up visit is conducted three to four weeks after discharge, said Hicklin. The education has resulted in a 15 percent drop in patients readmitted for congestive heart failure at Piedmont, Hicklin said.

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