Day in the Life:

Dr. Noel Fajardo, gastroenterologist

Las Vegas Endoscopy Day” is sunny. Dr. Noel Fajardo stands outside his new endoscopy center, squinting in the afternoon sunlight between his longtime partner, former BIDMC-Harvard Medical School professor Dr. Filippo Cremonini, and former Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller. Representatives from the district’s Senate and Congressional offices, as well as Clark County and the state of Nevada are taking turns presenting congratulations, commendations, and declaring Tuesday, Dec. 8 “Las Vegas Endoscopy Day” in their honor.

The celebration is significant, as Las Vegas Endoscopy is the first independent endoscopy center to open in Clark County since 2008, when Las Vegas made national news for a horrifying scandal. In February of that year, the Southern Nevada Health District informed 40,000 patients of Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada that they had been exposed to Hepatitis C and HIV through unsafe practices at the center. An investigation in cooperation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had discovered unhygienic practices, including re-using syringes and single-use medications. The Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada and five sister clinics were shuttered. The gastroenterologist at the root of the outbreak, Dr. Dipak Desai, was later found guilty of more than two dozen criminal counts including second-degree murder, conspiracy and health care fraud, sentenced to life in state prison and 71 months in federal prison.

On Oct. 1, 2008, the Nevada State Health Division enacted permanent regulations for ambulatory surgery centers in response to the Hepatitis C outbreak. As the first independent endoscopy center to open under the new Nevada Public Health regulations, Fajardo spent several months leading up to his grand opening pioneering regulatory compliance.

Perhaps the most notable new regulations are aimed at ensuring that endoscope processing and decontamination process is achieved. A freestanding endoscopy center must have separate designated rooms for each aspect of the process, including separate soiled and sterile areas. Las Vegas Endoscopy built four separate rooms to satisfy this new requirement.

Fajardo refrained from discussing the specifics of the rigorous inspection process as, like all clinics, Las Vegas Endoscopy is subject to continual inspection from state and county departments and he did not wish to “preempt any future inspections.”

“Our new endoscopy center has undergone the most rigorous and comprehensive regulatory compliance ensuring the highest level of patient safety,” said Fajardo. “The guidelines dictated the entire process from the construction of the center to functional design and adherence to the most up-to-date disinfection and sterilization guidelines.”

Through his Las Vegas Gastroenterology practice, Fajardo treats patients with hepatitis B and C in his viral hepatitis clinic. Through comprehensive, in-depth training and years of experience in hepatology, physicians are able to diagnose, treat and manage patients who have been infected with the potentially deadly disease. Left untreated, viral hepatitis can lead to liver cirrhosis and liver cancer, as well as other complications that can seriously decrease a person’s quality of life.

Patients come first — and a few current Las Vegas Gastroenterology patients are making their way into Las Vegas Endoscopy for the first time. Fajardo has goals for his new endoscopy center that reach far beyond providing basic services.

He has already begun outreach to help potential patients understand what preventative services are available to them. A routine colonoscopy not only decreases the incidence and prevalence of colon cancer, but also is fully covered by current Affordable Care Act insurances, at no cost to the patient.

He also hopes to contribute to the growing perception that Southern Nevada is a destination for top-notch health care. “Las Vegas is a very interesting and unique place to practice medicine as we always strive to address the needs of our patients within the local community versus referring them out of state,” Fajardo says.

“It is always my goal to prove that the level of medicinal care in Las Vegas is on par, if not even better, than anywhere else in the United States. Nevada has many hidden untapped resources, especially in the field of medical tourism. It is time for Las Vegas to prove to the rest of the world that we provide a world-class level of medical care!”

To that end, Dr. Fajardo is also determined to stay at the forefront of medical technology. He and Dr. Cremonini, are the first gastroenterologists in Southern Nevada to offer the Endochoice Fuse.

The Fuse uses three small cameras at the tip of a flexible GI endoscope; this provides a 330-degree panoramic view, as opposed to the 170-degree field of image capture from a traditional endoscope. According to Dr. Fajardo, this gastroscope has been shown to be 69 percent more effective at detecting adenomas and polyps (benign tumors in epithelial tissue) than a traditional endoscope.

“My vision is that Las Vegas Endoscopy will provide services that are not available anywhere else. We will bring our patients the latest and best, in a safe and beautiful environment,” says Fajardo.

Later that evening, doctors Fajardo and Cremonini gather with their friends, family, colleagues and community leaders at the Mandarin Oriental for a reception to celebrate a successful grand opening. Miss Universe contestants — including eventual Miss Universe Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach — offer their congratulations in a video before Philippine superstar Martin Nievera takes the stage. Many of Fajardo’s patients from his thriving Las Vegas Gastroenterology practice are invited guests. Some flew in from as far away as Dubai to attend and celebrate with him. Soon, the first patients will receive treatment at Las Vegas Endoscopy, launching both a new chapter in his practice and in health care in Southern Nevada. But first, a little music.

Noel R. Fajardo, M.D. holds an advanced Fellowship in Gastrointestinal Motility from the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minn. He is board-certified in gastroenterology and internal medicine. Dr. Fajardo co-founded Las Vegas Gastroenterology in 2009 and Las Vegas Endoscopy in December 2015.

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