Hopefully this holiday season you’ll be able to pick up great fudge for a co-worker, browse the latest hunting gear for your favorite outdoorsman, enjoy the giant Christmas tree on Main Street and get an angiogram all in the same day without even hitting the highway.

Anyone in the Miss-Lou would be wise to share that same hope.

It shouldn’t be long now until Natchez Regional Medical Center gets the final OK to reopen its heart catheterization lab, giving our small community one more plus.

A new lab could be the first step in building a strong, successful medical community that could not only keep you and yours safe and healthy but could be a major player in the Natchez economy.

The addition of the lab means dozens of local residents don’t have to gas up the car and head to Jackson or Baton Rouge for diagnostic heart care. Those residents will save money, and our local medical community will benefit from the dollars being kept in the community.

The end result is good all around.

Successes in the medical community will attract more doctors to the area. More doctors could help attract more businesses and economic growth.

Sure, a cath lab isn’t the magic wand of which we’ve been dreaming, but it certainly is a step in the right direction.