Edward Betker is a member of the century club.

No, not that century club. He's only 66 years old.

Mr. Betker, of Monroeville, had quadruple bypass surgery last month at the Forbes Regional campus of West Penn Hospital.

By doing so, he became a medical milestone. He was the 100th patient at the Ed Dardanell Heart and Vascular Center, part of the Gerald McGinnis Cardiovascular Institute.

His wife, Jean, had identical surgery a year ago at West Penn Hospital in Bloomfield. Dr. Michael Culig, of Monroeville, performed both surgeries.

No surgery is a piece of cake, but Mr. Betker's was in a sense. Following his successful coronary artery bypass, the medical staff at the Dardanell Center celebrated their milestone with a cake.

It was achieved in fewer than eight months. The center opened March 2 and is regarded as state of the art. Most hospitals say that of their facilities, of course, but Dr. Culig said there are reasons that Forbes' relatively new center stands apart.

"We are focusing on the total experience," he said. "I've not had the opportunity to do that in my other work environment. We've been able to take a totally fresh look at the experience that the patient and family are undergoing and make their stay as easy as possible.

"There is the whole technological piece. But there is a whole other aspect of healing that hospitals have not been able to focus on because of tradition. We are receptive to change and evolving every day in a controlled fashion."

Another feature of the center is that visiting hours are fairly flexible: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Mr. Betker, a retired mortgage loan officer for Howard Hanna, is pleased with the care he got at a facility two miles from his home.

"The staff was terrific," Mr. Betker said. "There was always a steady stream with a lot of people involved.

"Dr. Culig took the time to say exactly what he was doing before and after the procedure, so that it was not a scary situation."

Mrs. Betker, a retired teacher in the Woodland Hills School District, also was pleased with the care her husband received at Forbes.

"He got the best," she said. "I was very impressed with this new facility. There was nothing missing in this cardiac care unit. Everybody who works there takes ownership and is proud of it."

Mr. Betker has a history of coronary disease. He had a heart attack in 1991, followed by angioplasty to unclog an artery, then another angioplasty procedure in 1997.

Late this summer, he started experiencing shortness of breath.

"It started building and getting worse over a month and a half," he said. "I had to be careful going up a flight of stairs."

Mr. Betker called Dr. Paul Kleist, his cardiologist, and took a stress test.

"I didn't perform as well as I had in February."

A second test showed that two arteries were completely blocked and two others were 75 percent blocked. A quadruple bypass was scheduled.

Mr. Betker is recovering. He is walking as often as he can and plans to start physical therapy next week.

"I'm still a little bit short of breath, but improving as I get my strength back," he said.

He and his wife are upbeat. They are planning to visit Myrtle Beach, S.C., and play golf.