Doctors, nurses and equipment at St. Mary's Hospital in Kitchener are being stretched beyond capacity when it comes to certain cardiac procedures, officials say.

It's why the hospital is launching a community fundraising campaign to raise $2.8 million to build another cardiac catheterization suite.

The suites are where catheterization and angioplasty procedures are done.

The hospital has two already, but Dr. Brian McNamara, chief of cardiovascular services, said in a release their resources "are stretched beyond capacity and our volumes are comparable to what other centres accomplish with three or four suites."

This year, the hospital anticipates doing 6,500 procedures. That's 20 procedures per day.

But McNamara noted there are also 200 or more patients on the waitlist at any given time and wait times can be at least six weeks, which is too long.

The increase in demand for the services has also caused "wear and tear" on equipment and staff, says Andrea Lemberg, director of St. Mary's cardiac program.

"The catheterization cameras require frequent maintenance, which can put the suite out of commission for up to a week," Lemberg said. "Th­is can drastically impact wait times and cause significant anxiety for our patients, many of whom are already feeling quite vulnerable."

The hospital has to turn to the community for money because the provincial government doesn't fund hospital equipment purchases. The province only funds operating and staffing costs.

McNamara said the new suite is needed as soon as possible.

"With procedures projected to grow substantially in the next five years, there is significant risk to patient care unless a third catheterization suite is added," he said.