Kim Justis, R.T. (R), vascular technician in O'Bleness' vascular lab, performs a carotid duplex imaging exam on Mary Jane Lax. |
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Scores of health and news organizations have reported that heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, but many people may not realize how prevalent heart disease really is. According to the American Heart Association, an American dies from a coronary event nearly every minute, and coronary heart disease causes one in every five deaths in the United States.
Those startling statistics highlight why every American should have access to quality cardiac care close to home. O'Bleness Memorial Hospital provides southeastern Ohio residents with skilled emergency, diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitative cardiac care right here in Athens County.
O'Bleness is equipped and staffed to provide varying levels of cardiac-related services. The hospital's emergency department team is trained to treat and stabilize heart conditions while the radiology department staff can perform many diagnostic tests. When a cardiac patient is admitted to O'Bleness' Intensive Care/Coronary Care Unit (IC-CCU), specially trained and experienced staff members strive to keep the patient comfortable and free of pain while monitoring heart activity with cutting-edge equipment. Internal medicine physicians on O'Bleness' medical staff diagnose, treat and monitor cardiac patients. In addition, six cardiac physicians from Central Ohio Cardiovascular Consultants are available for consultation if needed. During recovery, cardiac patients may take advantage of the comprehensive cardiopulmonary rehabilitation services offered by O'Bleness' HeartWorks program. Community health screenings and educational programs round out O'Bleness' cardiac-care package.
When it comes to cardiac care, considering the unique wants and needs of each patient is key. James Sammons, D.O., chief of internal medicine at O'Bleness, said diagnosis and treatment may follow different paths for different people. "A patient who has had multiple heart procedures may want only pain control," Sammons said. "A person who is having a heart attack for the first time may want aggressive treatment, such as a heart catheterization. For someone with chest pain who has not had a heart attack, we may use a drug to thin the blood, which makes clots harder to form, and then begin a series of tests."
Although physicians have to carefully weigh the benefits of various diagnostic and treatment options, in cases of heart attack they must act very quickly. Half of those who suffer a heart attack die within an hour of the onset of symptoms. For that reason, as soon as someone arrives at O'Bleness' emergency department with chest pain, a team of nurses and a physician quickly springs into action. "We immediately begin monitoring the heart with a cardiac monitor," said Karen Robinson, R.N., C.E.N., S.A.N.E., nurse manager of O'Bleness' emergency department. "We start the patient on intravenous fluids, perform an EKG, take a chest X-ray, draw blood for tests and get the patient's history."
After considering certain criteria, the emergency department physician decides whether the patient needs anti-coagulation therapy. Clot busters quickly dissolve blood clots and prevent greater damage to the heart. Robinson said, if the situation warrants, the goal is to administer anti-coagulants within 30 minutes of the patient's arrival.
Curtis Martin, R.E.M.T.-P., M.Ed., director of training for Southeast Ohio Emergency Medical Services (SEOEMS), agreed that time is extremely important in saving the life of a heart attack patient. "If you have symptoms of a heart attack, dial 9-1-1 immediately. Never attempt to drive yourself to the hospital," Martin said. "As soon as paramedics arrive, they can give you oxygen to save heart tissue, administer nitroglycerin for pain and, most importantly, provide electrical therapy if your heart stops." After cardiac patients are stabilized in the emergency department, they may be admitted to O'Bleness' IC-CCU for further treatment and monitoring, transferred to another hospital for more procedures or sent home. Cherilyn Warner, R.N., nurse manager of O'Bleness' IC-CCU, said her nursing staff is trained to recognize cardiac rhythm problems and to treat chest pain. "We may treat the pain here or transfer the patient to another facility for further procedures," Warner said. "That decision is based on test results, the patient's medical history, and physician and patient consultations."
O'Bleness' cardiac patients often require a wide variety of diagnostic tests performed in several departments. With a staff of 16, Sherry Elliott, C.R.T., R.C.P., director of the cardiopulmonary department, oversees diagnostic and treatment procedures on patients' vascular (related to the heart and blood vessels) and pulmonary (related to the lungs) systems. "The heart requires oxygen to function," Elliott said. "If someone is chronically short of breath, his or her heart has to work harder to circulate blood. If a person has coronary artery or heart disease, that means blood is not getting through his or her system efficiently."
Nuclear medicine stress tests, stress echocardiograms, chest X-rays and EKGs are some of the tests performed at O'Bleness to help determine patients' heart rhythms and blood flow.
O'Bleness' radiology department provides the nuclear medicine scanning for the nuclear medicine stress tests. Jim Hatton, N.M.T.C.B., chief of nuclear medicine, said a nuclear medicine imaging system is used to scan patients' hearts before and after they exercise on a treadmill. "The patient is injected with a radioactive isotope that 'marks' the area in the heart where circulation is a problem," Hatton said. "We scan the heart while the patient is at rest and then send the patient to the cardiopulmonary services department for the treadmill stress test. The patient then returns to the radiology department for another nuclear medicine scan after exercise."
Danielle Kemper, fitness center coordinator for WellWorks, monitors HeartWorks patient Mike Ohlinger. |
During a stress echocardiogram, the patient undergoes ultrasound imaging of the heart before and after walking on a treadmill. The ultrasound imaging allows the visualization of the patient's heart chambers. "If a heart is not getting enough oxygen, that might not show up on an EKG," Elliott said. "When you can visualize the function of the heart chambers with the stress echocardiogram or nuclear medicine stress test, you can find the exact trouble spot."
In addition to echocardiography and stress echocardiography, O'Bleness' vascular lab provides ultrasound imaging of the veins in the legs, the arteries in the extremities and the carotid arteries in the neck. "In addition, we perform blood pressure tests that measure blood flow to a patient's fingers and toes," said Diana Arnold, R.V.T., R.D.C.S., C.M.A., technical director of the vascular lab.
Once a patient has been treated for heart disease, rehabilitation begins. Complete cardiopulmonary rehabilitation services are provided by O'Bleness' HeartWorks program. Tom Murray, M.S., program director, said each individual is assessed and then learns exercise, diet planning and stress management techniques. "Patients come to the hospital three times a week for three months," Murray said. "During each session, the patients' EKG, blood pressure and other vital signs are monitored while they progress from warm-up exercises to aerobic exercises. Weight training may also be taught. A counselor guides patients through breathing exercises, progressive muscle relaxation and other stress-fighting techniques."
O'Bleness also plays an important role in helping individuals to prevent and detect heart-related problems before they turn into serious conditions. Beverly Dellinger, B.S., R.N., C.N.A., vice president of nursing, said the hospital offers free blood pressure screening for the public the first Wednesday of each month, as well as a screening that measures total cholesterol, HDL and glucose levels for a $5 fee. The hospital also periodically hosts a mobile community health screening service, Life Line Screening, that offers carotid artery/stroke screening, abdominal aortic aneurysm screening and peripheral arterial disease screening.
Barb Nakanishi, R.D., L.D., C.D.E., O'Bleness' registered dietitian, provides preventive and rehabilitative nutrition services to cardiac patients. Nakanishi assesses patients' nutritional needs and then helps them to prepare a meal plan.
For more information about community health screenings at O'Bleness, call (740) 592-9300.
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