Live From the Genesis Cath Lab
DAVENPORT, IOWA - Technology enables Adler audience to see procedure in real time Electrophysiologist Blair Foreman, M.D., implanted a device Saturday to prevent Sudden Cardiac Death while — in a nearby building – an audience watched the live action unfold on a large screen in the Genesis Heart Institute’s Adler Education Center.
Dr. Foreman gave a patient a pacemaker and an implantable cardioverter defibrillator at the Cardiac Catheterization Lab at Genesis Medical Center, Davenport. It was broadcast in “real time” for an audience of more than 200 health care professionals in the Adler center.
The live feed was part of Cardiovascular Intervention and Practice Guidelines 2007, a two-day conference for cardiologists, endovascular specialists, primary care providers, cardiovascular nurses, technicians and nurse practitioners. The conference is jointly sponsored by the Midwest Cardiovascular Research Foundation and Genesis Medical Center.
Minute by minute, the audience saw Dr. Foreman and other members of the electrophysiology team at work on the hospital’s second floor. Dr. Foreman taught and answered audience questions while performing the procedure. The audiovisual capabilities at Genesis, one of the nation’s “100 Most Wired” hospitals and health systems, made it seem like teacher and students are in the same room.
“Our audiovisual capabilities at Genesis are tremendous,” said Nicolas Shammas, M.D., Cardiovascular Medicine, P.C., who is President of the Midwest Cardiovascular Research Foundation. “Seeing the procedure live is a very powerful way to educate the audience members. They can see, hear and become absorbed minute by minute in what is going on.”
The technology was made possible with the help of Philip D. and Henrietta B. Adler, two lifelong philanthropists whose generous bequest made the Adler Education Center a reality. Their bequest, some investing by the Genesis Health Services Foundation and a donation by the Medical Staff made the $1.88 million education center a reality several years ago.
Two cameras in a Catheterization Lab – one fixed and one mobile – documented Dr. Foreman’s procedure. Cameras could show the overall lab or zoom in on certain areas that Dr. Foreman wished to show, said Cindy McGee, Manager of the Cardiac Catheterization Lab at Genesis, Davenport.
Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) can prevent sudden death in people with heart rhythm problems. An ICD is implanted in a patient’s chest to monitor the heart’s rhythm and deliver an electrical shock when a lifethreatening arrhythmia is detected.
“An implantable defibrillator is always on call, continuously monitoring your heart round-theclock,” Dr. Foreman said. “It’s like having an emergency response team that’s with you all the time. Sudden Cardiac Arrest often strikes without warning. Without immediate treatment, it leads to Sudden Cardiac Death in minutes.”
In addition to the “live” case, the audience also watched a pre-taped cryoplasty procedure performed by Dr. Shammas. Cryoplasty, sometimes called cryo-balloon angioplasty, is a new therapy that treats blocked arteries in the legs. It involves the use of nitrous oxide, rather than saline, to inflate the balloon and cool it to -10 degrees C. This in turn prompts several physical responses that open the artery and cause less scarring than occurs with traditional angioplasty.
The Genesis heart surgery program has received the highest rating of “Three Stars’’ from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons.
Genesis also recently received the designation of “Three Stars and Higher Efficiency’’ from UnitedHealth in the areas of open-heart surgery, interventional cardiac care and rhythm disorder management. Genesis has also been designated a UnitedHealth Premium Cardiac Center.
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