HEART CENTRE

The Heart Institute in St. Petersburg is the largest and foremost cardiovascular health centre in the north-west region of Russia, dedicated to understanding, treating and preventing heart disease. By combining the practice, science and teaching of cardiovascular medicine, the Heart Institute applies the latest insights, newest technologies and the most advanced expertise to deliver outstanding patient care, train the best cardiac specialists, coach allied health institutions in cardiac best practices, and pursue breakthrough research.

The Heart Institute serves the local, national and international community through cross-disciplinary cardiac care, teaching and discovery, while placing the highest priority on the improved detection, management and prevention of cardiovascular disease.

The Heart Institute shapes Russian and global health-care practices and standards by re-examining how cardiac care is administered, by developing and proving new therapies, and by putting proven treatment and prevention methods into wider use. The institute considers the human and economic toll of cardiovascular disease in shaping public and economic health policy, education and research. The Heart Institute strives to revolutionize our understanding and treatment of heart disease, and to play a leading role in eradicating it altogether.

Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in the world. While survival rates are gradually increasing, the effects of heart disease and the need for long-term medical treatment diminish the quality of life for many people. The Heart Institute aims to develop effective, efficient and lasting heart disease management strategies.

The Heart Institute is at the forefront of modern cardiovascular science and medicine to better understand the causes of heart disease--including population risk factors, genetic predisposition and lifestyle. When heart disease is no longer considered an inevitable consequence of genetics or aging, it is ultimately preventable. The Heart Institute seeks to make a lasting contribution by developing new knowledge and translating discoveries into advanced treatment, detection and prevention of heart disease.

It Takes a Team

Today's cardiovascular health services take place in a complex and fast-changing medical and technological environment, with high expectations from a well-informed public. To move forward in this environment, the Heart Institute has made collaboration and group practice the foundation of our work.

• All staff work as a team in delivering the highest quality cardiac care. This dedication encompasses families as an integral component of the patient's health care.

• Multi-disciplinary teams, whose members are experts in their field and who are at the forefront of medical and technical advances, carry out specialized caring, teaching and research.

• Specialists in every branch of cardiac care work in tandem to design and deliver heart health services that improve the survival rate and quality of life of heart-disease patients.

The unit has an all Registered Nurse staff and is supported by a Clinical Educator and an Advanced Practice Nurse. The cardiology team includes:

• Dietitians

• Social Workers

• Occupational therapists

• Physiotherapists

• Speech pathologists

What Sets Us Apart

We are passionate about curbing and eradicating heart disease. To put our passion into practice, the Heart Institute is committed to the following principles:

• Patients come first: We provide outstanding personal and dedicated cardiac care to everyone who needs it. We measure success by our ability to respond to the needs of the patients, families and communities we serve.

• Inspiration is key: We recognize and rely upon the power of innovation and scientific discovery to make a difference in the lives of people and their communities.

Cardiology

Cardiology is a fast-paced general cardiology floor. It serves a diverse group of patients including those with myocardial infarction, arrhythmias, heart failure, and congenital heart failure.

The Patients

The acute nature of these patients and the fact that 50% of patients are telemetered provides nurses with advanced skills in ECG interpretation, inotropic support therapy, and management of acute PCI patients.

As a regional quaternary referral centre, patients are admitted for specialized Critical Cardiovascular Care. These include:

• Patients with acute ischemic coronary events requiring emergent, primary percutaneous coronary intervention, continuous observation, ECG and/or hemodynamic monitoring. These patients may also require specialized support such as mechanical ventilation, inotropic support, CVVH and intra aortic counter pulsation;

• Patients with life-threatening arrhythmias requiring electrophysiological consultation;

• Patients with complicated myocardial infarction, acute carcinogenic shock, complete heart block, recurrent ischemia or heart failure;

• Patients requiring urgent or emergent work-up for cardiac assist device or transplantation;

• Patients with acute aortic dissection.

Cardiac Operating Rooms (OR)

In this very dynamic area of the Heart Institute, the OR Unit has 4 operating theatres. The OR Unit is on call to perform emergency cases the remainder of the time. The OR Unit performs open-heart procedures, closed-heart procedures, pacemaker implantation, and minor cases for our heart patients.

The OR Unit includes:

- Registered nurses
- Anesthesia technicians
- Perfusionists
- Orderlies
- Aides
- Clerks

Cardiac Catheterization and Electrophysiology Labs

In this very busy area of the Heart Institute we have four catheterization labs and one electrophysiology lab. We see approximately 25-30 clients per day. Our normal working hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday to Friday, with staff on call for emergencies. Our catheterization lab procedures include coronary angiograms, non-surgical interventions, and adult congenital interventions. In our electrophysiology lab we do ablations, pacemakers, defibrillators, and loop recorders. We participate in multi-centre trials as well as generate our own research studies.

The Coronary Care Unit

The Coronary Care Unit (CCU) is currently a 6-bed unit (a new state-of-the-art 10-bed CCU is under construction and scheduled to open in the spring of 2005).

Cardiac Surgical Intensive Care Unit (CSICU)

The CSICU is currently a 16-bed unit (plans for a new state-of-the-art 22-bed CSICU are in progress). The CSICU provides life support care for all cardiac surgery patients. This includes post-anesthetic recovery and critical care for patients who have undergone coronary artery bypass grafts, valve repair/replacement, pulmonary thromboendarterectomy, heart transplantation, total artificial heart insertion, and ventricular assist device insertion. Expertise in patient assessment, hemodynamic monitoring, and advanced skills in the assessment and care of complex cardiovascular post-operative patients is our promise to the customers.