01/16/2017
When Minutes Matter - We Are Here For You
Heart attacks can happen at any time of the day or night. If the unexpected happens to you or a loved one – call 911 immediately and be confident knowing that expert care is available to you right here on the Seacoast.
At Wentworth-Douglass Hospital’s 24/7 Cardiac Catheterization Lab – or Cath Lab – board-certified doctors from the Wentworth Health Partners Cardiovascular Group and specially-trained nurses and technicians are always ready to care for patients experiencing a heart attack.
Beginning treatment quickly is critical when a person is having a ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), a kind of heart attack caused by a blocked blood vessel. Our STEMI team takes immediate action to evaluate and diagnosis heart attacks and move patients promptly and seamlessly to the Cath Lab for treatment. The time it takes from when a patient arrives at the Emergency Department to when a lifesaving device, such as a balloon or stent, has been used for treatment is a benchmark called the “door-to-device” time. Our average time is 55 minutes, better than the 90-minute target set by the American College of Cardiology.
“In these cases, every resource, from the Emergency Department, Patient Transport, Cath Lab and Critical Care Unit are taking finely-tuned steps to reduce time and provide the fastest, highest quality care to the patient,” says Heather Wilson-Labbe, MBA, BSN, RN, CWOCN, Nurse Manager for Cardiovascular Care.
Wentworth-Douglass Hospital’s Cath Lab performs more than 1,800 procedures each year, providing complete preventative care, medical management, diagnosis and treatment for heart and vascular conditions, including cardiac catheterizations, angioplasty, stent placements, pacemaker and defibrillator implants, and more. We are also leading the way in advanced imaging and technology so our physicians can better see and understand what’s happening in a patient’s heart and vascular system and offer the best minimally invasive interventions.
“In every case, it’s the dedication to doing the right thing for the patient that’s most important. We always put the patient first,” says Wilson-Labbe.
To learn more about Wentworth-Douglass Hospital’s Center for Heart Health call (603) 740-2121.