08/10/2021
CardioMEMS Heart Failure Program
Thanks to the inspiration, foresight and generosity of Richard and Jan Conley and David and Karen Della Penta and their transformational gifts totaling $120,000, the Wentworth-Douglass Foundation has the opportunity to fully fund the new CardioMEMS Heart Failure Program through a new community fundraising initiative. The Foundation seeks to raise $90,000 to better serve (and save) cardiology patients through advanced technology and early access to patient heart health information.
Cardiovascular disease continues to be a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States and New Hampshire. Despite recent national trends of declining inpatient hospitalizations for heart failure and AMI (Acute Myocardial Infarction), the incidence of heart failure and advanced heart failure is expected to increase over the next 10+ years. In 2019, 323 WDH patients had a primary diagnosis of heart failure, representing a 30 percent increase from 2010 (203 patients).
To address this projected need head on, the Foundation seeks to raise necessary funds to purchase a CardioMEMS Heart Failure System which remotely monitors changes in pulmonary artery (PA) pressure, an early indicator of the onset of worsening heart failure. These early changes can often be addressed through simple adjustments to care, most often without requiring an appointment with the patient.
CardioMEMS Heart Failure System: Saving Lives in Real Time
The CardioMEMS Heart Failure Remote Monitoring System revolutionizes cardiology patient care. Traditionally, clinicians have focused on physiological markers (patient weight, blood pressure, etc.) to detect worsening heart failure. These markers appear later as the heart continues to deteriorate, leaving little time to respond before hospitalization is necessary. As telemedicine becomes more commonplace, the CardioMEMS Heart Failure System is a safe, reliable way to help cardiology patients manage their heart health and allow clinicians to respond more rapidly to patient changes before heart failure worsens.
Benefits of the CardioMEMS Heart Failure System
• Real-time notification of patient changes.
• Clinically proven to aid providers in preventing worsening heart failure, lowering mortality rates and improving quality of life.
• Convenient access to secure data for proactive, personalized patient management.
• Ability to make simple adjustments to care (such as titration of medications), often without requiring an appointment with the patient.
• Empowers patient with heightened knowledge and awareness of factors affecting their health instilling an increased sense of control over their health.
Financial support for the CardioMEMS Heart Failure Remote Monitoring System has the very real chance of saving someone’s life. As the Cardiology team and Center for Heart Health at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital continues to grow, your gift gives the gift of life to the hundreds of cardiology patients seeking comprehensive care to make their heart whole again, so they may live full lives with their loved ones for years to come.
For more information about the CardioMEMS Program and how you can help support this initiative, please contact Cristine More, CFRE, Vice President of Philanthropy at cristine.more@wdhospital.org or 603.609.6207.
Meet the Wentworth-Douglass Hospital Heart Failure Clinic Team
Pictured above from left to right: Christine Oliveira, APRN, CHFN, Heart Failure Nurse Practitioner; Hilary Niesuchouski, RN, CHFN, Heart Failure Nurse Navigator; Meghan Williams, RN, Per-Diem Heart Failure Nurse Navigator; Kim Chapman, RN, CHFN, Heart Failure Program Manager