Page 20 - Demo

Heart & Vascular Health |
With LVAD, I can do so much more C O N T I N U E D
With Bill’s enthusiastic, can-do attitude, the Heart Failure team was confident he was a good candidate.
“Mentally, he is very sharp,” Dr. Banerji said. “The only thing that was hurting him was his heart.”
Coughlin’s LVAD was implanted in February 2015. His cardiac surgeon was Ray Blackwell, M.D. The Coughlins appreciated that Bill received his extensive presurgery and postsurgery care at Christiana Hospital, only five miles from his home.
“If it was Philly or Baltimore, that would have been a big problem, especially for my wife,” Coughlin said.
“We can provide communication and coordination for our patients. We have a close-knit team that treats patients like family.”
Sourin Banerji, M.D.
Dr. Banerji said that heart failure patients are more likely to access the expert care they need when it is convenient for them.
“One of the barriers to care is the ability to commute to an advanced heart center,” he said. “We can provide communication and coordination for our patients. We have a close-knit team that treats patients like family.”
Today, Coughlin is back to doing yard work. He recently remodeled a bathroom in his house. Each month, he goes to the Center for Heart & Vascular Health for a check-up.
“I am doing so much better and enjoying my family,” he said.
Recently, the Coughlins celebrated two milestones. One grandchild graduated from college, and another grandchild graduated from high school.
“Without my LVAD, I wouldn’t be here to enjoy those special days with my grandchildren,” he said. n
These days cutting the grass is routine for Bill Coughlin, thanks to the Heart Failure care team at Christiana Care and his LVAD device.
Ventricular Assist Device program is recertified by The Joint Commission
Christiana Care Health System’s Center for Heart & Vascular Health has again earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for its ventricular assist device destination therapy program by demonstrating compliance with The Joint Commission’s national standards for health care quality and safety in disease-specific care.
Recertification acknowledges the high standards of care maintained by the Congestive Heart Failure and Cardiothoracic Surgical team caring for patients with LVAD implantations.
The program underwent a rigorous on-site review in October 2017. An expert Joint Commission reviewer evaluated the program for compliance with the requirements for The Joint Commission’s Disease-Specific Care Certification as well as ventricular assist device destination therapy-specific stan- dards, clinical practice guidelines and performance measures.
Christiana Care launched its LVAD program in 2011 and is the only hospital in Delaware to offer destination therapy
ventricular assist devices for advanced heart failure patients. The program, when first certified in 2013, received The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval.
“LVADs are complicated and these patients are extremely sick. We’ve had great success with these people because
of coordinated medical and surgical management from a collaborative team,” said Ray A. Blackwell, M.D., Chief, Cardiac Surgery and W. Samuel Carpenter, III, Distinguished Chair, Cardiovascular Surgery. “Support for the patients and their families is really important too.”
The Center for Heart & Vascular Health currently is working to expand its Heart Failure and LVAD programs to better serve advanced heart failure patients in Delaware. Christiana Care cardiac surgeons will undergo additional training to bring newer LVAD technology to the state soon.
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