Kincardine medical team partners with London hospital for improved cardiac services

Kincardine now has access to improved cardiac services, thanks to a partnership between the local medical community and the London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) division of cardiology.

The announcement was made Monday night (Nov. 28), during a dinner meeting at the Best Western Plus Governor's Inn, Kincardine.

The Kincardine Family Health Team and the South Bruce Grey Health Centre welcome the implementation of a range of specialized heart-care services based at the Kincardine hospital, including:
 

• On-site heart imaging with echocardiograms and Internet-based interpretation
• Collaboration with the LHSC's cardiac care program
• Regular specialist visits, including focused care for heart failure, irregular heartbeats, and surgery
• Direct emergency room line to the cardiologist on-call at the LHSC

Kincardine physician Dr. Gary Gurbin said the need for improved cardiac care in Kincardine was prompted by the retirement of heart specialist Dr. Rafael Martel this past summer. After discussions with cardiologist Dr. Gerard Shoemaker at the LHSC, the process began to provide access to cardiac services at the Kincardine hospital.

"Thanks to Paul Rosebush (president and chief executive officer of the South Bruce Grey Health Centre), and financing through the hospital foundation, a full-time echo-sonographer has been hired to support the program," said Gurbin, adding that this person, who is currently working in Sudbury, will begin in February.

Dr. Raymond Yee, head of cardiology at LHSC, thanked Gurbin and Rosebush for developing this partnership. "It's important to provide these services to smaller centres. We have to do it right, and these are the right partners to do it with. Once we spread the knowledge to these individuals, then we can move into more remote areas."

Shoemaker said it is the goal of the heart specialists at the LHSC to broaden their relationship with Kincardine, to include outreach clinics, and to receive referrals from all sites of the South Bruce Grey Health Centre. Working with the LHSC on this, are radiologist Trevor Filsinger, and administrator Tracy Springer.

Specialist Dr. Sabe De outlined the stages of heart failure which he described as a very complex disease with various conditions. "With this program in Kincardine, we are always available to discuss concerns, and we want to help any way we can."

He said once the full-time technician is at the Kincardine hospital, he can produce high-quality echocardiograms which can be viewed by London's heart specialists immediately. "It's a lot cleaner, faster system than what we had before."

Dr. Rodrigo Bagur, intervention specialist, described his work, and noted that this program will provide better access to these services.

Chris Harris, director of the cardiac-care program at the LHSC, said the London hospital is the largest tertiary care centre in the region, providing a wide range of services. It has more than 1,000 beds, 10,000 professional staff, and with the Victoria and University hospital sites combined, it is the largest hospital in the province.

Annually, it has 150,000 emergency room visits and 50,000 admissions; and does 1,500 heart procedures, 17,000 echocardiograms, and 110,000 electrocardiograms.

Harris said the key priorities are promoting good patient care, providing good access to services for all patients including referrals, improving communication, and being fiscally responsible.

For the program with Kincardine to work, the LHSC has installed a dedicated communication line for the cardiology department. "We have beds available which is always a challenge," said Harris, "and we have a way to repatriate patients in a timely fashion."

In answer to a question from Dr. Art Wiebe, Harris said that transportation is a big challenge for the LHSC as it is for all hospitals across Ontario. "We continue to be at the mercy of the EMS."

Dr. Lisa Roth asked if this program is just for the Kincardine area or if it will take referrals from across the region.

"We are open for business from the whole area," said Shoemaker. "Once we have the technician here in the new year, we can roll out the access for service across the entire region, including the hospitals in Walkerton, Durham and Chesley, Hanover and Southampton."

The program also calls for a cardiologist to visit the Kincardine hospital once per week, with cardiac clinics set up ahead of time. This allows patients to have their pre-operative and post-operative appointments in Kincardine, instead of driving to London.

Bob Kiaii, cardiac surgeon at the LHSC, said the cardiology department and cardiac surgery work close together, with the emphasis on patient-centred care.

"We don't do the same postage-stamp surgery with each patient," he said. "If you can do minimally-invasive surgery and get the same results, you do it. That way, the patient can go home sooner. We like to think outside the box, but provide the patients with what they need."

Using a slide show, Kiaii indicated how surgical technology has advanced so that surgeons can do endoscopic harvesting of arteries which is a lot less invasive and more comfortable for the patient, than previous methods.

"I'm almost overwhelmed by the expertise and enthusiasm these specialists provide," said Gurbin. "It is very much appreciated. We look forward to a positive relationship."

Shoemaker said the access to improved cardiac services is already available at the Kincardine hospital, with the weekly cardiology visits set to begin at the start of April, 2017.

Rosebush said this initiative is advancing local access to the highest-quality cardiac services in Kincardine and area.

"The South Bruce Grey Health Centre also continues to support the on-site cardiac rehabilitation program located at the hospital and will support the expansion of cardiac ambulatory clinics in the future as cardiac needs grow in the region," he said. "The health centre is delighted to work with Dr. Shoemaker and his team and the Family Health Team to improve cardiac-care services throughout Kincardine and the South Bruce region.

"Patient care can only be improved through collaboration of service providers in today's health-care environment, and this initiative truly demonstrates the power of collaboration for better patient care."



Dr. Gary Gurbin (centre) of Kincardine, discusses access to cardiac services at the London Health Sciences Centre, with cardiologist Dr. Gerard Shoemaker (left) and cardiac surgeon Dr. Bob Kiaii, Monday night in Kincardine



Paul Rosebush (third from right), president and chief executive officer of the South Bruce Grey Health Centre, welcomes the London Health Sciences Centre cardiac team, Dr. Sabe De (left), Dr. Rodrigo Bagur, Dr. Raymond Yee, Dr. Gerard Shoemaker, administrator Chris Harris, and Dr. Bob Kiaii, Monday night in Kincardine