Open-Heart Surgery: A Cornerstone Cardiovascular Program Open-heart surgery (OHS) has long been a cornerstone of cardiovascular patient care as it encompasses some of the most clinically complex procedures that can be performed to support, renew, or improve heart function in patients. The term typically includes coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) and surgical heart valve replacement…
Treating Peripheral Vascular Disease Within the past 30-40 years, there has been a technological revolution in the treatment of peripheral vascular disease. Unfortunately, the healthcare industry has not always kept up with the advancements in care and in some areas, has fallen far below the potential level that is achievable. The impact on the industry…
The Importance of Discharge Medications When I look back at my career, there are certain patients that stood out. Notably, these patients were “repeat customers” who would return periodically with in-stent restenosis or progressed disease. I would wonder why some patients never seemed to require additional treatments while others routinely came back… After conversing with…
The introduction of cardiopulmonary bypass in the 1950s revolutionized the field of cardiac surgery. Fast forward to today and we are seeing how technology, innovation, and consumer demand drive the move towards less invasive methods of treatment. This move does not represent a decline in cardiac surgery, but an evolution in the way health care…
What is “system-ness”? “Systemness” is the ability to provide a consistent experience for patients, providers, and hospital staff regardless of the care setting across the continuum. It can improve patient and provider experience, lower costs, improve quality patient care, reduce risk, and increase growth. However, achieving systemness can be quite challenging. Some believe that simply having an established common…
Having over 40 years working in healthcare with 25 of those as a healthcare executive, I learned many lessons, most of which I wish I knew when I was a young man and an inexperienced executive. Over time, I came to learn that not all lessons are learned in the classroom. Here are three that I…
‘Ghosting’ – “The practice of ending a personal relationship with someone by suddenly and without explanation withdrawing from all communication.” The other day I was having a wonderful conversation with a Cardiothoracic Surgeon when he suddenly asked me if I had ever heard of the term “Ghosting.” When I asked why, he told me that…
“If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” – Henry Ford “Because this is the way we’ve always done it”. Most of us have heard this phrase or a form of it at some point in our lives or careers. It’s like the work version of your parents saying, “because…
A CNS Educator Has Never Been More Important Given the current challenges faced around the proper acquisition and utilization of nursing resources, my work as a Corazon Interim Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) Educator for hospitals across the country has never been more important, or more pressing, on so many levels. Whether it be implementing a…
With advances in Cardiology procedure technology and the goal of achieving a lower cost of care, there has been a visible shift in procedures from the inpatient to the outpatient settings. Several changes in CMS rulings in the last fifteen years have spurred an increase in office-based laboratories (“OBLs”), including catheterization laboratories and vascular access…
