Our
Team
A team of professionals works together to select patients
who can best benefit from heart transplantation and
to care for them throughout the process. The team includes
physicians who specialize in cardiovascular surgery,
transplant cardiology, infectious disease, immunology,
pathology and psychology, along with nurses, social
workers, physical and occupational therapists, dietitians
and pastoral care.
A
nurse with expertise in heart transplantation serves
as the coordinator for patients who are in the hospital
waiting for a donor heart, at home with the HeartMate
pump, and in the hospital for heart transplant surgery.
The coordinator is the point person for all of a patient’s
needs and is available to patients on a daily basis
if necessary. The coordinator can explain treatments,
teach patients how to monitor their own health, and
help coordinate their tests and home care needs.
Another
resource for patients is the heart transplant social
worker. She helps evaluate patients for transplant,
counsels patients and their families about the process
of transplant, and provides resources and referrals
if other services are needed, such as long-term counseling.
The social worker also can assist with financial forms
in some cases.
Individuals
who have received or are waiting for a transplant also
can receive invaluable support and encouragement from
others who are in their situation. Loyola sponsors several
different heart transplant support groups whose purpose
is to provide health education, such as stress reduction
techniques, and social interaction to foster supportive
bonds between among patients.
Loyola
University Medical Center is one of the few heart transplant
centers to have a heart transplant unit (HTU) dedicated
exclusively to patients who have received a transplant
or are awaiting transplantation. The unit was the first
of its kind in the United States when it opened in 1988.
Staffed by experienced cardiology nurses, the enclosed
unit consists of 10 private rooms surrounding a nursing
station. In addition to being equipped with the most
advanced heart monitoring systems that enable patients
to move about the halls, each room has amenities such
as an exercise bike and a VCR. A computer is dedicated
exclusively to patients and enables them to use e-mail
and educational resources on the internet. The unit
also has its own dedicated biopsy lab to provide specialized
care to heart transplant patients. Patients and staff
on the self-contained unit often get to know each other
very well; the small unit is conducive to social interaction.
Heart
transplantation is not a cure for endstage heart disease,
because it requires lifelong medications and lifestyle
changes. Loyola University Health System (Loyola) has
conducted a study funded by the National Institutes
of Health to examine the quality of life of heart transplant
recipients. The 10-year study included 550 heart transplant
candidates from Loyola and the University of Alabama
Medical Center in Birmingham. While only preliminary
results are available, some of the data has revealed
that before surgery 79 percent of patients rated their
overall quality of life as very good or moderately good.
One year after surgery, 91 percent of patients rated
their quality of life as very good or moderately good.
One year after surgery, 95 percent of study patients
were greatly satisfied with the outcome of their heart
transplant.
Locations
and Contacts
A full spectrum of heart transplantation services is
available in Maywood at:
Center
for Heart & Vascular Medicine
To
speak with a coordinator who can help assess your medical
needs and find an appropriate physician, call (888)
LUHS-888 and ask for the heart transplant team.
Related
Links
Transplantation
Services
Lung
Transplantation
Center
for Heart & Vascular Medicine
Program
Directors
Bryan
Foy, MD, FACS - Surgical Director
|
Clinical
Trials