Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/288786
units — located proximally for optimal management and convenience — as well as improvements to Central Supply and the facility's elevators. Ma k sim Rovensk y, D O, ca rd io- thoracic surgeon at the St. Francis Open Heart Surgery Program at Good Samaritan Hospital, explains that the initiative facilitates a strea mlined patient experience, from the point of entr y — typically a physical exami- nation and diagnostic workup from one of Good Sa ma rita n Hospita l 's cardiologists — through surgery and postsurgical care in the brand new ICU and cardiac surgery floor. "The ICU is one of the most beautiful, state-of-the-art facilities I've ever seen, and I've worked at some of the best hos- pitals in the world," Dr. Rovensky says. "After completing their ICU courses, patients move to the cardiac surgery floor, which is situated next to the ICU for optimal management." It Takes Experience Once the facilities had been tailored for efficiency, seasoned St. Francis personnel joined the team at Good Samaritan Hospital. "It's the people who make the team, and we brought people from St. Francis who have abundant experience working together to treat cardiac surgical cases," Dr. La Mendola says. "We brought car- diac perfusionists and anesthesiologists, as well as circulating, ICU and telem- etry nurses with us. Everyone involved in cardiac surgical care is someone who's had many years of experience. This is the most impor ta nt aspect of the program at Good Samaritan Hospital — we're not just creating a de novo program, we're bringing an established department." Dr. La Mendola notes that St. Francis' patient volume has been among the highest in the country for years, and at its peak, he estimates that 2,600 open-heart procedures were performed annually. According to Dr. La Mendola, the immersive volumes sharpened his and the entire team's abilities. ""Essentially, the way it was set up was that the entire team from St. Francis Hospital — surgeons, anesthesiologists, operating room technicians, physician assistants, ICU nurses — was trans- planted here," Dr. Rovensky says. "We're a St. Francis Hospital program at Good Samaritan Hospital and look to serve the population of its catchment area." In addition to those charged with caring for patients during their hospi- talization and treatment, which also includes respirator y therapists, the program has a complete staff of ancil- lary service providers, including social workers and nutritionists. Both hospitals are Magnet-designated and recognized for nursing excellence. Maksim Rovensky, DO, cardiothoracic surgeon at Good Samaritan, reviews treatment options with a patient in his West Islip office. T H E L A BY R I N T H I N E H E A RT P RO C ED U R E ATRIAL FIBRILLATION IS an arrhythmia that occurs when the heart's normal sinus rhythm is disrupted by abnormal electric impulses, causing it to beat irregularly. This type of arrhythmia can be benign, but if left untreated, the risk for stroke can increase. Christopher La Mendola, MD, and Maksim Rovensky, DO, cardiothoracic surgeons at the St. Francis Hospital Open Surgery Program at Good Samaritan Hospital, perform the MAZE procedure, in which they use a special cryoprobe to deliberately freeze areas of the heart. This builds a "maze" of scar tissue. "Scar tissue doesn't conduct electricity, so creating a maze of scar tissue traps the abnormal signal causing arrhythmia," Dr. Rovensky says. "The rhythm doesn't propagate outside the maze, and the rest of the heart continues to beat normally because it doesn't feel it." For optimal treatment, patients with suspected atrial fibrillation should be referred to cardiologists who can evaluate the necessity of intervention with a full diagnostic workup. Dr. Rovensky explains that the MAZE procedure is best for new arrhythmias that haven't significantly changed the structure of the heart. The MAZE procedure can be performed alone or in conjunction with valve replacement operations. When combining the MAZE with a valve procedure, Dr. Rovensky uses a conventional sternotomy approach, but electrophysiologists use minimally invasive methods to perform the MAZE on its own. M D N E W S . CO M ■ MD NEWS Long Island | 7