Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/778134
cardiologists or other sub-specialists," says Dr. Bocks, who is one of the first 200 physicians to be certified in ACHD. "We need to meet their adult needs in a setting — like UH Harrington Heart and Vascular Institute — that makes them feel comfortable, while also combining necessary resources and staž from both the pediatric and adult worlds in an ežec- tive and convenient way." To that end, Dr. Bocks and Dr. Devaney, a l o n g w i t h D r. M a r c o C o s t a , U H Harrington Heart and Vascular Institute President and Director of its Interventional Ca rdiovascula r Center, a nd Dr. Cur t Daniels, Director of the Columbus Ohio Adult Congenital Heart Disease (COACH) and Pulmonary Hypertension Program at The Heart Center at Nationwide Children's Hospital, are building a comprehensive program for ACHD at University Hospitals. According to Dr. Devaney, this is a good example of how the Collaborative leverages expertise across both campuses. "The team also has joint clinical conferences twice a week to discuss all congenital heart patients undergoing any form of surgical or interventional therapy. We discuss in detail every case, so we have the combined resources, expertise and brain power of two large institutions. And that's a huge plus," he says. The Collaborative also has the com- bined streng th of a number of qua lity improvement projects a nd the use of quality metrics. Having greater numbers across both campuses allows the CHC to have better statistical power to make decisions to determine best therapies and improve outcomes. "Are we doing a good enough job in delivering high quality care, because that's really our main focus," says Dr. Snyder. "We want to provide the best quality care for congenital heart disease in our area. And we have an institutional commitment to provide the personnel and the infrastruc- ture that's necessary to provide that." He points to the f ive-bed pediatric cardiac step-down unit that the CHC at Rainbow has outgrown. Construction is underway to add another five beds. Plans for the addition of two state-of-the-art hybrid intervention suites — a single-plane and a bi-plane — have also been approved. Each w i l l ser ve a s a f u l ly f unctiona l catheter lab, electrophysiolog y lab, and operating room. By mid-2018, according to Dr. Snyder, Rainbow plans to expand from its current cardiac intensive care unit and add more step-down unit beds to accommodate more patients. The staž will a lso grow in kind. "A ll of the future plans for the CHC fa ll in line with the program's first and foremost goa l: exceptiona l patient care and clinica l qua lity," he says. " I s e e t h i s C ol l a b or at ive h a s t he pot ent ia l to ma ke R a i nbow, a s wel l a s Nationwide, the pre-eminent con- genita l hea r t progra ms in the state of Ohio and leaders on the national scene," adds Dr. Devaney. "So I'm very excited to be pa r t of that a nd to contribute to that ežort." Fo r m o re i nfo r m a t i o n a b o u t th e Congenital Heart Collaborative, visit UHDoctor.org. For Pediatric and Adult Congenital Heart D isease Refer rals, including patient transfers, admissions and appointments, call 216-844-3528. ■ Sarah Plummer, MD, Pediatric Cardiologist, with Chad Eckert, RN, CCRN, Clinical Nurse Manager of the UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital Cardiac Step-Down Unit, check on a young post- surgery patient. PHOTO © SMITHBERGER PHOTOGRAPHY, NORTH CANTON, OH 0 8C O V E R S T O R Y