CathLab Digest

Nurse Management With 1-Hour Ambulation Post 4 French Cardiac Catheterization is Safe and Cost Effective

Author: Vincent Gatt, RN, Dip. CVT, Michael Borg, MSc, Dip. CVT, Dip. HR, RN, John Agius, EN, Robert George Xuereb, MD, FRCP, FASA, FESC
Department of Cardiac Services, Mater Dei Hospital, Malta

Introduction

Nursing has always been at the center of patient care. Professional care management and ongoing development facilitates better teamwork and focused support for patient satisfaction.

Cardiovascular disease is one of the major health problems of recent years. Cardiac catheterization for coronary artery assessment is a frequently utilized diagnostic procedure since coronary artery disease has been established as a primary cause of death in western countries. There is a great probability that in the coming years, coronary artery disease will continue to escalate.1 The disease may sometimes remain silent and thereby go unnoticed for a long time. It may then manifest itself as an acute coronary syndrome, meaning cardiologists and health care personnel have a limited time to go through the routine examination pathway.8 There is an ever-increasing number of affected people around the world, irrespective of gender, social status, economical status and geographical location2; therefore, demand for adequate diagnostic tests to help with specific therapies will increase.

Currently, there are different modalities to assess coronary artery disease, including non-invasive cardiac computed tomography (CT) angiography. However, the gold standard remains coronary angiography. Although it requires a special setup, a large number of support personnel and has a higher cost, angiography still remains the most accurate, sought after and accessible procedure, which often results in long waiting lists for the procedure. In response to increased resource and expenditure requirements, management teams seek to deliver this type of care at a more contained expense without compromising safety.

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