We pride ourselves on generally averaging a less than 60-minute ‘door-to-balloon’ time, which refers to how quickly we can move someone with cardiac chest pain from our Emergency Room to be treated at the Cath lab.
The consultant cardiologists are also available to treat the patient in the ER, if needed. They are assisted by an experienced cardiology team that will investigate the initial complaint. Whether it is resuscitation or defibrillation, the chest pain unit doctors are well trained to pick up on ischemic problems (referring to the blockage of the blood supply).
The chest pain unit assesses whether the patient needs to be admitted. If that is the case, then they can also be also taken to the Critical Care Unit which has eight dedicated beds for cardiac patients. Safe and quick movement in the hospital is our priority in such cases.
In the case of a heart attack, the standard used to be to provide pharmacotherapy. But today the norm is to immediately move the patient to the Cath lab for an Angiogram or Angioplasty. “This is no longer state-of-the-art,” explains consultant cardiologist. “The primary angioplasty is the accepted standard now.”
Our combination of experienced interventionists and infrastructure means that our unit is able to manage these cases swiftly and expertly.