Local health systems adding more cardiovascular services so as to better serve the community
For many years those seeking specialized cardiovascular surgery and treatment in the Dayton region had to go elsewhere to find it, but that’s no longer the case. In recent years, regional health networks like Premier and Kettering have been expanding their cardiovascular services so that Miami Valley residents can receive the treatment they need close to home.
Cutting-Edge Health Care
In 2018, Premier Health moved toward a more comprehensive, multi-disciplinary approach to cardiovascular health with the formation of the Premier Cardiovascular Institute. Four physician practices were merged together so that patients could access care for cardiovascular health, echocardiography, electrophysiology, international cardiology, valve disease and vascular disease within one practice.
Today, patients can meet with more than 30 doctors in these specialties within the Premier Cardiovascular Institute, which has expanded to more than a dozen locations throughout the Miami Valley.
“And I would say that while doing all these services and these procedures and having the resources is important, the physician staff is the critical element, working with administrative support to make that all happen,” says Dr. Robert Bulow, a doctor with the Premier Cardiovascular Institute. “It has been phenomenal to see the growth and how these groups are now working together, which is really going to be a big plus for the community.”
This approach has enabled Premier to add services, procedures and surgeries, many of which are not currently practiced widely throughout the country. In addition to what Bulow calls “bread and butter” procedures like angioplasty stents (the placement of a stent that prevents an artery from closing up again after it has been surgically widened) and bypass surgery, Premier also provides rarer procedures like rotational atherectomy and orbital atherectomy, which can make extensive diseases like symptomatic peripheral arterial disease more manageable.
“It’s not available everywhere but Premier uses that on a regular basis,” says Bulow.
Other procedures offered by Premier include balloon dilatation of blocked valves, placement of valves in unique locations and epicardial ablation, a procedure that destroys small spots of tissue on the outside of the heart that are sending incorrect electrical signals.
“[It] is all done right through the skin rather than opening up the chest,” says Bulow. “It’s something that’s unique to Premier and would be a procedure that previously would have had to have been transferred up to Cleveland Clinic or Ohio State or Cincinnati.”
Bulow says by offering these many services within the Miami Valley, Premier is making cardiovascular care more accessible.
“It’s still the leading cause of death in the country,” says Bulow of heart disease. “A lot of the care is timely, so some of the care that has to be administered in a timeframe. So being able to offer these services locally in a timely fashion and a great quality I think is critically important to the community.
“So Premier is looking at a community and what they’re trying to do is position the physician resources so that they’re available to the community and in the community. They’re making a concerted effort to have satellite offices and access to communities that otherwise would not have had that type of access.”
Premier’s Cardiovascular Institute is located at Miami Valley Hospital North Campus and Miami Valley Hospital South Campus, as well as at regional locations in Dayton, Beavercreek, Centerville, Greenville, Huber Heights, Jamestown, Springboro, Troy and Vandalia.
A Variety of Treatments
The Kettering Health Network is also providing quality cardiovascular care to the region. This year, the Kettering Medical Center was named a Top 50 Cardiovascular care facility by Watson Health. Its cardiac team treats all forms of heart disease at its seven hospitals by offering the latest surgical and non-invasive heart procedures and testing.
The Kettering Health Network is particularly proud of its Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) program. This allows the medical team to replace aortic valves in those with severe aortic stenosis (a narrowing of the valve in the large blood vessel that branches off the heart) in a non-surgical, less invasive way.
Another procedure offered by Kettering is the implantation of the WATCHMAN device for those with atrial fibrillation (a condition in which electrical impulses in the top chamber of the heart create an irregular heartbeat). Those with Afib are usually prescribed blood thinners to prevent strokes, but not everyone can tolerate them.
“Patients on blood thinners have to change their lifestyle to prevent excessive bleeding. Even with a hobby like gardening, they must be careful because a small cut can become troublesome,” says Kettering Health Network interventional cardiologist Dr. Raja Nazir in a press release. “For patients who have complications with blood thinners, the WATCHMAN is a life-changing device.”
According to Kettering, the device protects against strokes by blocking the left atrial appendage, preventing large clot formation in the left atrium. Kettering has been implanting the device since 2016 and implanted its 100th such device in 2019.
Other cardiovascular conditions that Kettering Health Network treats includes abnormal heartbeats, coronary artery disease, heart attacks, heart failure, heart valve disease, carotid artery disease, peripheral vascular disease, varicose veins and vascular disease.
Kettering Health Network provides cardiac care in all seven of its hospitals—Fort Hamilton Hospital, Grandview Medical Center, Greene Memorial Hospital, Kettering Medical Center, Soin Medical Center, Southview Medical Center and Sycamore Medical Center.
