What is the size of your cath lab facility and number of staff members?

Owensboro Medical Health System serves an 11-county region in western Kentucky and southern Indiana. The hospital’s mission is to heal the sick and improve the health of the community, with a vision to meet the region’s healthcare needs by actively listening and partnering with those it serves. OMHS is a full-service hospital, employing a workforce of over 3,200. OMHS is one of only 270 hospitals to receive the HealthGrades Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence Award™, placing us in the top 5% of h

“EVAR is the preferred treatment for ruptured aneurysms.”

Frank J. Veith, MD, Professor of Surgery, The Cleveland Clinic and New York University, The William J. von Liebig Chair in Vascular Surgery, The Cleveland Clinic and New York University Medical Center Cleveland, Ohio and New York, New York. Dr. Veith is the Founder and VeithSymposium Chairman.

Can you give us an overview of endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR)?

Endovascular aneurysm repair is a less invasive endoluminal repair of an aneurysm using an endovascular graft. There are now several com

Join labs around the country in an online forum as Dr. Samin Sharma and his team tackle a complex case, and discuss tips and techniques for successful outcomes.

When is the next live case?

The next live case will be on January 19th. It is always the third Tuesday of every month, and we have been doing our live case series since early 2009. The only exception we have made is in March 2010, because the American College of Cardiology meeting is on the 16th, in the third week, so for March, we have made it on the second Tuesday, March 9th. Viewers should join us online from 9-10am at

More than 1,000,000 percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures are performed in the U.S. every year and many more are performed annually worldwide.1 Even though hemostasis at the vascular access site has conventionally been achieved by manual compression followed by a period of recumbency, new devices have significantly increased the methods available to achieve hemostasis at the entry site.2 A number of complications are associated with percutaneous femoral access, including hemorrhage, thrombosis, embolization, and infection.3 Moreover, vascular complications occur in up to 7% of pa

As a leader in healthcare, do you often experience sleepless nights? Are you worried about decreasing volumes, increasing costs, and changes to reimbursement? Do you feel pressure from your physician partners as their professional fees continue to get ratcheted down? Is the cost of expensive new technology and soaring pharmaceutical costs eating away at your per case margin? Is the move to an electronic medical record (EMR) putting pressure on the organization to have a solid information technology (IT) implementation plan that is clinically relevant and timely? Are issues related to looming h

Case Report

A 76-year-old female presented to the emergency department (ED) with severe angina. She stated that she had experienced pain in her right arm along with a feeling of pressure the day prior. At that time, she took her blood pressure (BP) and it was in the normal range, so she let it pass. The following day, she had an episode of angina severe enough to make her dizzy. A visiting neighbor gave her a nitroglycerin tablet, which provided some relief. The patient then came to the ED. She denied ever having diaphoresis, shortness of breath, or loss of consciousness. Her past me

Dr. Tai and Dr. Sizemore offer a regular course in Florida for physicians interested in learning radial technique. Technologists can also attend to learn about transradial equipment, prepping the patient and proper setup.

Courses have been scheduled for February, March and April 2010.

Dr. Zaheed Tai

Tell us about the cath lab at Winter Haven Hospital.

We have three labs. Two are used for coronary and peripheral interventions. The third lab is a diagnostic lab and is used for electrophysiology procedures. Winter Haven Hospital is a not-for-profit community ho

Every patient has a story to tell, and here’s why sharing that story is so important: The act of writing decreases patient stress around procedures, improves provider-patient communications and provides unique data to healthcare providers to improve the patient experience.

Research shows that writing about experience with surgery, a visit to the hospital, or struggles with an illness can help a patient gain a sense of control and decrease stress.1–3 And it ties in with the Joint Commission’s directive that has made patient involvement in their medical care a priority safety goal.4

In a first-degree heart block, why is there such a long delay in the PR interval? What is the pathology of this occurrence?

– Beverly Eskdale, Winter Haven, FL

A first-degree heart block can sometimes be dramatic and gathers a lot of attention when it is pronounced. It can also be a source of focus for individuals reviewing a rhythm strip to the point that it is distracting from other issues. While it is nice to know what this abnormality is, we should also realize that this particular rhythm is relatively benign and not needing treatment in the cath lab.

A first-degree AV

The Cath Lab Basics 2009 course series ended in Tampa the first Saturday in December. Dr. Mike Lim and I enjoyed conducting a one-day ‘cath conference’ with the 180 cath techs and nurses from the region. Sitting at lunch, I asked my table of nurses from Venice, Florida, “What is the single biggest problem you have in your lab?” I was expecting comments like, “It’s the hemodynamics” or “I struggle with coronary anatomy” or “I don’t like covering the on-call nights.” But I was surprised to learn from them that their biggest problem was the personal dynamics with one of t