FoundationAnnualReport2022

care for patients,” says Dr. Sheldon. In addition to highly skilled physicians, the Firelands Cath Lab boasts a team of specially trained and dedicated support staff. A registered nurse and an x-ray technologist assist the cardiologist in the cath lab, while another registered nurse or x-ray technologist monitors the patient and records the procedure from the adjoining control room. Scheduled procedures are performed during the week, and a team is always on call for emergencies. “The people who work here are outstanding. We are a very cohesive team whose members are like family. We have a lot of respect for each other and confidence in the services we provide. The support of nursing in the ICU and other units and our relationship with the hospital’s specialty staff, such as nephrologists, neurologists, and pulmonologists, is why the Firelands Heart Center is so well respected,” says Dr. Sheldon. Firelands cardiologists, who began performing catheterizations at the hospital in 2000, treat people from Sandusky, Huron, Clyde, Port Clinton, Amherst, Norwalk, Bellevue, Greenwich, and other locations in the region. Recently, a 61-year-old woman was rushed to Firelands for an emergency heart catheterization and probable intervention. “She was originally from Cuba and had recently moved from Florida to Port Clinton. She only spoke Spanish and understood very little English. Her family called 911 when she started experiencing chest pain, and EMS transported her to Magruder Hospital in Port Clinton. She had an EKG which showed she was having a heart attack. Magruder referred her immediately to Firelands for a heart cath and, most likely, a stent procedure. There was a language barrier, causing the patient even more anxiety and confusion,” remembers Dulce “Candy” Alexander, a cath lab x-ray technologist. Firelands Regional Medical Center Heart Center continues to offer advances in local cardiac care with the installation of two new catheterization labs. The Philips Azurion 7 cath lab system provides state-of-the-art imaging and software with better detection, less radiation exposure to the patients and cath lab team, and a more comfortable, efficient, and timely outcome for patients. Cardiac catheterization is a standard procedure used to diagnose or treat various heart problems, including irregular heartbeats (arrhythmias), chest pain (angina), or heart valve problems, among other conditions. It is also performed when placing stents to open blocked arteries. Cardiac catheterization is done by guiding a thin, flexible tube or catheter through a blood vessel to the heart. The procedure provides physicians with important information about the heart muscle, heart valves, and blood vessels in the heart. Firelands cardiologists Hassan M. Ibrahim, MD, W. Patrick McGuinn, MD, Mourhaf Traboulssi, MD, W. Scott Sheldon, DO, and Steven M. Tann, MD, carry out diagnostic catheterizations and procedures, with Dr. Sheldon and Dr. Tann performing interventional procedures as well. Dr. Sheldon completed an advanced fellowship in interventional cardiology at the Cleveland Clinic and diagnoses and treats conditions and diseases of the heart and blood vessels using nonsurgical, catheter-based procedures and specialized imaging techniques. “Firelands has had a long-term commitment to expanding the cardiology program in this region to meet the community’s needs. The acquisition of the Philips Azurion cath lab equipment allows us to offer patients the most advanced technology in cardiac catheterization. Having two cath labs ensures that Firelands can provide 24/7 Firelands Heart Center Installs New Cath Labs 7