It Takes a Specialized Team to Run a Cardiac Catheterization Lab

Adventist Health Sonora has invested more than $3 million in building and equipping its state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization lab (cath lab). More importantly, the medical center has invested in a highly skilled team, available 24/7, to provide emergency cardiac care for our community. This around-the-clock coverage is part of what has enabled Adventist Health Sonora to become the first STEMI receiving center in the Sierra foothill region.

Whether they are undergoing diagnostic testing, cardiac device placement, or emergency treatment during a myocardial infarction or heart attack, patients in our cath lab can take heart that they are receiving care from a team with years of specialized training and experience.

• Cardiologists are physicians with over a decade of medical education, from undergraduate studies to medical school through residency and fellowship training. They specialize in diagnosing and treating a range of heart problems. Interventional cardiologists receive training to perform procedures that open blockages and restore blood flow to the heart during a heart attack, among other tests and treatments.
• Cardiac cath lab nurse duties include administering medications, monitoring patient vital signs, and providing patient care during and after the procedure. Cath lab nurses typically have several years of critical care experience in the emergency department or intensive care unit before receiving additional training to fill this specialized role. This is all after graduating with an associate or bachelor’s degree in nursing and passing the certification exam to become a licensed registered nurse.
• Cardiac catheterization radiologic technologists must attain an associate’s degree, pass the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists exam, obtain state licensure, and participate in a minimum of one to two years of on-the-job training and independent study. Many then take a registry exam for a vascular interventional or cardiac interventional certification. Cath lab techs perform a range of tasks that include operating the imaging equipment that allows the cardiologist to visualize the heart and blood vessels, assisting during cardiac procedures by passing instruments, and ensuring sterile conditions.

Clinicians in the cath lab have dedicated their lives to becoming experts in specialized heart care. The result of their hard work is saving lives in our community.

In the first 15 months after becoming licensed by the State of California to provide interventional cardiology procedures, the cath lab team at Adventist Health Sonora opened 146 blocked arteries, helping scores of friends and neighbors in our community.

The American Heart Association guidelines recommend a “door to balloon” (DTB) time of less than 90 minutes – that is, it should take less than 90 minutes from the moment a patient experiencing a heart attack arrives to the emergency department to the moment their blocked artery is opened and blood flow to the heart is restored. The average DTB time at Adventist Health Sonora is only 65 minutes, and their fastest time was just 25 minutes. Cath lab team members are on call to provide emergency care after hours and on weekends and often come in from their homes on a moment’s notice when a STEMI patient is on route or has arrived at the hospital.

Every minute saved is critical, because a patient can fully recover after a heart attack when blood flow is restored quickly. But the longer the heart experiences restricted or no blood flow, the greater the damage to muscle in the heart, leading to a challenging recovery or even death.

Finding clinicians with this high level of training and experience in a small, rural community is a challenge. But saving lives is truly worth the reward.

Visit AdventistHealthSonora.org/HeartCare to learn more about the comprehensive heart care services at Adventist Health Sonora.