Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center - (Page 8)

CVICU room AFTER DISCHARGE Judson Rhodes, R.N. M arci a Lew is You follow up with your surgeon about two or three weeks after discharge and with your cardiologist about four weeks after discharge, Dr. Sandler says. After these visits, your cardiologist might give you a referral for cardiac rehabilitation. GMC’s Cardiac Wellness Program combines personalized exercise plans and education to get you back in shape at your own pace. You are monitored and in the care of an exercise physiologist, a nurse and a respiratory therapist. , R .N . AFTER SURGERY Ca rd iova scul ar w ait in g ro om Once surgery is complete, you are taken to the cardiovascular care unit (CVC), which consists of the cardiovascular intensive care unit (CVICU) and the cardiovascular telemetry unit, to recover. 2 In the CVC step-down/telemetry. As you progress in your recovery, your nurse prepares you for discharge with walking goals, breathing tests and education. “When they get down here, I immediately start teaching them, and we work on the things that they have to do to get home,” says Marcia Lewis, R.N., a telemetry nurse with 30 years of experience helping heart patients recover and go home. You walk three to four times a day, use a device to keep your lungs clear, and learn important information required for complete at-home recovery, including how to care for your incisions. Once you are ready to go home, the CVC staff makes appointments with your surgeon and your cardiologist and coordinates your home healthcare. After your ﬁve- to seven-day stay at Gwinnett Medical Center–Lawrenceville, you head home to ﬁnish your open heart surgery journey. 8 SPRING 2 013 for cardiac reh abi litation Pat ients wh o are refe rre d . C’s Cardiac We llne ss gym work out at GM TRUST IN OUR EXPERTISE Although the open heart surgery process seems daunting, knowing that trained and experienced professionals are using state-of-the-art technology to get the job done can ease the fear. Regardless of how your heart disease started, you can have conﬁdence in the care you receive at Gwinnett Medical Center, because the professionals at the Strickland Heart Center strive to return you to your normal life, healthier and feeling better than ever. VIDEO 1 In the CVICU. You awaken from general anesthesia, and a nurse monitors your progress during the ﬁrst 24 to 48 hours of recovery. “There’s a period after surgery where the patient needs to be cared for by one nurse, and that is that nurse’s only job and responsibility,” says Judson Rhodes, R.N., clinical manager of the CVC. During your CVICU stay, your breathing tube is removed along with other lines, and your nurse will get you up and moving. At that time, Rhodes says, you will move to the telemetry side of the CVC. “Once we’re able to take away some of the monitoring lines, we will move the patient down to telemetry, which is in the same unit, with the same nursing staff,” says Rhodes, who has been a cardiac nurse since 1999 and visits every open heart patient several times while he or she is in the unit. Watch Real Patients Tell Real Stories To watch short videos featuring real GMC open heart patients, visit gmcheart.com/stories. To make an appointment with an expert cardiologist in your area, call 678-312-5000. http://www.gmcheart.com/stories

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center

Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center
Contents
Phil’s Feature
Where Lasting Weight Loss Begins
Open Heart Surgery Journey
You’re the Star
Heart-to-Heart
Lighten Up!
Have No Fear
Work It!
Diane Keaton
What Are the Chances?
9 Symptoms Never to Ignore
When Allergies Attack
Virtual Health
PrimeTime Health
Aiding Babies
Back on Top
Out of the White Coat
Transforming Healthcare

Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center