Beaumont hospitals in Farmington Hills, Trenton, and Wayne have earned approvals to perform elective PCI — also known as angioplasty — a non-surgical procedure to treat narrowed or blocked heart arteries that can cause chest pain or a heart attack.
Beaumont cardiologists have been performing emergency PCI for several years but they have been unable to offer the procedure on an elective basis because of a state certificate requirement for an on-site, open-heart surgery program. A change in rules last year allowed the hospitals to apply for approval to expand their PCI programs beyond emergency cases.
“The survival or outcome of a patient is related to the amount of time it takes to treat a heart blockage or a heart attack,” says Dr. Abedelrahim Asfour, director of interventional cardiology at Beaumont in Trenton. “Now we will be able to stabilize and treat all our patients without transferring them to a larger facility, helping to ensure their loved ones can stay by their side.”
Asfour says to meet the criteria, Beaumont must coordinate emergency treatment with local emergency medical services; ensure physician and employee licensure and competency; improve catheterization lab facilities and safety; and meet national accreditation standards for cardiac care quality.
“Our expert cardiac care team is proud to be able to treat patients as quickly and efficiently as possible with the addition of elective PCI treatment,” says Eric Widner, president of Beaumont in Wayne. “This allows a community hospital like ours to be able to fulfill our patients’ desire to stay close to home while still providing them with the safest environment of care possible.”
Widner says cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S., causing 600,000 deaths annually. PCI is considered one of the most effective, primary treatments for narrowed or blocked heart arteries or heart attacks.
