The New England Heart and Vascular Institute at Catholic Medical Center is excited to introduce you to a completely new patient care concept. The completely new patient care concept at CMC opened earlier this year to provide a comfortable, new space for patients undergoing cardiac catheterization and coronary stent procedures.The Cardiac Radial Lounge serves as a 21st-century model for cardiac care with a focus on the patient experience. It takes advantage of the revolutionary approach to cardiac procedures that has occurred over the past decade.
CMC has been a national leader in adopting a transradial approach to cardiac catheterization procedures. This approach places the procedural catheter in the radial artery in the wrist, instead if in the femoral artery in the thigh. CMC now uses this method for over 90% of patients, resulting in a much lower bleeding risk to the patients and a completely different care experience post-procedure.
The new Cardiac Radial Lounge allows patients to experience the advantages of the radial, or wrist, approach. No longer do patients feel a loss of control and the discomfort of lying flat in bed for hours. Now, patients have a band placed on the wrist to prevent bleeding and recover in a recliner. After about 30 minutes, they are allowed to get dressed in their regular clothing and ambulate freely around the Lounge.
This Lounge is modeled after the concept of an airport lounge.There are common areas, a snack bar, a coffee machine and patient education and counseling areas. The area is bright, with a soothing environment and skylight. Patients feel less anxiety and have a sense of greater freedom and control over their environment. Patients enjoy a shorter hospital stay and a more streamlined procedure. They are typically able to go home within a few hours after catheterization and often within six hours after a stent, if they are stable.
The location of the Cardiac Radial Lounge (next to the cardiac catheterization labs) is much more efficient for the staff. The physicians in the cath labs enjoy being just feet away from the patients in the Cardiac Radial Lounge, enabling them to quickly see the patients for any needs.
An unexpected benefit was realized during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Lounge is separate from other patient care areas in the hospital, effectively isolating these individuals from the sicker, inpatient population.
CMC is excited to offer this experience to your patients as it continues to set the standard for modern advanced cardiac care.