Our hearts are almost home.
The Need: Frank's Story
It was less than two months after Frank Rizzuto's 40th birthday when he suffered what's often called a “widowmaker” heart attack on Family Day weekend in 2017.
By the time he arrived at the Hospital, it was life-threatening. His family was called in to say goodbye. Frank had to be flown out of town for any chance of getting the care he needed to survive.
That's the hard truth about heart care in our region.
Heart patients are still forced to travel 1,000+ kilometres for surgery, away from family and support, when they need them most.
Frank later said:
“If we'd had cardiac surgery here… they would have found the blockage right away and potentially been able to save a good portion of my left ventricle.”
It has been nine years since Frank's heart attack. Today, he's holding steady — focused on staying on top of his medications, trusting his medical team and following their direction, and living a healthy lifestyle.
We're closer than ever to bringing cardiac surgery home. But we're not there yet.
Please donate today to help equip the Cardiovascular Surgery (CVS) Program when it opens. Better equipment means better patient care, and we need the best.
The Solution: A Vital Partnership
Our Partners at the University Health Network's Peter Munk Cardiac Centre (PMCC) continue to play a critical role in bringing CVS to Northwestern Ontario as our clinical mentors and implementation partners. Their physicians, clinical leaders, educators and project management team are working alongside our staff to share expertise, support knowledge transfer, and help ensure our program is built on proven best practices and decades of cardiac surgery experience.
Behind this core project team is a much broader network of physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, support services, corporate teams, regional health care partners, and patient and family advisors contributing their expertise to the development of the program. This is truly a whole-system effort, with teams across our Hospital and region working together to bring cardiovascular surgery closer to home.
Over the coming months, the project team will continue advancing clinical and operational readiness, workforce recruitment and staff education, pathway development, information technology and information systems planning, and regional partnerships while preparing for key implementation milestones.
Together, we are building far more than a cardiovascular surgery program. We are transforming the experience of cardiovascular care by bringing advanced services closer to home and creating a stronger, more connected system of care for patients and families across Northwestern Ontario.
"No one should have to travel thousands of kilometres and be separated from their family to undergo standard bypass surgery. The one program on two sites model that we will implement will ensure that the quality of care delivered in Thunder Bay and at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre is the same. Quality, safety and local access will be the cornerstones of this partnership."
Dr. Barry Rubin, Medical Director of the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre and the Cardiovascular Program at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre.
Your Donations at Work
With your help, we will be able to give our outstanding healthcare professionals the equipment and program funding they need to create Ontario's newest Cardiovascular Surgery Program, right here in Northwestern Ontario.
Here is a list of what is needed to get the program running:
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Expand one existing OR for cardiac cases – the Health Sciences Centre can repurpose an existing Operating Room to be used for cardiac surgery.
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A new dedicated operating room for vascular surgery (including equipment to perform Endovascular Aneurysm Repair/Thoracic Endovascular Aneurysm Repair) – a new Hybrid OR is required for vascular surgery with a fixed C-arm for imaging
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New 14-bed Cardiovascular Surgical Unit (CVSU) – some cardiac and vascular patients require close monitoring after a procedure that will require care in the CVSU. Some will come directly from post-anesthetic recovery room (PACU) others will come after 24-36 hrs in ICU.
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New Coronary Care Unit (CCU) - 6 beds plus 1 procedure bed run by the cardiology service for higher acuity cardiac patients
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New Cardiovascular Ambulatory Care facility – care for both cardiac and vascular patients. This will include Vascular and Cardiac Clinics, Post surgical assessment clinic, Pre-admission clinic as well as the RAVE (Rapid Assessment Vascular Examination) and RACE (Rapid Assessment Cardiac Examination) clinics. It will be a hub of all outpatient cardiovascular care activity on campus with the exception of Cardiovascular Rehabilitation and the Pacemaker and Device Clinic.
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Perfusion Workroom and Surgeon's Case Review Area
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Supply and Equipment Storage Area next to OR