Rapides Heart Center
Designed with the patient's comfort and care in mind, Rapides Heart Center is strategically located with access readily available to the emergency helicopter and ambulance entrances, Emergency Department, Surgery, Intensive Care and Telemetry units.
A designated entrance near the front of the hospital and special parking are just a few of the many benefits provided for the comfort and convenience of patients and their families.
Rapides Heart Center, completed in 1995, is the result of efforts to design a center with easy accessibility and a convenient location for cardiac patients. The staff of Rapides Heart Center has worked toward their mission since its opening. The mission is:
"To be productive in providing early disease detection, preventative, diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitative services to residents in the central Louisiana region, thereby reducing the incidence of and deaths from heart and vascular disease."
Many patients first come to the Rapides Heart Center for diagnostic tests provided by the center's cardiology department. Certified and trained technologists provide the following assessment tests:
blood pressure monitoring
echocardiogram
stress test
holter monitoring
transesophageal echocardiogram
nuclear cardiology
Other hospital departments such as the laboratory and radiology also provide needed tests.
Heart Surgery
When open heart surgery is the necessary treatment, Rapides Heart Center is prepared with board certified cardiovascular surgeons and an experienced surgery staff, allowing patients and their families to remain close to home before, during and after surgery. A designated heart suite in the center's Surgery Department ensures that the highest quality care is maintained.
Following open heart surgery, patients are closely monitored in Rapides Regional's Intensive Care Unit. The average ICU stay for many of these patients is only one day. Once it is advisable, patients are transferred to the hospital's telemetry unit for the completion of their hospital stay. Depending on the patient's treatment and condition, a stay on this unit rarely exceeds five days.
Cardiac Catheterization
Diagnostic tests can often point to the need for a more invasive procedure such as cardiac catheterization. Three fully equipped catheterization labs allow our experienced cardiologists to perform the following procedures on a regular basis:
cardiac catheterization
balloon angioplasty
laser assisted angioplasty
coronary stent
extraction atherectomy
In addition, a specially designed electrophysiology lab is used for study of the heart's electrical system.
Cardiac Rehabilitation
Upon transfer to the Telemetry Unit, physicians may place an order for cardiac rehabilitation. A registered nurse from Rapides Regional's Cardiac Rehabilitation staff initiates the first visit, considered Phase I. During this time, patients and family members are provided instruction on heart disease and a monitored exercise program begins. Participants continue through Phases II, III and IV of cardiac rehabilitation, which are outpatient programs designed not only to better the patient's health, but also to prevent recurrences of the original illness.
Efforts to prevent heart disease and improve the quality of people's lives are ongoing at Rapides Heart Center in many forms, including free community education programs focusing on positive lifestyle habits, as well as treatment options that are available.
Click on the links below to find out more about us and our community.
E-mail us with any comments or suggestions - mailto:rapides.regional@hcahealthcare.com
