Hospital to offer invasive heart treatments under RM6.1mil upgrading exercise
THE cardiology unit at Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital, which will undergo a RM6.1mil upgrading exercise, will be able to offer invasive heart treatments in two years time.
State Health Committee chairman Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon said coronary angiograms and angioplasty procedures would be made available once work on the unit's catherisation laboratory is completed by the stipulated time.
"Patients having to undergo invasive treatment will no longer have to be referred to other hospitals outside Perak, which is currently the practice," Dr Mah told The Star.
Between August and December last year, the unit had referred 271 heart patients to a few hospitals namely Serdang Hospital (171 patients), Penang Hospital (22) and the National Heart Institute (78).
Better equipped: Dr Mah attending to a patient at Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital's cardiology unit.
Out of this, 97% were referred to the respective hospitals to undergo coronary angiograms or angioplasty (the process of widening a narrowed or obstructed blood vessel).
The remaining 3% of patients were referred to have pacemakers fitted or to undergo radio-frequency ablation (RFA).
"The upgrade will also allow for early intervention when patients are admitted to the hospital with cardiac-related chest pains (heart attacks)," said Dr Mah.
Last year, the hospital saw more than 400 patients being transferred to other government hospitals for further cardiac care.
On a daily average, the hospital recorded one case of major heart attack and between four and five cases of minor heart attacks.
"In the event of a heart attack, every minute counts.
"The sooner the patient is treated, the lesser the damage.
"By having our own catherisation laboratory, the risk will be significantly lowered for the patients as they can be treated at the hospital itself," said Dr Mah, a cardiologist by training.
He added that some patients, who were on life support system and multiple medication drips, might be too ill to be transported elsewhere.
"There is also the question of bed availability as major cardiac centres like Serdang Hospital, Penang Hospital and the National Heart Institute are often running on full capacity while the availability of an ambulance needs to be taken into account as well," he said.
Dr Mah said an interim invasive cardiology laboratory would be set up on the second floor of the Ambulatory Care Centre where the hospital's cardiology unit was currently located by early next year.
He said three cardiologists would be trained to run the laboratory.
"The cardiology unit will be relocated to a new 10-storey building, which is part of the hospital's RM300mil expansion plan under the 10th Malaysia Plan.
"The unit would have 66 additional beds when the new building is completed in three years time," he said.
-The Star-
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