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AGH launches

Shock Team

The “Shock Team,” Allegheny General Hospital’s (AGH) new immediate, multidisciplinary response approach, could be a lifesaver for patients suffering cardiogenic shock, a devastating complication from acute myocardial infarction, the so-called “widow-maker” heart attack. AGH, part of Allegheny Health Network (AHN), recently established the team that includes interventional cardiologists, heart failure specialists and cardiac surgeons.

For a patient in cardiogenic shock, the heart’s pumping ability is suddenly compromised and not enough blood and oxygen reach the brain and other organs. Almost 75 percent of shock cases occur after a massive heart attack, but shock also can happen after heart surgery, from cardiomyopathy, or to patients with chronic heart failure. Despite the many advances in cardiac care in recent years, roughly half of all patients who experience cardiogenic shock die in the hospital.

“When we know that a patient is in shock, time is of the essence,” said Azam Hadi, MD, an AGH heart failure specialist who is leading the heart failure component of the hospital’s new cardiogenic shock team. “These patients need to be treated quickly, but it is crucial to make sure the best course of care is being taken in order to ensure the best chance of survival. Care coordination among different cardiac disciplines and the use of defined care pathways and algorithms to facilitate timely treatment decisions can improve clinical outcomes, and coronary revascularization should be considered whenever possible.”

The cardiogenic shock team’s response starts after a page, or the activation of the “shock beeper,” simultaneously informs physicians from three cardiac disciplines – heart failure, interventional cardiology, and cardiothoracic surgery – of the situation.

In its five-month observation period, 85 percent of patients treated for cardiogenic shock had been transferred to AGH from outside hospitals. The AGH shock team is now working with hospitals across Allegheny Health Network, as well as other hospitals in the region, in an effort to streamline care and review steps that should be taken before a patient is transported to AGH in order to ensure the best possible outcome.

MVH takes back medication

Monongahela Valley Hospital (MVH), with the Carroll Township Police Department, hosts the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) National Drug Take Back Day every six months on the hospital campus. In a record-breaking collection, MVH recently amassed 16 boxes, totaling 331 pounds of unused medications from the community.

“Too often, unused prescription drugs find their way into the wrong hands,” said Louis J. Panza Jr., president and CEO of MVH, “It’s dangerous and often tragic. That’s why it was great to see folks from across the area clean out their medicine cabinets and turn in a record amount of prescription drugs at our hospital.”

National Drug Take Back day is a semi-annual event that is a convenient and safe way for residents to remove unused drugs from their medicine cabinets.

Camp for kids

with burn injuries

West Penn Burn Center will host its 32nd annual summer camp for children with burn injuries at Camp Kon-O-Kwee in Zelienople today through Wednesday. Nearly 20 kids from Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia will participate in five days designed to inspire them to connect by sharing their ongoing journey of recovery.

Looking to integrate magically-themed activities, the West Penn Burn Center team has tapped the Steel City Quidditch Club to host a tournament on Wednesday afternoon. Quidditch, made popular from the world-renowned “Harry Potter” book series, is a field sport played on broomsticks where players earn points by throwing tennis balls or ‘snitches’ through hoops.

Campers this year range from ages 10 to 16 years old, and will participate in a wide range of activities including trips to Kennywood Park, a Pittsburgh Pirates game and the IQ Escape Room. Time will also be spent at Camp Kon-O-Kwee for relay races, campfires, peer group sessions and talks from local fire departments.

Camp is free to any child who has been treated at West Penn Burn Center, thanks to firefighter groups, businesses, organizations and individuals. All camp counselors are volunteers.

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