Matters of the heart ❤️

StaciLeave a comment

I couldn’t think of a better topic to start things off with than this, since February is American Heart Month and yours truly is a cardiac nurse! I’ve always said, there’s no point in fixing anything else in your body if your ticker isn’t tuned up and working optimally.

Heart Disease

Cardiovascular disease (heart disease) gets a lot of attention, as it should! It encompasses several “ailments” of the heart, and can affect any body regardless of age and sex. In fact, I keep seeing younger and younger patients that are having heart disease requiring a trip to the cath lab or even my OR. Even scarier to me, is that women often have vague symptoms not typical or textbook.

Having a heart attack is probably one of the scariest situations for people, and their loved ones. Once you say the words “chest pain”, things start happening very quickly in the medical field. Meds are given to ease the pain and to help lower the workload of the heart, EKGs are done, blood drawn. You may even be whisked down the hall, straight to the cardiac cath lab. Hopefully if you ever find yourself in this situation you will have someone, family or friend, that can be with you during this stressful time to be your advocate and support.

Become Educated

There is so much information out there regarding heart health, and my favorite resource is the American Heart Association. Their website is a wealth of helpful tools and tips for all things heart related. I truly wish that everyone was educated on heart health from a reputable source, and that people knew their options when it comes to treatment.

Here’s an informative tool from the Mayo Clinic: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heart-disease/in-depth/heart-disease-risk/itt-20084942

Over the years I’ve had so many patients that get shuffled along the “pipeline” and end up having unnecessary procedures and endure unneeded stress all because they don’t know any better. They are not given all their options and they don’t know to ask!

What are your experiences navigating heart care? Do you have a “scary story”? Is there something you wish you knew more about? Let me know….I’d love to hear!

The Beginning…..

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Healthcare is confusing. More and more people are getting “stuck in the system” and frustrated. I hear about it and see it all the time, and I totally get it! I want to help!

Our healthcare system is becoming more and more complex. Technology has driven us into more specialized areas, meaning there’s always a “specialist” for that. Instead of only seeing a Primary Care Provider for most of our healthcare needs, we are being referred out to whatever “specialist” might fit our current ailment. This leads us into the spiral of scheduling more appointments, ridiculous waits to get in to said specialists, and then more “follow up” appointments! 😫

Hospitals can be even worse! You go to a hospital because your sick, so you’re already not at your best, but you need to be on top of your game and knowledgable about what’s going on. Timing and schedules in a hospital are like no other and can be even more frustrating to say the least. I say to my patients all the time that you can’t come to a hospital and expect to keep your clothing, get rest, and eat.

The other side to all of this, is of course, the healthcare providers themselves and the constraints they are dealing with. Insurance and Medicare/Medicaid are dictating more and more the quality of care that can be given, not to mention the time allowed for each patient. Hospitals are being run like businesses and seem more concerned about patient satisfaction surveys than the actual quality of care and treatments.

I want to bridge the gap and help people navigate their healthcare. I want to share my experiences of 18+ years of being an RN to create a community where we can learn and grow.

Follow along, comment, suggest, vent, and share!

Peace ✌️ Love ❤️, and Good Health 👩‍⚕️