Helios Hospital Berlin-Buch expands its cardiogeriatric care services
As a rule, older patients with cardiovascular conditions who are admitted to hospital initially spend several days or weeks in a cardiology ward, where they receive appropriate medical treatment. During this stage, the primary focus is on treating the specific cardiovascular condition. They are then transferred to a geriatric ward, where they usually remain for several more weeks to undergo geriatric rehabilitation.
Cardiovascular conditions include all diseases affecting the heart and circulatory system, such as heart attacks, cardiac arrhythmias, and heart failure. The proportion of older patients affected by these conditions is particularly high. In addition to treatment for their cardiac problems, these patients often have specific additional needs, such as more intensive physiotherapy, planning and optimizing care at home after discharge, and speech and language therapy. Under the traditional model, in which the cardiology and geriatric stages of a hospital stay take place consecutively, these additional needs can result in a significantly longer inpatient stay. For this reason, a permanent interdisciplinary cardiogeriatric unit has been established within one of the cardiology wards at Helios Hospital Berlin-Buch. Here, patients receive specialized cardiology care and early geriatric rehabilitation at the same time.
Medical care is provided jointly by both specialties. The physicians working on the ward are supervised by senior physicians from both cardiology and geriatrics, conduct joint ward rounds, and coordinate treatment plans with one another. This holistic, interdisciplinary approach is made possible by close collaboration between the two specialties and a streamlined, collegial working structure. The ward also offers continuous telemetry monitoring, allowing cardiac events to be detected at an early stage and appropriate therapeutic measures to be initiated immediately. Prof. Dr. med. Fabian Mühlberg, Senior Consultant at the Department of Cardiology and Nephrology, sees many advantages in the new care concept:
“As cardiologists, our day-to-day work is often focused primarily on the heart, so we benefit greatly from the holistic internal medicine perspective of our colleagues in geriatrics. Conversely, many geriatric patients are initially admitted, for example, because of a pain syndrome but subsequently develop acute cardiac problems that require immediate treatment. Instead of transferring these patients back and forth between different specialist departments, we treat them jointly from the outset, which significantly improves the quality of medical care.”
The concept of cardiogeriatric care is not yet widely established in Germany. By establishing a dedicated cardiogeriatric care service, Helios Hospital Berlin-Buch is further enhancing its ability to meet the specific needs of older patients with cardiovascular conditions and intends to continue developing this approach in the future. Jan Koch, Senior Physician, adds:
“After the first few months, we can already see that this concept is helping us reduce the length of hospital stays for older patients with specific cardiovascular conditions. Patients are also significantly more satisfied, as their medical needs are addressed more quickly and effectively. This is a major success for us.”
Read more:
Do you need more information about Helios Hospitals or want to schedule your treatment?
