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Fred L. Recipient

Emergency info for ambulance personnel wanted.

Thu, 07/07/2016 - 11:42AM
One of these posts had links to various helpful instruction sheets to be printed out but none of them worked, they where not hot. Could someone please re-post these in their entirety so I can obtain them for in my kits? UPDATE - I found what I was looking for by searching the web and was directed to content on this site. However it's dated Jan 2015 and doesn't include Heartmate III.
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Linda K.

Sun, 08/21/2016 - 9:52PM
There are a couple of really good youtube videos on the Heart mate III. There is one showing the actual procedure and then a different series of two that are videos of actual training for paramedics. My understanding is that the biggest differences in the II and III are the size (which isn't a concern for medics), no ball bearings so less GI bleeding and rbc "chewing" and the drive line is actually changeable. The heart mate 3 actually has a "pulse" unlike the 2 but blood pressures are still not completely accurate - the doppler is a better way to go. My husband's BP is extremely low - We found in the hospital that the doppler corellated with the monitor BP for the most part so this has improved from the 2. My understanding is that with the 2 there is no BP or pulse. Hopefully this is helpful. You can also contact the hospital that does the surgeries to see what training they provide. Our hospital has coordinators who actually go out into the community and teach the paramedics what to expect. (University Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio). Hope this info helped some.
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Charles B.

Fri, 01/06/2017 - 7:06PM
The VAD Coordinators at the hospital where I received my LVAD contacted the local EMS team and nearest hospital to let them know there was an LVAD patient in their community. I talked to the EMS team and they said the letter they received was very helpful and also offered future assistance if needed. They also provided me with an emergency info sheet to carry with my back up supplies and also a letter to give airport security should I need to travel by air.