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Michael R. Recipient

Maximum distance from a LVAD Certificate hospital

Tue, 03/21/2023 - 2:48PM

Does anyone now what the maximum distances you can be away ( vacation) from a LVAD certified hospital??  My team is very cautious. And as mentioned in yesterday’s meeting they also will not let me drive. I’ve had to many blackouts due to GI bleeds. They actually took me off of warfarin and aspirin completely. I know this is not ideal. But every time my INR. gets close to therapeutic I get ( AVM’s) and start to bleed out. And no I can’t take the shot in the stomach ( I can’t recall the medication’s name) be it causes med several house of unbearable stomach spasms. Over a year off any blood thinners and no bleeds. Sorry this became a two part question lol. 

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Larry B.

Mon, 03/27/2023 - 2:58PM

Not allowing you to drive due to passing out too often is probably a smart precaution. But, you still need to live life. There is no distance limitations for most of us. If you have a propensity for needing to suddenly see VAD doctors or team members, common sense says you don’t want to be too far away from one. having an LVAD takes some more planning that just getting in your car or on a plane and taking off. Here’s a link to a worldwide location service. You can very specific and select your device or do as I do and just enter a country or city and leave 5he device on all and check the results. There are locations throughout the world. Your team can make arrangements for you to be seen by any of them if needed while traveling. I’ve seen plenty of worldwide travelers that have lvads and many many of them that take cruises without problems. So, while we need to pre-plan a little more carefully than a person without an LVAD, we can still travel anywhere we basically want to. If your team says no, it’s time to look for a new team IMO.

https://www.mylvad.com/patients-caregivers/locate-hospital/hospital-map

 

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Chiplon W.

Mon, 03/27/2023 - 3:40PM

Just me. But I took a European cruise. I mapped out all the hospitals that served VADs. And felt comfortable that I could get help if I needed it. That was probably 5 years ago. And since then there are many more hospitals available. But check with your VAD team and go with what they tell you. Good luck and good travels.