Talking with Your Doctor about Open Heart Surgery

You meet with your cardiologist and hear the words you’d been fearing – you need open heart surgery.

You’re nervous, scared and unsure what to do next. Take a breath and discuss the next steps with your doctor.

You’ve heard of bypass surgery before, but what does it mean, exactly?

You need surgery because blood is not flowing to your heart as it should.

Coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG), or heart bypass surgery, restores blood flow through an obstructed coronary artery. This surgery is common in adults, and is a relatively safe procedure that will lower your risk of heart attack or death in the long run.

It might not seem like good news, but you’ve identified the issue early. Now you can address what needs to be done to protect your heart. You, your doctor, and your family can plan the next steps for your operation.

Ask your cardiologist and other healthcare providers who they would trust with their mother’s or spouse’s heart. You want a surgeon who will include you and your cardiologist in his or her team’s plan and throughout the entire process. The key to ensuring the best outcome for your surgery is to be directly involved in your care. When meeting with different surgeons, ask every question you can think of.

Important questions to consider with your prospective cardiac surgeon include:

• What do I need to do to prepare for bypass surgery?
• What can I expect when I’m in the hospital?
• Can you tell me about your cardiac surgery team’s experience?
• How will my surgeon and hospital team help me after surgery?

Look beyond the surgeon and operating table. Before making this potentially life-changing decision, research the entire health system. You need an experienced team that is dedicated to cardiac surgery and to tailoring an individualized plan of care based on your needs. Once you find the right surgeon, you’ll feel some of the fear and stress lift.

According to the Health Care Quality Assessment’s Cardiac Surgery in New Jersey 2015-2016 Report, AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center had a statistically significantly lower risk-adjusted mortality rate than the statewide rate. Risk-adjusted means we care for some of the sickest patients who need heart surgery.

Remember, the more you are engaged in your care and finding a team that supports you every step of the way, the better your experience and the better your long-term heart health will be.

By: James Dralle, MD., cardiac surgeon and medical director, Cardiac Surgery, the Heart & Vascular Institute, AtlantiCare.

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Howard Axelrod, M.D., cardiac surgeon and chairman, Department of Surgery, AtlantiCare.