Prince County Hospital (PCH) has expanded their echocardiogram services in order to meet the needs of Islanders in the region, says Minister of Health and Wellness Carolyn Bertram.
“Working as an integrated health system and sharing resources has not only provided improved access to echocardiogram services for the residents of Prince Edward Island, it has allowed us to improve provincial wait times,” said Minister Bertram. “We want to be efficient in the way we deliver our health care services so that Islanders can have access to the care they need across our province in a timely manner.”
Patients are most commonly referred for an echocardiogram if they are displaying symptoms for, or have been diagnosed with, heart murmurs, coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, pulmonary hypertension and/or patients with auto-immune disease, to name a few.
“Since expanding this service at our hospital, we have been able to provide an option for local residents to receive this service closer to home,” said Arlene Gallant-Bernard, Executive Director for the Prince County Hospital. “We have also been able improve patient safety, as our in-patients no longer need to be transferred to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) for an echocardiogram, unless it is an exceptional circumstance.”
An echocardiogram uses ultrasound to take two-dimensional images of the heart. It is one of the most widely used diagnostic tests for heart disease and can reveal helpful information such as the size and shape of a person’s heart, its pumping capacity, as well as the location and extent of any damage to its tissues. Additionally, it can provide a detailed picture of how heart valves are functioning, assisting doctors in detecting or assessing the presence of coronary artery disease and determining whether chest pain is related to heart disease. The benefit of an echocardiogram is that it is non-invasive and has no known risks or side effects to a patient.
The QEH provides echocardiogram services on a full-time basis with an average of 40 to 50 appointments per week. Since expanding the service, PCH now accommodates approximately 15 appointments per week; this is nearly twice as many as previous capacity. Recently, Kings County Memorial Hospital has been able to offer echocardiogram services, seeing an average of eight to 10 appointments.