25 Main Street Hyannis, MA 02601

508.778.1829

www.CapeCodHealth.org/heartfailure

CAPE COD HEALT HCARE Heart Failure Clinic

CAPE COD HEALT HCARE

Manage Heart Failure With Success

Cape Cod Healthcare Heart Failure Clinic

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Welcome to the Cape Cod Healthcare Heart Failure Clinic

The Cape Cod Healthcare Heart Failure Clinic gives patients:

•Oneconvenientlocation—acomfortablehomebase—whereyouwill feel welcome and learn what you can do to live with heart failure

•Coordinationwithotherhealthcarepartners such as the Visiting Nurse Association (VNA) of Cape Cod and other home health agencies

•Individualizedcaretohelpkeepyouwell and out of the hospital

•Educationalopportunitiestohelpyou manage your own healthcare

We’ll help you find and follow the treatment plan that’s best for you.

The FacTs abouT hearT Failure

Heart failure is a serious condition, but it does not mean that the heart has stopped beating. Heart failure means the heart muscle is not functioning as well as it should.

A complex clinical syndrome, there is no diagnostic test for heart failure. No simple pass/fail determiner. As a result, it is largely a clinical diagnosis based upon a careful history, physical examination, and tests.

SymptOmSOfhEartfaIlurE mayInCludE:

•Sudden,severeshortnessof breath

•fatigueandweaknessfromverylittleeffort

•Swellinginyourlegs,ankles,feet,orabdomen

•rapidweightgainfromfluidretention(3to4 pounds in 2 days, or 2 pounds overnight)

•rapidorirregularheartbeat

•difficultyconcentratingordecreasedalertness

•Chestpainif yourheartfailureiscausedbyaheartattack

mostpeopledon’tknowwhatheartfailureisor how serious it is. More people die from heart failure than cancer each year, and 20% of peopleovertheageof 40areatriskfordeveloping heart failure.

accordingtotheCentersfordiseaseControl(CdC),5.7millionadultsintheu.S.havecongestive heart failure, and 50 percent of those diagnosed with heart failure die within five years of their diagnosis.

heartfailureClinic–Workingtogether

a comForTable, communiTy-based clinic surrounding you in supporTive care

Ourteamisheretohelpyoustayhealthylonger.

To help manage symptoms and improve the qualityof yourlife,we’llworktogethertocarefor everything that touches your well-being.

doyouhavetransportation?Canyougettothegrocerystore?areyoueatingright?missinganyappointments?Couldcounselinghelp you and your family manage the added stressof yourillness?

We are here to help you with these issues and so many more.

youcancountonustomakesureyouaretakingyourmedicinetherightwayandthatit is having the best results. We will help you address any concerns you have about safety in the home, potential cognitive impairment, skinandwoundcare,medicalconditionssuchasdiabetes—whateverchallengesandchanges you are now facing.

Most importantly, we will listen to you.

a dedicaTed, experienced Team

To help you manage all the things we just mentioned—frommedicationtohomesafety—Cape Cod Healthcare Heart Failure Clinic brings together a multidisciplinary team of professionals who excel in their fields and who care about each patient’s health and happiness.

Multidisciplinary means that these individuals come from many disciplines or fields in the medical profession.

The Heart Failure Clinic Multidisciplinary Team Includes:

cardiologist/medical director – elissa Thompson, md

nurse practitioner – shannon list, msn, FnpShe meets with patients first at each appointment; follows-up with phone calls; and is available for unscheduled visits, trouble-shooting, and educational support.

pharmacologist – A specialist who ensures the right dosages of the right medications is especially critical for heart failure patients who often have multiple diseases to manage.

advanced care planning/integration of care specialist – A specially trained, uniquely experienced individual at Cape Cod HealthCare. Inshort,shecoversallthebasesandmakessureyou have what you need when you need it.

nutritionist –Eatingrightnevermeantsomuch!This member of the team can recommend diet andfoodpreparationtipsthatwillamazeyou.

social Worker–Inoroutof thehospital,socialworkersareveryhelpfulwithabroadrangeof issues such as psychological, financial, relationship, and substance-abuse concerns. This individual is your go-to source for understanding livingWills.

visiting nurse – When you need medical care at home, these caregivers deliver.

When To call For help

dr.thompsonandtheheartfailureClinicteamwilltalkwithyou,yourfamilyandcaregiversaboutwhat signs to watch for. Here is a basic guide.

CallthEhEartfaIlurEClInIC IfthEpatIEnt:•hastroublebreathingwhenrestingorsleeping•Wheezesorfeelschesttightnesswhenresting•Can’tstopcoughing•feelsdizzy,verytired,orasif theymightfall•Gainsorloses3to4poundsin2days,or2

pounds overnight

Call911fOranambulanCE IfthEpatIEnt:•faints•hastroublebreathingthatdoesnotgetbetter•feelslikeshecan’tbreathe,orstartstoturn

blue•Coughsupfrothyorpinksaliva•haspainorpressureinthechest•hasafastorunevenheartbeatthatwillnotgoawayorcausesdizzinessorlightheadedness

•feelsveryconfused

Cape Cod HealthCare Heart Failure Clinic

Phone: 508.778.1829fax: 508.778.0113Address: 25 Main Street Hyannis, MA 02601

elissa Thompson, md

medicaldirector,CapeCodhealthCareheartFailure Clinic

“I grew up in Rhode Island and spent every summer on the Cape. I love this area and am so excited to be part of the community as a cardiologist, a wife, and mom. Cape Cod is a beautiful place and a great community where people work hard, rely on their neighbors, and help each other just because it’s the right thing to do.”

“We’ll surround you with support at the Heart Failure Clinic. It’s a comfortable place where you will find answers and a helping hand. Together, our team will modify your risk factors, help keep you out of the hospital, and change the course of the disease as much as we possibly can.”~dr.Thompson

Elissathompson,md,medicaldirectorof the Heart Failure Clinic in Hyannis, massachusetts,isagraduateof theuniversityof Maryland School of Medicine. She also servesasmedicaldirectorof healthyparks,Healthy People, a partnership between Cape Cod Healthcare and Cape Cod National Seashorethatencouragespeopletowalkandexercise along our extraordinary beaches. A specialist in cardiovascular disease, she and her husband are the parents of two children.