When Penticton-based Betty Lou Thomas woke up in the intensive care unit at her local hospital, she had no memory of what had happened.
The last thing she remembered was sitting in a waiting room at her gym on an autumn day in November. At that point, she went into cardiac arrest and collapsed without warning.
24 hours later, she was rushed to the cardiac ward at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH).
Fortunately for Thomas, the new Marshall Eliuk Cardiac Interventional and Advanced Heart Rhythm Program had opened at KGH just days earlier, which meant she didn’t have to travel any further for care. The Advanced Heart Rhythm Program is a partnership between Interior Health, Cardiac Services BC, and the KGH Foundation that raised $ 7 million for the program.
After a series of tests, Thomas had an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) surgically inserted into her chest at the newly completed KGH Electrophysiology Lab, which opened as part of the advanced cardiac rhythm program.
The ICD is designed to get your heart back into a normal rhythm when needed. She was back home in Penticton the day after the procedure, resting and recovering.
“To be honest, it was a phenomenal experience,” said Thomas. “Even though it was a scary procedure and scary what happened, I felt very comfortable. Everyone was so competent. We are fortunate to have this in Kelowna. For anyone who needs this inside, it’s so close that we won’t go to Victoria. “
“Bringing services closer to residents is central to our government, and the launch of the new cardiac rhythm program at Kelowna General Hospital will benefit patients across all areas of internal health. I would like to thank everyone involved for their commitment and hard work as well as the community for their enormous support with their donations to the KGH Foundation, ”said Health Minister Adrian Dix.
The opening of the electrophysiology laboratory at KGH allowed Interior Health to add the expanded cardiac rhythm program to other specialty cardiac services in the hospital, including inpatient units for medical cardiology and cardiac surgery, a coronary ward, an intensive care unit for cardiac surgery, cardiac imaging, and an intervention laboratory. Patients from all over the inner region who need higher-level heart care can now access the full range of services in Kelowna.
“Congratulations to everyone involved in this effort to improve heart service for Interior Health residents,” said Doug Cochrane, chairman of the IH board. “The partnership between Interior Health, Cardiac Services BC and the KGH Foundation shows how working together can be the basis for improving patient care. This new program will benefit many people in our region. “
Community support for the program was vital, and the KGH Foundation’s call to raise funds for advanced cardiac rhythm services was well received by donors. In less than a year, the foundation raised $ 7 million for the equipment it needed in the Electrophysiology Laboratory (EP).
“We are grateful to be the bridge between such an incredibly generous community and our regional healthcare partners,” said Doug Rankmore, CEO of the KGH Foundation.
It has been much more difficult for heart patients like Thomas to have services near their Penticton home.
“It’s wonderful for our community to have this service because heart problems are something so many people have,” she said.
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