First Cardiac Surgery Patient Utilizes Services of Entire System

In April, Richard Rudzik, 56, of Buzzards Bay, became the first person to undergo cardiac surgery at Southcoast. In the process, he reaffirmed the value of a community-based health system by utilizing services at each of Southcoast’s hospital sites in the diagnosis and treatment of his disease.

The cardiac surgery program at Southcoast provides easy and efficient continuity of care for patients throughout the South Coast region.

On April 1, Rudzik had a stress test at Tobey Hospital. When the test was positive, Rudzik went to St. Luke’s Hospital for a cardiac catheterization that pinpointed the exact problem.

On April 18, Rudzik underwent coronary artery bypass surgery at the Charlton Memorial Hospital.

“Mr. Rudzik’s case proved just how valuable Southcoast, as an integrated health system, is to the community,” said Ronald B. Goodspeed, MD, MPH, President of Southcoast Hospitals Group. “He was able to undergo all of his diagnostic testing and surgery within the confines of one institution, which allowed for quick and easy communication between his cardiologist and cardiac surgeons.

“This was one of our key goals when we set out to develop our cardiac surgery program at Southcoast — easy and efficient continuity of care for our patients.”

Robert Millen, Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer for Southcoast, said this kind of collaboration was also the cornerstone of the cardiac surgery program.

“The regional cooperation between all the Southcoast cardiologists helped develop a system that could effectively serve the Tobey, St. Luke’s and Charlton communities,” Millen said. “The input provided by cardiologists from all three sites aided in developing a community-based system from the very beginning of planning this service.”

Richard Rudzik, of Buzzards Bay, used multiple services offered by Southcoast Health System in the diagnosis and treatment of his coronary artery disease.

Rudzik’s connection to Southcoast did not end upon his release. He received home care services from Southcoast Home Care, Hospice & Infusion Services and will undergo cardiac rehabilitation at a Southcoast site.

Rudzik, a quality engineer at Titleist in New Bedford, had no symptoms of heart disease but was motivated to seek medical care based on family history. Two brothers had previously undergone coronary bypass surgery and one had also suffered a stroke. Rudzik had been a smoker and has high blood pressure.

“I was nervous about having surgery,” Rudzik said. “But reality makes you make a decision. Plus, I felt quite confident with the Southcoast program.”

“Finding out that he needed surgery was scary,” said Denise Rudzik, the patient’s wife. “But I was very happy with the care my husband received at all three hospitals and was very impressed with the care and education of the staff.”

Cardiac surgeon Thomas Carr, MD, and Paul Hatton, MD, Director of Cardiac Surgery, performed the procedure. Larry Thiesen, MD, was the anesthesiologist. Rudzik’s cardiologist is Jonathan D. Bier, MD, and his primary care physician is Scott Henderson, MD.

Dr. Carr said Rudzik’s heart muscle was normal, but blood was not getting to it in a normal fashion because of constricted arteries.

The surgical procedure, a six-vessel coronary bypass, which took 3 1/2 hours to complete, included transplanting arteries from other parts of the body to bypass the parts of Rudzik’s coronary arteries that were experiencing restricted blood flow.

Four days after surgery, Rudzik was released from the hospital with a new lease on life. Except for some soreness, which is normal after major surgery, Rudzik said he felt fine. After being wheeled through the Charlton lobby in a wheelchair, he walked without assistance to his waiting car.

“Mr. Rudzik will get a good, long time from this operation as long as he takes care of himself and does not go back to smoking,” Dr. Carr said.

Rudzik concurred, “The number one thing for me is to quit smoking.”

Southcoast’s open heart surgery program is the result of more than five years of planning and more than a year of intensive preparations. In partnership with Tufts New England Medical Center (NEMC), Southcoast has been able to incorporate the best training techniques and implement the best technology and information systems from around the nation, building a first-class program that will be unsurpassed in quality, Dr. Goodspeed said.

The partnership between NEMC and Southcoast includes cardiac surgery staff training, support and the provision of members for the cardiac surgery executive oversight committee, which is responsible for monitoring the quality of the cardiac surgery program.

For more information on Southcoast’s cardiac surgery program, log on to www.southcoast.org/heart/.

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