Electrophysiology
OUTCOMES REPORT
In this podcast, Parik Sharma, MD, MPH, discusses His-bundle and conduction system pacing, which involves placing permanent leads anywhere along the AV conduction system to maintain biventricular pacing and synchrony.
“We can decrease heart failure hospitalizations in patients with His-bundle pacing compared to right ventricular pacing,” he says. “And while right ventricular pacing can be associated with adverse clinical outcomes, such as cardiomyopathy, heart failure hospitalizations, atrial fibrillation and associated mortality, His-bundle pacing can essentially prevent a lot of them from occurring.”
Rounding at
RUSH Podcast
Erica Engelstein, MD
Henry Huang, MD
Director,
Electrophysiology Fellowship
Timothy Larsen, DO
Jeremiah Wasserlauf, MD
Caitlin Boyak, NP
Paula Dunskis, CNS
Sonal Patel, PA-C
Alexander Mazur, MD
Providers
Clinical Site
Reach and Expansion
of patients discharged in atrial or sinus rhythm
post-procedure
99.4%
Afib Ablations
This data comes from two different National Cardiovascular Data Registries (NCDR) sponsored by the American College of Cardiology (ACC). Hospitals are required to participate in the LAAO registry and may opt into the Afib Ablation registry. These metrics help identify our quality outcomes and showcase our areas for opportunities to improve patient care. Using both national and regional benchmarks allow us to compare ourselves to hospitals with similar patient populations. Benchmarks are the median (or 50th percentile) unless otherwise noted.
Jan 2022 – Dec 2022
National is all hospitals participating in Afib Ablation registry (n=168)
Regional is all urban/suburban hospitals in Illinois (n=6)
Volume: 336 procedures
Mortality Rate
0%
(2) Major adverse event intra or post procedure prior to DC
(includes stroke, PE,
cardiac surgery, MI, cardiac arrest, TIA, and access
site complications)
.6%
of patients are discharged in 1 day or less
93.5%
of patients discharge same day (with proven results of no greater complications
or hospital visits post DC)
47.3%
Major complications
(including bleeding, stroke
& conversion to surgery)
2.5%
(3) non-device
related readmissions
8.3%
(5) new events from discharge through
59 days post procedure
(includes any bleeding, stroke or all cause readmission)
13.9%
of procedures successful
(excluding canceled procedures).
92.1%
Mortality Rate
0%
Initial surgery
Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion
(2) bleeding related events
5.5%
(n=51 because Oct. 2021-Sept. 2022)
Rhett Burgess had a feeling something wasn’t quite right. Even getting out of bed in the morning left the normally active, athletic baseball player short of breath.
“I did not understand it and just felt so out of shape,” he recalls.
The Rome, Georgia, nursing student’s suspicions were confirmed at his doctor’s office, where he learned that something was amiss in the lower left chamber of his heart. Tests showed his ejection fraction — a measurement of how much blood the left ventricle pumps with each heartbeat — had dropped by 20%.
Heart issues weren’t new to Rhett. He already had a pacemaker due to complications from previous treatment for an abnormally fast heartbeat. And he was aware that traditional pacing, which involved placing a lead in the right ventricle, could eventually cause side effects like his weakened left ventricle.
Rhett's Story
RUSH Stories
Read more
Jan 2022 – Dec 2022
National is all hospitals participating in Afib Ablation registry (n=168)
Regional is all urban teaching hospitals in Illinois (n=11)
Volume: 40 procedures
Follow-up events
Ablations
EP Study
Extractions
ICD Implants
ILR/ICM
Other
Pacemaker Implants
Total Procedures
FY19 Final
FY20 Final
FY21 Final
FY22 Final
FY23 Projected
800
750
700
650
600
550
500
450
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
25
0
Ablation (Afib)
1,700
1,600
1,500
1,400
1,300
1,200
1,100
1,000
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
1,353
1,180
1,408
1,614
190
201
166
171
226
340
320
300
280
260
240
220
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
340
320
300
280
260
240
220
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
252
213
253
295
342
340
320
300
280
260
240
220
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
99
116
172
176
160
340
320
300
280
260
240
220
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
274
194
193
221
144
170
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
91
81
91
130
78
170
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
35
28
18
24
22
170
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
40
25
9
18
6
170
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
40
39
66
61
70
210
200
180
160
140
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
182
156
172
159
180
500
470
440
410
380
350
320
290
260
230
200
170
140
110
80
60
30
0
139
162
263
304
424
401
382
510
542
680
Ablation (SVT)
Ablation (AV)
Ablation (VT)
Ablations
Ablation (Afib)
Ablation (SVT)
Ablation (VT)
Ablation (AV)
EP Study
Extractions
ICD Implants
ILR/ICM
Other
Pacemaker Implants
Total Procedures
1,616
FY23 Lab Volumes
The RUSH electrophysiology (EP) team sees patients in seven clinics across Chicago, and while the majority of them come from Chicago and the surrounding communities, patients from 20 other states also come to RUSH to receive care.
In 2022, RUSH opened new clinic locations in Lincoln Park and Oakbrook, Illinois, and Northwest Indiana. We also opened a newly renovated EP clinic in the RUSH Professional Building, Suite 358.
In spring 2023, RUSH Oak Park will open a new EP lab that will further expand RUSH’s capacity for these types of procedures and become a system-wide arrhythmia center.
RUSH’s Coordinated EP Care Team Model
As one of the only coordinated electrophysiology (EP) care teams in the Midwest, RUSH’s EP care team delivers outstanding patient care and satisfaction, while also playing an integral role in supporting RUSH’s superior results.
The care team provides a formal structure to guide patients through their time with RUSH from education to scheduling procedures. The EP team consists of patient navigators, nurses and clinic coordinators who work together with RUSH physicians, advanced practice providers and EP lab staff to ensure that patients are supported through every step of their care.
RUSH’s patient navigators specialize in case creation, coordination, patient scheduling and obtaining pre-authorizations. They also are in touch with patients about procedure times and for appointment reminders, providing them with smooth transitions throughout their EP care.
The EP nurses at RUSH are responsible for providing patients with education before the procedure and answering their calls afterward. They also communicate test and lab results and provide a medication review at each patient touchpoint. The EP nurses also manage referrals, staff and MyChart messages while providing clinical support.
The EP clinic coordinator completes medical record collection for all new patients, checks patients in and then checks on them after and assists with appointment scheduling, reminding patients about them and then calling if they do not arrive as scheduled.
A RUSH cardiology team presented two posters at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) Quality Summit that took place Sept. 14 to 16, 2022, and had over 1,000 attendees. The summit highlighted initiatives to tackle the most common and pressing problems improving the quality of cardiology care. Overall, of the 100 posters submitted for publications from all attendees, only six were selected for presentation.
Sonal Patel, PA-C, presented on the safety of same-day discharges for patients undergoing catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation. She showcased how the RUSH electrophysiology (EP) team decreased the length of stay for patients discharging the same day while not increasing complication rates. The work by the EP team earned it second place at the conference.
Julie Merz, Cardiology’s clinical quality manager, who represented the heart failure (HF) team, presented on the decrease in HF readmissions after implementing the Readmission Engagement and Care Transitions (REACT) program. The REACT team consists of cardiologists, advanced practice providers, a doctor of Pharmacy, a heart failure nurse care manager and a heart failure social worker who provide wraparound care services for high-risk patients needing more support. The REACT team earned an honorable mention at the conference.
ACC Quality Summit
Patient Satisfaction
4,648
5,297
7,141
7,618
8.000
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
FY20
FY21
FY22
FY19
14%
Outpatient Visits
Increase
35%
Increase
7%
Increase
FY20
FY21
FY22
FY19
1,355
1,179
1,462
1,586
1,600
1,400
1,200
1,000
800
600
400
200
0
Procedure Volumes
Increase
8%
Increase
24%
Decrease
13%
Programmatic Areas
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© Copyright 2023 RUSH University Medical Center, RUSH Copley Medical Center or RUSH Oak Park Hospital.
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RUSH Arrhythmia Center
His-bundle pacing
Learn more
Atrial fibrillation clinic
Learn more
For FY 2022, Press Ganey presented their outpatient survey data for RUSH’s EP program, which included the following highlights:
National Performance:
.9%
Regional Performance:
0%
Physicians
Advanced Practice Providers
Parik Sharma, MD
Section Chief, Electrophysiology Director, Electrophysiology Lab
3
in
quality.
#
Nationally Ranked Care
A RUSH cardiology team took part in the Vizient Connections Summit, Sept. 19 to 21. This summit brought together over 4,000 attendees and representatives from over 1,000 hospitals to discuss topics that included health equity, post-pandemic strategy and quality improvements.
Tisha Suboc, MD, advanced heart failure cardiologist, and Julie Merz, Cardiology’s clinical quality manager, represented the HF team as part of a panel called “Reducing Readmissions Using AI, Predictive Analytics and Interdisciplinary Teams.” They highlighted the incredible work of the REACT team to decrease heart failure readmissions using the interdisciplinary team in combination with RUSH’s heart failure risk score.
Vizient ranked RUSH University Medical Center No. 3 in its 2022 quality and accountability study.
U.S. News & World Report ranked RUSH University Medical Center among the best in the nation for cardiology and heart surgery care.
National Performance: 96.8%
Regional Performance:
93%
National Performance:
.5%
Regional Performance:
2%
National Performance: 11.9%
Regional Performance: 11.8%
Procedures by Type
Among the nation's best, again.
Clinicians in the RUSH Arrhythmia Center offer patients with heart arrhythmias the full spectrum of innovative treatments that include medications, ablation and cardiac implantable devices, such as conduction system pacing.
RUSH was one of the early adopters of His-bundle pacing in the United States. As leaders in this space, RUSH providers have published more than 80 studies on His-bundle and left bundle branch pacing and are investigators for some of the latest clinical trials.
Electrophysiologists in the RUSH atrial fibrillation clinic treat patients with newly diagnosed, paroxysmal, persistent and permanent atrial fibrillation and help them modify risk factors and slow down progression of this chronic disease.
Heartlight Endoscopic Ablation System clinical trial
Learn more
This study is designed to assess the continued safety and effectiveness of the HeartLight System in patients who are being treated for drug refractory, symptomatic and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.
of patients were satisfied
with their care at RUSH
95%
of patients would recommend the RUSH
EP program
97%
Clinical Trials
This PCORI-sponsored study will test the comparative effectiveness of His- and left-bundle pacing to biventricular pacing in relation to patient-centered outcomes, including quality of life and patient activity, heart failure hospitalization and mortality in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction who meet traditional cardiac resynchronization therapy criteria. RUSH will be the electrocardiogram core lab for the study.
Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy clinical trial
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