Category Archives: Medical Treatment/Health Treatment Subject By Speciality

The Health City Team from left: Dr. Chandy Abraham, Dr. Ravi Kishore, Dr. Binoy Chattuparambil, Dr. Dhruva Krishnan and Dr. Sumit Modi. Photo Health City Cayman Islands

Cayman Islands :

While St. Maarten has been talking about medical tourism for years, Health City Cayman islands has plowed ahead and recently completed the first ever Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation  (TAVI) undertaken in the English-speaking Caribbean.

The complex cardiac procedure was performed successfully last month on local Cayman Islands patient Dianna Merren by Health City’s Senior Cardiologist and Electrophysiologist Dr. Ravi Kishore and Senior Cardiac Surgeon Dr. Binoy Chattuparambil. The procedure was guided by proctor Dr. Stephen Brecker from St. George’s Hospital in London, and assisted by Senior Anesthesiologist Dr. Dhruva Krishnan.

According to Dr. Kishore, the event marked the cardiovascular department’s foray into structural heart disease intervention by implanting the aortic valve using transcatheter techniques.

“This is indeed a proud moment for Health City and the Cayman Islands, as successful completion of such a complex procedure speaks volumes about the capabilities of our doctors and what we have been able to achieve as a hospital in just under two years,” he noted.

TAVI is performed only on patients who are not well suited for open heart surgery .

Ms. Merren was regularly admitted to a hospital for heart failure due to a large obstruction of the valve connecting the major chamber of the heart – severe valvular aortic stenosis. Her complex condition and multiple medical complications precluded her from the usual procedure choice for this condition, surgical valve replacement , but made her an ideal candidate for TAVI.

“I have been very sick for a long time, so when the doctors at Health City offered me a safe solution I was very grateful,” said Merren. “Being the first patient for this procedure made me a little nervous, but the wonderful medical team put my fears to rest, providing me with all the information I needed to understand the procedure and the risks.”

The TAVI procedure is a minimally invasive surgery that replaces the valve without removing the old damaged valve. Unlike conventional open heart surgery, TAVI involves placement of the artificial valve through a six to seven millimeter hole in the upper thigh under general anesthesia.

Merren’s procedure took just under two hours, and the patient was discharged within a couple of days.

“I am so thankful to my family and friends who stood beside me in support, as well as the entire Health City team. The surgery has changed my life, and I am already feeling much stronger and healthier,” Merren stated.

“It’s a game changer,” Dr. Kishore said. “We have performed our first TAVI to relieve this 75-year-old woman from severe life-threatening problems caused by a diseased valve. The outcome is extremely promising.”

Dr. Kishore said reduced morbidity is the biggest advantage of the procedure. “The hole made for insertion of the valve is closed immediately after the procedure and the patient is mobilized in 12 to 24 hours of the procedure. This also reduces the risk of complications and infections, which in the case of Dianna Merren was a primary concern,” he said.

Patients who qualify for this procedure will now have the opportunity to select Health City Cayman Islands as their hospital of choice for the surgery at a significantly lower cost compared to facilities in the United States.

As the Joint Commission International-accredited Health City Cayman Islands is the first English-speaking country in the Caribbean to perform the TAVI, this provides breakthrough opportunities in the field of interventional cardiology in the Cayman Islands and the region.

Health City Cayman Islands, the vision of renowned heart surgeon and humanitarian Dr. Devi Shetty, is supported by two major healthcare organizations, Narayana Health and the U.S.-based Ascension, which is that nation’s largest faith-based and nonprofit health system, providing the highest quality care to all with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable. Health City Cayman Islands provides compassionate, high-quality, affordable healthcare services in a world-class, comfortable, patient-centered environment. Offering healthcare to international, regional and local patients. Health City Cayman Islands delivers excellence in adult and pediatric cardiology, cardiac surgery, cardiac electrophysiology, medical oncology, orthopedics, sports medicine, pediatric endocrinology, gastrointestinal and bariatric surgery, neurosurgery, minimally invasive spine surgery and pulmonology services.

source: http://www.todaysxm.com / Today / Newspaper for Country St.Maarten / April 06th, 2016

RAK Hospital, which has a hair salon and spa, started treating patients from abroad for a range of complex issues, from neurosurgery to cancer and cardiac surgeries, five years ago. Pawan Singh / The National

Ras Al Khaimah :

It has been 11 years since the northernmost emirate began a project to become a destination for medical tourism. While the sector has grown, with the luxury, hotel-style RAK Hospital receiving about 150 patients from abroad each month, there is still work to be done, according to doctors.

“We wanted to combine the hotel and hospitality concept with medical tourism,” said Dr Raza Siddiqui, head of the Arabian Healthcare Group, which, along with the emirate’s ruler, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, helped to develop the idea of medical tourism in RAK, inspired by Swiss and American systems.

“The idea was that the hospital should also look after the needs of the local population,” said Dr Siddiqui. “In the first two years we focused on this, making sure the local community no longer had to travel abroad for treatment.”

Attracting patients from other emirates in certain fields of medicine remains a challenge. “For people from Abu Dhabi, from Dubai, it might not be the ideal choice to come to RAK for treatment,” said Dr Siddiqui. “To optimise the market, we realised we had to step outside the UAE.”

Five years ago RAK Hospital began treating patients from abroad for a range of complex issues, from neurosurgery to cancer and cardiac surgeries.

Outreach offices in countries including Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Pakistan and Bahrain allow doctors to follow up with patients after surgery is complete and they have returned home.

The 70-bed facility, which has a hair salon and spa, will be doubled in size as part of expansion plans over the next six months, which will also increase the number of intensive-care beds to 36.

“We haven’t yet ventured into cosmetic surgery but it’s very profitable,” Dr Siddiqui said. “The next stage is to focus on Bollywood stars, the rich and fa mous, where they can come and stay in the local resorts, charter planes here, do the surgery and nobody will know them.

“They can be discreet and be in a place where people will just think they’re holidaymakers.”

RAK Hospital’s chief executive and head of surgery, Dr Jean-Marc Gauer, came from Switzerland to work on the project. Being an hour from Dubai airport is a big advantage, he said. “A person from Dubai would be more hesitant to come here than would a person from a country such as Ethiopia,” Dr Gauer said. “It’s a challenge to bring the domestic population here.”

Perceptions of RAK as a destination and a healthcare provider are slowly changing as awareness increases, said Dr Anup Kumar Panigrahi, head of the hospital’s keyhole and bariatric surgery teams. “When we go to Dubai for conferences now, people have heard of RAK Hospital,” he said. “Three years ago it wasn’t the case. Now, it’s on the map.”

About 30 to 40 per cent of his laparoscopy patients come from Dubai because of a lack of such specialists in the emirate.

Dr Siddiqui said a good relationship with the tourism industry, travel agents and tour operators was key to taking the project further. “When we go to other countries, the first people we partner with are the travel agents,” he said. “They play a very important role.”

mswan@thenational.ae

source:  http://www.thenational.ae / The National, UAE / Home> UAE> Arts & Lifestyle / by Melanie Swan / July 10th, 2015