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SEHA introduces home
monitoring program for
infants with heart
abnormalities
(Abu
Dhabi, UAE) -
Abu Dhabi Health Services
Company (SEHA), the UAE’s
largest healthcare network,
has introduced an Interstage
Monitoring Program (IMP) for
newborns with heart
abnormalities that require
multiple surgeries.
Implemented by a dedicated
and highly specialized group
of physicians, nurses and
administrative staff for the
first time in the UAE, the
program helps to monitor
infants while they are at
home waiting for their next
cardiac surgery.
Infants born with the most
severe types of heart
abnormalities, such as
hypoplastic left heart
syndrome, and other
conditions in which only one
side of the heart is
functioning, normally
undergo an initial
open-heart surgery in their
first few days of life,
followed by a second heart
surgery after six months.
Patients are discharged
during the wait between the
first and second surgery.
The pediatric congenital
cardiac team at Sheikh
Khalifa Medical City (SKMC),
a SEHA-affiliated facility,
look after 50 to 60 newborns
with these conditions every
year.
The time
between the two surgeries,
known as the interstage
period, places infants at an
increased risk of death,
with approximately 20% of
children born with complex
heart conditions passing
away in the lead-up to the
second surgery. To help
parents monitor their
infant’s condition and to
ensure timely medical
intervention if necessary, a
group of cardiac intensive
care physicians, nurses and
administrative employees
from SKMC have come together
to provide continuous
monitoring and medical
counseling during the
interstage period. This
helps to keep them safe and
healthy in the lead-up to
the second procedure.
Dr. Anwar
Sallam, Group Chief Medical
Officer, SEHA,
said: “Newborns face a
higher risk of death during
the interstage period, due
to the increased toll a
simple virus or other
infections can have on an
abnormally developed heart.
With parents not knowing
what to watch out for, and
how rapidly a newborn with a
heart abnormality’s health
can deteriorate, the SKMC
pediatric cardiac surgical
department have taken the
lead in introducing a
program that enables the
continuous monitoring and
care of infants at home
during the waiting period.”
The IMP team monitors
the infant’s wellbeing from
the moment they complete
their first open heart
surgery to the day they are
readmitted for their second
procedure. Before the
newborn is discharged, the
team counsels the family on
how to look after them,
explaining how delicate the
infant’s condition is and
educating them on warning
signs of deterioration. Once
the newborn is home, the IMP
team then establishes
regular contact with the
family through telemedicine
consultations – either daily
or weekly depending on the
condition of the infant.
During these calls, the team
of medical professionals
consult the family on the
infant’s various vital signs
including weight, oxygen
levels, feeding habits and
general condition. If
problems are identified,
families are given clear
instructions on how to
proceed, and if the
situation becomes critical,
arrangements are quickly
made for referral to
hospital and re-admission.
Dr. Victoria
Sheward, Consultant
Pediatric Cardiac
Intensivist, SKMC,
said: “Of the approximately
350 corrective heart
surgeries we perform on
children each year, around
60 infants require a
follow-up open-heart
procedure after around six
months. By introducing the
interstage monitoring
program, we are letting
parents know they are not
alone during this journey
and providing them with the
support they need to keep
their newborns safe, healthy
and alive as they wait for
their second operation.”
The program was
established by SKMC in July
2020, and currently has
close to 30 infants enrolled
for home monitoring. To
date, three of them were
identified to be nearing
critical condition as a
result of their declining
health, and for whom urgent
intervention was arranged
through the program.
“Thanks to the IMP, the
lives of those three infants
were saved, ensuring their
survival and sustaining
their health for the second
stage of their cardiac
surgery. Thanks to the
prompt response of the IMP
team, their wealth of
expertise, and their close
rapport with the families,
we were able to quickly
intervene and address their
deteriorating health,”
continued Dr. Sheward.
Rayan was born in June
2020 with a severe form of
heart abnormality, in which
the whole of the right side
of his heart had not
developed properly. This
condition meant that he
needed life-saving
open-heart surgery within
the first few weeks of life,
which was done at SKMC in
July. After a prolonged stay
in the Pediatric Cardiac
Intensive Care Unit, Rayan
returned home at the end of
July. Before he was
discharged, Rayan and his
family were enrolled in
SKMC’s IMP, where they were
given a machine to monitor
his oxygen levels at home,
were taught how to perform
basic life support, and were
informed of warning signs to
monitor for. The IMP team
contacted Rayan’s parents
every week, advising them on
feeding habits, the infant’s
growth, and how to manage if
problems were identified. By
monitoring Rayan’s growth
and oxygen levels, the IMP
team were able to inform the
rest of the Pediatric
Cardiac Surgical team when
Rayan was ready for his
second cardiac operation. As
a result, readmission to
SKMC was arranged, and he
successfully completed his
second open-heart surgery in
December 2020. Rayan is now
back at home with his
parents, thanks to the
combined efforts of the IMP
team, and the whole of the
surgical, cardiology and
intensive care teams.
“Rayan is my first baby.
SKMC doctors diagnosed a
congenital heart defect, so
he underwent an initial
open-heart surgery in his
first few days of life
during COVID-19, followed by
a second heart surgery on
the 15th of December 2020
after six months. It was one
of the toughest times of my
life, as my parents were
away from me in Syria, but
the SKMC team was very
supportive and took care of
my baby by making continuous
follow-up calls,” Aya,
Rayan’s mom said.
SKMC operates the largest
program of pediatric cardiac
surgery in the country, and
treats complex cardiac
abnormalities in newborns
and infants. As part of its
mission to meet
international best practice
and bring global healthcare
expertise and processes to
the UAE, SEHA and its
facilities are ensuring
patients are supported,
throughout the entirety of
their treatment journeys.
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