St. Boniface Hospital to open cardiac assessment unit in July

St. Boniface Hospital will open a cardiac assessment unit in early July to monitor and test patients with heart-related issues; the provincial budget included $22.1 million to re-establish cardiac services under Heart Care Manitoba.

St. Boniface Hospital will open a dedicated cardiac assessment unit in early July. The unit is meant to take patients with heart-related issues out of the emergency waiting room for monitoring and testing. Dr. Anita Soni, head of cardiac sciences, said cardiologists have already been covering extra morning shifts ahead of the launch. The opening was announced alongside provincial budget funding for expanded cardiac services. Key details: - The cardiac assessment unit is scheduled to begin accepting patients in early July. - Patients with cardiovascular concerns will be moved from the emergency waiting room into the new unit for monitoring and testing. - Dr. Anita Soni said cardiologists voluntarily picked up about 80% of extra morning shifts prior to the program launch. - The provincial budget includes $22.1 million to re-establish the cardiac centre of excellence now called Heart Care Manitoba. - Planned supports listed by hospital and province include an extra cardiologist in the emergency department each morning, expanded cath lab and electrophysiology lab operating days, 19 additional in-patient cardiac beds, and a centralized access office. - The Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals noted staffing concerns, reporting roughly one-third of respiratory therapist positions at St. Boniface are vacant and that promised perfusionists have not been added. Summary: The new cardiac assessment unit is intended to speed assessment and reduce time spent in emergency waiting areas for heart patients, and it is scheduled to open in early July. Other budget items aim to expand cardiac capacity, while timelines for the province's planned mental health zones remain undetermined at this time.