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CARDIAC CARE
T H E A D D I T I O N O F H E A R T C L I N I C S
N O R T H W E S T W I L L C O M P L E T E K O O T E N A I
H E A L T H ’ S C A R D I A C S E R V I C E S
A Heart for
Excellence
By Andrea Kalas-Nagel
KOOTENAI HEALTH RECENTLY ACQUIRED
Heart Clinics Northwest (HCNW), based in Spokane.
This new relationship is expanding cardiac care in
the Inland Northwest and allows residents to receive
comprehensive cardiac care closer to home.
The acquisition sets the stage for further growth of
cardiac services at Kootenai. Plans for expanding cardiac
facilities, including the addition of heart rhythm services
(electrophysiology), are already under way. Along with
electrophysiology, Kootenai patients will have access to
many other heart services.
HCNW is a 21-physician, board-certified cardiology
practice. Every physician is certified in one or more sub-
specialty in which they practice. Currently:
•
Four physicians are CT board-certified.
•
Eleven physicians are nuclear board-certified.
•
Thirteen physicians are interventional
board-certified.
•
Three physicians are electrophysiology
board-certified.
•
Three physicians are electrocardiography
board-certified.
Here is an overview of the types of conditions each of
these subspecialties treat.
D I A G N O S T I C S E R V I C E S
Kootenai and HCNWoffer the best in diagnostic services
for patients. This includes a common tool used to detect
and find heart disease—an electrocardiography (EKG).
The EKG test checks for problems with the electrical activ-
ity of a patient’s heart. It translates the heart’s electrical
activity into line tracings on paper.
“We perform different types of EKGs depending on
what we’re looking for,” said cardiologist Timothy Less-
meier, M.D. “Some are done in one visit. Others require the
patient to wear a monitor overnight or for several days.”
N U C L E A R C A R D I O L O G Y
Nuclear cardiology studies use noninvasive stress tests to
assess blood flow and evaluate the pumping function of
the heart. Because a simple treadmill stress test can have
false positives and negatives, physicians add certainty
by doing a nuclear cardiology study.
“Nuclear scans pick up howmuch blood flow there is
to each area of the heart,” said cardiologist Dennis Cooke,
M.D. “It makes the results of the test more certain.”
—Continued on page 10
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