New Cardiac Hybrid Theatre at Rockhampton Hospital.
Patients across Central Queensland now have greater access to specialised cardiac care following the opening of Rockhampton Hospital’s new Cardiac Hybrid Theatre.
The brand-new $36.5 million facility brings together a fully equipped interventional cardiology procedure room with advanced imaging technology, allowing clinicians to diagnose and treat a broader range of heart conditions in a single specialised space.
It’s estimated the expanded service will reduce the need for patients to travel to Brisbane for cardiac treatment by up to 80 per cent, with around nine patients expected to be treated per week in its first three months of operation.
One of those patients is Brian, a 69-year-old man who was only recently diagnosed with aortic stenosis (AS) – a type of heart valve disease.
Although Brian said he felt he was managing his symptoms, his doctor recommended he visit the Rockhampton Hospital Cardiac Investigations Unit.
“They took me into a side room and explained, in no uncertain terms, that I would need an aortic valve replacement,” Brian said.
“It was quite a shock. I walked in thinking, you know, I’d have a quick check up, and I walked out feeling like my world had changed.
“For someone who’s never given much thought to their health it was a bit of a wake-up call.”
One of the first patients to access Rockhampton Hospital’s new Cardiac Hybrid Theatre.
Now that Rockhampton’s Cardiac Hybrid Theatre is up and running, Brian will be one of the first patients to have a coronary angiogram – a diagnostic procedure used to examine blood flow and detect blockages in the coronary arteries.
Having access to this procedure locally means that when Brian travels to Brisbane for surgery at The Prince Charles Hospital, his cardiac care team will know exactly what’s needed to care for Brian’s heart.
Importantly, this will reduce how often Brian needs to travel to Brisbane
“I was thinking about the money and travel involved. The thought of flying to Brisbane, or getting the train, or a taxi… It’s really good to be able to get more of the care I need here,” said Brian.
“I can see the value of having these services available locally. It’s effectively expanding the services available in Central Queensland, and that’s going to be a good thing.
“For me, it means I’m travelling to Brisbane with all the information and I can see it being absolutely invaluable for other patients as well.”
Cardiology Clinical Director Dr Sam Sidharta described the cardiac catheterisation laboratory as a major step forward for local cardiac care.
"The cardiac catheterisation laboratory is a specialised procedure room where clinicians diagnose and treat heart conditions using minimally invasive techniques," Dr Sidharta said.
"The dedicated diagnostic service will initially provide care for elective outpatients before expanding to support inpatient treatment."
Dr Sam Sidharta, Cardiology Clinical Director at Rockhampton Hospital.
The service will initially provide diagnostic procedures, including coronary angiograms, before expanding to include pacemaker insertions and coronary stent procedures.
The expansion in cardiology services includes:
- a Cardiac Hybrid Theatre (Cardiac Catheterisation Laboratory, or Cath Lab)
- a transoesophageal echocardiogram procedure room
- six recovery bays
- six new inpatient beds, increasing the Cardiology Ward capacity to 12 beds
- an expanded Cardiac Investigations Unit with seven assessment and diagnostic spaces.