ACC: Ukraine Hospital Improving Emergency Cardiovascular Care During National Crisis

Through ACC Global Quality Solutions Program, Dnipro hospital CV teams are enhancing skills and raising quality of care for local heart attack patients 

WASHINGTON (May 22, 2023) — The Clinical Hospital of Emergency Services, a municipal hospital serving the community of Dnipro, in Ukraine, is the first in the country to take part in the American College of Cardiology’s Global Quality Solutions program. The hospital joins the program in an effort to improve heart attack care by reducing heart attack related deaths and saving lives in their community.

“When the war started, myself and others on my team decided to stay at work to do our best to help our people, soldiers, neighbors and relatives to survive. But we decided it was not enough to only maintain, but that we must develop and raise our skills and quality of care,” said Anastasiya Skoromna, MD, PhD, Head of the Interventional Diagnostics and Percutaneous Treatment Department at the Clinical Hospital of Emergency Services in Dnipro, Ukraine. “Because, when the war ends, Ukraine will have a great need for the recovery of its systems and infrastructure. If we are ready, it will be an easier and faster recovery.”

ACC’s Global Quality Solutions program, in collaboration with Health Catalyst, works directly with hospitals around the world to collect data on cardiovascular procedures and identify specific opportunities to improve patient care and outcomes. As part of the program, the Clinical Hospital of Emergency Services will have access to data collection, analysis and reporting frameworks that leverage ACC’s NCDR CathPCI Registry data set.

 According to the NCD Alliance, cardiovascular diseases account for 64% of all deaths from non-communicable diseases in Ukraine. This trend is compounded by the continued humanitarian crisis, which has displaced more than 12 million individuals of whom 2.63 million have cardiovascular disease.

“Ensuring access to essential cardiovascular care is more important than ever in Ukraine,” said ACC Immediate Past President Edward T.A. Fry, MD, MACC. “The Clinical Hospital of Emergency Services in Dnipro’s commitment to optimizing care and outcomes of patients with heart disease or related risk factors in the midst of unprecedented and unimaginable challenges—including a constant lack of supplies from basic syringes to interventional catheters and assist devices—is commendable, heroic and inspirational. It is truly an honor and privilege to support the hospital staff and clinicians in their quest to continue to transform cardiovascular care and improve heart health during this time.”

Skoromna’s team is made up of four interventional cardiologists ranging from newly practicing to longtime practitioners who are passionate about the work. The department opened at the end of 2021, shortly before the war began, making it even more difficult to start an interventional cardiology department where there hadn’t previously been one. 

“The task was not only to start, but to integrate into the hospital system and then survive this war. We work 24/7 without weekends to provide care to our patients,” Skoromna said. “We have mostly acute coronary syndrome patients and late admissions. With such a diverse cohort of patients, being an interventional cardiologist is not enough. We need tools, supplies and what is most important—good and structured support.”

The Clinical Hospital of Emergency Services joins a growing list of hospitals around the world, including in South Africa, Brazil and Saudi Arabia, who are taking part in the Global Quality Solutions program and have a shared commitment to leveraging data and innovative technologies to proactively address the burden of cardiovascular disease within their own countries, as well as the rest of the world.

“Our hope is that by participating in the Global Quality Solutions program we will better be able to see the gaps in our care, so that we can learn how to deal with them and tune the health care system to work better,” Skoromna said. “The country worked for too long in post-Soviet order; we want and need to change it, once and forever, for the healthy future of our patients.”

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) is the global leader in transforming cardiovascular care and improving heart health for all. As the preeminent source of professional medical education for the entire cardiovascular care team since 1949, ACC credentials cardiovascular professionals in over 140 countries who meet stringent qualifications and leads in the formation of health policy, standards and guidelines. Through its world-renowned family of JACC Journals, NCDR registries, ACC Accreditation Services, global network of Member Sections, CardioSmart patient resources and more, the College is committed to ensuring a world where science, knowledge and innovation optimize patient care and outcomes. Learn more at www.ACC.org or follow @ACCinTouch.

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