World Health Day: April 7th
April 7th marks World Health Day, a health promotion day celebrated annually and organized by the World Health Organization. This year’s theme is Health For All, so we thought it would be a great opportunity to discuss the accessibility of cardiac care services.
There is a critical need for adequate cardiac care services in remote, northern, and Indigenous communities in Manitoba. Heart disease is a leading cause of mortality in these regions, especially amongst First Nations people. The lack of access to essential healthcare services in these areas has been a long-standing issue, with cardiac care being one of the most pressing concerns.
The importance of equity in providing cardiac care to all communities cannot be overstated. By providing access to preventative care, timely cardiac investigations, specialized treatment options, and follow-up care after a cardiac event, we can significantly reduce the frequency and severity of heart disease in these areas. This, in turn, can lead to longer, healthier lives for the individuals and families who call these regions home. Additionally, by improving access to cardiac care, we can reduce the number of costly and potentially life-threatening emergency interventions that are often required when heart conditions are left untreated.
It is important to acknowledge that there are significant challenges to providing adequate cardiac care services in these communities. However, the Manitoba ACS Network has been working collaboratively with community leaders, healthcare providers, and government officials to overcome obstacles and ensure that everyone has access to the care they need to live long, healthy lives.
We have worked with Northern healthcare providers and have had several successes.
We have and continue to provide teaching sessions to the nurses and doctors that work at federal nursing stations.
We have raised awareness of the challenges in the delivery of health care in the northern and remote regions by holding panel discussions and workshops at our annual Heart Attack Day provincial symposium. This has included a plenary session given by an Australian healthcare leader to learn about their challenges and successes in delivering care to indigenous groups. We have similarly held a general session and workshop given by a First Nations elder and knowledge keeper, who described his own journey in the cardiac healthcare system. We have ensured availability of thrombolytic therapy (clot-busting drugs) to treat heart attacks in all nursing stations in the province.
We have provided protocols to assess patients with chest pain and have ensured the availability of blood testing (serum troponin) to detect heart damage.
We have maintained a 24-hour-per-day ‘Code STEMI’ phone program, so all ambulance paramedics, nursing station healthcare providers, and northern hospital emergency room doctors can obtain immediate consultation and review of ECGs in patients who may be having a STEMI heart attack.
We review any problems reported with the delivery of care to northern ACS patients and provide recommendations for improvements.
Our Medical Director, Dr. John Ducas, travels twice yearly to four different Indigenous communities to hold cardiology clinics. In addition to providing a more cost-effective care model - by eliminating the need for travel by the patients being seen - these trips address the need to lower barriers to health care delivery. Dr. Ducas has tirelessly advocated for the availability of cardiac ultrasound testing (echocardiography) to be provided in northern communities. Better delivery of care is known to lead to better outcomes in heart patients.
The ACS Network has also considered the availability of culturally-specific patient support services across Canada at our cardiac centres. We have surveyed 44 Canadian cardiac centres. They reported that they care for Indigenous patients, and that Indigenous patient support services exist in these centres. However, we observed large gaps in consistently accessing culturally-specific services in most Canadian cardiac centres.
The Manitoba ACS Network fully understands and emphasizes the critical importance of providing adequate cardiac care services in remote, northern, and Indigenous communities in Manitoba. By investing in the health and well-being of these communities, we can make a significant difference in the lives of thousands of people and help to build a brighter future for all Manitobans.
