Advocate Sherman Hospital has been selected as one of only 10 hospitals in the country to participate in the American College of Cardiology Patient Navigator Program. Developed by the American College of Cardiology and supported by founding sponsor, AstraZeneca, the Patient Navigator program allows Sherman to provide personalized services to heart disease patients and help them avoid a quick return to the hospital. 

"It is a tremendous honor to be selected as one of only 10 hospitals nationwide to participate in this groundbreaking, innovative program," says Dr. Azmey Matarieh, Advocate Medical Group Cardiologist and physician champion of the program. "The Patient Navigator program will benefit our most at-risk heart patient population by providing a collaborative patient-centered approach to heart disease treatment, both during a patient's hospital stay and shortly after discharge, to reduce the risk of readmission."

Nearly one in five patients hospitalized with heart attack and one in four patients hospitalized with heart failure are readmitted within 30 days of discharge, often for conditions seemingly unrelated to the original diagnosis. Readmissions can be related to issues like stresses within the hospital, fragility on discharge, lack of understanding of discharge instructions and inability to carry out discharge instructions. 

The ACC created the Patient Navigator Program to support a team of caregivers at selected hospitals to help patients overcome challenges during their hospital stay and in the weeks following discharge when they are most vulnerable. Hospitals chosen were given funding to establish a program that supports a culture of patient-centered care that can be implemented in other hospitals in the future. 

"Advocate Sherman Hospital has made great strides in preventing readmissions for heart failure patients through our Heart Failure Recovery Clinic, where less than one percent of patients enrolled in the clinic upon discharge are readmitted within 30 days," Dr. Matarieh says. "The Patient Navigator Program will provide us with additional resources to replicate this success for patients with other types of heart disease."

For more information on the Patient Navigator Program or other cardiovascular services and programs at Advocate Sherman Hospital, contact the Heart and Vascular Center at 224-783-6000.