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The Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) is pleased to welcome members of a Bordeaux hospital delegation as part of the ERACS (Enhanced Recovery After Cardiac Surgery) program. Implemented by the Department of Cardiac Surgery and Anesthesia and the Surgical Intensive Care team, this program optimizes hospitalization processes while improving the patient experience.

“Given today’s pressures of hospital congestion and resource shortages, optimizing clinical practices must be re-evaluated. As our clientele becomes increasingly complex, this program allows for better management while reducing the average length of stay,” says Dr. Yoan Lamarche, head of the Surgical Intensive Care Unit.

During its stay, the Bordeaux delegation will accompany the MHI teams in implementing the program they pioneered in Quebec.

A Better Flexibility of Care and an Optimized Recovery

The ERACS program reduces the length of hospital stays. For example, patients undergoing uncomplicated open-heart surgery will decrease their hospital stay from 5 to 6 days of inpatient postoperative care to 3–4 days.

In addition, the program enables various innovative practices that benefit patients by:

• Facilitating patients’ mobility until they arrive in the operating room by allowing them to walk rather than go there on a stretcher.
• Allowing patients to drink up to 1 to 2 hours before surgery by taking a sugary drink to avoid hunger and thirst.
• Admitting patients on the day of surgery rather than the day before. This allows them to remain in the comfort of their home the day before major surgery.
• Mobilizing patients during the first few hours after surgery: first at the bedside and then in the chair as their condition allows.

Implementing these different practices leverages the quality and safety of patient care through the collaborative leadership of multiple professionals. “From the pre-operative phase, patients are cared for by a multidisciplinary team (nutritionist, physical therapist, nurse, anesthesiologist) and have access to a teaching class ahead of their surgery,” says Amélie Brasiola, head of the Surgical Intensive Care Unit and ERACS program.

Patient-centred practice is key to positively impacting the care episode pathway as well as patient outcomes. “Initiating this project required a significant resource investment in the early years, and it would not have been possible without the support of management, which we thank,” says Dr. Nicolas Rousseau-Saine, ERACS program medical co-leader.

About the Montreal Heart Institute
Founded in 1954, the Montreal Heart Institute constantly strives for the highest standards of excellence in the cardiovascular field through its leadership in clinical and fundamental research, ultra-specialized care, professional training, and prevention. It is home to Canada’s largest cardiology research centre, cardiovascular prevention centre, and cardiovascular genetics centre. The Institute is affiliated with the Université de Montréal and has more than 2,000 employees, including 245 physicians and more than 85 researchers. icm-mhi.org

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Camille Gagné-Turbide
Brief Communication
514 755-5354
camille@briefcom.ca