Newswise — February is American Heart Month. Several experts from the American Association of Heart Failure Nurses (AAHFN) are available to comment on different aspects related to the health issues experienced by heart failure patients and can offer tips on maintaining a healthy heart.
Heart failure is a progressive condition in which the heart muscle weakens or stiffens and gradually loses its ability to pump enough blood to supply the body's needs. Because of this, you may feel tired or weak. This problem can also cause fluid buildup in your organs and tissues, leading to swelling in your legs and feet, or congestion in your lungs, leading to increased breathing difficulties. Heart failure is frighteningly common, but under recognized. It affects more than five million people in the U.S., and it's the most common cause of hospitalization in people older than 65 years of age.
AAHFN can offer the following experts on heart failure:
Sue Wingate, RN, Ph.D., CRNPPresident, AAHFN
Dr. Sue Wingate is a cardiology nurse practitioner with Kaiser-Permanente Mid-Atlantic States in Rockville, Md. In this position, she coordinates the center-based Heart Failure Treatment Program, as well as department research activities. Previously, she worked in coronary intensive care, acute care, outpatient cardiology and cardiac rehabilitation settings as a staff nurse, manager, research coordinator and clinical nurse specialist. Dr. Wingate retired from the U.S. Naval Reserve, after 25 years as a nurse corps officer.
Dr. Wingate's research interests are currently focused on symptom palliation and care of the patient with advanced heart failure.
Vera Barton-Caro, RN, MSN, C-FNPPresident-Elect, AAHFN
Mrs. Vera Barton-Caro is a nurse practitioner in a private cardiology practice in Wheeling, W.Va. and serves as nurse manager for The Heart Failure Clinic of Wheeling. She and her collaborating physician, Richard F. Terry, M.D., successfully opened the first free-standing outpatient heart failure clinic in the state. Mrs. Barton-Caro is responsible for direct patient care in a full service cardiology practice while managing all aspects of the heart failure clinic including telemanagement, education, admissions and referrals.
Mrs. Barton-Caro's nursing background includes administrative as well as staff positions in neurosurgical intensive care, medical and cardiac intensive care and the cardiac catheterization laboratory. She is an active regional and national speaker on the subject of heart failure.
Marie Galvao, MSN, ANP-BC Treasurer, AAHFN
Ms. Marie Galvao currently directs out-patient heart failure services at the Center for Advanced Cardiac Therapy at the Montefiore Medical Center in New York, N.Y. In this position she is entirely dedicated to the management of patients with heart failure. This includes clinical management, education, and research, in addition to overseeing the full out-patient practice (cardiopulmonary testing, education, preceptorships, quality management and program development).
After spending a number of years as a critical care nurse and clinical manager of the Coronary Care Unit at the Hospital of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, N.Y., Ms. Galvao started her career in heart failure as a clinical nurse specialist. Initially, she coordinated an NIH sponsored trial, The Studies of Left Ventricular Dysfunction, as well as countless other research trials and projects. Her role, however, quickly expanded and she soon developed an expertise in the management of acute and chronic heart failure. In 1990 she was appointed to the faculty at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and concurrently completed her post-graduate work and certification as an adult nurse practitioner. Ms. Galvao played an integral role in later expanding the heart failure program to what is now the Center for Advanced Cardiac Therapy at Montefiore Medical Center. Through administrative, scientific and clinical efforts, she has truly made it a priority to raise and optimize the standard of heart failure care.
Cheryl Dennison, RN, ANP, Ph.D.Secretary, AAHFN
Dr. Cheryl Dennison is an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing with joint appointment in the School of Medicine Department of Health Sciences Informatics. She is Affiliated Faculty in the Johns Hopkins Medicine's Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care. Dr. Dennison is a 2008-2010 John A. Hartford Foundation Claire M. Fagin Fellow and is a Fellow of the American Heart Association, Council on Cardiovascular Nursing. As a clinician and researcher, Dr. Dennison is committed to developing and testing interdisciplinary approaches to improve the quality of cardiovascular care across the care continuum to reduce cardiovascular risk for high risk, underserved populations.
Her current research is focused on reducing system and provider barriers to heart failure (HF) guideline implementation in the acute care setting. She is developing and testing an innovative, interactive, Web-based clinical decision support system to improve nurse and physician implementation of national evidence-based guidelines and thereby improve quality of care among HF patients. Dr. Dennison has experience in developing and testing interventions to reduce cardiovascular risk among high risk populations in the acute care and community settings. Dr. Dennison is co-investigator on two NIH-funded randomized controlled trials to test the effectiveness of community-based cardiovascular risk intervention programs targeting high risk urban populations. In addition, she is co-investigator on an NIH Fogarty Center funded study assessing total cardiovascular risk and barriers to high blood pressure care among black South Africans.
Her research interests include heart failure care and self management, cardiovascular risk management, hypertension, chronic illness management, quality of care, interdisciplinary teamwork, and provider behavior.
Samantha Christie, RN, BSNBoard Member, AAHFN
Ms. Samantha Christie is Senior Clinical Coordinator for the Heart Failure and Cardiac Rehabilitation, St. Charles Mercy Hospital in Oregon, Ohio. She actively manages patient care in both areas and is responsible for staff and daily operations of these departments. Ms. Christie also works privately with a cardiologist who specializes in the care of heart failure patients. She established the heart failure clinic at St. Charles Mercy Hospital in 1995 after recognizing the need for a comprehensive program for these individuals and their families. Ms. Christie has served as a consultant to other institutions inquiring to begin their own heart failure programs.
Ms. Christie was one of the founding members of the AAHFN and has been on the committee for both annual meetings. She is frequently requested to speak nationally on heart failure and current treatment and has also served on an advisory board for the Nurse to Nurse program through Scios.
Rebecca L. Angerstein, RN, MA, MSN, BC, CCRN, CNS, FAHABoard Member, AAHFN
Ms. Rebecca Angerstein is a Cardiology Clinical Nurse Specialist at Northeast Ohio Cardiovascular Specialists in Akron, Ohio. She functions as an Advanced Practice Nurse with direct patient care in both inpatient and outpatient areas as well as being the Director of Clinical Services. Her heart failure interests include prevention, patient education, implantable cardiac devices, remote monitoring and diagnostics.
Prior to this role she was a staff nurse in ICU and CCU, critical staff development instructor and has held management positions. She received the "Heart Care Partnership Award" for AHA Get with the Guidelines program coordination and implementation.
Ms. Angerstein serves as a reviewer of the Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing and was elected a Fellow of the American Heart Association in 2006. She is active in speaking regionally and nationally on numerous heart failure topics.
Ashley Moore, MSN, APRN, ANP-BCBoard Member, AAHFN
Ms. Ashley Moore is a nurse practitioner at Sanger Clinic in Charlotte, N.C., providing inpatient and outpatient care and education to a variety of cardiology patients. She also works as a clinical nurse specialist at Carolinas Medical Center, a large, tertiary-care teaching hospital in the Cardiac Division.
Ms. Moore's nursing background has focused primarily on the care of adult cardiology patients in addition to serving in a variety of positions ranging from an assistant nurse manager on a cardiac transplant/telemetry unit to the lead coordinator of the Heart Failure Program at Carolinas Medical Center.
She is involved with academics and serves as a preceptor for nurse practitioner and clinical nurse specialist graduate students in addition to guest lecturing in the Adult Health Nurse Practitioner program at UNC-Charlotte on heart failure and other cardiovascular topics. She has also been a speaker for the Nurse to Nurse Program through Scios.
The American Association of Heart Failure Nurses (AAHFN) is a specialty organization dedicated to advancing nursing education, clinical practice and research to improve heart failure patient outcomes. The organization's goal is to set the standards for heart failure nursing care. For more information about AAHFN, visit www.aahfn.org.
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