St. Joseph’s Health Cardiovascular Institute Opens Heart Failure Clinic

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — St. Joseph’s Health is pleased to announce that its Cardiovascular Institute has opened a Heart Failure Clinic at its Brittonfield Cardiology office.

The Heart Failure Clinic will provide early follow-up (within one week) to patients without an established physician/cardiologist, provide care to the uninsured, and serve as a bridge for patients who aren’t able to make a follow-up appointment within one week.

“We see it time and again. People end up in the Emergency Department with heart conditions and when they are released, they don’t see a cardiologist fast enough, or they don’t start their medications right away,” said Dr. Russell Silverman, MD, FACC, medical director of the St. Joseph’s Health Heart Failure Clinic and Chief Medical Officer at RMH. “This can cause continuing heart issues. The incorporation of the Heart Failure Clinic at St. Joseph’s Health will further improve access to timely, quality care and improve outcomes for our heart failure patients.”

The Heart Failure Clinic is a strategic partnership with University of Rochester Medical Center. URMC Cardiologists Drs. Leway Chen and Mark Tallman will each see patients at the Brittonfield location, reducing the need for patients to travel to Rochester for routine care. Developing an advanced heart failure treatment clinic also allows St. Joseph’s Health to provide care to its LVAD (left ventricular assist device) patient community, a service that is not currently available.

Heart failure affects approximately 5.7 million people in the United States and is escalating rapidly, with about 550,000 newly-diagnosed cases annually.

Strategic placement of the heart failure clinic within the Brittonfield practice offers availability to Stress, Echo, and EKG services, as well as access to on-site medical cardiologists. It also supports the goal of reducing preventable readmissions in heart failure patients.

Primary care physicians and cardiologists can refer patients who need advanced heart failure management by calling (315)703-5090. In addition, any patient being released from hospitalization at St. Joseph’s Health Hospital and other CNY hospitals, as well as those being discharged from rehabilitation centers, can be referred to the Heart Failure Clinic.

St. Joseph’s Health is one of only 8 hospitals in the nation to be named an American Heart Association Center of Excellence, one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Surgery according to a national study by Healthgrades, and it received the highest performance rating for Heart Bypass Surgery by U.S. News and World Report. For more information, visit https://everybeatmatterssjh.org/.

About St. Joseph’s Health

“St. Joseph’s Health is a regional non-profit health care system based in Syracuse, NY. St. Joseph’s has been an innovative leader in health care since our founding in 1869 as the first hospital open to the public in the city of Syracuse. Offering primary, specialty and home care, a Magnet-recognized hospital, and collaboration with community partners, St. Joseph's Health advances the well-being of the communities we serve through an expanding range of services to ensure our patients achieve optimum long-term health. St. Joseph’s is the only hospital in Syracuse to hold the LeapFrog ‘A’ safety rating, ranked by Consumer Reports among the top 15 heart surgery centers in the country, a designated Stroke Center and a U.S. News “Best Regional Hospital.” The St. Joseph’s Health Hospital NICU was the first in Syracuse and is celebrating its 50^th Anniversary throughout 2020. St. Joseph’s Health is affiliated with St. Joseph’s Physicians, and is a member of Trinity Health.For more information, visit www.sjhsyr.org/legacy.”