KYW's Rasa Kaye Talks With Dr. Niya Jones About LVADs & The Heart Failure Program At Deborah

Despite the fact that the term itself seems a little bit defeatist, heart failure is something that can be reversed in some cases, and can certainly be markedly improved in a lot of cases.

Cardiologist Dr. Niya Jones stresses that heart failure – the condition where a heart fails to pump properly – is hardly a death sentence, and not always even a life sentence, thanks to remarkable treatment options at Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Burlington County.

Dr. Jones is Director of Deborah's the multi-faceted Heart Failure Program, which draws on the combined expertise available across specialties at Deborah to tailor a treatment plan for every heart failure patient, from medications to surgical interventions to bridge care before and post-op monitoring after a heart transplant.

In addition to direct treatment, Dr. Jones and her team provide monitoring and follow-up care for patients who have received a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) to help the failing heart do its job. The device is implanted in open heart surgery and can be a life-extending therapy for patients awaiting heart transplant or long-term support for patients who have not responded to drug therapies or are ineligible for other interventions.

LVADs are not currently implanted at Deborah but at hospitals Deborah partners with for "shared care;" regular in-person monitoring of the LVAD is necessary, and for patients who may have received it at a hospital hours away, getting it checked locally is both convenient and reassuring.

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