Acute Cardiology Division at Department of Cardiology, IKEM

The main task of the Acute Cardiology Division is to organize and coordinate emergency services, and take care of patients with life-threatening or potentially life-threatening conditions.

The Division consists of the three sections: acute admission unit, intensive care unit, and intermediary care unit. It is led by an experienced senior physician and run by several trained physicians together with a team of specially trained nurses and other supporting staff.

Acute admission unit equipped with 4 expectation hospital beds coordinates acute admissions to Department of Cardiology round the clock. It allows short stay of the patients for diagnostic and differential diagnostic purposes. The facility is also used for elective electrical cardioversions of cardiac arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation (the procedure that uses short–term anaesthesia and electrical shock to interrupt cardiac arrhythmia).

Intensive care unit consists of 12 beds in separate boxes to provide advanced health care to patients with life-threatening or potentially life-threatening conditions. Besides close monitoring of life functions, artificial ventilators, temporary pacing, mechanical support and/or sophisticated elimination methods can be used. In subjects after resuscitation for cardiac arrest, all-body cooling (hypothermia) is used to improve their outcome and minimalize brain damage. The spectrum of patients varies from those with acute myocardial infarction or unstable angina pectoris to patients with advanced heart failure, malignant or potentially malignant arrhythmias, pulmonary embolism and other conditions.

Intermediate care unit is a smaller unit with 6 monitored beds that is used for monitoring of patients with less risky cardiac conditions. It also allows easy admission of patients with potentially life-threatening conditions for diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.