Cardiac Collaboration: From Diagnosis to Surgery and Recovery

Thank goodness for Ted Chin’s bad knees. If not for the age-related arthritis, the 74-year-old wouldn’t have known he was at risk of heart attack. “If it wasn’t for my knees, I would’ve never found out that I had blockages and needed triple bypass surgery,” says the Fremont resident.

Chin, a retired pharmacist, had three blocked arteries and atrial fibrillation (AFib), an irregular and often rapid heartbeat that can put one at risk of stroke and other conditions. Last September, he underwent coronary artery bypass grafting for the blockages and a maze procedure to correct AFib, at Washington Hospital.

A team comprised of a local primary care physician, a cardiologist from the Washington Township Medical Foundation (WTMF), and a cardiothoracic surgeon from the UCSF–Washington Cardiac Services Program collaborated to provide the best possible outcome.

Chin learned he had heart problems when he visited his local primary care doctor about knee pain. On Chin’s physical exam, Spencer Tilley, MD, of Medical Associates of Fremont, detected an irregular heartbeat. A subsequent electrocardiogram revealed he had AFib. Dr. Tilley recommended Chin see Nowwar Mustafa, MD, a board-certified cardiologist with WTMF.

During treatment for AFib, Dr. Mustafa found that Chin also had significant blockages and would need triple bypass surgery. Working closely with the surgeons of the UCSF–Washington Cardiac Services Department, Dr. Mustafa referred Chin to Ramin Beygui, MD, a board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon and medical director of Cardiothoracic Surgery. This partnership provides academic-level care on a local level.

“They made it very convenient because all my doctors were local. I’m only 15 minutes from the hospital,” explains Chin. “I didn’t have to go from place to place getting tests, or to San Francisco for surgery.”

With their Cardiac Rehabilitation Program, both inpatients and those ready for outpatient care can make physical therapy and exercise classes part of their convenient, local care. Less than three months after surgery, Ted Chin was feeling great.

“My experience at Washington Hospital was amazing. I was very lucky to have had this cardiac team. The surgeon, the doctors, the nurses, and the entire Intensive Care Unit team; everyone, was wonderful.”

For more information on Cardiac Services and the collaboration between WHHS and UCSF, see whhs.com/Heart.