Heart failure/VAD/heart transplant NPs

[celclt]

Any out here- would love to hear about your experience. I am a new grad ACNP with ICU experience.

[PatMac10,RN, RN]

I would like to hear about this too!

Sent from the iPhone of PatMac10, RN

[anh06005, MSN, APRN, NP]

I'd love to hear too! I'll be FNP, graduating in December. I LOVE cardiology and would love to work in a cardiology clinic!

[Corey Narry, MSN, RN, NP]

We have NP's (and PA's) in our Adult Mechanical Circulatory Support Service. They are a separate consulting service closely working with Advanced Heart Failure Cardiologists (for all destination therapy VAD's) and Cardiothoracic Surgery (new VAD's, Impella, ECLS patients). They are also involved in VAD patient screening and pre and post VAD patient teaching and follow up. The MCS team work in-patient only. There is an Advanced Heart Failure NP who works in the clinic. Cardiothoracic Surgery manages all post-op heart transplants as the primary service and that service has NP's and PA's as well. Those services hire NP's of all types (ACNP to FNP/ANP).

[ghillbert, MSN, NP]

I have worked in this area for about 15 yrs as an RN and 2 years as an NP. I cover both pre and post heart and lung transplant as well as post-VAD recipients. I have worked both in the CTICU and on the step-down floor but am based on the floor now as there is much more that I can do to impact the process there. I take patients who are anytime from 2 days post VAD implant until discharge (and then every readmission thereafter as we are the only VAD-trained unit), as well as transplant workups and post transplant patients.

It is an intense, interesting field. There are frequent changes in the field as VAD care is still evolving, and it takes a lot of time to adequately understand the anatomy and physiology of these patients (especially with VADs). If you take a job in this area, make sure you have adequate training and preparation for the role. I have worked with my collaborating physicians for almost 10 years at this point, so I have great autonomy and decision making capability in my role, which I like.

What did you want to know specifically?

Edit to say: The "VAD coordinator" or "transplant coordinator" role is very different. There are some that are NP-based but many are RNs. There is a lot of program coordinator, research data collection and entry involved in a VAD coordinator position, as well as a lot of outpatient contact and coordination. The inpatient NP role is much more directed to clinical management rather than system management - but this varies GREATLY depending on the makeup of each hospital's VAD or transplant program. Some have the VAD coordinator do everything for the VAD patients, some have perfusionists/engineers to handle the technical aspect, etc.