Kasey Keefe

I run and supervise cardiac stress tests where I work. We do anything from plain treadmill stress tests to nuclear stress tests (treadmill or persantine). If there is a patient that needs dobutamine or adenosine then a cardiologist must be present. We can not run a stress test unless there is a cardiologist in the hospital. It is very rare when a patient has a severe problem during a stress test. Before the test there are many criteria that need to be met to make sure the test is appropriate for the patient. If there are any questions or concerns, we call the cardiologist. If there is ever a time that one of the nurses feels uncomfortable, the cardiologist will come and remain present for the test. It has really helped the flow of our lab since the doctors no longer have to be present for a stress test. Not anyone can just come into the lab and run a test. We had to go through a great deal of additional training to be able to supervise the tests. But we have the full support of the cardiologists. I don't know what happened with you, but again, it is rare when a patient has a severe problem during a stress test.