A fraction of a millimeter. The thickness of a single strand of hair. In cardiac surgery — where technology is beginning to make cases possible that were once unthinkable — precision is crucial. Yet even the best technology is irrelevant unless it’s in the hands of experts such as the cardiac surgery team at Baptist Health Heart & Vascular Care.
“In this era of innovation, we are excited to be involved in the development of new technologies and we are optimistic about the pace in which technology is evolving. But for patients with the most complex cardiovascular conditions, technology alone isn’t enough,” said Tom Nguyen, M.D., FACS, FAC, chief medical executive, director of minimally invasive valve surgery and the Barry T. Katzen Medical Director Endowed Chair at Baptist Health Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute.
“Here, we have pulled together a renowned, highly skilled and compassionate group of cardiothoracic surgeons who are able to perform the life-saving procedures patients deserve, whether it’s a robotic-assisted surgery, a minimally invasive procedure or an open-heart surgery,” he added.
Dr. Nguyen leads Baptist Health Heart & Vascular Care and its two institutes and teams that are devoted to cardiovascular care — Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute in Miami-Dade County and the Christine E. Lynn Heart & Vascular Institute in Palm Beach County. The multidisciplinary team includes cardiac surgeons, vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists, cardiologists, interventional cardiologists, hypertensive cardiologists, cardiac imaging specialists, anesthesiologists, genetic consultants, electrophysiologists, advanced practice providers and other specialists.
They see patients throughout Florida, the U.S., Latin America and beyond. Procedures offered at the Institute include minimally invasive and robotic surgery, complex coronary revascularizations, aortic surgery and transcatheter therapies using the newest technologies.
In Miami-Dade County, Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute surgeons include Tom Nguyen, M.D., Joseph McGinn Jr., M.D., Marco Bologna, M.D., Mehrdad Ghoreishi, M.D., Masaka Nakamura, M.D., Makoto Hashimoto, M.D., and Bryon Tompkins M.D. In Palm Beach County, the team at Lynn Heart & Vascular Institute includes Richard Cartledge, M.D., Marc Gibber, M.D., Alexander Kulik, M.D., and Joseph McGinn III, M.D.
Renowned for their work, the physicians have published in peer-reviewed medical journals, served on the faculty of international, national and regional symposiums, and taught other surgeons their techniques. Institute physicians also actively participate in cardiac surgery research, leading clinical trials in areas that include structural heart problems, congestive heart failure, coronary artery disease, vascular disease and stroke. They are master educators, training our physicians and surgeons of tomorrow.
Many have developed new devices and techniques and performed “firsts” in the industry. For example, Dr. McGinn Jr. pioneered a minimally invasive coronary artery bypass graft surgery that eliminates the need to cut open the patient’s chest or stop the heart. It is known as the McGinn Technique. Dr. Ghoreishi developed a normothermic TAR technique that doesn’t require the riskier practice of lowering the patient’s body temperature to temporarily stop the flow of blood. He performed the first case in Florida at Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute. Baptist Health physicians continue to pioneer the field, performing many first-in-man procedures in not only Florida, but the globe.
Baptist Health Heart & Vascular Care is available for referrals or to consult with you about your patients. For more information, click here, or for Miami-Dade, call 786-596-1230, and for the Palm Beach area, contact 561-955-6300.
