Business View Caribbean, November/December 2018

60 61 medical procedures, Rampersad reports that over the last few years, CHCm has instituted a structural heart disease program, “where we can change heart valves without open surgery. Also, the electrophysiology department started some- thing called cryo- ablation to reduce heart ar- rhythmia, such as atrial fibrillation, and our endo- vascular department and radiology department are working towards a stroke team, where we can pull clots out of the brain and save people’s lives within 24 hours.” Going forward, Rampersad would like to con- tinue expanding the services that CHCm offers in its satellite clinics in different parts of the island. CARIBBEAN HEART CARE PREFERRED VENDOR n Sagicor www.sagicor.com    “We also have been looking at a central institu- tion building where we can expand our present cardiovascular program,” he avers. “That’s one of the things we’re looking at for the next five years.” Ramnarine states, “In addition, we’re al- ways open to form alliances, joint ventures, etc., in order to increase the size of our institution. We would like to position our institution very similar to other international cardiovascular institutions, which are the go-to place now for North America.We would like to be that insti- tution for the Caribbean for medical tourism. We’re looking in that direction, as well.” Ever alert to the high cost of medical care, COO Ramnarine adds, “Compared to the rest of the world, our costs are very good.We are a very compassionate institution because we do a lot of free work and work with the government, so we help a lot of patients with the financial aspects of their procedures.” Most importantly, CHCm’s ongoing mission is saving lives, and Dr. Rampersad sums up the Center’s promise of caring for Caribbean hearts: “When a patient comes into our office, and you tell them you have to do a procedure like angio- plasty or cardiac surgery, they ask,‘Doc, am I going to live?’And because of our history and our statis- tics,we can actually give them a percentage that they have a very high chance that they’re going to live and have a high quality of life, afterward.” Dr. Risshi Rampersad, Dr. Carlos Calderas and Dr. Vicente Finizola Dr. Risshi Rampersad, Dr. Carlos Calderas, Dr. Jose Martinez Cardiology administration staff First open heart surgery officials