Impella® Patient Management

Questions to Ask When Caring for an Impella® Patient

Jason Richard, an advanced Impella® trainer at Abiomed, reviews questions to ask when taking over care of a patient with an Impella heart pump. Knowing the answers to these questions can make the transition of care safer and smoother for your patients.

• Which Impella device was implanted?
• Where is the Impella access site and is there any bleeding or oozing?
• What is the centimeter marking on the Impella catheter and has the Tuohy-Borst been tightened?
• Is a Swan-Ganz catheter in place? If so, what is the PA pressure? If not, why?
• Volume status: Is the CVP adequate?
• At what P-level is the Impella pump currently set and are flows within expected range?
• When was the last ACT and what was the result? (ACT between 160 and 180 seconds is recommended while patient is on Impella support)
• Is the Impella delivered heparin via the purge solution being included in the calculation with the systemic IV heparin rate to determine the total heparin delivered to the patient?

Related Content:

• Impella Patient Systemic IV Heparin Rate Calculator
• Practice Essentials

IMP-1025

IMP-1089

To learn more about the Impella^® platform of heart pumps, including important risk and safety information associated with the use of the devices, please visit: abiomed.com/important-safety-information