Heartfelt thanks to team

THE Royal Hobart Hospital’s heart surgery team has reached a medical milestone, performing 10,000 open heart surgeries.

The Royal’s Cardiothoracic Surgical Unit opened its doors 27 years ago, alleviating the need for Tasmanians to fly interstate for the major heart surgery.

Unit head Dr Ashutosh Hardikar said the milestone was significant, because it showed how large of a slice of the population had been helped by the team.

“About 2 per cent of the Tasmanian population has needed open heart surgery since we opened,” he said.

Dr Hardikar said Tasmania had the second highest rate of cardiovascular disease in the country, after the Northern Territory.

Although the 10,000 surgeries was a milestone, he said it would be preferable if the rate of need slowed because of preventive health measures.

“Although we want to commemorate the achievement, I would be happy if the need for so many surgeries diminished in the future,” he said.

He said improved diet and exercise were the keys to better heart health.

Dr Hardikar said the medical milestone could not have been achieved without the efforts of the entire team, including nurses, doctors and technicians.

“It’s been a team effort — everyone in our team is really strong,” he said.

The team will celebrate tonight at a function at the Grand Chancellor, attended by Health Minister Michael Ferguson.

The unit’s health outcomes are among the best in the country, with low rates of morbidity and mortality.

In 2015 the team made medical history when it performed the 1000th consecutive successful coronary artery bypass. It was understood to be the first time that any surgical unit in the world had avoided a death for the common yet risky procedure over so many operations.