On a July morning, a group of youngsters accompanied by adult chaperones watched intently as Dr. Patroklos Pappas used a cauterizing scalpel to open the chest of a 72-year-old woman in preparation for quadruple heart bypass surgery at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn.
They watched as he made long incisions in both of her legs to harvest veins; his choices were slim since the woman has varicose veins and some already were lost to a previous procedure. Still, the team managed to locate four to do the job.
The observation area was quiet at first as Pappas and six other staff members–including one physician’s assistant, one circulating nurse, two scrub nurses, one anesthesiologist, and one perfusionist (who operated the heart-lung machine)–navigated the stages of the approximately 70-minute coronary bypass surgery. Throughout the procedure, the observers were free to ask questions of the surgeon.
“I now know why people end up under the knife. I’ve been trying to avoid it myself,” said audience member Jerry Kammeyer of Oak Park, a member of Pilgrim Congregational Church of Oak Park. “In spite of the fact, I have carrot cake. I’m not deluding myself that the carrots cancel out the fat in the cake.”
Kammeyer’s education takes place not in an operating theater above the patient’s open chest but 12 miles away, in an educational screening room at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
Kammeyer works with young people at his church and hopes to share lessons learned from the broadcast to sway them from high-risk factors, such as smoking.
Aiming for prevention
That’s one of the missions of “Live … From the Heart,” a 10-month, weekly broadcast of open-heart surgeries taking place at Advocate Christ and available for viewing at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
The broadcast primarily targets 6th through 12th graders from Chicago-area middle schools and high schools. Some summer sessions are held for youth health ministries and other groups.
It is one of three such partnerships in the country: Liberty Science Center in Jersey City and Morristown Memorial Hospital were the first with 1997’s “Cardiac Classroom.” The Center of Science and Industry (COSI) and Mt. Carmel West Hospital, both in Columbus, Ohio, launched “Surgical Suite: Open Heart” in 2000.”
The purpose of the programs is two-fold. The first is to reverse the large number of Americans suffering from heart disease by persuading young people to choose healthier lifestyles, free of fatty foods, cigarette addiction and sedentary routines.
Cardiovascular diseases affect 64.4 million Americans, according to the American Heart Association, and in 2001, they claimed 931,108 lives. A study of cardiovascular diseases over a 10-year period, from 1991 to 2001, showed small decreases in incidences of the disease; supporters of “Live … From the Heart” are targeting youth to accelerate those declines.
Lauren Yeske, 13, an Oak Park resident and another member of Pilgrim Congregational Church, said after watching the broadcast that she doesn’t think her lifestyle is high-risk.
“I do like greasy foods once in a while. But I exercise just about every day,” said Yeske, a gymnast who works out five days a week in four-hour sessions.
But Erneal Brewer, a 74-year-old Burbank resident who had a quadruple bypass at Advocate Christ in late July, suggested that everyone make complete physicals an annual habit, even those who see themselves as active and at low risk for cardiovascular trouble.
“I was in fine health as far as I had known,” said Brewer, who said he had no symptoms of heart trouble until he became dizzy after mowing his church’s lawn. Brewer is one of two surviving brothers; five others died of complications from heart disease.
Advocate Christ’s policy guarantees anonymity for the “stars” of “Live … From the Heart,” but Brewer could attest to the bypass surgery experience. He said he has no recollection of the procedure itself, but afterward “it felt like I got hit by a truck.”
Released a week after surgery, he is recuperating at home.
“In an age of reality television, I can’t think of a better way to educate [young people],” said Nancy Mabbott, community health and wellness coordinator at Advocate Christ. “Our goal is to take care of things on the front end by teaching future generations how to lower their risks for heart disease.”
Distance learning
Since February 2003, about 4,000 students have viewed the broadcast at the museum, a number that doesn’t include special summer sessions, Mabbott said. Local participating schools include Andrew High School in Tinley Park, Eisenhower High School in Blue Island, Evergreen Park Community High School, Oak Forest High School, Richards High School in Oak Lawn, Sandburg High School in Orland Park, Stagg High School in Palos Hills and Tinley Park High School.
Broadcasts occur every Wednesday morning from September through June. Up to 35 students can attend the videoconference in the museum’s high-tech suite. In addition, a maximum of two remote audiences per week can access the broadcasts.
The participation fee per class is $240 for all schools except Chicago Public Schools, which pay a discounted fee of $180. These costs cover a seven-lesson program, including pre- and post-videoconference materials and the broadcast. The last assignment encourages participants to create some sort of outreach to other students. Yeske said she might design a brochure to share what she learned.
Participants also are encouraged to ask medical staff about the educational requirements for various health professions, which is the second purpose of “Live … From the Heart.”
Studies done by the Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council show health-care professions growing in greater numbers than there are qualified candidates to fill them.
“You want young bright people to be interested. … But when you’re on the front pages for being sued by former patients and the rising costs of malpractice insurance … people are turned off by health care. It’s too big a risk,” said Dr. Mark Slaughter, another participating “Live … From the Heart” surgeon.
“[Still], it’s the greatest job in the world,” he said. “You get to help people, improve their quality of life and give them extra years that they wouldn’t have otherwise.”
Korissa Suevel, 17, a member of Park Ridge Community Church, attended the mid-July screening because she wants to become a doctor. The recent high school graduate is planning to major in theology and was glad to hear Pappas encourage young people to choose an undergraduate major of interest; he confirmed a science major is not required.
Hospital fit the bill
“Live … From the Heart” is the result of a partnership between Advocate, the parent company of Christ Medical Center, and the museum. About three years ago, the museum asked Chicago-area hospitals to submit proposals to participate in an interactive health educational program focusing on heart care. Advocate Christ was selected from about seven other contenders.
“Advocate had a strong commitment to educating the community and they were interested in a community-outreach mission that educated people, especially youth, on ways to avoid heart disease and the consequences if you do not. [The museum’s mission] is to inspire the inventive genius in everyone,” said Sarah Tschaen, the museum’s senior education coordinator. Tschaen moderates the broadcast in the classroom while a circulating nurse at Christ handles introductions of the surgical team and gives students an overview of the surgery.
Tschaen added that the museum also needed a partner that could handle a large volume of surgeries for a 10-month weekly broadcast, and Advocate Christ Medical Center fit the bill. The hospital hosted 1,121 adult and 392 pediatric cardiovascular surgeries last year.
Though there are many types of heart surgeries, Slaughter said “Live … From the Heart” features bypasses because the procedures are performed on the heart’s surface, making viewing easier.
Advocate Christ pays an annual sponsorship of about $120,000 for the program. This amount and fees cover a portion of annual operations, Tschaen said.
Startup costs, in excess of $1 million, were covered by a $693,750 grant from the U.S. Department of Education, an Advocate investment of about $270,000 and additional funds from Ameritech and the museum, Tschaen said.
“Live … From the Heart” broadcasts in the museum suite are already booked for the 2004-05 school year, according to Mabbott, but schools still can apply for remote videoconferences. For more information, log onto www.livefromtheheart.org.
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Museum exhibit focuses on women’s health
According to the American Heart Association, women are more likely to suffer heart problems than men. The Museum of Science and Industry’s current exhibit, the Changing Face of Women’s Health, features visuals, video, art and interactive exhibits to demonstrate the progress of women’s health over the last 50 years. For more information on this national touring exhibit, which runs through Nov. 30, and future exhibits or programs, log onto www.msichicago.org.
Museum hours: 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Free admission days remaining in 2004: Sept. 27, 28; Oct. 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 25, 26; Nov. 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23, 25 (Thanksgiving Day), 29, 30; and Dec. 24.
Admission: adults $9 ($8 for Chicago residents), senior citizens $7.50 ($6.75 for Chicago residents), children 3-11 $5 ($4.25 for Chicago residents).
— Tina Jenkins Bell
