2020 UAB Cardiovascular Institute Annual Report CVI Annual Report 2019-2020 6 | Page 46

UAB HOSPITAL OUTREACH
Located within UAB Hospital are the Cardiovascular Operating Room (CVOR), Heart and Vascular Center, and
intensive care and acute care nursing units, all of which are dedicated to the medical and surgical treatment of
patients with cardiovascular disease. The CVOR includes 8 operating suites equipped with the latest technology
available, including robotics, to support cardiothoracic surgery. Additionally, there is a hybrid operating room
that allows for minimally invasive valve replacement and endovascular therapies. The Heart and Vascular Center
includes 4 EP labs and 6 cath labs, offering advanced imaging technologies to support all types of interventional
cardiology and electrophysiology procedures. TELEHEALTH
The center of UAB’s clinical enterprise, UAB Hospital is located in Birmingham’s medical district. In the midst
of UAB’s major research centers and clinics, the 1,157-licensed-bed hospital is among the 20 largest and best-
equipped in the nation. We provide patients with a complete range of primary and specialty care services and
the most up-to-date treatments and innovations in health care. Here, patients receive tomorrow’s medicine today
for both routine and complex diagnoses. As a major center for clinical research, UAB Hospital may offer patients
treatments that are unavailable elsewhere in the area.
OUTPATIENT CLINICS
Opened in 1992, The Kirklin Clinic of UAB Hospital (TKC) on the main medical campus is a specially designed
“superclinic” for outpatient medical care. TKC is one of the busiest outpatient centers in America and is renowned
for providing the most advanced health care services that are both compassionate and convenient for our patients
and their families.
The Whitaker Clinic of UAB Hospital, located one block east of TKC, opened in 2017. Together, the two clinics
serve more than 2,000 patients per day.
With more than 250 exam rooms and many nationally ranked specialties, TKC and the Whitaker Clinic combine the
latest in clinical care with teaching and research. Our staff collaborates and communicates extensively with our
patients in order to deliver the ultimate patient experience and the highest quality of health services.
The UAB Cardiovascular Institute has expanded its reach across the state of Alabama through outreach efforts
to provide access to needed cardiovascular services in local communities. Currently, our faculty provide general
and interventional cardiology, cardiothoracic surgery, and vascular surgery services in Alexander City, Bessemer,
Cullman, Huntsville, Florence, Mobile, and Montgomery.
LOCATIONS
Using state-of-the-art telehealth technology, UAB eMedicine interacts directly with patients and works with
county health departments, hospitals, and medical centers throughout Alabama to provide health care services
that might otherwise be unavailable locally.
UAB eMedicine outpatient clinics allow patients to receive care close to home from UAB Medicine’s nationally
ranked specialists. Using telehealth technology, including secure videoconferencing and Bluetooth-enabled
stethoscopes, UAB Medicine providers can perform full physical exams and manage complex medical conditions
from a distance.
As a part of UAB Medicine’s expansion of telehealth services, UAB general cardiologists Gilbert Perry, MD, and
Greg Chapman, MD, will begin seeing patients remotely through a grant from The Daniel Foundation of Alabama.
The grant provides funding for a telehealth-equipped room at four health care facilities in rural counties in the
state.
UAB has also initiated a remote patient monitoring program for patients with congestive heart failure, with the
goal of improving patient care and proactively reducing readmissions. In this program, identified patients are
sent home with a blood pressure cuff and weight scale that transmits real-time data to a nurse practitioner. If
concerning values are transmitted, the patient is called, and care is coordinated by the patient’s provider.
Other cardiovascular initiatives ongoing or planned include the use of telehealth for cardio-oncology patients,
advanced heart failure services, and pre- and post-operative assessments for cardiovascular surgery patients.
Cardiology, Cardiovascular Surgery, and Vascular Surgery each has clinics located within TKC. In addition to our
TKC clinic locations, we offer additional outpatient services in the local community at TKC at Acton Road and at
our satellite locations in Gardendale and Hoover.
CLINICAL EXPANSION OUTREACH
• October 2010
– TKC, TKC at Acton Road
• November 2010
– Cullman
• June 2013
– Medical West
• September 2013
– PH Clinic in Huntsville
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UAB Cardiovascular Institute Annual Report
• January/February 2014
– ACHD Clinics
– Huntsville & Montgomery
• April 2014
– UAB Highlands
• April 2015
– Alexander City
• June 2018
– Florence
• January 2019
– Gardendale
• December 2019
– Hoover
• February 2018
– USA Telehealth
uabmedicine.org
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