Cardiology Services
Our Cardiology Service, led by a team of highly skilled Cardiologists, Allied Health Professionals and Nursing Staff, focused on delivering exceptional care to our patients, with 5 day access to our high tech cardiac catheterisation lab. Our Cardiology Service now offers a state of the art Rapid Access Chest Pain Clinic.
Our Team
The Cardiology team comprises of the following staff-
4 Consultant Cardiologists
- Dr Louis Keary
- Dr Samer Arnous
- Dr Kamal Abdalla
- Dr Yvonne Smyth
- Dr Haytham Makki
1 Chief Cardiac Physiologist
4 Senior Grade Cardiac Physiologists
1 Clinical Nurse Manager
8 Nurses experienced in Cardiac Care
1 Cardiology Nurse Specialist
1 Clinical Specialist Radiographer, supported by Radiology
Department Location
The Cardiology department is located on the ground floor of the hospital, adjacent to the Cardiac Catheterisation Laboratory.
Services Offered
Our Cardiology Service incorporates the following departments
-Rapid Access Chest Pain Clinic
Cardiac Diagnostics
-Cardiac Cath Lab
-Cardiac Rehab Service
Rapid Access Chest Pain Clinic (RACPC)
Our new Rapid Access Chest Pain Clinic is available to patients experiencing recent onset chest pain or acute chest pain requiring investigation. This is a consultant led, GP referred service, available Monday-Friday, during office hours.
Patients can be seen on the day of referral with direct admission from the clinic offered post triage, if deemed necessary.
Patients are triaged upon arrival where referral letter is reviewed, full history is taken and a full chest pain assessment is carried out by our consultant cardiologist. Patients will then have relevant bloods taken and an ECG will be carried out.
Further inpatient follow-up will be carried out by our consultant cardiologist and our Cardiology Nurse Specialist.
Referrals for this service can be sent via email to TMAU@bonsecours.ie or the department can be contacted on 066 7145999
Cardiac Diagnostics Department
Our Cardiac Diagnostics department is staffed with a full compliment of highly skilled Cardiac Physiologists, led by our Chief Cardiac Physiologist.
We aim to provide an efficient and effective Diagnostic Service, for both inpatients and outpatients and in a manner that reflects the values of Bon Secours.
We aim to treat our patients in a caring environment using the skills and whole-hearted commitment of our staff, in keeping with the Bon Secours tradition.
At all times we recognise the dignity and uniqueness of each individual person in our care.
We regularly provide the following tests in our Cardiac Diagnostic Department:
- ECG recording and interpretation
- Holter, Blood Pressure, Event monitoring and reporting
- Exercise Stress Testing and reporting
- Adult and Paediatric Trans-Thoracic Echocardiography
- Tilt Table Testing
- Trans-Oesophageal Echocardiography
- Dobutamine Stress Echocardiography.
- Contrast Echocardiography
- Pacemaker, Implantable Defibrillator and Loop Recorder follow-up
Cardiac Diagnostics Opening Times:
Monday-Friday 8.00am-6.00pm
Cardiac Diagnostics Department Contact:
066 7164505
Cath Lab
Our Cardiac Catheterisation Laboratory has been well established for almost a decade and is currently staffed with a full compliment of clinical and Allied Healthcare professionals, comprising
-2 Consultant Cardiologists
-Specialist Nursing Staff
-Clinical Specialist Radiographer
-Cardiac Physiologists
We regularly carry out the following invasive/minimally invasive Cardiac Procedures in our Cardiac Catheterisation Laboratory:
Left and right heart cardiac catheterisation, including left ventricular angiography/aortic angiography.
- Percutaneous Coronary Angioplasty
- Fractional Flow Reserve
- IABP Therapy
- Loop Monitor Implantation/Removal
- Pacemaker Implantation
- AICD Implantation
- Cardiac Resynchronisation Device implantation (CRT)
- Renal Angiography/Angioplasty
Cardiac Cath Lab Opening Times:
Services are provided during normal working hours
7.30am – 6.00pm, Monday to Friday.
Cardiac Cath Lab Telephone Contact:
Phone: 066 714 9800
Fax: 066 7149853
Cardiac Rehabilitation Service
Cardiac Rehabilitation (CR) is now well established as an important part of care in the cardiac patient both nationally and internationally. Several studies have demonstrated that CR is a cost effective intervention associated with improvements in quality of life, functional capacity, reduced mortality and morbidity in addition to psychosocial benefits.
Our Cardiac rehabilitation Nurse Specialist coordinates the cardiac rehabilitation education and exercise programmes within our Cardiology Department. Our CNS during their hospital stays following a heart attack (Myocardial Infarction - MI) or following cardiac interventions such as Angioplasty and stents.
CR is divided into four phases nationally. Patients are seen following a diagnosis of MI’s, heart failure or arrhythmias, cardiac procedures such as pacemakers, angiography, angioplasty and stenting.
Phase I
Phase I is the inpatient hospital stay and begins once the patient is clinically stable. During this time the CR nurse will meet with patients and or Family in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and on the wards.
The aims are to:
Provide support and advice to the patient and family about heart disease.
Risk factor assessments and advice on lifestyle changes such as diet, exercise and medication management.
Assist the patient to follow their home based walking program.
To act as a support and resource link to the patient and family
Phase II
Phase II is the period following patient discharge and is a time when some patients can feel vulnerable. During this time the CR nurse can telephone the patient over the six week period to assist with any queries or worries the patient may have.
PHASE III
Phase III is a structured education and exercise programme. The education programme is run Thursday mornings from 11:00-13:00. Each patient is advised on the dates for the programme, which is delivered by the multidisciplinary team consisting of the CR Nurse, Dietician, Physiotherapist and Pharmacist. The structured exercise programme is performed by the CR nurse and Physiotherapist on a Monday and Wednesday at 4pm. An exercise stress test or shuttle walk test is carried prior to and following a six week programme.
Cardiac Rehab Contact Details
066 71 49862 alternatively contact main reception 066 71 49800 ask for bleep 41.
Email address mflynn@bonsecours.ie
Cardiology Service Direct Email: TCardiology@bonsecours.ie
Dr. Samer Arnous
Consultant General & Interventional Cardiologist
Biography
Dr Samer Arnous is a Consultant Cardiologist in Bon Secours Hospital Tralee, University Hospital Limerick and Blackrock Clinic Dublin. He graduated from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (MB BcH BAO) in 2001. Following cardiology specialist training in Ireland, he did 2 years of research with University College London, followed by subspecialised intervention training in the UK and structural heart intervention in Copenhagen, Denmark. He also worked as a Consultant Cardiologist in Manchester.
Areas of Interest
His clinical areas of interest include complex coronary and Structural Heart Interventions. His academic interests include stem cell research in dilated and ischaemic cardiomyopathy in which he was awarded MD thesis from University College London. He has a number of publications in peer reviewed journals and book chapters in coronary and structural interventions, inherited cardiomyopathies and stem cell therapy.
Dr. Louis Keary
Consultant Cardiologist
Biography
Dr Louis Keary has been with us as a Consultant Cardiologist in the Bon Secours Hospital Tralee for over a decade. Dr Keary graduated from the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland in 1995 before completing his specialist training in well renowned hospitals throughout Ireland. Dr Keary was a Renal Dialysis/ Transplant Registrar for two years in 1998 and 1999 before completing the SPR training scheme in Beaumont Hospital Dublin and the University Hospital Galway.
Dr Keary obtained his research MD at the Royal College of Physicians and completed a two year Interventional Fellowship at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, Australia. During this Fellowship, Dr Keary gained extensive experience in coronary angioplasties including complex interventions, intra-vascular ultrasound and rotablation. Dr Keary has participated in numerous publications, major research studies and presentations; which includes presenting for the Irish Cardiac Society and the Asia-Pacific Interventional Advances Conference in Australia.
Specialist Interest:
Dr Keary has a specialist interest in all aspects of cardiology; including comprehensive experience in non-invasive cardiac evaluation. Dr Keary’s areas of areas of expertise include complex interventional cardiology, implantible devices and the management of heart failure.
Publications:
Antihypertensive Treatment Based on Blood Pressure Measurement at Home or in the Physicians Office. Stassen JA, Den Hond E, Celis H, Fagard R, Keary L, Vandenhoven G, O’Brien E JAMA 25/3/04
Terminal Digit Preference and Heaping in Office Blood Pressure Measurement
Keary L , Atkins N, O’Brien E
Hypertension 9, 1998 ;241-2
Drug Treatment of Hypertension (Article)
Irish Medical News March 2001
Dr Haytham Makki
Consultant Cardiologist
Biography
Dr Makki first came to Ireland in 2010 and subsequently qualified for the SPR Training Programme in July 2012. Thereafter and as part of his SPR Training, he rotated through University Hospital Galway, St Vincent’s University Hospital and St James’s University Hospital.
Dr Makki then completed an Interventional Cardiology Fellowship in the Manchester Royal Infirmary completing this in December 2018.
Dr Makki has extensive experience in Coronary Interventions, ECHO, Heart Failure and
assessment of patients with severe aortic stenosis.
Qualifications
MBBS MRCPI MEAPCIContact Details
- Dr Haytham Makki
- Suite 9, The Kerry Clinic, Bon Secours Hospital Tralee
- Tel: 066 714 9871
- Fax: 066 716 4575
- Email: hmakki@bonsecours.ie
Dr Yvonne Smyth
Biography
Dr Yvonne Smyth MB FRCPI MA graduated from NUIG in 1997. She completed her internship and General Professional Training in University Hospital Galway. Thereafter she worked in Beaumont, Tallaght and Cork and Galway University Hospitals as part of the Cardiology Specialist Registrar training program. She was enrolled in the specialist division of the medical registrar in both Cardiology and General Internal Medicine in 2007.
Her particular areas of interest include prevention, implantable cardiac devices and cardiovascular imaging and heart failure. She undertook a subspecialty fellowship in Cardiovascular Imaging in the Cleveland Clinic USA and achieved level III board certification from the American Society of Echocardiography in 2008 and 2018.
In 2008, Dr Smyth was appointed as a Consultant Cardiologist in Bon Secours and Kerry General Hospital Tralee. In 2013, she took up a joint Cardiology/Acute Medicine consultant post in University Hospital Galway and commenced work in Bon Secours Hospital Galway. In 2015 she became Co-Lead for the National Acute Medicine Programme. She has a MA in Healthcare Management, Diploma in Clinical Education and is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland.
Contact Details
- Dr Yvonne Smyth
- Suite 15, Kerry Clinic, Bon Secours Hospital Tralee
- Tel: 066 7164582
- Fax: 066 7164562
- Email: Ysmyth@bonsecours.ie
