PORTLAND, Ore. – The OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute and Edwards Lifesciences, the global leader in the science of heart valves and hemodynamic monitoring, today announced the launch of the Starr Educational Training Program, a technical training program that provides medical device engineers at Edwards with in-person clinical experiences, as well as a forum for cardiologists and engineers to discuss patient selection, obstacles and approaches to procedures. The program's first site visit to the Knight Cardiovascular Institute on January 7-8 included a specific emphasis on OHSU's comprehensive approach to treating patients with valvular heart disease.
The program is designed to provide engineers who are developing advanced medical technologies for the treatment of heart disease with access and insights into various facets of clinical care, including ambulatory clinic, multi-disciplinary case conference, operating meeting, procedural implantation and post-procedure care in the new cardiovascular intensive care unit (CVICU) established in 2014. The around-the-clock unit includes 26 beds and a specialized team of cardiologists and intensivists who are present in the unit 24 hours per day.
"The OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute is thrilled to help further educate Edwards Lifesciences engineers on the needs of the cardiovascular critical care provider, which will enhance the clinical efficacy of their designs by providing clinical insights early in the development process,” said Albert Starr, M.D., executive chairman of the OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute. "I know firsthand what a difference it makes when engineers and physicians work together on device design. I think Lowell Edwards would be pleased to know our teams are continuing to collaborate more than 50 years after he and I established our groundbreaking partnership.”
Dr. Albert Starr performed Oregon's first open-heart surgeries and performed the state's first heart transplant. He is best known internationally for co-inventing and implanting the world's first artificial human heart valve in 1960. His innovation with engineer Lowell Edwards changed the landscape of treatment available to valvular heart disease patients, giving rise to an entirely new industry for heart valve replacement products and also the Edwards Lifesciences Corporation.
"Edwards' ability to introduce life-changing and life-saving devices to patients all around the world has been driven by our close collaborations with clinical and research leaders like Dr. Starr,” said Stanton J. Rowe, corporate vice president, advanced technology, and chief scientific officer at Edwards Lifesciences. "Through this educational collaboration with the OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute, Edwards is embarking for the first time on a structured program that enables our engineers who are developing future technologies to interact with clinicians providing care to heart patients. More importantly, Edwards engineers can use a deeper appreciation of clinical and patient needs to create new designs to benefit patients.”
The Starr Educational Training Program is inspired by the famous partnership between Albert Starr and Lowell Edwards that forever changed the course of cardiovascular history.
For more information contact Kate Natoli at 503 494-8773 or [email protected]
ABOUT THE OHSU KNIGHT CARDIOVASCULAR INSTITUTE
The OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute is an integrated center of translational research, clinical care, education and disease prevention. The institute is dedicated to becoming the world's best at translating research into clinical innovations that benefit patients by attacking heart disease from every angle, before conception and throughout a person's lifetime. The OHSU Knight Cardiovascular Institute was established through a visionary $125 million philanthropic investment from Nike co-founder and chairman Phil Knight and his wife, Penny. It is the largest gift ever recorded to advance cardiovascular health in the United States.
ABOUT OHSU
Oregon Health & Science University is the state's only public academic health and research university. As one of Oregon's largest employers with more than 14,000 employees, OHSU's size contributes to its ability to provide many services and community support not found anywhere else in the state. OHSU serves patients from every corner of Oregon and is a conduit for learning for more than 4,400 students and trainees. OHSU is the source of more than 200 community outreach programs that bring health and education services to each county in the state.
