Patient Experience
Our clinicians are focused on patient-centered care, care that is tailored specifically to the needs of each patient. To this end, our team not only uses the latest technology but also studies and adapts new technologies for the best use in the care of individual patients.
Our goal is to help you make the best decision regarding your surgical care and to ensure that you have the best patient experience possible.
Our goal is to help you make the best decision regarding your surgical care and to ensure that you have the best patient experience possible.
Collaborative care for patients with aortic disease
Jean Bacarella says her 78-year-old mother is alive today because of the skill of vascular surgeon Ross Milner, MD. Milner repaired Betty McGuire’s abdominal aortic aneurysm in a complicated, 8-hour surgery in December 2011. Mother and daughter were so impressed with Milner’s expertise and bedside manner that the Elk Grove Village, Ill., matriarch chose to follow him when he took a new position at the University of Chicago Medicine.
“No one showed the care and compassion for our whole family that Dr. Milner did,” Bacarella said.
Not only that, but “he had endless patience for my endless questions,” she said.
Milner and cardiac surgeon Mark Russo, MD, MSc, are co-directors of the University of Chicago Medicine Center aortic diseases program. The team includes experts from several specialties — vascular and cardiac surgery, general and interventional radiology, anesthesia, imaging and nursing — working collaboratively to treat patients with these complex conditions.
“We feel we offer something very unique in the whole Midwest,” Milner said. Th e center treats a variety of aortic conditions, including aneurysms, dissections and congenital aortic disease, such as Marfan syndrome. In February, the University of Chicago Medicine was the first hospital in Chicago to perform a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) outside of a clinical trial setting.
This nonsurgical treatment for severe aortic stenosis “clearly has been shown to provide improved survival and better quality of life for patients who are poor candidates for surgery and for whom no options previously existed,” Russo said.
Patients often are unsure whether they should see a vascular or cardiac surgeon. Milner and Russo offer a combined aortic clinic on Tuesdays. “A patient can make an appointment with either physician, and we will ensure that they see the appropriate physician during their visit,” Milner said.
“No one showed the care and compassion for our whole family that Dr. Milner did,” Bacarella said.
Not only that, but “he had endless patience for my endless questions,” she said.
Milner and cardiac surgeon Mark Russo, MD, MSc, are co-directors of the University of Chicago Medicine Center aortic diseases program. The team includes experts from several specialties — vascular and cardiac surgery, general and interventional radiology, anesthesia, imaging and nursing — working collaboratively to treat patients with these complex conditions.
“We feel we offer something very unique in the whole Midwest,” Milner said. Th e center treats a variety of aortic conditions, including aneurysms, dissections and congenital aortic disease, such as Marfan syndrome. In February, the University of Chicago Medicine was the first hospital in Chicago to perform a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) outside of a clinical trial setting.
This nonsurgical treatment for severe aortic stenosis “clearly has been shown to provide improved survival and better quality of life for patients who are poor candidates for surgery and for whom no options previously existed,” Russo said.
Patients often are unsure whether they should see a vascular or cardiac surgeon. Milner and Russo offer a combined aortic clinic on Tuesdays. “A patient can make an appointment with either physician, and we will ensure that they see the appropriate physician during their visit,” Milner said.
Testimonials from TAVR/TAVI patients
- “I feel so much better than I have in a long, long time. I have more energy and can breathe so much better. My wife and the family tell me I more alert and that I finally have some color back to my face”
- “I had a lot of shortness of breath before. Now I can walk and talk without any problems. Before, I could not carry my groceries into the house without stopping and taking a rest. Everyone is telling me how good my color is.”
- “I was at home when I felt my heart palpitating more than usual. I had a hard time breathing and they couldn’t control my heart rate. My doctors transferred me to University of Chicago because no other hospital by me could do the procedure. I felt better the next day and no longer have a hard time breathing. My thanks to all who have helped me.”
- "You know, that up until a few months ago, I had just about lost hope. Even my doctors were saying was that my lungs were responsible for my feeling so bad. It just seems incomprehensible now to me that they had overlooked my heart. They heard the murmur of course, but it was never looked at very close. I am quite sure that it has been the major problem for probably the last 3-5 years or so. Not that the treatment would have been different, as TAVR was not available then, and no way would I have rushed to have open heart surgery. I am actually doing quite well!... I do feel much better. Even my pulmonologist said that I look much better. My skin is actually pink as opposed to gray!! Thank you so much for all you, and the staff there have done. I do appreciate it so much. I know there are risks that I still face, but I am hopeful that things will go well. I will certainly do what I can, to make this work. Thanks."
