Home continues to accept pacemaker clinic referrals
Monday, November 14, 2005 -- Natalie Miller
Seniors in Brighton who require regular pacemaker checks continue to access the free service offered by Maplewood long-term care home.

Director of care Deb Skeaff performs the 10-minute checkup in partnership with the Kingston General Hospital’s pacemaker clinic. The hospital approached Maplewood in 2001 about seeing a patient who had no means of transportation to Kingston and needed his pacemaker checked. Deb, who has experience monitoring the heartbeat-regulating devices, provided the service.

She sees about 12 people now either once a month or every three months.

“It’s still ongoing,” says Deb.

“We’re getting more and more referrals.”

Of the 12 patients, only one is a Maplewood resident. People are referred to the Brighton long-term care home by the hospital or their physician. Physicians in the Brighton community are aware of this service.

The actual pacemaker check takes about 10 minutes to perform. However, Deb also initiates a brief health questionnaire, asking people how they have been feeling and whether they are experiencing any chest discomfort.

The check involves placing an apparatus, which is wired to a microphone, under both underarms. Deb calls the Kingston hospital’s pacemaker clinic and places the microphone on the mouthpiece of the telephone. The device sends a high-pitched signal to an instrument at the clinic that determines if the pacemaker is operating at its optimum level, explains Deb. Following the procedure, she sends a report to the technician at the hospital.