Heart and Vascular Center
The HVU is a 48-bed, combined progressive care and telemetry medical/surgical cardiac care unit. The 48-bed HVU is comprised of 3 wings in our new patient pavilion. Each wing has 16 acuity adaptable beds, with state-of-the-art technology, including digital whiteboards, my chart bedside iPads for patients, and the ability to connect with our telehealth unit for extra nursing support. One of our wings, L4WA is dedicated to our progressive cardiac care patients. We also have a 12-bed combined cardiac surgery and cardiology critical care unit (CVCC).
We are a rapidly growing cardiovascular medicine and cardiac surgical team that cares for a wide variety of patients with underlying cardiac issues. We perform well over 600 open-heart cases a year and have the best outcomes for myocardial infarctions in all of New England. We have a very dynamic team that prides itself in teamwork and collaboration. We are supportive of nurses at all levels and have created a Heart and Vascular-specific orientation to help support nurses in gaining the skill set to be successful in the progressive care and critical care cardiac environment. We provide interdisciplinary care to each of our patients. The nurse that will be successful working on HVU & CVCC is one that possess strong interpersonal skills, has a desire to continuously learn, and thrives working in a fast paced, challenging environment.
Heart and Vascular Unit
The cardiac nurses of the Heart & Vascular Center at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center provide expert, coordinated care for diseases of the heart and blood vessels, including abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, aortic valve surgery, heart attack, heart bypass surgery, and heart failure. Our cohesive and dynamic cardiac teams of nurses, providers, techs, and support staff will be one of the first clinical areas to practice in our new Pavilion.
Our New Patient Pavilion:
The new Patient Pavilion at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH opened in 2023, adding 64 additional single-patient rooms to our unique medical center. This beautiful Pavilion was built to be flexible and is adding 64 more rooms to meet our capacity needs. The 212,000-square-foot, five-story expansion helps address the increasing needs of various levels of acuity patients from around the region who require specialty and sub-specialty care to be cared for all in one place. Our nurses played an integral role in inspiring the design of the Patient Pavilion. Their insight and perspective have been applied to many elements of the space, such as a new education center, employee respite rooms, technology, and the overall layout.
In addition to a beautiful new hospital entrance, its opening will set in motion a series of moves, renovations, and technology enhancements, which will upgrade existing patient care units to our new standard. This state-of-the-art facility represents the next phase in Dartmouth Health’s evolution of patient- and family-centered care while enhancing collaboration across care teams and supporting the needs of our staff.
