The Heart Course - Enduring (CCME Participants)
Cardiovascular emergencies must be recognized immediately and treated appropriately to prevent life-threatening consequence. Sometimes only seconds matter to save a life. The skills, tools, and resources to respond to these emergencies are rapidly evolving. The Heart Course provides an opportunity for frontline providers of emergency cardiology to learn, discuss, and apply emerging data, new guidelines, and optimal treatment strategies for the management of cardiac and vascular emergencies.
Target Audience
The Heart Course is intended for physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and advanced practice professionals that provide care to patients with acute cardiovascular problems.
Learning Objectives
1. Discuss chest pain risk stratification by exploring the ins and outs of the Heart Score
2. Identify the evidence-based strategies for the management of patients with acute coronary syndrome (STEMI, and UA/ NSTEMI), atrial fibrillation, heart failure, transient ischemic attack (TIA), stroke, and cerebral hemorrhage
3. Describe the mechanisms of action and optimal evidence-based use of new and emerging cardiovascular medications, including new oral anticoagulants (NOAC) therapy and reversal agents
4. Demonstrate state-of-the-art resuscitation strategies for patients presenting with cardiovascular emergencies
5. Evaluate and initiate appropriate treatment strategies for high-risk, high-threat electrocardiography (ECG) findings and unusual dysrhythmias
6. Discuss the emerging data on current and novel biomarkers in the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of cardiovascular disease
7. Identify optimal antiplatelet and anticoagulant management strategies for patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), atrial fibrillation (AF), venous thromboembolism (VTE), and stroke
8. Determine evidence-based best practices in the management of device-related emergencies in patients with cardiac disease, including ventricular assist devices (VADs), pacemakers, and implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs)
Amal Mattu, MD, FACEP completed an emergency medicine residency at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, after which he completed a teaching fellowship with a special focus on emergency cardiology. Since joining the faculty at the University of Maryland in 1996, he has developed an academic niche in emergency cardiology and electrocardiography, and he also enjoys teaching and writing about other topics such as emergency geriatrics, faculty development, and risk management. He currently is a tenured professor and Vice Chair of Emergency Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
Dr. Megan Fix, MD, FACEP is an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine. She serves as the Vice Chair of Education for emergency medicine as well as the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs for the medical school. In addition to her academic positions, Dr. Fix is heavily involved in medical education on multiple levels. Dr. Fix has received several awards of recognition, including the “2020 ACEP National Emergency Medicine Faculty Teaching Award”.
Laura J. Bontempo, MD, Med, FACEP, FAAEM is an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. She received her medical degree from Northwestern University in 1994 and subsequently completed an emergency medicine residency at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. She spent 5 years at Harvard University as the Associate Emergency Medicine Program Director and then was recruited to Yale University to become the Emergency Medicine Program Director, a position she held for 7 years. Dr. Bontempo completed a Master of Education degree with a concentration in health professional education at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She has received teaching awards in emergency medicine from Harvard, Yale and Northwestern Universities and the University of Maryland as well as from the American Academy of Emergency Medicine. Dr. Bontempo is published in multiple emergency medicine textbooks and journals and has lectured nationally in the areas of cardiology and otolaryngology.
Peter S. Pang MD, MS, FACEP, FAHA, FACC serves as Rolly McGrath Professor and Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He also practices as a Staff Physician at Methodist and Eskenazi Hospitals (Indianapolis, USA). His primary research interest is acute heart failure, with over 160 peer-reviewed publications. He completed his training at the Brigham & Womans / Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Affiliated Emergency Medicine Residency after graduating from the University of Texas – San Antonio. After 10 years at Northwestern, where he served as Associate Chief and Director of Experimental Therapeutics, he moved to Indiana University in 2014 to further his research career. He was successfully awarded an R01 from AHRQ and an R34 from the NHLBI. He became Chair in October of 2020.
Sujit Iyer, MD is the USACS National Director of Pediatric Services. He also is an assistant medical director for Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas where he practices as an emergency physician and is an associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics. He is also the program director of the Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship. He has served as a clinical instructor for the Departments of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and University of Pennsylvania.
Amer Aldeen, MD, FACEP is chief medical officer (CMO) of USACS, responsible for education, safety, quality, innovation, risk management, recruiting, research, clinician engagement, and patient experience. He also serves as chair of the Clinician Assurance Risk Retention Group (CARRG) Board. Dr. Aldeen joined USACS in 2014 from Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago where he had been associate medical director and associate residency director of emergency medicine.
Bart Besinger, MD is an Associate Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine and has been a full-time clinician-educator at Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, IN for over 20 years. He is a 1997 graduate of the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. He completed residency training in emergency medicine at Indiana University/Methodist Hospital in 2000. His interests include undergraduate medical student education and emergency medicine faculty development.
Jestin Carlson, MD is the National Director of Clinical Education for USACS. He also is the Program Director for the Saint Vincent Emergency Medicine Residency and vice-chair of the Allegheny Health Network Institutional Review Board.
Dr. Carlson has a focus on resuscitation research and education with more than 150 manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals. He sits on the international liaison committee on resuscitation/American Heart Association First Aid Task Force and the American Red Cross Scientific Advisory committee. He earned his medical degree at State University of New York at Buffalo, completed his emergency medicine residency and a research fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh, and Master of Healthcare Administration from Gannon University
John Bedolla, MD is an internationally recognized and licensed expert in catastrophic risk prediction and prevention. At US Acute Care Solutions, he is the Chief Decision Scientist and Director of Risk, overseeing 10 million ED visits annually. At Dell Medical School, Dr. Bedolla specializes in designing and implementing advanced decision-making strategies. He is also a Chief Medical Officer for Formula 1 and the founder of an elite motorsports medical internship.
The Center for Emergency Medical Education (CEME) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
The Center for Emergency Medical Education (CEME) designates this enduring activity for a maximum of 12.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.
Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Available Credit
- 12.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™
- 12.75 AOA Category 2A
- 12.75 Certificate of Participation