The Myocarditis Foundation is conducting an Education Initiative for Community Nurses in 2018, through the assistance of an Education and Awareness Grant provided by Abbott. The program targets Community Nurses, specifically Emergency Room Nurses and Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, who collectively account for a large number of nurses who come into contact with patients potentially exhibiting symptoms of early Myocarditis. These programs should make a substantial contribution to the community as a whole. It is known that the earlier that myocarditis is diagnosed the better the outcome for the patient.
This education will be shared with Nurses across the country via the Annual Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Conference, at an Emergency Room Nurse Conference, and with Emergency Room Nurses who work at 250 Hospital Emergency Rooms across the U.S.A.
Dr. Jack Price, Myocarditis Foundation board member, is a pediatric cardiologist at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, TX and an expert in pediatric heart failure and critical heart disease. Dr. Price and Genevieve Rumore, RN, BSN the Myocarditis Foundation’s Executive Director, who is a long time Critical Care/Emergency Room Nurse, have worked to together to create program materials. Included is a laminated handout on “What is Myocarditis”, “Statistics on Myocarditis”, and how to potentially “Diagnose Myocarditis” it in its early stages, where the symptoms mimic other more common viral diseases. It is all too often that early Myocarditis is misdiagnosed as one of these more common viral syndromes and that can be devastating to the patient. These handouts will be given to over 1800 Pediatric Nurse Practitioners attending their annual conference in March 2018.
Emergency Room Nurses will be screened for their knowledge of Myocarditis with a Pre-Test on the disease. After they complete the Pre-Test, Myocarditis Education will be provided. A Post-Test, will then be completed which will be sent back to the Foundation along with the Pre-Tests. This is to evaluate the need for and the effectiveness of the educational information provided. A Certificate of Education on Myocarditis will be provided to the participants.
The Executive Director will be present at a regional Emergency Nurses Association Conference providing education on Myocarditis and the Myocarditis Foundation.
It is our belief that through the education of these nurses, (an estimated 8,000 of them), we will also have had access to educating the physicians with whom these nurses work side by side with. Our hope is to improve earlier diagnosis of the disease, and thus improved outcomes for the patients.
Once again, we deeply thank Abbott for their belief in the Myocarditis Foundation and their support in helping us to provide this educational offering to a great number of front line caregivers of Myocarditis patients.
