Ramsay Newsroom

Cardiothoracic Surgeon, Dr James, said he was proud the team from Lake Macquarie Private had been able to help thousands of Hunter locals with potentially life-saving heart surgeries. 

“It’s a privilege to be able to help people in this way,” Dr James said. 

“I love to see people get through really complex operations and have improved quality of life and length of life.” 

Dr James said Lake Macquarie Private Hospital was lucky to have an experienced, dedicated team working in the cardiothoracic specialty including Dr Mejia and Dr Singh, as well as the nurses, anaesthetists and support staff. 

“I love being part of a strong, supportive team,” he said. 

“Some of the people I work with were juniors when I started at the hospital in the 1990s and are still working with us after all those years.

“The continuity among theatre, ICU, the ward is excellent which gives a great patient experience.” 

One thing that has changed however, are the types of surgeries the team has been able to offer to patients in the Hunter Region. 

“We do a much greater complexity of cases now. When the unit first started we did primarily bypass surgery. Now we do a lot of valve surgeries including valve repairs and aortic surgery, complex re-do heart surgery and in addition to our heart surgery, a large amount of thoracic surgery. 

Ahead of World Heart Day, celebrated annually on September 29, Dr James is urging everyone to be mindful of risk factors to protect their heart health. 

“Don’t smoke, control your blood pressure, manage any diabetes, have your cholesterol checked regularly, live a healthy life and make sure your local doctor intervenes if any of those risk factors come into your life.”