title: The case for a specialist multidisciplinary valve clinic.
abstract: Valve disease is common and is increasing in prevalence as the population ages. The delivery of appropriate management is not always straightforward, and better ways of organizing care are required. Here, the argument is made for a specialist multidisciplinary valve clinic, while a description is provided of the authors' model clinic, which incorporates a specialist cardiologist in addition to sonographers and a nurse who carry out the surveillance services. The clinic is based at a cardiothoracic center and one district hospital, but could be generalized. Previous audits have shown that this model can reduce the number of patients seen by a cardiologist, thus improving the safety and quality of treatment compared to conventional clinics.
authors.affiliation: Cardiothoracic Centre, Guy's Hospital, London, UK. john.chambers@gstt.nhs.uk
authors.forename: John B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lloyd
authors.forename: Helen M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Rimington
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Parkin
authors.forename: Anna M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: Gemma
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Baldrock-Apps
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Topham
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000379:methods; D019468:Disease Management; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D017146:Models, Organizational; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000592:standards; D015995:Prevalence; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013038:Specialization / Q000592:standards*