Support the EP Lab

Just imagine. You know the specialized equipment you are working with is reaching its end of life, yet each and every day, anxious patients with life-threatening heart conditions are relying on your help. This time, I need your help.

My name is Dr. Chris Pekrul, a Cardiologist and Cardiac Electrophysiologist at RUH. My colleagues and I diagnose and treat hundreds of patients with severe and life-threatening heart rhythm problems created when the heart’s electrical signals that tell the heart to beat, do not function properly. We work in the hospital’s one and only Electrophysiology Laboratory (EP Lab) that opened originally in 2012, thanks to donor support. We did a minor upgrade three years ago to extend up to this year but our EP Lab is now needing to be replaced.

Not only is the EP Lab aging, but the need for these life-saving procedures is increasing. We need your help so we can continue to save the lives of those with conditions ranging from atrial fibrillation (which has significant health consequences leading to an increased risk of stroke, heart failure, or premature death) to sudden cardiac arrest.

Each day, we perform three to four life-saving procedures. These methods include the implanting of pacemakers, defibrillators and catheter ablation procedures, which all correct irregular heartbeats of our patients.

As the need for these procedures increases, so too does the need for your support.

Gerald Stewart is a patient of mine who required two life-saving procedures. He was what appeared to be a healthy 58-year-old, out on a drive with his family. Gerald suddenly felt extremely dizzy and began experiencing severe heart palpitations. He knew something wasn’t right. The decision was made to go to his local rural hospital where he was diagnosed with a life-threatening arrhythmia.

Because of his declining condition, Gerald was quickly transferred to RUH in order to receive the specialized cardiac care he needed to save his life. First we implanted a small electronic device connected to his heart (cardioverter defibrillator) to stabilize his condition. A few months later, he underwent a complex six-hour procedure on his heart’s diseased electrical system to prevent life-threatening arrhythmias from happening again.

Gerald and his wife Kathy are extremely grateful for the care he received at RUH. Today, Gerald is a proud Grandpa and is again enjoying winter fishing with his buddies.

Your donation to Royal University Hospital Foundation will help purchase the most modern state-of-the-art technology and equipment available for our EP Lab. Because of you, we will be able to read our images and guide our tools more accurately; we will continue to incorporate newer, safer and better treatment methods without having to stop mid-procedure to reset a device.

We need your help so we can continue to treat people like Gerald, people like YOU.

My colleagues and I are grateful for your past support to RUH, and we hope you will consider making a donation today to help keep RUH at the forefront of cardiac care excellence in our province. Your generosity will provide us with the additional resources needed to create an even healthier future for residents of Saskatchewan. Thank YOU!

Sincerely,

Chris Pekrul

Dr. Chris Pekrul,
Cardiologist and Cardiac Electrophysiologist

PS Because you cared enough to donate today, we will correct the heart rhythm of a patient tomorrow.

Join Dr. Pekrul as he takes us on a tour of RUH’s aging Electrophysiology Lab. Click image below to view video.