Congenital Heart Disease and Adolescence

Markus Schwerzmann, MD, trained in Adult Congenital Heart Disease in Toronto. He is currently head of the Center for Congenital Heart Disease at the University Hospital Inselspital in Bern, Switzerland. In Bern, children and adults with congenital heart disease are jointly followed in the same center by pediatric and adult congenital cardiologists. His research interests are transition and clinical outcome in adult congenital heart disease. Corina Thomet, RN, MScN is responsible for the transition program for youth and young adults followed at the Center for Congenital Heart Disease, University Hospital Inselspital, in Bern, Switzerland. Her main interests in clinical work and research are how to foster patient education, improve patient participation and strengthen self-management competencies. Dr. Philip Moons is Professor of Healthcare and Nursing Sciences at the KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Belgium, and Visiting Professor at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Dr. Moons is mainly involved in outcome and quality of life research in congenital heart disease, and developed and implemented the role of advanced practice nurse in the Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program of the University Hospitals of Leuven. The spearhead of his research is ‘Transition and Care’.

Part 1 EPIDEMIOLOGY - 1 Changing Epidemiology of Congenital Heart Disease.- 2 Cardiac issues in adolescents with congenital heart disease.- Part 2 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY - 3 Physical changes in adolescence.- 4 Cardiac and exercise physiology in adolescence.- Part 3 ADOLESCENCE - 5 Neurological and psychological development in adolescence.- 6 Adolescent Behavior.- 7 Issues to discuss: consultation style in transition.- Part 4 ORGANIZATION OF CARE FOR ADOLESCENTS - 8 Continuous cardiac care for adolescents.- 9 Transfer and Transition in Patients with Congenital Heart.- 10 Best practices in transitional care.- 11 Transition Toolkits.- 12 The Role and guidance of parents of CHD patients.- 13 The Multidisciplinary Transition team.- Part 5 RESEARCH IN ADOLESCENTS - 14 Research and Adolescents.- 15 Research topics.