Kevin Jenkins, RNFA, CNOR at University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute in Cleveland, Ohio, sat down with Tim Mulcahy to share his thoughts on graduating to Venapax and training new users.

Tim Mulcahy: What were the factors that made you decide to switch to Venapax?

Kevin: Actually, the surgeon that I routinely work with brought Venapax to my attention. He thought that this new device and approach made sense and asked me for my input.

I have used every version and every major brand of EVH devices on the market and I was immediately impressed with the idea of all-in-one device that eliminated the need for swapping out your components. I always believed the future of EVH would involve a system that could dissect out the vein and ligate branches as you encounter them, Venapax took this approach. I was up in running in no time and within my first 5 harvests I was already capable of scoping the entire leg.

Tim Mulcahy: How many cases did it take for you to feel comfortable with a new device?

Kevin: It wasn’t until around my 10th case that I felt truly comfortable and was close to performing at the same level as with the previous device. I was the first in my institution to use Venapax and although I had a proctor to talk me through the procedure, there were still times that I struggled.

As an experienced harvester I could have tossed it aside because I knew I could harvest a good quality vein with our other system, but I believed in the mechanics and goal of this device and was determined to be successful.

Tim Mulcahy: With multiple EVH systems on the shelf, why choose Venapax to train new assistants?

Kevin: The other EVH systems are so complex with too many steps and have an extremly long learning curve. I would frequently have to put time restraints on the trainees and often they might only get to do the dissection portion of the harvest that day.

With Venapax, once you find the vein in the incision, the scope goes in, and you are already harvesting and ligating branches. There is no time wasted wondering if the vein has been dissected out enough or whether the branches have enough length before moving on to the next step. This simpler, straight forward approach, naturally leads to a more consistent, reproducible result.

Tim Mulcahy: With multiple EVH systems on the shelf, why choose Venapax to train new assistants?

Kevin: Stay open minded.

Venapax is a new method that is unlike any of the other devices on the market. The system works and works extremely well. Be willing to work through the learning curve and you will end up with a superior device.

Additionally, I wouldn’t recommend introducing it to your team all at once if there is resistance. Focus on the team members who are willing to learn and let them use it until they are completely comfortable. Once everyone else sees their success and how few cases it took to learn, they will be naturally persuaded to give it a shot as well.