Perfusion Technology

MCHP , Manipal

Health Sciences

The Perfusion Technology course offered by the Manipal College of Health Professions (MCHP), Manipal was started in July 2012, offering B.Sc. and M.Sc. programmes. A perfusionist — also known as a clinical or cardiovascular perfusionist — is a specialised healthcare professional who operates the heart-lung machine during cardiac surgery and other procedures requiring cardiopulmonary bypass, managing the patient's physiological status throughout. The programme is a comprehensive, patient-centred education designed to prepare graduates for the dynamic practice of cardiopulmonary bypass.

Highlights

Well-equipped laboratories for practical exposure, supported by a super-speciality hospital for clinical skills.

Faculty selected for their field expertise and academic experience.

Training for a highly skilled role within the cardiothoracic surgical team, alongside cardiac surgeons, anaesthesiologists, physician assistants, surgical technicians, and nurses.

Core responsibility for managing the physiological and metabolic needs of the cardiac surgical patient, so that the surgeon may operate on a still heart.

Training on the heart-lung machine and its associated components — oxygenator, filters, reservoirs, and tubing.

Sole responsibility for managing the patient's circulatory and respiratory functions during surgery.

Wider responsibilities including autologous blood collection and processing, implementation and management of the intra-aortic balloon pump, and adult and infant extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).

In many tertiary hospitals, perfusionists are key personnel in placing and managing patients on ventricular assist devices as a bridge to recovery or heart transplantation, and in supporting patients receiving lung or liver transplants.