Center for Advanced Lung Care

The Center for Advanced Lung Care (CALC) is a new program supported by Lifespan and Brown Medicine that offers comprehensive care for patients with advanced lung and heart-lung diseases and unexplained difficulty breathing. The Center for Advanced Lung Care is a national leader with recognized expertise in treating and researching these diseases and conditions, while providing all patients with specialized, personalized, and compassionate care.

Led by internationally recognized doctors from The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, the Center for Advanced Lung Care follows a multidisciplinary approach to patient care. This includes a team of pulmonologists, intensivists, cardiologists, interventional radiologists, anesthesiologists, and cardiac and thoracic surgeons along with nurses, respiratory therapists, clinical pharmacists, nurse practitioners, and advanced practice providers.

The Center for Advanced Lung Care treats all forms of pulmonary hypertension (high blood pressure in the lungs), including chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertencion (CTEPH), acute and chronic pulmonary embolism (blood clots in the lungs), interstitial lung diseases including pulmonary fibrosis (scarring disorders of the lungs), advanced airways disorders like severe asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and provides care for pregnant women with lung disease, sleep disorders or respiratory symptoms.

Advanced Treatments for Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension (CTEPH)

The Center for Advanced Lung Care is one of only a handful of centers in the United States, and the only center in Rhode Island and southeast New England, that offers advanced treatments for thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). Our expert physicians effectively perform these procedures and work together in a multidisciplinary team to determine the best course of treatment for every patient. These treatments include:

• Pulmonary Endarterectomy (PEA): For eligible patients, PEA surgery is considered the most effective treatment. Chronic thromboembolic material and fibrotic lesions are removed from the pulmonary arteries, restoring pulmonary blood flow and reducing pulmonary artery pressure. This can lead to significant improvements in symptoms and the patient’s quality of life.
• Balloon Pulmonary Angioplasty (BPA): BPA is a minimally invasive procedure that may be appropriate for patients who are not eligible for PEA or have residual thromboembolic lesions or lesions that cannot be surgically removed. BPA is typically performed in multiple sessions over several weeks to months. During BPA, catheters with balloons are inserted into the pulmonary arteries and the balloons are inflated to open blockages improving blood flow and reducing pulmonary artery pressures.

A Patient-Centered Approach for Lung Disease Care

Patients are assigned a patient navigator to help coordinate appointments, help patients understand referrals, assist with admissions and discharge paperwork and transitions of care, plan care goals for patients, and provide support and education about treatment options.

Regardless of the specific condition and degree of breathing impairment that patients experience when they come to the CALC, it is our goal to return patients to the highest quality of life possible. Although the results may be limited in some patients, our approach can be transformative – an individual experiencing severe shortness of breath that is homebound may return to work, travel, and enjoyment of their day-to-day lives.

Additional Services for Treating Lung Disease

The Center for Advanced Lung Care provides patents and families with personalized patient-centered services, including:

• Comprehensive pulmonary function testing will be offered at the CALC location including pulmonary function testing, which assesses breathing patterns, echocardiography, which takes detailed ultrasound images of the function of the heart, imaging, including chest x-rays, CT scans and MRI imaging, as well as exercise testing, which mimics day-to-day life to understand why patients experience shortness of breath and fatigue.
• Pharmacists offer counseling and co-management for complex treatment regimens, medication side effect support, medication reconciliation, and support access to treatment through Lifespan Specialty Pharmacy.
• Psychologists provide individual and group behavioral health treatment, coordination with palliative care, and psychiatric and psychotherapy referrals for patients and family/caregivers.
• Social workers liaise with physicians and psychologists to coordinate and enhance treatment goals, help patients access financial and other health and social assistance (e.g., in-home oxygen access, housing applications, etc.), create and maintain patient and family/caregiver support groups, and help patients with legal documents (e.g., medical power of attorney, living wills or advance directives).
• Asthma education is offered one-on-one or in a group session.
• Pulmonary and cardiopulmonary rehabilitation.
• Condition-specific support groups are in person and virtual.
• Genetic counseling services.