Registration Cards - anyone send them in or something?

[Luckyguy17]

At release from hospital got a whole wad of paper, most of which i could understand (grin)

There were two little registration cards, with prosthetic model and serial numbers, for St. Jude and Carpentier Edwards spare parts...I guess my body has no entombed them for now.

Unlike some others on the forum, I did not get some 4 barrel, whatmacalit engine booster, nor did i get cookies like Ross and am a little miffed about that

Just wondering if I am supposed to fill something in somewhere on a web site or whatever?

Does St.Jude or C-E, call you or send you letter if god forbid, there is an OEM recall like Toyota?

making light of it, but has everyone else got those little cards and did you do anything about them?

 

[Philip B]

Cards

Cards

I received a couple of cards from the hospital which document my new valve; however, I wasn't required to send the cards to the company. I simply keep the cards with me. Mine arrived in the mail a couple of weeks after I finished my hospital stay.

-Philip

 

[dick0236]

These do sound like registration cards and, in my opinion, you should send them back in order to assure that you are in the valve manufacturers records. ID cards were not issued when I received my valve and the valve manufacurer had no record of my surgery, .....and it did cause some problems (MRI safety level) many years later, 'cause nobody really knows what specific valve I have:mad2:. I actually had a difficult time proving to Edwards Lifesciences that I had one of their valves and it was implanted 40 years earlier. Fortunatley, the hospital still had enough of my record to indicate that a Starr-Edwards valve had been implanted in Aug., 1967. Edwards was able to provide me with an ID card that should permit an MRI if I ever need one again:wink2:.

Incidently, during my search for any old records, I also learned that my one and only cardiology practice(no longer my cardio:tongue2 had purged and destroyed ALL of my records from 1967 to 1990. I post this to emphasize the importance for the patient to keep copies of ALL important documents, test results, etc........might come in handy somewhere down the road:smile2:

 

[Luana]

I didn't get anything when I left the hospital. To get your ID card from St. Jude you need to give them the model # and serial number of your valve (or whatever you got). I did it via their Web site. They are usually a few months behind. I think I got my card in early March. St. Jude will also send you a demo valve if you ask for one.

PS I didn't get any cookies either. :-(

 

[Bina]

Gil, when I left the RVH, they gave me a bunch of paperwork too.
I don't remember if I had to request it or they did, but a few weeks later I got my St. Jude wallet card with
serial number and surgeon info mailed to me.

 

[Luckyguy17]

These do sound like registration cards and, in my opinion, you should send them back in order to assure that you are in the valve manufacturers records. ID cards were not issued when I received my valve and the valve manufacurer had no record of my surgery, .....and it did cause some problems (MRI safety level) many years later, 'cause nobody really knows what specific valve I have:mad2:. I actually had a difficult time proving to Edwards Lifesciences that I had one of their valves and it was implanted 40 years earlier. Fortunatley, the hospital still had enough of my record to indicate that a Starr-Edwards valve had been implanted in Aug., 1967. Edwards was able to provide me with an ID card that should permit an MRI if I ever need one again:wink2:.

Incidently, during my search for any old records, I also learned that my one and only cardiology practice(no longer my cardio:tongue2 had purged and destroyed ALL of my records from 1967 to 1990. I post this to emphasize the importance for the patient to keep copies of ALL important documents, test results, etc........might come in handy somewhere down the road:smile2:

Dick you are an aboslute wealth of knowledge, thank you for that, 1967 eh, 43 years on the same Starr-Edwards prosthetic and by my calc age 74, yowsers are there any other members of this forum that have your longevity on one AVR? Gosh gee am in awe, you are one of the pioneers I was referring to in anther post...simply amazing and good on you...thanks...will hang on to my littl registration cards...am surprised C-E has not offered you a major $ contract for attestion of longevity of their product...amazing you should be proud, as am sure you are

 

[ottagal]

Gil,

I received a temporary card upon my release and then a month or so later, received an official wallet size card from Edwards Lifesciences.
P.S. On your other post, I was glad to read how well you are doing! Keep it up. .

 

[a4wanman]

Someone at the hospital, probably my surgeon's secretary, registered my valve for me. Otherwise, I would have requested the racing stripe or flame option.

 

[Mentu]

My valve didn't get registered by my hospital or surgeon but they did give me model and serial number. When I called Edwards to see why I had received no card, they registered it over the telephone and I got a card two weeks later. It seems to me that the benefits to registration are significant if they ever learn something about my valve that I need to know.

Larry

 

[Cris N]

I didn't have to send anything in... I got a temp card from St. Jude upon discharge and later received a more permanent version. All implanted devices in the US are required to be registered - partly in case of recall. Even my hubby got implant cards when he received replacement lenses during cataract surgery.

 

[Marcia58]

I got a card from the hospital before discharge, for my annuloplasty ring. I carry it in my wallet, and I've used it when I had an MRI since. I never called St. Jude--guess I should, just to find out.

 

[Jkm7]

I registered my tissue valve with Edwards by e-mail and received an immediate e-mail response.
They promptly sent me a wallet card.
My surgeon died less than a year after he performed my second OHS with him and, of course, his offices are closed. If, in the future, there is some info I need to have about my valve and it had not been registered, it is unlikely anyone would have tried to track me down.

Be safe and be sure it is registered.

(I still think of my surgeon often and bless his memory. All the good he did for so many people but no one could save him.)

 

[Marcia58]

OK, I just got off the phone with St. Jude. I WAS registered, but I was supposed to get a plastic card for my wallet, instead of just a temporary paper one. That's on the way, and should arrive in a couple weeks. After I got off the phone, I realized they had contact info for my surgeon (whom I LOVE, but hope to NEVER see again) but not for my cardio. So, off I went to the website to register THAT info. I clicked on "Patients: SJM Health" in the lower right corner, then on "Device Registration" at the top of the next page. In a minute or two, I was done. Simple, quick. The hardest part was trying to figure out how my doctor spells his name!

HTH, Marcia

 

[sweetbanker]

Got my tissue card from Edwards last week in the mail . Needed to send back only if it was wrong. Left the hospital with nothing.

 

[dick0236]

, 43 years on the same Starr-Edwards ...am surprised C-E has not offered you a major $ contract for attestion of longevity of their product...

I offered to write a bio for their Internet site "patient stories" but they declined. Could be that Edwards Lifesciences has moved to tissue valves and other products....and it might not be good advertising to show the longevity of a mechanical valve:wink2:. I couldn't even get them to pay my way to California to visit them:tongue2:........but they did ask that I send them my photo so they could post it on their in-house bulletin board:biggrin2:.

 

[Ross]

I offered to write a bio for their Internet site "patient stories" but they declined. Could be that Edwards Lifesciences has moved to tissue valves and other products....and it might not be good advertising to show the longevity of a mechanical valve:wink2:. I couldn't even get them to pay my way to California to visit them:tongue2:........but they did ask that I send them my photo so they could post it on their in-house bulletin board:biggrin2:.

I hope you charged them at least $150,000 for a signed autographed photo.