operates a number of specialized clinics that address various conditions and risk factors for heart disease. The institute's cardiologists conduct more than 12,000 non-surgical interventions annually. The ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) Protocol, developed at UOHI, specifies that paramedic in Ottawa identify patients with a STEMI heart attack and transport them directly to the Institute. The program has cut mortality rates from heart attack in Ottawa by half. Clinical services UOHI’s division of nursing manages or supports programs and units within the Heart Institute, including the cardiac catheterization and electrophysiology labs, the cardiac operating rooms, the cardiac surgery intensive care unit and the cardiac intensive care unit. UOHI offers specialized cardiac nursing training and education in a number of areas, such as critical care, provincial programs in cardiac CT, cardiac PET, artificial hearts, and pulmonary thromboendarterectomy. Research Since 2004, a concerted effort to grow research funding at UOHI has resulted in a 300 percent increase in total grant awards. The Institute has more than 60 principal investigators and 175 research staff members whose work encompasses all aspects of cardiovascular medicine. Research programs include: Atherosclerosis, Genetics & Cell Biology Biomaterials and Regeneration Biomedical Engineering Cardiac Anesthesiology Cardiac Imaging Cardiac Prevention & Rehabilitation Research Cardiac Surgery Research Cardiology Research Cardiovascular Devices Cardiovascular Endocrinology Cardiovascular Genetics Cardiovascular Research Methods Centre Clinical Services Research Clinical Trials Hypertension Major findings Heart Institute investigators: Identified the strongest genetic risk factor for coronary artery disease and heart attack to date (the 9p21 gene)—the first major risk factor discovered since cholesterol Discovered the genetic basis for atrial fibrillation, the most common form of cardiac arrhythmia, affecting 250,000 Canadians Conducted the most comprehensive assessment of high blood pressure in Canada in 15 years Developed a model smoking cessation program that is in use in more than 200 hospitals across Canada and is being adopted internationally Unlocked the mechanism controlling a gene that regulates weight loss Developed a novel biomaterial that grows new blood vessels Developed Canada's first cardiac autopsy guidelines now in use in Ontario Developed an integrated regional protocol that cuts heart attack deaths by half Education and training UOHI trains physicians, nurses, technologists, technicians, and other health professionals, as well as graduate students and post-doctoral students in the life and biomedical sciences. The Heart Institute also provides continuing education and best practice training for health care professionals and institutions, and develops patient education tools and programs to facilitate