Welcome to the anticoagulation therapy service. This is a nurse/biomedical scientist led service for people who are being treated with oral anticoagulant therapies. The service offers patient counselling and monitoring of oral anticoagulants. Warfarin belongs to a group of medicines known as anticoagulants. They decrease the clotting ability of the blood and prevent clots from forming in blood vessels and also stop formed clots from becoming larger.
Reducing the bloods ability to clot aids prevention of conditions such as stroke and heart attack. Other high risk groups include atrial fibrillation, artificial heart valve replacements, deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.
People taking oral anticoagulants need to have regular blood tests to ensure the drug is stable. We will check this by using a measurement called an INR (International Normalised Ratio). The blood test is very quick and involves taking a small sample of blood from your thumb. The aim is to keep the INR within a certain range.
We run anticoagulant clinics throughout Stockport and Buxton. Although patients will be allocated a clinic that is convenient for them, they are able to attend any of the clinics that we run. |