Task Shifting in Cardiac Ablations Compared With Percutaneous Coronary Interventions: The Japanese Circulation Society Chugoku-Shikoku Regional Survey Subanalysis.

Background: As part of work-style reform for physicians, task shifting to non-physician healthcare professionals has been promoted in Japan. We previously reported task shifting results for percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), but the status in arrhythmia treatment remains unclear. Methods and Results: This subanalysis of a survey conducted by the Japanese Circulation Society Chugoku-Shikoku Branch examined task shifting in facilities performing both cardiac ablations and PCIs. A 30-item questionnaire was sent in March 2024 to 93 facilities managing acute coronary syndrome. Among 81 responding facilities (87.1% response rate), 51 performed cardiac ablations. Approximately 40% had only 1 ablation operator. The engagement rate as second operators was lower for ablations than for PCI (21.6% vs. 29.4%, P<0.001). Task shifting implementation showed no significant difference based on ablation operator numbers (N=1: 30.0% vs. N≥2: 16.1%, P=0.304), whereas facilities with fewer PCI operators had higher task shifting rates (P=0.026). Clinical engineers were the predominant profession in task shifting for both procedures. Conclusions: Task shifting of sterile procedures was limited in ablation facilities compared with PCI, reflecting the procedural characteristics such as single-operator feasibility and mapping-intensive workflows. With substantial workload demands, continued collaboration with highly specialized medical staff is essential, along with appropriate incentives and attention to work-life balance.