In conversation with… Daan van den Bersselaar

Daan van den Bersselaar has been working in the Internal Medicine Outpatient Clinic at the Catharina Heart and Vascular Center since October 2017. Daan specializes in conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol. He completed most of his nursing training at Amphia Hospital in Breda, where he worked in the vascular surgery department after graduation. The interest he already had in various vascular conditions at that time has only grown since Daan began working at the Catharina Hospital. Since early 2018, he has been combining this vascular care on a consultation basis with care for people living with HIV. 

HIV Care 

Since HIV is highly treatable and people living with HIV will grow old just like those without it, it’s important to pay extra attention to vascular conditions. “Because my colleagues can consult with me, our team strives to provide the most comprehensive care possible,” Daan explains. The nurse practitioner strives daily to provide patient-centered care and therefore considers it very important to discuss every consideration and every recommendation with the patient and to reach a decision together. Daan has further developed his skills to become a Nurse Practitioner in order to expand his knowledge and expertise. ‘

There are many misconceptions about FH.

The importance of a center of expertise
In September 2020, Catharina Hospital opened a regional center of expertise for people with Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH), a hereditary condition that causes high cholesterol levels. As an FH consultant, Daan van den Bersselaar is involved in this center.

But why is it important to have a center of expertise like this? “Things have gotten busy,” says the Nurse Practitioner. “I get the sense that general practitioners are becoming more aware of FH. We’ve also made a point of letting the media know that this center of expertise is now up and running. We’re also known as ‘the’ cardiovascular center in the southeastern Netherlands.”

Collaborating with primary care physicians

There is good cooperation with primary care physicians and the hospital. According to van den Bersselaar, screening remains a significant challenge. “Patients see their primary care physician if there is a suspicion or if they have symptoms, but you want to screen people preventively. In that case, we are still dependent on primary care. Primary care physicians must assess the risk and refer their patients.” There are still many misconceptions about FH. An 18-year-old on statins is nonsense. As soon as that kind of misinformation is broadcast on television, we have to deal with the fallout in the exam room. I’m really not someone who prescribes statins lightly; it has to fit within the treatment plan. But medication is simply essential for FH. We need to place even more emphasis on FH as a distinct condition. We want to protect people from having a heart attack. The media can be very helpful, but we also want to handle this carefully. FH is a condition you can’t feel or see. Until symptoms do appear… A question Daan gets asked regularly: “But why should I take a pill if I’m not having any problems yet?”

Just Daan 

Van den Bersselaar enjoys his work. What I find interesting is that you can really explain to people what’s going on. You want to save lives. I often hear the whole family history—from grandpa to grandchild. I like to interact with people in a casual way. Family members often just call me Daan. 

“I don’t hand out statins like candy.”

Emphasizing nutrition
I always emphasize nutrition to patients. You really need less medication if you eat healthily. It always makes a difference. In my work, I always use the brochure that LEEFH has produced in collaboration with Sanovi. The lifestyle advice brochure. It's a good way to put the brochure on the table and go through it. With young people, I often manage to mirror their lifestyle. I understand that they like to eat a kapsalon and have a drink on Saturday night. This target group really requires a different approach. I usually manage to strike the right chord.

A tube of blood

When it comes to his ambitions, Daan still has a few goals in mind. “Honestly, I just like to see what comes my way. My future is wide open. In the field of family medicine, I want to raise even more awareness among primary care physicians. We rely so heavily on them and on patients’ families. I’d like to see more research. Measuring cholesterol levels early on. That single tube of blood provides so much more information!”

Text: Aefke ten Hagen
Photo: Daan van den Bersselaar