Broomwell HealthWatch

Heart Attack Awareness Day

It was Heart Attack Awareness Day on Monday and to kick off their campaign to make people more aware of their own heart health the British Heart Foundation (BHF) aired their short “Watch Your Own Heart Attack” film on ITV1 on Sunday night.

 

The ad - watched by over 6 million people - illustrates the different possible symptoms experienced during a heart attack and urges people to seek medical help if they are in that situation.

 

The following day - Heart Attack Awareness Day - the BHF released some survey results which, worryingly, demonstrate that people seem to take the symptoms of a heart attack in others far more seriously than in themselves.

 

The results show that 47% of people would tell their parents to call 999 if they had an unusual chest pain, but 65% of people would NOT call 999 if they experienced the same symptoms themselves!

 

The survey reveals that many put off calling 999 because they are embarrased, don’t think their symptoms are serious enough or don’t want to waste the emergency services’ time.

 

On paper this may sound incredulous but when it comes down to it these are the reasons why people are putting their lives at risk.

 

It’s vitally important that people take note of any chest-pain symptoms and address them if they persist. If you experience any of the symptoms demonstrated in the BHF ad get them checked out. It’s better to be reassured and told it’s a false alarm than leave a potentially fatal problem until its too late!

 

For more information on the BHF ad and their survey visit:

http://www.bhf.org.uk/news_and_campaigning/press_office/latest_news__views/heart_attack_awareness_day.aspx

BHF TV AD

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has announced that it will be running a TV ad campaign to raise awareness about heart attacks. BHF research shows that most people having a heart attack wait around 90 mins before calling an ambulance. The ad, which is filmed through the eyes of a man having a heart attack, is designed to make people more aware of how a heart attack can feel, therefore urging them to call 999 asap.

The idea of seeing a live heart attack may seem shocking, but anything which raises awareness about this growing problem can only be a good thing. Ignorance and the old fashioned not worrying about something until its too late attitude, are often key factors in fatalities from heart attacks.

Another contributing factor is a lack of easy access to expert cardiac diagnosis. This is why having ECG interpretation, available in surgeries, can play a key role in helping to control the problem. Furthermore, our 12 lead ECG Home Monitoring service means that clients can call us at any time 24/7 and receive the required reassurance, or, if indicated, we will call an ambulance and arrange for an immediate hospitalisation Our ECG interpretation service enables clients to receive expert advice – via the telephone – anytime 24/7 and within minutes.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2008/07/28/shock-new-ad-to-fight-coronaries-115875-20674225/

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7270586.stm

Cardiac monitoring in action in Southampton

here are two recent articles demonstrating how our telemedical ECG service is being successfully deployed across Southampton City Primary Care Trust - both entries are written by Chris Webb, Specialist and Clinical Equipment Services Manager for Southampton City PCT.

The first can be found on the Health Service Journal website at: http://www.hsj.co.uk/goodmanagement/bestpractice/2008/07/primary_care_cardiology.html

The second can be found on the Primary Care Today website at: http://www.primarycaretoday.co.uk/?pid=4216&lsid=4216&edname=26591.htm&ped=26591

Home is where good health is

Although our ECG solutions are successful, another of our telemedical solutions was featured in today's Daily Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1037140/Bathroom-scales-tell-heart-failing.html

The  CHF monitoring scales - which are used by the patient from their own home - are used to detect early symptoms associated with CHF, such as weight gain through fluid build-up; this allows physicians to monitor patients progress, diagnose problems quickly and administer timely preventative care to hep save lives. We believe CHF monitoring could save the NHS over £60m a year and save thousands of lives. By monitoring CHF patients at home using the scales, the NHS can save 29% of the overall £211 million spent on the 62,000 - plus CHF admissions per year. It's all part of the drive to move treatment from hospitals into the home, as recommended by Lord Darzi's report. This report also features our work with NHS North West on p20, reference 13 - download the report here:

http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_085825

                                                                                                                                                             

Comment from Broomwell HealthWatch on Lord Darzi's Next Stage Review

Telemedical ECG and Cardiac Monitoring is Key to the NHS’ Future

In response to the publication of Lord Darzi's next stage review of the NHS, Joshua Rowe, CEO of

Broomwell HealthWatch said:  "Lord Darzi's report focuses on delivering real, sustainable long-term benefits to both patients and the NHS. It's vital to use the latest technology to achieve this end, and such a technology service already exists. The Telemedical cardiac (ECG) interpretation service     enables instant,  expert diagnoses, via the telephone, within local GP surgeries and health centres.

In effect , it Imports ECG expertise into every surgery, enabling ECG analysis to be done in the surgery setting and avoids unnecessary referrals to hospitals. This is attractive for patients because of the convenience and because of the immediacy of diagnosis, which is very much in line with Lord Darzi;s requirement for a more patient-centred approach to health care. It is welcomed by (most) GPs

because it enables them to make better- informed diagnoses and it is great for the NHS because it significantly reduces referrals to  the secondary sector. Such innovations are key to the future of the NHS. They give reassurance and choice to patients , provide a valuable tool to GPs, and free up vital hospital resources, and thus help transform the levels of care delivered to patients." 

Welcome To Our Blog

Hello and Welcome to the Blog of Broomwell Healthwatch

We intend to update this Blog with all the latest news from our cardiac monitoring centre in Manchester. We welcome feedback and input from anyone with an interest or comment on telemedicine in particular or any aspect of healthcare that they feel they would like to share with us.