As the politicians return to Stormont and begin to address all the issues facing our public services, including our Health Service, Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke (NICHS) was delighted to launch our newly developed Cardiac Manifesto in The Long Gallery, Parliament Buildings, on Monday 26th February.
An invited audience of legislators, healthcare professionals, and stakeholders from across the Health and Social Care sector heard presentations from various speakers endorsing the need for movement on several issues that were encapsulated in the Manifesto.
First to the floor after the introductions from Nuala McAllister, Alliance MLA, the sponsor of the event, was Consultant Cardiologist and Northern Ireland Lead on Heart Failure, Dr Patricia Campbell. Dr Campbell highlighted the need for a manifesto for Cardiac Disease.
She pointed out that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is hugely significant in NI, responsible for 25% of all deaths, and that although there are non-modifiable risk factors associated with CVD, such as family history, age, sex, ethnicity, and inherited conditions, much of the CVD burden is preventable. Lowering smoking rates, and the drinking of excess alcohol alongside improving physical activity and reducing the incidence of obesity will all have a favourable effect on the burden of CVD. Identifying individuals with atrial fibrillation, high blood pressure or cholesterol and treating them appropriately will also have a huge impact on reducing CVD.
Dr Campbell went on to discuss the increasing burden of Heart Failure (HF) across Northern Ireland and outlined the work her group are doing to map HF services across the north. The aim of the group is to co-create a fit-for-purpose HF care pathway and aid trusts in identifying needs to bridge the gap between current and future state of HF care and create business cases that can be presented to commissioners of health for improvement of services.
Following on from Dr Campbell’s presentation was a one-to-one discussion between Eugene Reid, Policy and Engagement Officer for NICHS, and Ms Nicole McKelvie, a Heart Failure patient and the Chairperson of the newly established charity Heart Failure Warriors.
Nicole explained how and when she had been diagnosed with Heart Failure and spoke passionately about her interaction with health care professionals as a service user. She thanked the fantastic doctors and nurses that she interacted with but outlined some of the failings she and her fellow sufferers had encountered with respect to the service offering. Nicole stated, “It was so difficult to get information about my condition, and I struggled to get access to rehabilitation and medical staff, such as Heart Failure Nurses, there was initially a wait of 8 months!”
Eugene Reid said, “We at NICHS campaign on behalf of those suffering from CVD, we advocate on their behalf. By drawing up a manifesto like the one presented today, we can highlight statistics to the decision makers and legislators. But only people like Nicole, can describe what it is really like as a patient dealing with a life limiting illness whilst, working, raising a family, and trying to navigate a health service which is struggling to meet her needs."
NICHS thanks those MLAs who took the time to attend the Cardiac Manifesto launch and reiterates the call for them to make heart health a top priority.
