Precis - cardiac case waiting

Life-saving Solution to Reduce A&E Waiting Times for Cardiac Patients

Yesterday’s National Audit Report suggesting that over half of NHS trusts do not have enough A&E staff to provide a proper round-the-clock service could prove fatal to cardiac patients, claims Broomwell HealthWatch.

A quarter of a million people suffer a heart attack each year in the UK , but many of these could be prevented if treated earlier. To combat this problem, and alleviate the burden on A&E departments, Broomwell has devised a unique and revolutionary solution to monitoring cardiac patients from home, which allows them to receive medical attention much earlier, taking the strain off the NHS.

With one in four men and one in three women dying as a result of coronary heart disease, it’s not surprising that many false alarms, such as heartburn and indigestion, put a strain on NHS resources. The HealthWatch service provides a solution to this problem, but also prompts those with potentially fatal symptoms to seek treatment before it is too late.

HealthWatch allows cardiac patients to receive immediate attention in the comfort of their own home from specialist nurses and doctors. The patients use state-of-the-art, and easy to use, medical equipment, to take 12-lead ecg readings. These are then sent to a cardiac specialist at Broomwell’s TeleMedical Centre. Patients can then be diagnosed, and either prompted to self-medicate, be reassured that there is no problem or, in emergency cases, an ambulance can be called.

Dr David Lipkin, Consultant Cardiologist at Royal Free Hospital in London , says: “I believe that if this ground-breaking service was employed by the NHS, there is the potential to reduce a huge burden on A&E departments. While patients can contact NHS Direct * for general advice, this innovative tele-medical service gives patients immediate access to highly trained cardiac specialists, plus provides essential ecg readings of the heart that can aid in the diagnosis.”

The HealthWatch service has already received a lot of interest from GPs and hospitals across the UK . The 12-lead ecg equipment is less expensive, more portable, and provides clearer readings than those currently used by the NHS.

Users currently pay a one-off charge for the device and a monthly subscription of £29.99 for round-the-clock access to cardiac doctors and nurses.

Joshua Rowe, Managing Director of Broomwell HealthWatch, adds: “This is a lifesaving service at a price that is very affordable to the patient. It is an insurance policy for anyone who is worried about having a heart attack particularly those with a family history of coronary disease. However, NHS trusts could go a long way to easing the burden on A&E departments by adopting home monitoring, especially since many cardiac-related cases turn out to be non-emergency.”

For more information, visit the website www.broomwelhealthwatch.com, or telephone Broomwell HealthWatch on 0161 236 0141.

Notes

The two monitoring devices are as follows:-

12 Lead ECG
For those that have suffered a heart attack, a compact and easy-to-use 12 lead ecg device is used to take vital readings, which are then transmitted down an ordinary landline telephone. The readings are much clearer to those available at A&E departments, and the device will not come ‘unstuck’ as many of their 12-lead-ecg machines do.

Mini-Clinic (Watch)
For patients with irregular heart-beats (arrhythmia), such as the Prime Minister, a watch device takes a 1-lead ecg reading and transmits it via a computer USB port or Broomwell’s Gateway communications device. The patient can be diagnosed and reassured.

* NHS Direct is a telephone advice line for general medical advice. The difference between this and the Broomwell HealthWatch service is that NHS Direct is government-run, and cannot assess cardiac conditions without a 12-lead ecg reading, unlike HealthWatch.

(16/10/04)