16th November 2001. At a meeting today, the HEARTS (Heart disease Evidence-based Audit and Research in Tayside, Scotland) Collaboration publicly announced for the first time, plans to help doctors reduce the number of Scots dying prematurely from heart disease. Sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim, this innovative collaboration will identify and monitor all those patients in the region who have already had a heart attack. It will also provide evidence for GPs on the best way to prevent these patients having a second heart attack.
"In Tayside alone, almost 10,000 people have suffered a heart attack, " says Frank Sullivan, Professor of Research and Development in Primary Care at Dundee University and leader of the HEARTS Collaboration. "The development of an accurate database, together with clear evidence of which medical treatments and lifestyle advice best helps these patients, will mean that we can potentially save one life every day in Tayside.1"
Over the next few months, HEARTS team members will be reviewing how these patients are cared for by GP practices across Tayside. Following this, a specialist nurse will work with these practices to identify areas where improvements in patient care can be made.
"The Scottish lifestyle can leave too many people at risk of a heart attack," says Dr Hamish Dougall, a GP in Crieff and HEARTS researcher. "Although major inroads have been made into reducing deaths from heart disease, many people are still smoking and drinking too much, eating too many fatty foods and taking too little exercise. If extended across Scotland, an initiative such as HEARTS could save the lives of 4,000 people every year.1"
The HEARTS collaboration, made possible by an unrestricted educational grant from Boehringer Ingelheim one of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, will facilitate best clinical practice. The Tayside Primary Care Trust is also an important sponsor, making this collaboration a true demonstration of partnership.
HEARTS will help deliver uniformly high quality of care for all patients with heart disease in both GP practices and hospitals. HEARTS will also allow all practices to work to national standards to reduce disability and death from heart disease.
HEARTS will follow some 20,000 patients in Tayside. As part of Scotland's drive towards electronic patient records, data will be made available to clinicians on a secure website, so that a patient's GP and hospital consultant will have access to this information. Clinicians will be able to see, at a glance, a patient's medications and test results, their smoking status, weight, and the lifestyle advice offered.
Making lifestyle changes may improve the health of many Scots and the HEARTS database will help clinicians in Tayside educate their patients in leading a healthier lifestyle, so preventing further heart attacks.
Tayside has a population of around 400,000 and comprises four local healthcare co-operatives (LHCC), Angus, Arbroath and Friockheim, Dundee, Perth and Kinross.
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Editors notes
1. According to research by the British Heart Foundation , four people in Scotland die every hour from heart disease, and most of these deaths can be linked to physical inactivity and high cholesterol. Smoking is another cause of heart disease: 24% of deaths from CHD in men and 11% of deaths from CHD in women are due to smoking. Smoking is more prevalent in Scotland than in any other region of the UK.
Overweight people are also at a higher risk of CHD. In Scotland 19.5% of men and 22% of women are obese, while a further 43% of men and 32% of women are overweight.
2. There are 15 HEARTS project team members, including:
Data facilitators, responsible for collecting and auditing practice data.
Specialist nurse facilitators, who support GP practices in making changes to the way care is provided
Computer programmers and software engineers, who are building innovative software programmes to link GPs and hospitals across the region
GP / Researcher, providing the link between the HEARTS project and GPs, as well as preparing medical papers for publication
MEDIA CONTACT: Sarra Martin
The Workhouse
HEARTS Collaboration
UK +44 (0)20 8948 8388