A Chance To Live
Target is met to cut heart disease deaths
THOUSANDS of lives are being saved every year thanks to a revolution in heart disease care sparked by a Northern Echo campaign.
Yesterday it was confirmed that the target of reducing deaths from coronary heart disease for people aged under 75 by 40 per cent has been met five years early.
It means the dramatic modernisation and expansion of heart units across the country since the Department of Health launched the National Service Framework for Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) in 2000 is now saving more than 22,000 lives a year.
The announcement means that the target set by The Northern Echo's A Chance To Live campaign in early 2000 that no one should have to wait longer than three months for a heart bypass operation has been more than met.
The Echo's campaign was launched at a time when UK heart patients routinely waited 18 months for surgery.
It aimed to close the gap between England and western Europe, where heart patients were operated on within three months.
The Northern Echo's campaign was set up in 1999 after the death of 38-year-old Darlington father-of-two Ian Weir, who was on a heart bypass waiting list.
Mr Weir had waited eight months to see a surgeon to fix a date for surgery.
In response, the then Health Secretary Alan Milburn - a friend of Mr Weir - ordered the drawing up of the country's first National Service Framework for Coronary Heart Disease, an action plan to save lives.
It triggered a £735m investment in heart units around the country, including an expansion of capacity at the North-East's two heart units at The James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, and The Freeman Hospital, in Newcastle.
At the same time, a network of catheter laboratories, where CHD can be quickly diagnosed, have opened at smaller hospitals such as Darlington Memorial Hospital and the University Hospital of North Durham.
According to a progress report on the National Service Framework for CHD, no patients are waiting more than three months for heart surgery compared with more than 5,500 in 2000.
Prescriptions for cholesterol-reducing drugs called statins have more than doubled over the past three years, cutting both mortality from CHD and the yearly number of heart attacks.
In the past eight years, the gap between the England average for under-75s dying from heart disease, stroke and related diseases and relatively deprived areas such as the North-East has reduced by 32 per cent.
Latest figures show that in September 2006, numbers of cardiologists increased by 61 per cent and numbers of heart surgeons have increased by 32 per cent since 1999.
Heart attack patients are also being given clot-busting drugs faster.
In early 2001, 24 per cent of patients were given clot-busters within 60 minutes of a call for help. Now, almost 70 per cent are treated inside an hour.
Health Minister Ann Keen said: "We have made ongoing and sustainable improvements to the treatment of heart disease that have dramatically reduced mortality rates. This is an outstanding achievement by all NHS staff and I would like to pay tribute to all the hard work and dedication that has made it possible."
Last night, Mr Weir's widow, Maggie, said: "I think it is tremendous news. It is just a tragedy that the service had to reach such a low ebb before it improved."
Mrs Weir added: "I just want to congratulate The Northern Echo. I honestly think their campaign was the trigger for improvements. If they hadn't had the courage to launch their campaign it would never have changed for the better.
5:02am Tuesday 19th February 2008
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