Pehin Suyoi Speaks

Beat It With Team Approach, Says Minister

Bandar Seri Begawan - In Brunei Darussalam, one-third of patients who are admitted to the Cardiology Section are heart failure cases. One of the common causes in the increase in cases of heart failure is the rising number of old people in the population and the risk factors in contributing to the increase in heart failure are high blood pressure, diabetes and others.

The causes of heart failure was pointed out by Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Haji Suyoi bin Hj Osman, Minister of Health, in his welcoming remark as the guest of honour at the Heart Failure Symposium yesterday morning.

Meanwhile, Dr Hj Nazar Luqman, cardiology specialist and head of the Cardiology Department of RIPAS, said, "We are facing an epidemic of heart failure. There is ample evidence that hospitalisations for heart failure, number of deaths associated with it and cost of treatment have significantly increased over the last few decades.

"In Brunei, 30 per cent of cardiology admissions in RIPAS Hospital are due to heart failure. Causes of heart failure like hypertension, diabetes, coronary artery disease and others are quite prevalent in Brunei and the population of elderly has doubled over the last decade.

"The burden of heart failure will increace unless innovative strategies are implemented. The key to these strategies is prevention and control of risk factors of heart failure," he added.

The minister in his speech said, "A large sum is allocated for treatment and care of patients with heart problem. Therefore, we must together think of a solution to reduce the risk factors in preparation for the best treatment in all aspects. However, no matter how much we spend on treatment, the fight to beat heart failure will not be successful without beating it together.

"Heart failure is a serious condition and to my understanding there is no cure for the majority of the heart failure cases. We can only reduce the side effects of heart failure. As soon as it is detected, medicine and change of lifestyle become important for a patient for the rest of his life," he added.

Outlining the importance of understanding the causes of heart failure, he said, "Seventy per cent of patients who suffer heart failure have hypertension. As high blood pressure is a silent disease, sometimes it may not be detected. Fifty to 60 per cent of those who have coronary heart disease also suffer from heart failure. Therefore, I would like to stress that it is important for everyone to be aware of all the risk factors so that we may be able to prevent our hearts from not functioning."

He added, "Lack of proper nutrition, less exercise and the attitude of not practising healthy lifestyle are the main contributing factors towards the increase in heart problems. Patients who have heart failure can improve their quality of life by becoming part of the management and treatment through the team approach. Sometimes, the patients do not know the symptoms, don't understand how to take care of their hearts and how to plan for their future. This can be handed over to nurses who are trained in cardiac treatment and are part of multidisciplinary palliative care team. This approach can help patients to make decisions that are hard to understand."

The minister lauded the Cardiology centre's move to implement the team approach in heart failure patient management and added that the Ministry of Health welcomes the team approach programme and will continue to prepare resources to further develop the programme.

According to statistics, there have been 33 pacemaker implants in RIPAS Hospital so far this year. A pacemaker is a device that sends small electrical impulses to the heart muscle to maintain a suitable heart rate or to stimulate the lower chambers of the heart (ventricles).

In year 2008, there were 41 pacemaker implants.-- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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written by BigVoice , November 09, 2009

Too much nasi katok!!!!!

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