Tag Archives: British Cardiovascular Society

100 years in cardiology Born in 1922 and originally known as “The Cardiac Club”, the British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) is the world’s oldest professional cardiac society. To celebrate “100 years in cardiology”, five centenary lectures were given at BCS 2022 by world-renowned speakers (… three of whom were called John): Professor John Camm (heart rhythm); Professor Barbara Casadei (cardiovascular research in the UK); Professor John McMurray: (heart failure); Professor John Deanfield (coronary artery disease); and Professor Catherine Otto (cardiac imaging). The centenary lectures charted the impressive evolution of cardiovascular

British Heart Foundation The biggest independent funder of cardiovascular research in the UK, The British Heart Foundation plays a leading role in the fight against diseases of the heart and circulation by support of vital, pioneering research into their causes, prevention, diagnosis and treatment through research grants. It funds around £100 million of heart research every year. https://www.bhf.org.uk/research/information-for-researchers British Cardiovascular Society/BJCA The British Cardiovascular Society is a registered charity that aims to support and represents those working in cardiovascular care and research, by providing access to t

Improvements in patient care mean hundreds more people are surviving heart failure, a new independent study has found. The latest report from the National Heart Failure Audit (April 2015– March 2016) (link below) has found that the mortality rate for people admitted to hospital with heart failure has dropped from 9.6% the previous year to 8.9%. The reduction in the mortality rate means that in the region of 500 lives have been saved in the past year compared to 2014–15. An assessment of patients admitted to hospital with heart failure at NHS Trusts also shows that more people are being provided with crucial medicines for heart disease as

The Congress offers a unique opportunity to showcase therapeutic and diagnostic advances, alongside cutting edge, bench- to-bedside science. There are five days of scientific sessions covering 150 cardiovascular topics with over 500 expert sessions. This year over 11,000 abstracts were submitted, and the theme is ‘Environment and the heart’. We at the BCS are holding dedicated sessions at the Congress, and on Saturday 29th August we are hosting a General Cardiology Day for General Practitioners and Allied Professionals, so do encourage your colleagues and primary care colleagues to join us. Extracurricular activities include a series of e

New NICE guidance Dr Andrew Cox (St George’s, University of London) Stroke prevention is the major focus of the new National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines on atrial fibrillation (AF), which were discussed by Dr Campbell Cowan (Chair, NICE Guidelines Development Group) in one ‘Hot topics’ session at the meeting. This presentation was in anticipation of the release of the final version of the guidelines a fortnight following the conference. This limited discussion covered the already published draft guidance, but points from this draft which were discussed have since been confirmed in the published guidance

2011 BCS Annual Conference Despite many national and international congresses seeing a downturn in the number of delegates attending, the 2011 BCS Annual Conference, held in Manchester on June 13th–15th, saw a record number of registrations for what was one of the best conferences to date. This year saw a complete overhaul of the programme with the introduction of five ‘tracks’. Education for Revalidation Track: This track will cover areas defined by the cardiology curriculum over a three to five year cycle. Each session will have an online formative assessment, which on completion provides members with certification for revalidation po

BCS training division The BCS Training Division, headed by the Vice-President for Training, has the objective of maintaining the high standards of training in cardiovascular medicine in the UK. Excellent training standards are a key strategic objective for the BCS since they are critical for ensuring the future provision of high-quality cardiovascular care. As readers will be aware, there have been many changes in the rules and regulations surrounding medical postgraduate training in recent years and it has sometimes been difficult to know exactly where the different responsibilities lie. The BCS has to interact with a variety of other bodies

Founded in 1922, the BCS has developed over the years into a complex organisation that plays a pivotal role in the delivery of cardiovascular health across the UK. There are currently over 2,100 members of the BCS and membership is growing steadily to include the overwhelming majority of UK cardiologists and many other professionals with an interest in cardiovascular medicine. Our members include non-clinical scientists, cardiac surgeons, nurses, technicians and primary care physicians. We have over 300 trainee members and currently offer great value joint membership for BCS with the British Junior Cardiologists’ Association. BCS aims to su

New NT-proBNP test Roche Diagnostics has announced the launch of a new NT-proBNP+ test, which it says can give a result in under 15 minutes when tested on its cobas h232 near-patient testing meter. In addition, the test has an extended measuring range (60 – 9000pg/ml). The test can serve as an aid in the diagnosis of suspected heart failure, in the monitoring of compensated left ventricular dysfunction and in the risk stratification of patients with acute coronary symptoms. Recent recommendations of a consensus group (Br J Cardiol 2010;17:76-80) highlight the importance of B-type natriuretic peptide (NP) testing for heart failure. NP testi

Demographics Figure 1. Primary place of work In line with previous years, the proportion of female trainees was 19%. The average age of trainees was 33 years with an even spread of training years represented. The new specialty registrar (StR) grade accounted for only 7% of respondents, a proportion that will increase year on year. Almost two thirds (66%) are married, and over two thirds of those have children. Of note, 92% of respondents’ partners work full-time in the National Health Service (NHS), a figure that has significant implications for NHS child-care provision. Nevertheless, only 7% intend to train flexibly. A higher proportion th