The Structural Heart Program officially launched at the RDAQ 2022 Conference in Gladstone on June 10th.
GPs working in rural and remote communities are invited to participate in the education series covering the latest innovations in structural heart treatments.
Through a series of four sessions (accessed either in-person or via webinar), our Structural and Interventional Cardiologists will discuss new therapies which are now becoming commonplace. These therapies include:
TAVI (Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation) for treatment of aortic stenosis
MitraClip for the treatment of mitral regurgitation
LAA Occlusion (Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion) for stroke prevention
Through the course of these four sessions, participants will learn:
What is the evidence?
What does the procedure involve?
How to choose the right patient
Follow up for patients returning home
The first session in the series, “Advances in Structural Heart Disease” was presented by Dr Nicholas Aroney, MBBS, BSc, FRACP. The recording of this session will be available for viewing soon.
If you would like to register for the Structural Heart Program and gain access to the sessions please follow the below link to complete a short, six question survey which will be used to determine knowledge of these specific therapies prior to engaging in the session.
Whilst over two-thirds of Australians live in urbanised cities, one in ten reside in outer regional areas, and around one in forty live remotely. One defining feature of geographic remoteness is that many Australians experience isolation when it comes to receiving healthcare services.
Heart of Australia’s NextGen Medics Program acts as a roadmap that enables medical or allied health students to experience the realities of working in rural healthcare. Kyle Fan, one of our NextGen Medic Student Alumni, has always dreamed of working as a cardiac sonographer when he graduates his degree in cardiac sonography at the University of South Australia and is well on the path to that dream since taking up a position as a Medical Aide with Heart of Australia.
Kyle believed that the NextGen Medic Program would provide him with an “eye-opening experience that focused on mixing the outback’s challenges with learning more about the people and culture” as opposed to learning textbook scenarios. Upon his application, Kyle was successful in securing a place as a NextGen Medic student and as he began to immerse himself into the program, he explained that the program enabled himself and fellow medic students the ability to apply their academic understanding within genuine rural communities, helping those doing it tough.
It wasn’t until Kyle stepped onto the truck that he understood the severity of the healthcare inequity gap. There are vast numbers of people living rurally in Australia who have overcome challenges harder and greater than many of us in this lucky country would ever dream of. Kyle explained that one of his most memorable experiences was visiting the rural town, Theodore, where Dr Bruce Chater has been Theodore’s practice principal since 1981. Facilitating health clinics in rural and remote towns regularly where local medical professionals can work together with leading Heart of Australia specialists, relieves pertinent healthcare inequities. Kyle said, “it’s individuals like Dr Bruce Chater (the father of rural healthcare) who inspire me every day, I was determined to pay these opportunities within this program forward.”
A lack of understanding, due in part to the vast distance separating those living rurally and hearing stories of those who have unfortunately become ill, has led to fear for those living remotely. For students of the NextGen Medics Program, like Kyle, who have listened to and been inspired by past stories of those living rural, there are still so many equally tragic and inspirational stories yet to be told. The Heart of Australia NextGen program acts as a speedbump for those living rural, breaking down healthcare inequities due to distance and giving a new lease of life for first-time patients, all while providing invaluable learning opportunities for our students.
Since completing the NextGen program Kyle believes at the end of the day, “why shouldn’t those living rural have access to healthcare?” We should be able to give them, what is given to us in the city.
“Everyone deserves a fair go. Our patients are farmers who contribute to the community, grow our food and look after our livestock. They also pay taxes,” says Kyle.
“Giving everyone an equal opportunity and thinking about the bigger picture is important.” Living rural shouldn’t mean sacrificing one’s quality of life or lifespan.
The Heart of Australia NextGen program provides hope and greater accessibility of healthcare services to all Queenslanders living both rurally or very remotely. It provides future medical and allied health students just like Kyle the opportunity to kick-start their own journey in healthcare.
Since Kyle has completed the program, his dream to work in cardiac sonography has been reinvigorated, and he is excited to start the path to his career journey with Heart of Australia – first as a member of the NextGen Medics program and now as a Medical Aide, commencing sonography training with Heart of Australia in 2023.
Heart of Australia has come to the aid of the people of NSW when they needed it most this week amidst torrential rain and flooding along the east coast. With many medical services on hold due to the unusual weather event, Heart of Australia was able to deliver life-saving cardiology clinics in the NSW/Queensland border community of Goondiwindi on Tuesday March 1.
A quarter of the patients attending this clinic were from NSW. Since Heart of Australia’s inception in 2014, more than 250 patients from rural, regional and remote NSW communities such as Moree, Tamworth and Boggabilla have voted with their feet and hopped across the border to attend Heart of Australia clinics in Goondiwindi as well as other locations including Stanthorpe and St George. NSW residents have been able to access high quality Brisbane-based specialists through the funding from the Federal Government and generous partners.
Moree resident Sylvia Broderick
Patients have all been referred by their GPs for specialist appointments on the Heart trucks in Queensland where the service is funded to operate. Specialities offered in these border towns are cardiology, geriatric medicine, endocrinology and gynaecology. Moree resident Sylvia Broderick’s husband Harold, 82, is a cardiology patient at the Goondiwindi clinic where he sees Professor Darren Walters. “It is much more convenient being able to travel to Goondiwindi than to get to Toowoomba or Tamworth for Harold’s cardiology care,” Mrs Sylvia Broderick said. “Travelling to Tamworth in one day would be over six hours of driving which is unsafe and stressful. Being able to go to Goondiwindi saves us time, stress and money which are all important when you live in a regional community such as Moree.”
Heart of Australia founder Dr Rolf Gomes said he was particularly proud of the efforts of Heart of Australia medical specialists, medical aids and drivers at Goondiwindi this week, for helping the people of NSW in dire circumstances. “It is rewarding to help people from NSW in regional, rural and remote areas when they need Heart of Australia to beat the tyranny of distance and when they are living in terrible weather conditions,” Dr Rolf Gomes said. “Word is spreading in northern NSW that Heart of Australia is a reliable medical specialist service. And we don’t turn people away.” Heart of Australia has approached the Federal and NSW Governments to provide the Heart of Australia mobile medical specialist service in western NSW so that the services can be accessed by more people who live in these remote communities.
Heart of Australia was delighted to officially launch their fifth vehicle, HEART 5, at an event held Friday 11 of February at the RNA Showgrounds in Brisbane.
Heart of Australia founder, Dr Rolf Gomes, is thrilled to be working in partnership with the Queensland Government and Resources Safety and Health Queensland, which contributed $2 million towards the build and operation of HEART 5.
The aim of this partnership is to increase the accessibility of lung checks for current and former mine workers in rural and remote Queensland. The X-Ray and CT machine in this mobile unit will massively improve detection rates of mine dust lung diseases such as black lung and silicosis, where early detection and screening is critical.
Project partners Philips and I-MED worked to design and build battery technology which can withstand the bumpy Queensland roads to ensure that rural communities can be reached, and have access to the same services that are available in Brisbane.
“The battery technology we have designed and built in Queensland to power the CT scanner means with HEART 5 we can do a CT parked on a mine site, and that is a world first. Through the collaboration of the project partners, the Queensland Government, Philips and I-MED, this technology and innovation has been made possible.
“HEART 5 breaks down the tyranny of distance, so if you do have a lung disease, we can find it early and quickly,” Dr Gomes said.
Resources Minister Scott Stewart was present at the launch event, and has said “This means workers won’t have to travel as far to access highly specialised services, ensuring earlier detection and intervention in cases of mine dust lung diseases like black lung and silicosis.”
“We’re proud to have HEART 5 on the road helping to uphold our high standards for health and safety in the resources sector, and our government will continue to support workers, on and off the job site.” Minister Stewart said.
Dr Gomes said providing rural patients with access to locally delivered medical imaging services will make an enormous difference in improving lives and supporting the work of local GPs.
Since 2014, Heart of Australia’s medical specialists have seen more than 12,000 patients and saved more than 500 lives. The fleet has travelled more than 500,000 kilometres servicing towns from Stanthorpe in the south to Weipa in the far north and Winton in the west.
“With the launch of HEART 5, our CT truck, we will be finding more, treating more, and saving more lives,” Dr Gomes said.
