DVLA AORTIC STENOSIS Fitness to Drive Guidance

Written by

DVLA AORTIC STENOSIS Fitness to Drive Guidance

4th July 2023

Dear BCIS member,

The DVLA altered its guidance on Fitness to Drive for patients with aortic stenosis in 2021. All patients with symptomatic aortic stenosis (irrespective of grade) were debarred from driving. This change greatly inconvenienced patients with aortic stenosis who had only mild symptoms. BCIS has lobbied the Medical Advisory Panel on Driving and Disorders of the Cardiovascular system to change this guidance, as we believed the change was not justified and, perhaps unwittingly, resulted in patients with moderate aortic stenosis and mild breathlessness being banned from driving. We are very pleased to report that the guidance has now been altered. There is no longer any bar to driving for patients with mild or moderate aortic stenosis. Patients with severe aortic stenosis are only required to notify the DVLA if the driver’s clinician considers that their symptoms may impact upon safe driving. This is a considerable change of emphasis, which we welcome.

The change is reflected in the official minutes of the panel, which can be accessed here.

This change will be included in the next full version of the DVLA Fitness to Drive Guide for Professionals. However, the revised guidance can be adopted immediately in line with the published minutes.

Dan Blackman, BCIS Structural Group Lead

Dave Hildick-Smith, BCIS President

Ongoing national supply issue with Getinge intra-aortic balloon pumps (IABP)

Written by

Ongoing national supply issue with Getinge intra-aortic balloon pumps (IABP)

6th June 2023

Dear colleagues,

As some of you may have already been informed, there is an ongoing national supply issue with intra-aortic balloon pumps (IABP), which has potential implications for the delivery of cardiac surgery and cardiology services throughout the country.

There are currently two main suppliers of IABPs to the national market.  From the information that we have received, Getinge Maquet / Datascope, one of the IABP catheter manufacturers for the UK market, has had supply issues since the start of the year.  However, there has been a recent alert from Getinge that has resulted in the company stopping any shipments of stock.  Teleflex, the other manufacturer, has been trying to keep up with the increased demand but now has supply issues themselves.  Enquiries are ongoing to see whether an IABP (Myosist) from a third supplier (Meril) is suitable for the UK market.

NHS England is working with SCTS, BCIS and SCPS to help support units with a contingency plan.  Further information will be released in due course but in the interim, some considerations may include:

  1. Mutual aid between regional units to share current IABP stocks, with the potential for limited incoming stocks to be coordinated through NHS Supply Chain.
  2. Reduced use of prophylactic or temporising IABPs and earlier definitive revascularisation strategies in ACS patients, where possible.
  3. Careful pre-operative planning, case selection and use of dual-consultant operating / Surgical Council MDT discussion for high-risk patients undergoing cardiac surgical intervention.
  4. Development of local and regional collaborative networks and MDT infrastructure to provide guidance regarding the use of Impella and ECMO for post-cardiotomy support where available.

We will continue to communicate with you as more information becomes available but as you will appreciate, the situation is changing daily and we are working to find a resolution as quickly as possible.

Please contact your respective professional society if you have any clinical questions.

If mutual aid options are exhausted, notification of a critical shortage can be reported to the National Supply Disruption Response team via the dedicated helpline 0800 915 9964 (freephone number in the UK) or 0207 972 1071. The line is open Monday to Friday 9am-6pm except public holidays.

Narain Moorjani                      David Hildick-Smith                             Noel Kelleher
President, SCTS                          President, BCIS                                 Chairman, SPCS

Women As One Climb Training Programme 2023

Written by

Women As One Climb Training Programme 2023

9th May 2023

CLIMB Clinical 2023 offers three topics to increase your knowledge and skills in three complex clinical areas: heart failure, coronary, and pulmonary embolism. Through the CLIMB program, we expect to increase clinical competencies, visibility, and promotion of women physicians capable of serving as experts for speaking and educational purposes, and increase women participants serving as thought leaders across industry forums.

The Clinical topics aim to increase your knowledge and skills in three areas: coronary, heart failure, and pulmonary embolism. Each learning track within each topic will consist of 6 monthly 90-minute webinar sessions. Sessions will include a mix of didactic presentations, case reviews, and group discussions.

 

Coronary Programme

What learning tracks are available?

  • Calcium Modification
  • INOCA/MINOCA

Who is this topic for?

Interventional cardiologists

What will you learn?

Within Calcium Modification Within INOCA/MINOCA
  • Basics of cardiac pathology
  • Imaging with IVUS and OCT
  • Calcium modification strategies
  • Approaches to atherectomy
  • And more!
  • Role of imaging in INOCA
  • Medical management of INOCA
  • MINOCA guidelines
  • Understanding SCAD
  • And more!

Application requirements

  • Create and complete a profile in the Women as One Talent Directory
  • Submit a letter of interest
  • Submit a letter of support from an administrator at their institution
Read More

Discounted access to EuroPCR 2023

Written by

Discounted access to EuroPCR 2023

17th April 2023

Dear BCIS member,

EuroPCR is a truly international event and the Course Directors wish to highlight BCIS’ valuable involvement. The collaboration in joint sessions will enrich the learning experience for Course participants, providing an important global perspective and understanding of the similarities and differences in treatment in different regions.

As a thank you, the EuroPCR Organising Committee are offering members digital packages at a special rate (-50%) to those who would like to attend EuroPCR 2023, but who are unable to join in person.

  • This offer applies for the digital package only and will be valid from 8 March to 14 May.
  • The 1,000 places will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
  • To enjoy the 50% discount on the digital package, click here to register (https://www.pcronline.com/Courses/EuroPCR/Register) and once you are proceeding to check-out, enter the following promo code : TogetherEuroPCR2023

We look forward to your participation!

The EuroPCR Organising Committee

 

Clinical Leadership Role for the UK
Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Registry (UK TAVI Registry)

Written by

Clinical Leadership Role for the UK
Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Registry (UK TAVI Registry)

14th February 2023

Notice from the National Institute for Cardiovascular Outcomes Research

Do you have the passion and the skills required to establish and lead the UK TAVI Registry to the next phase of quality improvement?

We are looking for a specialist consultant cardiologist or related specialty to provide clinical leadership for the National Audit of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (UK TAVI Registry), one of the specialist domains of the National Cardiac Audit Programme (NCAP), managed by the National Institute for Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (NICOR). NICOR is hosted by NHS Arden and Greater East Midlands CSU (AGEM) to deliver the programme which is commissioned and funded by NHS England and NHS Wales (GIG Cymru). The appointment will be made by NICOR in consultation with the British Cardiovascular Intervention Society (BCIS) using AGEM’s recruitment process.

The position reports to the Director of NICOR and the Chair of the NCAP Operational and Methodology (NOM) Group. The post holder will work closely with the Chair of the NOM Group, NICOR Chief Operating Officer, other NCAP domain clinical leads and the NICOR delivery team as well as the BCIS Structural Heart Group. The post holder will:

• Chair multi-disciplinary UK TAVI Registry Domain Expert Group (DEG) meetings, monthly project management team meetings and any other ad-hoc UK TAVI Registry meetings, as required.
• Participate in monthly NOM Group meetings and quarterly professional liaison group (PLG) meetings; and
• Act as an ambassador for NICOR.

The successful candidate will need to demonstrate professional excellence, an understanding of national audit and quality improvement methodology at a national level and the necessary management skills to ensure timely delivery of the agreed NCAP outputs, as well as to effectively develop and enhance the partnerships between NICOR and its stakeholders (BCIS, other professional societies, hospitals, commissioners, regulators, NHS England, NHS Wales, patients and the public).

The job description for this role is attached. However, for further information or an informal discussion please contact:
Professor Mark de Belder, Chair of the NOM Group (mark.debelder@nhs.net); or
Professor Peter Ludman, former Clinical Lead of the UK TAVI Registry (Peter.Ludman@uhb.nhs.uk)

To apply, please send your full CV (including your telephone number and email address as well as details of two referees) with a covering letter outlining your vision for the Audit and explaining how you would provide the clinical leadership required for this role, to:

Mr James Chal
NICOR Chief Operating Officer
Email: j.chal@nhs.net

Closing date for applications: Sunday, 26 March 2023
Interviews will take place via MS Teams: Thursday, 20 April 2023 (afternoon)
*Payment contribution of £10,000 per annum

NICOR Domain Clinical Lead Job Description

Medical technology evaluation of: GID-MT591 Zio XT for detecting cardiac arrhythmias

Written by

Medical technology evaluation of: GID-MT591 Zio XT for detecting cardiac arrhythmias

27th January 2023

Dear Stakeholder,

Medical technology evaluation of: GID-MT591 Zio XT for detecting cardiac arrhythmias

Please note that the guidance update of GID-MT591 Zio XT for detecting cardiac arrhythmias is suspended due to a delay with the manufacturer’s submission, caused by the delay in the reporting of trial data. The evaluation will resume development in due course. Stakeholders will be updated when new dates are scheduled.

The NICE website below will be updated with new dates once they are scheduled.

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-mt591

If you have any questions please contact us at medtech@nice.org.uk

Kind regards,

Mrs Izabela Syrek

Administrator – Medical Technologies Evaluation Programme & Medical Technologies Advisory Committee

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence

Upcoming External Meetings

Written by

Upcoming External Meetings

10th October 2022

Heart Disease in Pregnancy

The PeriopMan & UK Maternal Cardiology Society (The Manchester Perioperative Medicine Society) invites BCIS trainees and consultants to register for its virtual event ‘Heart Disease in Pregnancy’. Heart Disease in Pregnancy will run from 13:00-17:00 on Wednesday, 12 October 2022.

The faculty includes Dr Seema Quasim (Consultant Anaesthetist at University Hospitals of Coventry & Warwickshire), Dr Anita Banerjee (Consultant Obstetric Physician at Guy’s & St Thomas’ Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust), Dr Dawn Adamson (Consultant Cardiology at University Hospitals of Coventry & Warwickshire), Dr Matthew Cauldwell (Consultant Obstetrician at St George’s University Hospitals), Dr Rohan D’Souza (Associate Professor Maternal Medicine at McMaster University Hamilton, Canada) and Dr Nadine Shehata (Professor Haematology at Mount Sinai Hospital, Canada).

The national and international faculty will cover:

  • The Anaesthetic Perspective on Heart Disease in Pregnancy
  • Hypertensive Disorders in Pregnancy & Cardiac Outcomes
  • Arrhythmias in Pregnancy
  • Cardioversion in Pregnancy — A National Survey on Maternal & Foetal Outcomes
  • Valvular Heart Disease in Pregnancy
  • Anticoagulation in Pregnant Patients with Mechanical Heart Valves

 

Tickets, priced at £50, are available on a first come, first served basis. All registrants will have access to a video recording of the event.

 

View the programme here.

FIND OUT MORE AND REGISTER

Cardiac Arrest in the Cath Lab

Written by

Cardiac Arrest in the Cath Lab

27th June 2022

Please see below a paper published in Heart Journal on 23rd June 2022 titled ‘Joint British Societies’ guideline on management of cardiac arrest in the cardiac catheter laboratory.

This contains recommendations about the response to cardiac arrest and how the team should optimally respond to this emergency. You will note that it recommends allocation of roles at the start of all lists/cases which can form a template for optimisation of our responses.

The paper credits Joel Dunning, Andrew Archbold, Joseph Paul de Bono, Liz Butterfield, Nick Curzen, Charles D Deakin, Ellie Gudde, Thomas Keeble, Alan Keys, Mike Lewis, Niall O’Keeffe, Jaydeep Sarma, Martin Stout, Paul Swindell and Simon Ray as authors.

Read the article below.

Journal Article

Calls for Expressions of Interest for the Role of BCIS President

Written by

Calls for Expressions of Interest for the Role of BCIS President

25th May 2022

Please see below a paper published in Heart Journal on 23rd June 2022 titled ‘Joint British Societies’ guideline on management of cardiac arrest in the cardiac catheter laboratory.

This contains recommendations about the response to cardiac arrest and how the team should optimally respond to this emergency. You will note that it recommends allocation of roles at the start of all lists/cases which can form a template for optimisation of our responses.

The paper credits Joel Dunning, Andrew Archbold, Joseph Paul de Bono, Liz Butterfield, Nick Curzen, Charles D Deakin, Ellie Gudde, Thomas Keeble, Alan Keys, Mike Lewis, Niall O’Keeffe, Jaydeep Sarma, Martin Stout, Paul Swindell and Simon Ray as authors.

Read the article below.

Journal Article

BCIS Secretariat, Millbrook Medical Conferences Ltd
Unit 8, Midland Court, Central Park, Lutterworth
Leicestershire LE17 4PN

BHF CRC Research Group Coordinator post

Written by

Please see below a paper published in Heart Journal on 23rd June 2022 titled ‘Joint British Societies’ guideline on management of cardiac arrest in the cardiac catheter laboratory.

This contains recommendations about the response to cardiac arrest and how the team should optimally respond to this emergency. You will note that it recommends allocation of roles at the start of all lists/cases which can form a template for optimisation of our responses.

The paper credits Joel Dunning, Andrew Archbold, Joseph Paul de Bono, Liz Butterfield, Nick Curzen, Charles D Deakin, Ellie Gudde, Thomas Keeble, Alan Keys, Mike Lewis, Niall O’Keeffe, Jaydeep Sarma, Martin Stout, Paul Swindell and Simon Ray as authors.

Read the article below.

Journal Article