§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to end local variations in accessing treatment for heart disease in Coventry. [136580]
§ Yvette Cooper[holding answer 6 November 2000]: The Coventry Health Authority and the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust approach to access to cardiac treatment and preventative services is in line with the National Service Framework (NSF) for Coronary Heart Disease (CHD). The local health community has identified key priority areas which will further promote fair and equitable access to treatment for heart disease. Actions are under way to implement the NSF for CHD at a local level in line with the key milestones set nationally.
Walsgrave Hospital is opening a rapid chest pain clinic early next year to promote access to a specialist for all patients with new onset chest pain which their general practitioner thinks might be due to angina.
General practices in Coventry are developing CHD registers and will ensure that an increasingly equitable approach to primary care for CHD patients is adopted.
Coventry has been proactive in developing hospital based smoking cessation services in addition to those set up in the community. Referral to the hospital smoking cessation team will become an extension of the treatment package offered to patients with CHD in Coventry.