Galway-based heart and stroke charity Croí won a top award at the 20th anniversary Irish Healthcare Awards last week at a special ceremony in Dublin.
The National Institute for Prevention and Cardiovascular Health (NIPC), established by Croí, also scooped an award for ‘Research Paper of the Year’ – for the third year running.
The Irish Healthcare Awards are the leading awards recognising innovation and excellence in the Irish healthcare sector.
Patient Organisation Project of the Year
Croí’s free telephone support line, Heartlink West, won best Project of the Year in the Patient Organisation category.
Launched in response to the pandemic, Heartlink West provides those living with, or affected by, heart disease and stroke a direct line to Croí’s Cardiovascular Nurse Specialist and expert health team.
The support also extends to online chats, with an expert speaker and different heart health topic each week.
“Since the beginning of the pandemic, Croí has been experiencing an ever-increasing demand for information, support and advice from heart and stroke patients and their carers,” said Neil Johnson, Croí’s Chief Executive.
“Our Heartlink West service is here to support those in need, including heart and stroke patients discharged early from hospital, those who had appointments cancelled or postponed due to the pandemic, and general heart health concerns.”
The National Institute for Prevention and Cardiovascular Health (NIPC) won Best Research Paper for The Ireland-ASPIRE Study: A Nationally Representative Epidemiologic Study of Coronary Heart Disease Secondary Prevention to Inform Post-COVID #CVD Prevention in Ireland.
The study, conducted by Prof Bill McEvoy, Research and Medical Director, NIPC, is the first nationally representative Irish study of secondary prevention among patients with coronary heart disease.
Over 600 patients were enrolled at nine sites across Ireland, with the results presented at the 2019 Irish Cardiac Society meeting.
