lnstitut Jantung Negara (IJN) today (March 3) inaugurated its Heart Failure Conference to facilitate greater knowledge-sharing among medical professionals on managing heart failure.
Held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, the IJN Heart Failure Conference 2023 was officiated by Deputy Minister of Health Lukanisman Awang Sauni, who commended IJN for its proactiveness in organising the event. ‘W hile the ministry is serious about transforming healthcare to benefit more people, we cannot do this alone. This is why I am delighted to see knowledge-sharing events such as this – a collaboration between all health stakeholders is how we can realise the dream of a robust Malaysian health sector,” he said in his opening speech.
Attracting some 450 participants, the conference was part of IJN’s ongoing educational and awareness-raising efforts in cardiovascular and thoracic health. The conference is a two-day event which begins today (March 3) and tomorrow (March 4), featuring case presentations, lectures, and panel discussions on a wide range of topics related to heart failure. Among the subjects covered are heart failure management; electrophysiology; imaging; genetics; current advancements in heart failure research and clinical practices; and ‘best contemporary practices in patient care.
Heart failure occurs when the heart is unable to pump blood to the rest of the body as efficiently as it should, often developing after the heart is damaged or weakened due to other medical conditions. If left untreated, heart failure can potentially cause other complications, such as kidney and liver damage.
According to the World Heart Federation, heart failure affects some 64 million people globally and is the leading cause of hospitalisations worldwide. In Malaysia, an estimated 6 to 10% of hospital re-admissions are due to heart failure.
“These grim numbers are part of why we are here today: what else can we do better? Given the complexities of heart failure management – from handling patients’ comorbidities to keeping track of multiple medications – my hope is that the conversations we will be having over the next two days will generate new paradigms for us all,” said IJN chief executive officer Datuk Dr Aizai Azan Abdul Rahim in his welcoming speech at the conference.
Meanwhile, IJN Clinical Director of Heart Failure and Heart Transplant Datuk Dr Azmee Mohd Ghazi said the conference was open to anyone professionally involved in the field of cardiology to facilitate a greater exchange of ideas and perspectives.
“Given that cardiovascular diseases are a leading cause of mortality in Malaysia, heart failure is a common problem at many local hospitals,” said Dr Azmee, who was also the conference’s organising chairman. “We felt that it was important to have a platform that welcomed all – from cardiology experts and cardiac physicians to general practitioners and policymakers – to promote a better understanding of the disease.”
The conference also announced IJN’s plans to set up a Centre of Excellence in Cardiovascular to boost treatment, care and research around cardiac and vascular diseases. The clinical centre of excellence will be a collaborative initiative between IJN and Medtronic, one of the world’s largest healthcare technologies solution companies.
The partnership also involves joint capacity-building efforts through introducing new therapies and providing training around cardiac and vascular diseases. Training endeavours will also include enhancing the training capabilities of physicians and nurses and delving into topics covering advances in healthcare economics and improved outcomes.
Dr Aizai Azan said the collaboration will serve to strengthen the local healthcare sector as a whole. “As healthcare professionals, we thrive on mutual cooperation – all of us share the same goal of creating a healthy ecosystem that is high-quality and accessible to the wider public. Through these capacity-building efforts, we hope to increase the pool of specialised talent in the country and, in turn, save more lives,” he added.
