Free consultations and diagnostic tests, creative educational workshops, first aid demonstrations, advice on healthy nutrition, presentations by patient advocacy organisations and meetings with Poland's most prominent cardiologists - these are the main highlights of the V Patient Heart Forum. The annual meeting of cardiologists with people with cardiovascular diseases and their relatives will take place on 30 September 2023 on the grounds of the Poznań International Fair. Admission to the event is free of charge. Open registration is available at: https://www.sercepacjenta.com/#rejestracja.
Attractions for healthier hearts
Free diagnostic tests, including heart ECHO, a range of measurements and laboratory tests, consultations and practical workshops are the main attractions of the 5th Patient Heart Forum - the only initiative in Poland aimed at patients with cardiovascular diseases and their relatives. As every year, the Patient's Heart Forum will be an integral part of the International Congress of the Polish Cardiac Society.
- As part of each successive edition of the Patient Heart Forum, we try to organise the most practical and useful activities for patients and their relatives. During the fifth anniversary edition of the Forum, we will traditionally address issues such as hypertension, heart failure, obesity disease and lipid disorders. These are still current and important topics. We will focus on issues related to primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases - so as to support Forum participants in leading a healthy lifestyle. This, in addition to the use of recommended treatment, is a key factor in prolonging and improving the quality of life, both for healthy people and those with already diagnosed cardiovascular conditions," says Professor Ewa Straburzyńska-Migaj, MD, Head of the Heart Failure Sub-Department at the 1st Department of Cardiology, Poznań University of Medical Sciences, Chair of the Organising Committee of the 5th Patient Heart Forum.
Knowledge is support
- What sources of information are worth using to take care of yourself safely? We will try to answer these and many other questions related to cardiac education during educational and workshop panels, which will be conducted by the most eminent specialists in Poland, who take care of cardiac patients on a daily basis. In the workshop part, we will invite participants, among other things, to a meeting with a psychologist, during which we will talk about how to cope with the ageing process, how to think positively, how to manage emotions related to cardiac diagnostics and therapy. These are topics that are useful for both patients with cardiovascular conditions and their carers, for whom the process of caring for the patient can sometimes be a significant burden and who can also benefit from useful support techniques. As part of the 5th Patient Heart Forum, we will create a platform for participants to share their experiences. Patients and their relatives will have the opportunity to share their experiences of daily life with the disease. As participants in successive editions of our initiative admit, this is an invaluable value and a great opportunity to make new friends with people who share similar health experiences,' says Marta Kałużna-Oleksy, MD, PhD, from the 1st Cardiology Department of the Poznań University of Medical Sciences, a member of the Organising Committee of the 5th Patient's Heart Forum.
Forum for Patient Organisations
A regular part of the Patient Heart Forum are panel discussions with the participation of invited experts and stakeholders in the Polish healthcare system. A similar discussion is also planned for the current edition of the Forum.
- This year, as part of the 5th Heart of the Patient Forum, we have planned an opening session with representatives of the Polish Cardiac Society, leaders of patient organisations and representatives of healthcare system stakeholders. Together with the experts, we will review the results of the latest "Patient's Heart Forum" survey, which we designed to find out patients' needs and expectations, as well as their proposals directed at improving cardiac care in Poland. Together with the panellists, we will summarise the greatest successes in the field of cardiology recorded over the past year. We will also point out the challenges we are currently facing in this area. The Forum will also be attended by a number of expert cardiologists who will be happy to answer patients' questions and meet representatives of patients' associations. It promises to be a really interesting discussion, to which we would like to invite everyone," says Magdalena Dudek, MD, from the Department of Cardiology at Poznań University Clinical Hospital, a member of the Organising Committee of the 5th Patient Heart Forum.
For more information about the 5th Patient Heart Forum: https://www.sercepacjenta.com/.