September 25, 2014 — A new state-of-the-art cardiac facility at Barts Hospital in the London has welcomed its first outpatients
The facility, which will be part of the new Barts Heart Centre, has started receiving outpatients for cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. The unit will have three dedicated cardiac MRI scanners and will be one of the largest facilities of its kind in Europe. It will be the first centre in the United Kingdom with the latest 3T MRI scanner, the Siemens Prisma, to be used for assessment of the heart.
The outpatients now being referred to the new service are predominantly from hospitals around north and east London.
The first patient to receive a cardiac MRI scan at the new centre was Dara Singh Sian, 53, an electrical engineer from Ilford in Essex.
Dara, who is a father-of-two, said: “I have had scans before at the London Chest Hospital and I am looking forward to seeing the brand new facilities at the centre. It’s brilliant to see that progress is being made for patients.”
Cardiac MRI uses radio waves and powerful magnets to create still and moving images of the heart. It is a non-invasive investigation as no tubes or other instruments are inserted into the body to obtain images. It is used to assess how well the heart is pumping, look for any type of scarring or damage to the heart muscle and also make sure that the arteries that supply blood to the heart are not severely narrowed or blocked.
Barts Heart Centre will start to welcome both outpatients and inpatients in Spring 2015 and will be one of the biggest heart centres in Europe. It will bring together under one roof all of Barts Health cardiovascular services. This includes the transfer of services from the London Chest Hospital in Bethnal Green and the proposed move of services provided at the Heart Hospital in Marylebone, part of University College London Hospitals, which is subject to approval by regulators.
The new centre, which will serve people in north and east London, Hertfordshire, Essex and nationally, will deliver improvements and pioneering treatments, see increased research and development investment and further enhance patient outcomes.
It will also be part of UCL Partners, the United Kindom’s largest academic health science network, facilitating research, development and collaboration across a wide group of healthcare providers and academic institutions.
Dr. Mark Westwood, clinical cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) lead at Barts Health NHS Trust said: “It is great to see the centre start to welcome patients through its doors. This marks a major milestone as the new Barts Heart Centre that has been planned for a number of years and marks a significant development in provision of heart services for patients across London.
“The center will allow us to consolidate our unique experience and research by bringing experienced clinicians together to improve services for today’s patients and future generations.”
For more information: www.bartshealth.nhs.uk
April 23, 2024 
