Heart failure service is just the ticker for 74-year-old Ken and hundreds like him

If home is where the heart is then a hospital in one part of Swansea provides a caring home from home for hundreds of people every year.

Among them is fitness enthusiast Ken Palmer (pictured above), who was still doing long-distance bike rides until, aged 70, he had a diagnosis of heart failure due to dilated cardiomyopathy, one of the common causes.

Four years on and Ken continues to be monitored by Swansea Bay’s community heart failure service, seeing the specialist nurse and pharmacist team either virtually or face-to-face at Gorseinon Hospital.

“It never enters my head that I’m not well,” he said. “It helps that I’m so well looked after here. I’ve had wonderful treatment. Everyone is great.”

And it’s not just Ken who benefits from the service but wife Sharon too, with the couple having nothing but praise.

“The service provided by the heart failure team has been outstanding,” said Sharon. “It has made what has been a very difficult time for me and Ken so much easier to deal with because of their care and support.”

Heart failure is a long-term condition, with the heart unable to pump blood around the body as effectively as it should. Symptoms can include shortage of breath, fatigue and fluid in the legs.

It is caused by conditions such as coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, and arrhythmias. It can affect people of any age, though it is significantly more common in the elderly.

While heart failure cannot be cured, a combination of lifestyle changes, medication, and specialist care can effectively manage symptoms, improve quality of life, and enhance long-term outcomes.

Swansea Bay’s community heart failure service supports primary care with heart failure treatment optimisation – ensuring patients get the right medicine for their needs, to get the best possible outcome.

The service is led by nurses and pharmacists, who run clinics in Gorseinon Hospital and Cwmbwrla Clinic, Swansea, and Neath Port Talbot Hospital.

Hayley Taylor, pictured right, lead nurse for community cardiology services, said: “We see around 120 patients a week across the three sites, though the majority of them are seen at Gorseinon.

“As Gorseinon has a phlebotomy service, patients can have their blood tests and clinic consultations there, which is convenient for them and provides continuity of care.

“Gorseinon also hosts the Rapid Diagnostic Clinic, where patients referred by their GP with suspected heart failure can receive a timely echocardiogram and see a consultant cardiologist on the same day.

“If a diagnosis of heart failure is confirmed, patients are seamlessly transitioned into our community-based service, led by specialist nurses and pharmacists, to ensure ongoing, personalised care and support.”

Ken had always been fit, running marathons and half-marathons as well as enjoying long-distance cycling.

“I had been unwell for a few months and thought perhaps I had caught Covid and was suffering the after-effects,” said the 74-year-old, who had his own garden landscaping business before retiring.

He saw his GP and was referred for tests, then saw cardiologist Dr Ben Dicken. Once his diagnosis was confirmed, Ken had his first appointment at the Gorseinon clinic in July 2022.

“The diagnosis came as a complete and utter shock to both of us,” he said. “Neither of us could believe it.”

Sharon added: “We were also very scared. But once Ken attended the heart failure clinic we both felt his condition was explained fully to us in a way that made it easy to understand.”

Hayley said patients loved coming to Gorseinon Hospital because it had such a strong community feel. Ken and Sharon, who live nearby, agreed.

Ken said he had been looked after like a saint and particularly enjoyed his conversations with heart failure specialist nurse Lydia Mason.

“I can talk to Lydia like she’s one of the family,” he said. “We can have a laugh and a joke, and you feel at ease. It’s a wonderful service.”

Sharon said Ken was partially deaf, so she spoke on the phone for him. “The fact that I can ring the heart failure nurses with any queries or issues has been beneficial,” she added.

“Not just for Ken from a treatment point of view but also for me by taking the stress out of the situation.”

(Pictured: Ken with wife Sharon and heart failure specialist nurse Lydia Mason)

In 2023, Swansea Bay’s whole-system approach to heart failure was acknowledged with a prestigious NHS Wales Award in the Delivering Higher Value and Care category.

This recognised the team’s innovative and integrated model of care, from diagnostics, the inpatient team and the community heart failure service.

The service is currently actively supporting or optimising treatment for around 1,000 patients.

However, in Swansea Bay, there are around 5,000 patients registered with GPs as having heart failure. Most of them are managing their condition well and so do not need to see the specialist team.  

But Hayley said that, if a patient’s condition began to deteriorate, their GP could re-refer them into the service.

“Our priority is to ensure they are seen by our specialist team rather than presenting at the front door of Morriston Hospital,” she added.

“We know these patients well, and by intervening early, we can often prevent further decline and help them get back on track.”