A PIONEERING heart care van has been set up outside Mold Community Hospital this week to help patients access the service closer to home.

The purpose-built van, the ‘first of its kind’ in the UK, has been kitted out with diagnostics equipment, which will be used to assess patients who have suspected heart failure closer to their homes.

It first visited the Mold Community Hospital on Tuesday, November 23.

Advanced Imaging Specialists David Lyth and Liana Shirley, who set up the heart van, said: “The clinic went well and hopefully we'll have plenty more in future. The van is great and offers us a clinic room where otherwise we wouldn't have one in this area of Flintshire. We’d like to thank Val Morgan and Caren Broster for allowing us this opportunity at Mold Community Hospital.”

The aim of the new van, that has been funded by the North Wales NHS charity, Awyr Las, is to offer a community-based service to facilitate the care of patients, with the aim of preventing them from having to go into hospital.

The Cardio van will be visiting community hospitals from Anglesey to areas around Wrexham area, then to Dolgellau in the south and east the Llangollen area.

Following an appeal to the public for donations toward the project, Awyr Las received generous contributions, including a sum of £1,000 from the charity Teddies for Loving Care (TLC) which are a part of the North Wales Freemasons Charity.

Bryan George, Chair of TLC said: “This is a case of the nurses being able to take the mountain to Mohammad. We know that people are concerned about having to wait for hospital appointments. We were more than happy to contribute to something that will alleviate people’s fears and highlight potential problems before they escalate.”

Chief Executive Officer of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, Jo Whitehead, said: “We are grateful to Liana and her team for putting patients first during what has been an unprecedented time in our lives. This is a great example of care being provided closer to home. This vehicle will not only allow us to serve patients quickly but also shows how using a different approach to providing services enriches the experience to the patient and gives flexibility to staff in a post-pandemic world.

“Our thanks to everybody who donated to Awyr Las to help make Liana and her team’s dream of having this vehicle a reality. Your contributions really do make a difference.”