Top heart specialists from around the world are uniting in Jozi for a big training and skills-sharing occasion!
Johannesburg, South Africa (08 September 2023) — Non-profit the SA Heart Association is gearing up for its annual congress where a unique initiative is on the agenda that’ll see top heart specialists and renowned cardiologists train future helpful hands.
The ‘Cardiac Collaboration’, will see people in highly specialised fields like cardiac anesthesiology, endocrinology, critical and emergency care, sports medicine, and radiology, to name a few, unite, share knowledge and create room for other cardiologists to up their skills.
Unlike any of the years before, this year will feature ‘Training Villages’ where delegates will get active hands-on training. Not to mention the skills sharing from top heart specialists will extend further as the trend-setting cardiologists will also conduct a roadshow at major hospitals around the country to offer their expertise whether through consultations or surgical procedures.
The knowledge sharing will also feature state-of-the-art devices and equipment in personalised training sessions.
Cardiologist, Congress Convenor and Wits University lecturer, Dr Farouk Mamdoo shares:
“Normally special devices, simulators and equipment are statically displayed on exhibition stands in the conference hall. However, at this year’s congress, delegates will be able to see them being used in real-time – some of which this country hasn’t even seen before.”
Mamdoo says additional pre-congress workshops will consist of didactic and practical lectures about hands-on procedures, with ‘tips, tricks and advice,’ and case studies presented.
Echocardiography, electrophysiology, paediatric cardiology, and cardiology for non-cardiologists will be among the fields embraced.
Among the most cutting-edge developments to be presented will be breakthroughs in heart failure therapy, new ways of treating complex coronary disease plus advances in the latest techniques, technology, and diagnostic tools – and the evidence to support their use.
Global experts attending, presenting and training include:
- Professor Mark Petri, Cardiologist at the Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences at the University of Glasgow.
- Professor Javed Butler, Patrick H. Lehan Chair in Cardiovascular Research and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at the University of Mississippi.
- Professor Renato Lopes, Department of Medicine within the Division of Cardiology at Duke University Medical Centre, North Carolina.
- Dr Seth Worley, Electrophysiology and Interventional Implants, Medstar Heart Vascular Institute in Washinton DC.
- Dr George McDaniel, Paediatric and Adult Congenital Electrophysiologist, UVA Children’s, Virginia.
- Professor Jeroen Bax, Leiden University, Netherlands; Non-invasive imaging.
Local experts presenting at the congress – many of whom are globally recognised include:
- Professor Karen Sliwa, clinician-scientist and Director of the Hatter Institute for Cardiovascular Research in Africa at the University of Cape Town (Managing cardiovascular risk factors during pregnancy)
- Dr Brian Allwood, Consultant Pulmonologist at Stellenbosch University and Tygerberg Hospital, where he has been responsible for expanding the pulmonary hypertension service and starting the first dedicated post-tuberculosis clinic in the country (Idiopathic pulmonary hypertension)
- Mpiko Ntsekhe, Cardiology Head of Department at Groote Schuur Hospital (HIV and cardiovascular disease – an update)
- Fathima Paruk, Academic and Clinical Head of the Department of Critical Care at the University of Pretoria and Steve Biko Academic Hospital (Navigating social media as a clinician).
The more access our healthcare workers, doctors and surgeons have to life-saving knowledge, the stronger South Africa’s heart can beat!
The congress will be taking place this year at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg from 27 – 29 October.
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