All About the South African Heart Association

Tell us about the South African Heart Association (SA Heart). When was it formed, and why? The South African Heart Association was formally constituted in September 1999 from the amalgamation of the Southern African Cardiac Society and the South African Society of Cardiac Practitioners, becoming the sole organization representing the professional interests of all cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons in the country. Membership now includes many people in the associated professions, and a percentage of the 440 members are medical technologists, nursing personnel and scientists involved in cardiovascular research. The Association has a Constitution and is driven by its elected National Executive Committee, which is guided by a National Advisory Council that receives input from the Standing Committees, Regional Branches and Special Interest Groups (SIGs). Member decisions are taken at appropriately assembled general meetings. The Association has affiliated Special Interest Groups and Regional Branches, all of whom play an active role in the Association and its endeavors. The SIGs affiliated with SA Heart include the Pediatric Cardiology Society of South Africa (PCSSA), the Arrhythmia Society (CASSA), the South African Heart Association Surgical Group, the Society for Interventional Cardiology (SASCI), the Heart Failure Society (HeFSSA) and the Lipid and Atherosclerosis Society (LASSA). The Association also has formal affiliations to the Pan African Society of Cardiology (PASCAR) and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), and is a member of the World Heart Federation (WHF). These affiliations have led to a broad sharing of each other’s knowledge bases and acumen; this has resulted in SA Heart endorsing and making use of the ESC’s official guidelines and policies in their recommendations to its members in clinical practice. Who can join SA Heart? Approximately how many members are there currently? Anybody with an interest in cardiology can join the SA Heart; there are several levels of membership. Full or ordinary membership is reserved for cardiologists, cardiothoracic surgeons and specialist physicians who practice within the borders of South Africa. All other professionals can join as associate members. SA Heart also has a number of international full and associate members; these are typically ex-South Africans who wish to remain in contact or international professionals with a particular interest in cardiology in South Africa. Many of them are also involved in local research projects. Currently 244 of the nearly 480 members are local ordinary members who have voting rights and can stand for any of the executive posts. What are some of the benefits of SA Heart membership? As with any professional society, the most important benefit of SA Heart membership is having a platform on which professional interests, questions and complaints can be voiced and dealt with. The Executive Committee of SA Heart is involved with advising on government policy (e.g., cardiology training programs) and dealing and negotiating with medical schemes and funders. SA Heart protects the interests of all professionals that are working in the field of cardiology. Members receive free copies of both the SA Heart Journal and the SA Heart newsletter, and are eligible for discounted registration fees at the annual congress of the SA Heart Association. Furthermore, there are a number of travel and research scholarships that are available to local members. Tell us about the upcoming 9th Annual Congress of the SA Heart Association. What are some of the topics that will be covered at this meeting? What other medical society meetings does SA Heart participate in? The upcoming 9th Annual Congress will be held in the Wild Coast Sun Hotel in the Eastern Cape. Active participation from the South African Heart Association and its Special Interest Groups will ensure that broad spectrums of diseases are considered within the Congress theme: “Wild at Heart in Africa.” There are a number of new and challenging approaches to the management of various cardiovascular conditions, and we plan to address these. We already have an impressive list of confirmed international speakers, who are prepared to give entertaining talks and participate in robust debates. Abstracts and poster presentations also form part of the congress. In addition, SA Heart is involved with the “Cardiology at the Limits” meeting that takes place in Cape Town each year. The next meeting is in April 2009. Although involved in the annual Congress, the SIGs also have smaller gatherings from time to time with theme-specific topics and discussions. Notably, SASCI is involved in other international meetings, in particular the PCR. Regional branches have irregular academic presentations and discussions. How many people in South Africa are affected by heart arrhythmias? What do you consider the more common heart arrhythmia(s) experienced by patients in South Africa? There is no data yet in this regard. What are some of the ways that cardiology and electrophysiology practices in South Africa might differ from those in other countries such as the United States? What are some of the challenges that South African cardiac medical professionals might face? I’ve written on these topics in several recent articles. For more information about cardiology/EP practices in South Africa, please see: • Mayosi BM, Scott Millar RN. The 1995 survey of cardiac pacing in South Africa. S Afr Med J 1998;88(Suppl 4):C207-C213. • Mayosi BM, Scott Millar RN. Permanent cardiac pacing in South Africa. East Afr Med J 2000;77:339. • Millar RN, Mayosi BM. Utilization of implantable defibrillators in Africa. Card Electrophysiol Rev 2003;7:14-16. How might some of the South African cardiac guidelines differ from those cardiac guidelines in the U.S.? The SA Heart subscribes to the ESC guidelines and adjusts these for local circumstances where necessary. Tell us about the SA Heart’s special interest group, the Cardiac Arrhythmia Society of Southern Africa (CASSA). CASSA is a relatively small group of professionals that concentrate on the study and management of cardiac arrhythmia. They strive to improve the care of patients by promoting research, education and training and by providing leadership towards optimal healthcare policies and standards. The group has an annual symposium session at the SA Heart Association congress. CASSA is actively involved in road shows on ECG interpretation in the more remote areas of South Africa. The group PACE (Prevent Arrhythmic Cardiac Events) acts as a public awareness branch of CASSA. CASSA is in the process of publishing accreditation of electrophysiological procedures and implantation of devices. What are the South African Heart Association’s plans for the future? It is SA Heart’s intention to develop greater collaborations with other global representative associations, and we are in the process of establishing a collaborative exercise with the American College of Cardiology (ACC), which has considerable experience with cardiovascular registries, and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) registries in particular. We hope that this exchange of information will eventually lead to more direct comparisons of trends of practice in an international arena. For more information, please visit: www.saheart.org