Vodafone goes to the heart of the problem

Vodafone Malta Limited has launched a new initiative to encourage people to undergo heart scans.

Through this initiative, Vodafone will pay Lm35 towards the cost of having a heart scan at Saint James Hospital. The normal price for a heart scan is Lm80, however Vodafone customers will only have to pay Lm45 for the examination.

The fact is that coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death in Malta, claiming more lives than lung, colon, prostrate and breast cancer put together, a Vodafone spokesman said.

The spokesman said that for the company there was nothing more important than an individual's health and well being and it felt that 2005 should begin with an effort on its part to help customers make sure they are in good health. "Heart scans are expensive but we hope that Vodafone's offer to meet Lm35 of the cost will encourage as many people as possible to book a scan," Vodafone's brand manager, Alison Bezzina, said.

Medical research has shown that 85 per cent of sudden heart attacks could be prevented if the conditions that lead to the attack are diagnosed early enough to prescribe treatment to correct the problem.

More than 33 per cent of patients who have a heart attack show absolutely no symptoms beforehand, making heart scans even more important.

Saint James Hospital uses cardiac calcium scoring during its heart scans, which is at least 10 times more powerful a predictor of coronary artery disease than cholesterol screening.

Jean Claude Muscat, director at Saint James Hospital, said the heart scan is a non-invasive test that only lasts about 30 seconds.