<span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;">Aga Khan University Hospital joined the Kenya Cardiac Society and the World Heart Federation in celebrating this year’s World Heart Day at the Nairobi Railways Club. Under the theme ‘Heart choices not hard choices’, this year’s World Heart Day focused on ensuring that people are able to make heart healthy choices wherever they live, work or play and encourage the reduction of cardiovascular diseases.</span><br style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;"/><br style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;"/><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;">During the celebrations, AKUH offered free heart screening to over 70 people. The screening included high blood pressure, blood sugar, body mass index and consultation as well as education on healthy lifestyles. According to Professor Gerald Yonga, Chair of Medicine and cardiologist at AKUH, Kenya is among the hardest hit by rheumatic heart disease with 200,000 new cases being reported each year caused by untreated strep infections.</span><br style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;"/><br style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;"/><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;">There is also a severe shortage of specialists, cardiology training programmes and cardiac catheterization laboratories (cathlabs). Almost all cathlabs are based in Nairobi, which is home to only about 12 per cent of the national population. In 2011, the hospital opened a state-of-the-art Heart and Cancer Centre to offer comprehensive quality cardiac and cancer care with the most advanced technology and the latest therapeutic and rehabilitation services delivered by a multi-disciplinary team of experts.</span><br style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;"/><br style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;"/><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 14.6667px;">The hospital's Patient Welfare Program, provides financial assistance to qualifying patients who are not able to afford such world class care. The event was well attended by officials from the Ministry of Health, various hospitals, religious organizations and educational institutions.</span>
