| Azaraimy HH |
THE Cardiac Society of Brunei Darussalam (CSBD) held its 5th Annual Scientific Meeting, which consisted a pre-congress ultrasound and echocardiography workshop on Friday at the Cardiac Centre of the Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha (RIPAS) Hospital, in addition to a scientific session at the Pantai Jerudong Specialist Centre yesterday.
Consultant Cardiologist and CSBD Secretary Dr Mohamad Ezam bin Emran, in an interview, said cardiovascular diseases is the leading cause of death in the country.
Dr Mohamad Ezam also noted the troubling increase in the number of younger people being treated for cardiovascular diseases.
“I repeat the minister’s sentiment that prevention is the way to go. We may have world-class treatment for cardiovascular here, but prevention is much better than cure,” he said.
“As an NGO, the CSBD hopes to play its part in increasing public awareness about the burden of cardiovascular diseases,” he said.
The CSBD held its first Annual Scientific Meeting in 2014, the same year of its establishment.
The annual sessions are aimed at increasing awareness on cardiovascular disease, as well as educating the local medical fraternity on the latest available innovations and treatments.
Last year, the CSBD hosted the prestigious ASEAN Federation of Cardiology Conference (AFCC) attended by delegates from ASEAN, Europe, USA, Australia, China and India.
This year’s main scientific session comprised local, regional and international speakers, including eminent cardiologist specialising in heart failure from the United Kingdom Dr Ali Vazir and President of the National Heart Association of Malaysia Dr Wan Ahmad.
Yesterday’s session also included a presidential lecture delivered by Minister of Health Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Isham bin Haji Jaafar.
Approximately 200 local delegates have registered for the main scientific session this year, with 60 for the pre-congress workshop.
The delegates comprise of doctors, nurses and various allied health professionals “Over the years, the event has also attracted attendees and speakers from outside Brunei Darussalam,” said Dr Mohamad Ezam.
“One of the strategies of the Ministry of Health, which we support as a society, is to try and educate people on the importance of disease prevention, a healthy lifestyle, smoking cessation and so on.
“The medical fraternity, or cardiac society, is relatively small in numbers in comparison to other regional cardiac societies, because there are only a handful of cardiologists, but somehow we managed to hold big meetings, and our aim is to continue to improve going forward.”