The International Project
Countries around the world share many of the same challenges and priorities relating to the demand for information and support on cardiac arrhythmias. The success of A-A UK has inspired other nations to believe in the power of the Alliance. As a result, Arrhythmia Alliance Partners and Affiliates have been established.
Prof A John Camm, President, Arrhythmia Alliance:
“The past year has seen the growing international organisation of Arrhythmia Alliance with the launch of A-A in many countries worldwide, including Latin America. For further information including international news and translations, visit www.aa-international.org.
A-A has responded to the increasing international demand and growing awareness of cardiac arrhythmias by establishing the World Heart Rhythm Week (WHRW) campaign. WHRW aims to encourage individuals and organisations to promote awareness of heart rhythm disorders across the globe.”
A-A International Project is a united approach for greater impact for change and awareness of arrhythmias on an international scale. The concept of establishing A-A models around the world is not to enforce similar practice upon other countries, but to show how global collaboration can improve arrhythmia services, share best medical practices and methods, and ultimately, life for the individual cardiac arrhythmia patient.
International Toolkit
Arrhythmia Alliance has produced an International Toolkit as a practical guide to aid you through the process of establishing an Arrhythmia Alliance national model. Although each country’s needs and resources will vary this toolkit draws on the successes of A-A in the UK.
For more information about the International Project please contact ingrid@aa-international.org
A Message from Founder and Trustee, Trudie Lobban MBE
Arrhythmia Alliance (A-A) continues to be an advocate for improved diagnosis and treatment of arrhythmias in other countries with the A-A International Project. I am pleased to announce the most recent A-A National Partnerships in Italy , Argentina, and China. They join our existing A-A National Partners in Sweden, Portugal , Czech Republic , Japan, and South Africa.
An important element of the A-A International Project is the platform it has created for unifying best practice methods in arrhythmia services while influencing international health initiatives and policies. In October 2009, I was invited to attend the Eucomed Medtech Conference in Brussels to participate in an EU policy debate, ‘What should define value?: Assessing Health Technology.’ This important debate was an excellent opportunity for A-A to present the patient perspective on quality of healthcare in relation to new innovative and cost-efficient medical technologies in Europe.
A-A will continue to be instrumental in forging new future collaborative project campaigns for A-A National Partners across the globe. The Restart the Heart campaign has been influential in promoting initiatives in Europe and South America. A-A is working on a collaboration for a European AED (Automatic External Defribrillator) project to ensure the placement of AEDs across Europe. The national AED campaign in Italy, ‘Progetto Vita’ translated, Project Life, has successfully placed more than 30 AEDs in the northern city of Piacenza, Italy. A-A Argentina has developed an AED campaign with the support of Heartbeat International to place AEDs in towns surrounding Buenos Aires.
World Heart Rhythm Week (WHRW) continues to be a success with an astounding 250+ international organisations holding events during the 2009 Know Your Pulse campaign. Organisations held events to promote awareness of arrhythmias and/or events relevant to their mission and goals.
This year’s WHRW 7th – 13th June 2010 will coincide with the 11th June kick-off of the FIFA World Cup and presents an exceptional opportunity for A-A and its national partners and supporters to maximise awareness of sudden cardiac arrest. A-A encourages international organisations to seek the endorsement of national football celebrities in their country for this year’s WHRW.
On behalf of A-A, I thank all of our supporters and look forward with excitement to this new year to work collaboratively with you, as health reform initiatives across the globe open the door for improved quality care, health technologies and education for arrhythmia services. Together, we can ensure that the patient voice remains at the centre of healthcare leading to improved quality of life for all those affected by cardiac arrhythmias.