'Care For Your Heart'
..on behalf of Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospital – registered charity 1053584
On a more personal note, the event will also be fundraising for 'Care For Your Heart' which is a charitable account set up to raise money for the Royal Brompton & Harefield Cardiac Rehabilitation Unit.
Barry Passfield, father of BraveHeart MMA promoter Rachel Passfield, suffered two heart attacks in 1997 and underwent quadruple heart bypass surgery. The nurses at the cardiac rehabilitation unit at Harefield Hospital helped Barry make a miraculous recovery. In this time, Barry learnt that the unit was completely self funded.
Barry's Wish....
Barry decided to organise a charity bike ride where he would cycle on his own from Kingston to Brighton to raise £1,000 to help towards buying new machinery for the cardiac rehabilitation unit.
With local business interest and media, there was a huge offering to help. On 22nd August 1999, fifty one other cyclists joined Barry on the cycle ride from Kingston to Brighton. That day, Barry raised £18,253.90.
Two years later, in 2001 he set up a second cycle ride, a carbon copy of his first and raised a further £11,500, totalling just under £30,000 – completely smashing his original target.
The fact that Barry was able to participate in a bike ride from Kingston to Brighton within two years of a quadruple bypass gives credit to the nurses and the programmes ran at the unit.
Unfortunately in 2010, Barry's heart disease returned and in December of that year, his recovery wasn't as miraculous as his first and he passed away.
BraveHeart MMA show has been created in honour of Barry in the hope that his dedication and determination can be continued, and funding can still be sought for the Cardiac Rehabilitation Unit at Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospital (Formerly Harefield Hospital).
The "Care for your Heart Rehabilitation Programme" involves a long-term commitment from the patient and a team of health care providers.
Intensive pre-operative care is given to the patient leading up to their heart surgery. This is obviously a very scary time and the unit at Harefield have a dedicated team of nurses that give patients their ultimate care and attention. They care for their patients on a personal level to ensure the patient feels the utmost comfort, as much as can be expected, before their major surgery.
Post-surgery, the programme consists of an 8-week intensive education programme followed by a 6-12 week exercise training and risk factor management programme.
The 'Care For Your Heart' programme aims to:
- Support patients and their families there by optimising recovery and improving quality of life and future prognosis
- Identify and modify the risk factors for coronary heart disease for each individual
- Increase functional capacity, improve symptoms and optimise future health through exercise training
- Identify potential problems or complications and then ensure the optimal management.
