Health secretary Matt Hancock MP saw for himself the work of the life-saving team at Ipswich Hospital’s Heart Centre.
Mr Hancock toured the £5million specialist unit and went behind the scenes in an operating theatre to watch a heart attack patient undergoing surgery.
On his visit to the hospital Mr Hancock hosted a question and answer session with 130 members of clinical and support staff.
ESNEFT chief executive Nick Hulme said: “We were delighted to welcome the Secretary of State and to give him the opportunity to meet so many frontline and support staff.
“I’m very proud to be part of the NHS and today we were able to show him some examples of what makes it great locally, as well as talking about the challenges we face.”
The Ipswich Heart Centre opened in 2014 and is home to specialist theatres for planned coronary angioplasty. This is a life-saving operation where patients at risk of a heart attack have their narrowed arteries widened.
Heart Centre sister Pippa Wilson said: “I’m very proud of the care provided by my team and we are glad the Secretary of State saw first-hand a real life example of the treatment we provide, and how it can make a life-saving difference to patients.”
Patient Barry Parker, who met the Secretary of State on his visit to the hospital, said: “The staff at this place are fantastic.”
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