The Bermuda Heart Foundation has declared war on heart disease in Bermuda, and the 'general' leading the battle is the charity's Executive Director Simone Barton.

Ms Barton is passionate about the issue and can drive home her point in two minutes or two hours, whichever you prefer whichever is going to cause you to make the necessary changes.

The charity has announced plans to open a cardiac prevention and intervention centre as a means of lowering the incidence of heart disease in Bermuda. That is its 'attack' plan.

But heart disease is a formidable foe. It's the leading cause of death by illness on the Island, accounting for one in three of all deaths.

The Foundation plans to launch its 'attack' sometime next year and 'soldiers' are already being specially trained for the task two exercise therapists went for training in Liverpool, England, and will return in January when they will be deployed to oversee and administer prescriptive exercise (where doctors write prescriptions for the exercises to be given to their patients).

Ms Barton has also secured a clinical dietician and said Dr. Marion Watlington will serve as the in-house physician.

Still needed are clinical therapists to carry out the counselling sessions and also still needed is a base from which to work although the Foundation is hoping to secure Tourmalina, on Richmond Road, for that purpose.

And then there's the cost according to Ms Barton $3 million is needed. And she said the charity will seek the funds from everyone, not just the corporate community.

She said the charity intends to introduce a new 'I Pledge' campaign shortly. "'I Pledge' will be something that you sign onto that allows you to make a monthly donation," said Ms Barton. "You'll be able to make your monthly donation in any amount you like. It can be $5 or $1,000."

That money will be used to keep the facility up and running in the beginning years. "The centre pledges to be self sufficient within three years," she added.

"The fact that heart disease is the number one killer in this country and we do not have a facility where people can come and get educated is not right," Ms Barton said.

"The hospital does a great job of diabetes education but when I look out in the community I think 'who is stopping it'?

"You cannot tell people diet and exercise. I was doing screenings and telling people 'your blood pressure is high and you have a touch of sugar', and they'd look at me with a blank stare and go about their business and I know they just didn't get it," she said.

The more screenings she did the more she realised that people did not understand.

"They hear it, they see it, they receive it but it hasn't hit them on a deeper level where it's going to cause them to take action," added Ms Barton.

"I'm not looking to step on anyone toes from diabetes or the hospital. What I want to do is take a pro-active stance to change our health perspective around so that I am not screening people and feeling exceedingly bad when they walk away from me and I know that they don't understand and I don't have things in place to say 'we have free courses on. Come to the centre let's work it out together.'

The prevention and intervention centre will operate as phases three and four for patients with heart illness (see panel). Phase one, acute care and phase two sub acute care will take place at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital. Patients will then be sent to the prevention centre where they will receive, education, training, private sessions and group counselling in a six to eight week programme.

For more information or to donate funds contact Simone Barton at the Bermuda Heart Foundation tel: 239-2052 or email: simonebarton@bdaheart.bm