A new Cardiac Diagnostic Unit is being constructed at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital which will be opened in the summer of 2002.

And, even with Bermuda's heart disease problem getting better, there is still a grave need for Bermudians to involve themselves in helping fight the disease through treatment, education and prevention.

This comes from Bermuda Heart Foundation (BHF) chairman Dr. Shane Marshall, who said the new Barber Cardiac Diagnostic Unit will need fresh faces like medical student Nadia Krupp, who was awarded the Edna and Frank Gamble Cardiac Scholarship yesterday, to keep up the fight against heart disease.

Dr. Marshall said the vision of the BHF was to create a facility "that combines a stress-free environment, advanced technology and the ability to serve more cardiac patients".

The new facility will come in addition to millions of dollars worth of lifesaving equipment that the BHF has managed to purchase already, including a Digital Image Analysis Machine and Telemetry, which allows the constant monitoring of up to eight patients' vital signs at once.

Also, there are plans to develop a new teleconferencing system at the BHF Research and Education Library, which will allow a direct link to major medical facilities in the United States.

The BHF also plans underwrite the hiring of a Cardiac Rehabilitation Specialist at the hospital, to develop a cardiac rehabilitation programme.

Dr. Marshall said: "This professional will educate and monitor cardiac patients to bridge the gap between hospital and a return to normal life."

Ms Krupp, whose parents accepted the new scholarship on her behalf, will receive $10,000 in financial aid through the award.

She is a third-year student at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School and has already obtained a B.Sc. in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale.

Set up by long-time Red Cross volunteers the late Frank C. Gamble MBE and his wife Edna, this was the first scholarship of its kind to be awarded.

Son Allan Gamble said he felt this was a very appropriate way for his father's contribution to health and education to be remembered.

"The commitment to education was at the root of his charity and he was a great giver of time and money," he said.

"It's not surprising that he wanted this to be done."

Dr. Marshall said he was glad to see this scholarship provide the opportunity of education for Bermudians who are interested in getting involved in the health field.

"The scope of the cardiology field is quite wide," he said.

"While we do need more doctors, there is still a lot of room for people to work in education and prevention.

"We're busy putting out the fires but we need people to stop them before they start."

Asked how the fight against heart disease was going, Dr. Marshall said: "It's improving.

"For the first time a couple of years ago, we found out that cancer was the number one killer in Bermuda instead of heart disease.

"Of course we don't want to see cancer increasing, but that does mean that the cases of heart disease are decreasing at least and we were heartened by the findings."