HEART ATTACK victims now have a much better chance of survival, thanks to dramatically improved ways of working at Princess Margaret Hospital.

The hospital is the best in southern England at giving patients thrombolysis a vital anti-clotting drug that unblocks the heart's arteries and gets the organ working again.

In April, the hospital was only managing to give 13 per cent of patients the drug within the Government's target time of 30 minutes after arriving at the hospital.

But by last month, that figure had soared to 86 per cent, giving local heart patients a vital edge on people living in other parts of the country.

Dave Wakely, a specialist registrar in emergency medicine at PMH, said he had no doubt the improvements were already saving lives.

"There's some very, very big trials done internationally to show that if you have a heart attack of a certain type, this is the drug," he said.

"It's the best option if you get it within half an hour."

Although the hospital's performance was on a par with similar units before the changes, Mr Wakely and his colleagues are delighted that PMH is now leading the way in this type of care.

"Our feeling is that we weren't doing awfully well before, but now we are doing extremely well," he said.

The change has been achieved through a simple idea making sure all heart attack patients who arrive at the hospital go to the Accident and Emergency department, and a new unit staffed by two highly qualified cardiac nurses.

But the improvements would not have worked without a lot of co-operation between departments, plus staff training, and extra resources to make the idea a reality.

The Government stumped up extra money for the services of Chris Keen and Kathy Shears, the specialist nurses who staff the department.

Other senior A&E nurses have also agreed to take on extra responsibilities for heart patients, and been given extra training in their care.

Wiltshire Ambulance Service are also playing their part, paying for a dedicated fax line that allows paramedics to send electrocardiograms direct from patients' homes to the unit.

This allows nurses to make a quick decision about how urgently the patient needs to be seen, and there are even plans for paramedics to give thrombolysis to patients at their homes in future.

"There was a problem, but people put their heads together and came up with a solution, implemented it, and the results have been astonishing in this space of time," said Mr Wakely.

"It's a real tribute both to the plan, and the carrying out of the plan."

The unit is now looking forward to its next challenges, and already on course to meet expected new Government targets saying thrombolysis should be administered within 20 minutes of patients arriving at the hospital.

Mr Wakely also wants to make potential patients aware of the importance of getting drugs like thrombolysis early if they suspect they have suffered a heart attack.

"They shouldn't wait around," he said.

"If they think it's a heart attack, they should get in an ambulance and come here straight away."