Achievements
Our most notable projects include the creation of Rotary Heartbeat House, the redevelopment of Ocean Ward, creation of the Heartbeat Education Centre and the development of YACU (Young Adult's Cardiac Unit), as well as regular funding of leading-edge equipment, clinical education and research.
We are always striving to improve every single area of cardiac care, from education and prevention to treatment and rehabilitation; there are no shortage of inspired and cutting-edge ideas that we are looking to bring to fruition.
Brief History of Heartbeat
1992
Charity was launched October 1992 with Any "Tom Dick or Harriet" campaign.
Any Tom, Dick or Harriet was the slogan used when the Daily Echo helped launch the Wessex Heartbeat Appeal on 5th October 1992, the target was £3 million to help step up the assault at the time to Britain’s single biggest killer, heart disease.
The original shopping list was:
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A new catheter laboratory at £500,000
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Three cardiac echo machines at £450,000
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An electrophysiological (EPS) system at £200,00
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Other equipment at £850,000
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Research fellows at £500,000
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Accommodation for relatives at £500,000
The shopping list was achieved and a further £4 million was raised in the first 10 years of the charity.
1994
A house was purchased opposite the hospital to provide accommodation for families.
Rotary Clubs in the region raised £220,000 to purchase 152/4 Tremona Road, which was then redeveloped into a 13 bedded House, local Inner Wheel Clubs helped with the furnishings.
1995
The house was named Rotary Heartbeat House and was officially opened by Rory Bremner.
1998
Heartbeat Suite a State-of-the-Art conference facility within the Cardiac Centre with links to the Cath Labs and Cardiac Theatres, at the time it was one of the finest cardiac training facilities in the UK boosting the use of video technology to link up with other Cardiac Centre’s around the globe so that clinicians could share best practice. It was opened officially by Roger Black. (This was prior to the Heartbeat Education Centre in 2006/7).
2001
Ocean Ward E1 (Paediatric Ward) was redeveloped at the cost of £1.1 million, which cares for babies and young children with dedicated Children’s Cardiac Nurse Specialists to support children going through their cardiac journey.
Ocean Ward was opened by the Earl and Countess of Wessex.
2003
150 Tremona Road was purchased for £160,000 and demolished for redevelopment.
2004
148 Tremona Road was purchased for £160,000 and demolished for redevelopment.
2005
£1 million extension was built to Heartbeat House creating a 25 bedded facility which previously was 13 beds. This included an annex for families with children and a charity office.
2006
Heartbeat House was officially opened in 2006 by the Countess of Wessex.
£2.3 million was raised to create Heartbeat Education Centre on the new North wing cardiac unit expansion this created a State-of-the-Art Education Centre, with several meeting rooms, a clinical skills room and a Lecture Theatre seating 120 people with links to Cardiac Theatres and Catheter Laboratories within the Cardiac Unit and also providing global video links with a much larger capacity for teaching than the previous Heartbeat Suite.
2007
Heartbeat Education Centre officially opened by the Countess of Wessex.
2014
£800,000 was raised with the HIGH 5 appeal to create YACU (Young Adult Cardiac Unit) a new cardiac unit established specifically for the benefit of young adults, an environment tailored to young people aged 16-30 years.
2015
YACU was officially opened by the Countess of Wessex in January 2015.
2017
Worked in partnership with LifeLab, to fund 3 staff positions for £208,412 on a preventative programme, targeting children and young people through scientific discovery to make positive lifestyle choices for their physical and mental wellbeing and resilience, now and in the future and for their future children, to reduce the risk factors for later cardiovascular disease. This was a 3 year project.
Wessex Heartbeat celebrates 25 successful years of the charity supporting the work of the Wessex Cardiac Centre at Southampton.
2018
Project launched to fund 3D Heart modelling, this pioneering project will allow Cardiac Congenital Surgeons at Southampton to get accurate 3D printed models of their patients heart before surgery, enabling them to practice before operating.
2020
"Explain my Procedure" project funded for 5 years, special software which is designed to improve the patients knowledge on their cardiac procedure, delivered by animations, helping to educate, empower the patient bringing out the benefits, risks and alternatives to their procedures.
2021
Paediatric Palliative Clinical Nurse Specialist, part funding provided towards this critical role in supporting patients and families of cardiac children with palliative care needs. Heartbeat is committed to funding a pilot project for a "Rapid Response Heart Failure Nurse Specialist"
2022
Heartbeat funded a Cardiac Youth Support Worker for a three-year period to provide dedicated support for cardiac patients aged 11–25. The role focuses on helping young people understand their condition, navigate challenging conversations, access support in education, transition into adulthood, explore employment opportunities, and much more.
2024
The relaunch of our Healthy Heart Service started with Peter Cooper Motor Group, who prioritised their employees wellbeing. Our Healthy Heart Nurses perform health checks and offer health advice to help improve your heart health. The Cardiac Prehabilitation (Prehab) pilot programme, funded by Heartbeat, is designed to help provide a framework for cardiac patients prior to their operation, to eat nutritionally well, exercise within limits and reduce addictions such as alcohol and smoking so that they are as ‘match-fit’ physically as possible, going into their surgery. Additionally, the programme will offer psychological support to ensure that patients’ potential anxiety and depression is being managed, leading to a quicker and more lasting recovery from surgery, both physically and mentally.
2025
After the success of supporting and funding the Cardiac Youth Worker role, and due to the increase referrals, Heartbeat decided to fund a second Cardiac Youth Worker.
Heartbeat embarked on a mission to renovate Rotary Heartbeat House, making it more inclusive and accessible for the relatives of cardiac patients. This initiative was driven by changing family needs over the years, as the original facilities were no longer able to accommodate them effectively. The project was completed at a cost of just over £750,000, enhancing comfort, accessibility, and support for families during their time at the house.
D2 Heart Failure Ward Renovation became the next project, which is set to become the second dedicated Heart Failure Unit (HFU) in England and the largest in the UK, thanks to the scale of its service and patient population.
2026
Recognising the need to support cardiac patients aged 25 and over, Heartbeat funded a Heart Failure Psychological Support Worker pilot role, providing tailored emotional and psychological support.