Health Promotion to Reduce Delays in Seeking Medical Attention in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome

The greatest benefit from myocardial reperfusion is obtained 120- 180 minutes after the onset of ischemic symptoms. Rivero et al demonstrated the existence of a delay in seeking medical attention (DSMA) in a metropolitan area in Spain. Several factors, often patient-dependent, favour this delay. Health promotion is the only action that successfully trains the general population in recognizing the ischemic symptoms in order to reduce the DSMA, which impacts mortality and quality of life. Health education is essential and it is not just the responsibility of medical professionals, but also of the government and its institutions, which should devote funds in order to spread such education to all sectors of the population. Strategies like e-health, big data, and crowdfunding are useful in this regard. Nevertheless, the proposed measures should foresee an increase in health expenditure due to an increased influx to the emergency services and a greater use of diagnostic techniques, but it is a cost worth paying, for the good of the patient.