This weekend sees the second of our Healthier Lifestyles initiatives, with the British Heart Foundation. We decided to get involved with BHF after one of our fans, Brian Ferme, had a heart attack and collapsed outside the ground after the Raith Rovers game. Sadly, Brian (57), lost his fight and passed away a couple of weeks later. Brian, who also suffered from diabetes and had other health problems including having lost sight in his eyes, attended every Dundee FC game making use of the club's commentary for the blind service. A collection was held at Brian’s funeral to raise funds for the Dundee FC Supporters’ Society. We’re truly humbled by this wonderful gesture of generosity, Brian’s daughter Liz will hand over a cheque for £470 this afternoon.
Indeed Liz, also a regular fan, was delighted to help in any way she could and is very proud to kick start the British Heart Foundation’s Hearty Lives campaign in memory of her father. Hearty Lives Dundee is the innovative partnership between NHS Tayside and British Heart Foundation (BHF) Scotland who provide information, advice and support to help people lead healthier lives and to maintain lifestyle change.
The Hearty Lives Dundee team carry out the heart health checks in various community venues, including measuring blood pressure, blood glucose and cholesterol levels as well as checking existing medical conditions. Problems such as high blood pressure and cholesterol may in fact otherwise go unnoticed. "I'm really happy that I've been asked to be involved in this, and my dad would be so proud and happy. I hope that these health checks that NHS Hearty Lives will be offering next season can help people and that everyone takes advantage of the scheme."
On Saturday afternoon, Liz will hand over signed Dundee FC merchandise to John Darcy, BHF volunteer, accompanied by Professor of Cardiology Stuart Pringle, in a build up to the Hearty Lives team visiting Dens Park next season to carry out health checks. The merchandise will be auctioned by Professor Pringle at a Sportsman's Dinner to raise funds for the BHF. Professor Pringle said, “This is a fantastic opportunity for NHS Tayside and the British Heart Foundation to work so closely with the fans and staff of Dundee FC. The Hearty Lives nurses give advice and information to people to help maintain their health, whether around how to reduce blood pressure or cholesterol, but it is more likely that there are small changes the person can make to their lifestyle themselves. This can be something as simple as a short walk most days of the week, but little changes can have a big impact.”