Adult Congenital Heart Disease Service

In 2017, NHS England reviewed congenital heart disease (CHD) services. Significant changes have been made to how and where care is delivered in the North West England, North Wales and The Isle of Man for patients with ACHD to ensure that no matter where you live you can expect to receive high quality ACHD services delivered as close to home as possible.

If you need to be admitted to hospital for treatment, your care will be coordinated by the North West team of ACHD cardiologists and specialist nurses. You may be able to be treated locally with advice from the team. Patients who require an operation or an interventional procedure or have more complex treatment needs will be transferred to Liverpool for treatment of your cardiac condition.

Regular outpatient clinics for adult patients are held at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Blackpool Victoria Hospital and Wrexham Maelor Hospital. Due to changes in the service over the last few years, we know that there are patients who are overdue for their appointments. We are working hard to get these patients seen as quickly as possible. If you’re concerned you haven’t had an appointment and are worried that you are not feeling well please contact the patient advice number listed below and leave a message with your DoB and a contact number.

If you are admitted to your local hosptal (i.e. not Manchester Royal or Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital) for your heart condition, or any other reason, the health care team looking after you should seek advice from the ACHD team.

For non-urgent queries, you can call the ACHD Advice line (8am – 6pm) on 0151 254 3333.

There is also an ACHD consultant on call and they can be contacted by medical professionals only via the switchboard at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital (0151 600 1616).

The ACHD service started performing surgical and interventional procedures in October 2018. Whilst it continues to mature, there may be cases where the team recommends referral to another ACHD centre outside of the region for your procedure or operation. You may be able to claim back any extra reasonable costs that you incur as a result. Each individual case will be assessed on a case by case basis. If you meet the criteria for claiming back your costs you will receive a ‘travel pack’ with details of how to make a claim. Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital will be responsible for these claims. The ACHD specialist nursing team will be available to discuss these arrangements on an individual basis. This does not affect anyone who receives help under the National Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme.

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