Hundreds of people in Dorset could be saved from heart attacks and strokes as the NHS launches a new drive

Working with Public Health England (PHE), the NHS announced its new initiative to take a more integrated approach to cardiovascular care.

New PHE analysis suggests that there is now an opportunity to prevent more than 9,000 heart attacks and at least 14,000 strokes over the next three years with better detection and management of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and atrial fibrillation.

Sir Bruce Keogh, the national medical director of NHS England, said that closer working between NHS organisations and local authorities will "create new opportunities to get serious about prevention and bear down on two of the biggest killers".

The scale of the prevention opportunity in Dorset ACS over the next three years if detection and treatment of these high-risk conditions is optimised could avoid 710 lives, according to new analysis by the NHS.

A breakdown shows that 150 people with high blood pressure could avoid heart attacks, with 230 patients with high blood pressure and 330 patients with Atrial Fibrillation avoiding strokes.

Sir Bruce said: "Cardiovascular disease kills more people in this country than anything else. We know how to treat the resulting heart attacks and stroke, but everyone knows that prevention is better than cure. Prevention of these devastating consequences is everybody’s business from our schools, to the food and tobacco industries, to local authorities and the NHS."

Some 5.5 million people in England have undiagnosed high blood pressure and nearly half a million have undiagnosed atrial fibrillation, which are both usually symptomless conditions that substantially increase the risk of stroke, heart attack, dementia and limb amputations.

Achieving optimal treatment in all people with diagnosed high blood pressure has the potential to avert up to 9,10 heart attacks and 14,500 strokes saving up to £274million and achieving optimal treatment those diagnosed with atrial fibrillation has the potential to avert up to 14,220 strokes, saving £241million.

Organisations are likely to drive improvements in two ways. Firstly through partnerships that support widespread implementation of initiatives such as healthy workforce schemes, active transport plans, the Active 10 app, and smoking cessation programmes. Secondly, they have the ability to roll out the NHS Right Care CVD Prevention Programme across a much wider area.

The NHS Right Care programme will help GPs and local areas to ensure more patients get proven treatments by organising local services differently. This will include more testing and treatment in pharmacies, increasing uptake of NHS Health Check, more self-monitoring, more access to blood pressure testing in community and workplace settings, and new digital tools such as the One You Heart Age Test.