This is not a book I would have expected to read cover to cover. It’s not a book I would have considered the need to read at all. Wrong! I had brief chest pain and an ECG reading was normal. I thought my GP was over reacting when he referred me to Dr Bishop. I thought I was wasting everyone’s time. Wrong!!! Thanks to Dr Bishop’s intervention, I discovered that I had Coronary Artery Disease. I had no symptoms. I assumed I was fit and well. The reality was that I was in the 84th percentile for my age and sex for having an adverse cardiac event in the next five years. Dr Bishop developed a suitable  case plan for me which I know  has extended my life and for that I am eternally grateful. The beauty of Dr Bishop’s approach to heart health is that he is not prepared to sit back and wait until the worst has happened. His book clearly, and in layman’s terms that can be readily understood, explains how we can protect our hearts before an event occurs. Dr Bishop focuses on primary prevention and screening to ascertain which of us is at risk of an adverse cardiac event or heart attack. Most of us have heard of people who are apparently fit and healthy suddenly dying of a heart attack. How many of these deaths could have been prevented? I suggest that with the early intervention that Dr Bishop’s practice and writing advocates, many lives could be saved or prolonged, my own included. As in so many areas of life, we devote much needed resources to putting in time, effort and funding to the tertiary end of prevention and treatment. How much would our quality of life be improved by focusing on primary prevention as advocated by Dr Bishop. Please read the book, “Have You Planned Your Heart Attack”. Find out what everyone should know  about heart health and how to reduce your risk. It’s actually a very readable book for such a serious and academic subject. Dr Bishop doesn’t insult his readers intelligence by making the subject either incomprehensible or populist and it is written with fervour and humour. The medical profession must get behind this progressive thinking and approach to heart health. A must read for anyone who has a heart.   Noreen Hayes. B.Arts, Post Grad Education, Diploma Nursing 

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