Welcome to my podcast. I am Doctor Warrick Bishop, and I want to help you to live as well as possible for as long as possible. I’m a practising cardiologist, best-selling author, keynote speaker, and the creator of The Healthy Heart Network. I have over 20 years as a specialist cardiologist and a private practice of over 10,000 patients.
# Episode Summary
Introduction:
Dr. Warwick Bishop is a practicing Tasmanian cardiologist and author who believes that educated patients receive better healthcare. In this episode, he discusses his new book *Have You Planned Your Heart Attack?*, which aims to empower individuals with knowledge about advanced heart imaging technology and cardiovascular risk assessment. His mission is to help people have informed conversations with their doctors about preventive heart health measures.
Key Takeaways:
- A 2005 resuscitation of a heart attack patient Dr. Bishop had previously given a clean bill of health prompted him to reconsider how cardiac risk assessment could be improved.
- Advanced CT scanning technology has only recently become capable of producing clear, detailed images of a beating heart due to improvements in computing and imaging resolution.
- Heart disease remains one of Australia's major health concerns in terms of mortality, morbidity, and cost to the community, making prevention efforts critical.
- Heart attacks are not exclusively a lifestyle disease—seemingly fit and healthy individuals without obvious risk factors can still experience coronary events.
- The book was deliberately written in accessible, illustrated language for patients rather than medical professionals to empower informed conversations between patients and their general practitioners.
- Dr. Bishop focuses on explaining risk evaluation and where CT imaging may fit into individual assessment, rather than providing dietary advice or overstepping his expertise.
- Longitudinal studies and registries are needed to validate whether early intervention based on imaging findings reduces morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs compared to current best practices.
- The goal is gradual adoption of this technology within the medical community through education, evidence, and patient-doctor dialogue rather than immediate widespread implementation.
