Exceptional care praised at specialist centre

Bhupinder Saggu, best known as Bups Saggu

A renowned DJ and music producer has praised staff for their ‘exceptional’ care following his triple heart bypass.

Bhupinder Saggu, best known as “Bups Saggu”, had surgery at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust’s Heart and Lung Centre in June this year.

He is now on a quest to promote a healthier lifestyle to the South Asian community, to help others notice the symptoms of heart disease.

He said: “Last year I thought I had a heart attack as I had severe pains in my chest.

“It turned out to be an angina attack and I was put on additional medication and was closely monitored.

“Following a CT scan it was diagnosed that I had triple vessel heart disease which really shocked me and I was booked in for a triple heart bypass.”

Bhupinder said he could not praise the staff at the centre enough for their care.

He added: “The staff at the Heart and Lung centre were exceptional. If it wasn’t for their fantastic care, I wouldn’t have had the heart space or willpower to recover as quickly as I did. A special mention goes out to Nurse Practioner Dee Banger, who really pushed me to walk frequently, monitored my vitals and kept my morale going when things got difficult and sometimes quite lonely.

“All the teams I came across were kind and caring, and they were so attentive. Anything I needed, they would get.

“Following the surgery, I have a new lease of life. I don’t get out of breath going up hills anymore and I can do more than I ever thought.

“I am now going back to the gym and thanks to Chris Scordis, Joint Lead for Cardiac Rehabilitation at Have a Heart Wolverhampton, I have learnt what I can and can’t do.

“His support has been absolutely amazing. Chris has helped me understand my body and its limitations.”

Now Bhupinder wants to raise awareness in the South Asian community about heart disease.

He said: “I had signs before I wasn’t aware of. So I want to prevent it happening to others and catch it early for them. I am planning a documentary and I would like to go out with health teams to monitor people’s blood pressures.

“My daughter was born with a heart condition Tetraology of the Fallot. I feel now I was supposed to go through what I did for more reasons than my own health.

“Having gone through this, I not only want to raise awareness to the South Asian community and beyond but to children like my own. Where once my daughter was paranoid about her scar, through this we have become ‘scar pals’.”

The most common symptoms of coronary heart disease (CHD) are chest pain (angina) and breathlessness.

For more information, go to NHS – Coronary Heart Disease Symptoms