Healthcare costs and challenges to the public and to the NHS are ongoing. Coronary heart disease (CHD) is known to affect up to 2 million people per year in the UK. Earlier detection via Rapid Access Chest Pain Clinics (RACPCs) and improved treatment options are helping patients to live longer. Over recent years, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has released guidelines regarding the assessment and management of chest pain. This article aims explores the guidelines, and examines the author's chest pain clinic and assessment of its patients, alongside the best possible way forward in light of current guidelines.

Helen Gaunt - Cardiac Nurse Specialist, Rapid Access Chest Pain Clinic, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester