A Weymouth physician has taken the leap and started his own business offering cardiac diagnostics with the help of a £25,000 Start Up Loan delivered by SWIG Finance on behalf of the British Business Bank.
HeartWise has been established by Kevin Green and specialises in echocardiography, a non-invasive ultrasound scan that provides vital insights into the structure and function of the heart, including how effectively it pumps blood and whether its valves are operating correctly.
Kevin also offers a 12-lead ECG – a diagnostic test that records the heart’s electrical signals by placing electrodes on the chest, arms, and legs – and blood pressure check, leading to a detailed snapshot of the heart’s activity from which it is possible to identify abnormalities such as arrhythmias, ischemia or even past heart attacks.
Kevin Green has used a Start Up Loan to launch a cardiac diagnostics consultancy
The Start Up Loan was used to buy specialist equipment and Kevin hopes his services will appeal to amateur athletes and sports clubs, companies carrying out annual workplace health checks, and patients seeking to obtain results quicker than the NHS can provide, allowing for early intervention should problems arise.
Kevin fell into the healthcare industry “by accident”, having originally studied for a sports science degree with the intention of teaching science in secondary schools. However, he was intrigued by an advert for a position in cardiac physiology at a local NHS hospital.
“It seemed really interesting and a bit different,” he recalls. “I’d never heard of the role – I thought the NHS was all doctors, nurses and physios. So I joined, qualified and really enjoyed it.”
Kevin did some work in the private sector alongside his public work, including cardiac screening for premiership footballers and cutting-edge research with the Ministry of Defence.
Twenty years on he decided to set up on his own to offer patients a faster service: “I found it frustrating that on the NHS you can be waiting eight to 10 weeks for the kind of service I’m aiming to provide, by which time we could actually have had some kind of treatment in place.
“It was about being brave enough to go private, while keeping the service as affordable as possible, which was important to me.”
The full package costs £275, with patients and their GPs receiving a copy of the results.
Kevin started practising in November, and so far has seen a good deal of interest from local companies that carry out regular occupational health checks. He’s hopeful that sports clubs will follow suit: “Cardiac screenings are mandatory for professional competitive sports like football, and I would love to see it more prevalent at amateur level.”
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Kevin, who is a keen runner and triathlete, will remain in NHS employment while building his new venture but hopes eventually to step down and focus on it exclusively.
He came across Start Up Loans and SWIG Finance during an online search for ways to fund his dream. “I’m quite risk-averse and have always been of the opinion that you only buy something if you can afford it, so a government-backed scheme seemed like a safe way to proceed.”
Start Up Loans is part of the British Business Bank, which is the government’s economic development bank. It offers personal loans of up to £25,000 per director at a fixed rate of interest and free business mentoring to help anyone start or grow a new or early-stage business. SWIG Finance is the Bank’s Business Support Partner for the government-backed programme in the South West.
Kevin added: “I’m a medical professional rather than a numbers guy, so it made a huge difference to have one-to-one dealings with someone who could guide me through the process. Suzy at SWIG Finance was informal and friendly, and made it all very simple.”
Suzy Lowe, Senior Start Up Loans Officer for SWIG Finance, said: “It was an absolute pleasure to work with Kevin on this business loan application. The innovative approach, focusing on speed of assessment and cost-effective pricing, will benefit people of all walks of life. I wish him every success in the future.”
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SWIG Finance is a people-based lender that provides loans and support to help smaller businesses in the South and West Country grow. We base our lending decisions on potential rather than collateral, which means that we can often support businesses when others can't.
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