Where are we today? Early results from MINAP, the national audit of myocardial infarction project

The Myocardial Infarction National Audit Project (MINAP) was developed primarily as a response by the profession to the audit requirements of the National Service Framework for coronary heart disease. MINAP began to collect data in October 2000 and by October 2002, 223 hospitals in England and Wales had returned data on patients with acute myocardial infarction. MINAP provides contemporary analyses of hospital performance, with the ability to compare local performance against the national aggregate. In the third quarter of 2002, 67% of patients received thrombolytic treatment within 30 minutes of hospital arrival. At the same time only 37% of patients received treatment within 60 minutes of calling for help, and only about 20% reached hospital within 30 minutes of calling for help. In order to improve speed of access to thrombolytic treatment there is a need for increased use of pre-hospital treatment.