NURSES wore lemon wedge smiles in a bid to raise awareness of deadly heart disease.

The cardiac ward staff brought grins to the faces of passing patients and visitors in the Great Western Hospital atrium.

But they had a serious purpose. The Suck a Lemon Challenge aims to raise cash for the Pumping Marvellous Foundation, a charity that helps heart failure patients.

Harriet McCullough, a heart function specialist nurse at GWH, said: “Heart disease kills more people than most cancers in terms of life expectancy. People are living much longer and surviving their heart attacks. We are certainly not lacking in work.”

Dr Paul Foley, a consultant cardiologist, said that eating healthier foods and exercising could stave off heart disease: “There’s a lot people can do to reduce the risk.” GWH is supporting research by British Heart Foundation, testing the impact on heart patients of iron supplement injections, Dr Foley said.

Cardiac specialists will be at Asda, North Swindon, on Thursday and Tesco Ocotal Way on Friday, together with their lemon wedges.

Among the nurses visiting the supermarkets will be Martin Larner, a community-based nurse who cares for patients sent home from the cardiac ward.

“I used to be an accountant,” Martin said. “But this is the best job in the world. My mum had a stroke and I saw these people get lots of satisfaction from their jobs. I got a bit jealous. I retrained and I don’t regret a day of it.”

For more about the Suck a Lemon Challenge, visit: www.pumpingmarvellous.org.