Treatments: Cardiac Rehabilitation

Why would a doctor recommend cardiac rehabilitation?
What does cardiac rehabilitation involve?

Why would a doctor recommend cardiac rehabilitation?

If you have been admitted to the hospital because of a heart attack, angina, congestive heart failure, cardiomyopathy, or symptoms of heart disease, your doctor may recommend cardiac rehabilitation. Patients who have had coronary artery bypass surgery may also be referred to a cardiac rehab program.

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What does cardiac rehabilitation involve?

Inpatient Program

Before you are discharged from the hospital, your doctor will want to check how much activity your heart can handle, and discuss ways to lower your chances of having more heart problems. He or she may ask you to join the outpatient cardiac rehabilitation program once you have left the hospital.

Outpatient Program

The six-week group exercise and education outpatient program includes aerobic exercise (treadmill walking, cycling, rowing, stair-climbing, arm exercises) and weight training. There are eight participants, and two staff members. The staffers will adjust the workout to your level, and suggest diet changes and exercises you can do at home. They will also give short presentations twice a week about heart disease.

Most insurance companies cover this program. Some may require patients to have certain heart conditions, and take a stress test before beginning the program.

Individual Program

You may come in for follow-up visits after you finish the outpatient group program. At these visits you can check how much activity your heart can handle, get new information about heart disease, and ask for help with your home exercise program. These visits usually happen three, six, and 12 months after you first went to the hospital. Insurance companies sometimes do not cover these visits, and we try to make the visits affordable.

Maintenance Exercise Program

This group of up to nine people is supervised by our staff in the exercise room three days a week. These patients are independent with their exercise routines and are monitored only on an as-needed basis.

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