It aims to help you:
- understand your condition, why you have it and what you can do to alleviate it.
- recover from your surgery or heart attack
- understand that the intervention you have had has been a life saver
- make changes to your lifestyle that will help improve your heart health
- reduce the risk of a heart attack.
Cardiac rehabilitation is available to anyone who has had:
a heart attack
heart surgery.
(commonly called a cardiac intervention or cardiac event)
When do I start cardiac rehabilitation?
Cardiac rehabilitation starts as soon as you go into hospital for your angioplasty or surgery.
A member of the cardiac rehabilitation team will normally visit you on the ward to provide you with information about your condition and about the treatment you’ve had. They can also provide you with information about your condition and recovery, as well as helping you get back to your usual activities.
You should also be invited to join a cardiac rehabilitation programme starting about four to eight weeks after you leave hospital.
Where is my nearest cardiac rehabilitation programme?
Ask your GP for information, or if you live in the Bexley, Sidcup, Welling and Thamesmead areas call us on 01273 488899
As well as local cardiac exercise and relaxation course and education afternoons, we can also offer a programme in the home if you find that your condition or circumstances make it difficult for you to travel to a cardiac rehabilitation programme programme where the commitment is twice a week for six weeks.
If you have had a cardiac intervention or event then its worth remembering full engagement with a cardiac rehabilitation programme is proven to reduce your chance of re hospitalisation and can reduce mortality from cardiac disease by 26%. Cardiac Rehabilitation is not just something that will improve your health and well being or levels of fitness, it is literally a life saver.
