The Port Macquarie Cardiac Rehabilitation Group’s rehabilitation program is on hold due to COVID-19, but now there’s a virtual alternative.
The program offers education and exercise for patients who have cardiovascular disease or have had a cardiac event.
The new structure is the same as the face-to-face program but is condensed to one hour every Thursday. The hour includes 30 minutes of education and 30 minutes of exercise.
If internet and audio/video connectivity is unavailable, telephone coaching support can be arranged.
The aim of the rehabilitation is to:
- Increase physical activity
- Reduce overall risk factors
- Enable self-management of angina
- Provide education while having fun
- Be inclusive, and
- Be flexible to suit individual needs.
The program runs for eight weeks, with a rolling start. An initial telephone assessment is done with the Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) group coordinator. Enrolment includes a further referral to a physiotherapist and the CNS for face-to-face individual physical assessment. Part of the assessment is a six-minute walk test.
Participants are given home-based exercise guidelines with instructions for daily activity and joining the group.
A multidisciplinary team runs the education sessions, which aim to reduce risk factors and the likelihood of re-admission to hospital.
Referral criteria remain consistent and information can be found on HealthPathways (username: manchealth, password: conn3ct3d).
Referrers can also contact the group coordinator on (02) 6589 2337 or email [email protected]