A new podcast aims to save lives by encouraging patients who have suffered heart attacks, angioplasty or heart surgery to attend cardiac rehabilitation.
Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death in Ireland - 4,121 lives were lost to coronary heart
disease in 2021. But less than a third of survivors of serious heart event receive lifesaving cardiac rehab.
The data has prompted the launch of the ‘It’s Cardiac Rehab!’ podcast - a partnership between the Irish Association of
Cardiac Rehabilitation (IACR ) and Irish Heart Foundation with support from Servier Laboratories (Ireland ) Ltd. "As well
as improving quality of life and exercise capacity, completing a cardiac rehabilitation programme has been proven to
reduce cardiac mortality by 26% (and up to 40% after coronary artery bypass ), and reduces hospital readmissions by
18%,” said Deirdre O’Reilly, Cardiac Rehabilitation Coordinator and IACR President. “However, despite its proven
effectiveness for improving physical and psychological wellbeing and the prevention of repeat events, only 30% of
eligible patients receive this lifesaving intervention. Cardiac rehabilitation must not be considered an optional extra.
Enrolling and participating in a comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation programme will ultimately help more cardiac
patients live longer and healthier lives." The podcast brings together cardiac rehabilitation professionals, expert
clinicians and people who have participated in cardiac rehabilitation.
It also includes author Michael Harding sharing his experience of having an acute heart attack and its aftermath.
Discussions will range across a variety of topics including exercise, medication, healthy eating, and the psychological
impact of living with heart disease. The series is aimed at anyone who has had a cardiovascular event, such as a heart
attack, coronary artery stenting or coronary artery bypass surgery, to help them understand more about a cardiac
rehabilitation programme and what it involves. High quality cardiac rehabilitation provides a multidisciplinary team,
including a cardiac rehabilitation co- ordinator, clinical nurse specialists, exercise specialists or physiotherapists,
dietitians, psychologists, and pharmacists.
Dr Angie Brown, Medical Director with the Irish Heart Foundation said that cardiac rehabilitation is “a vital lifeline for
people dealing with the physical and psychological effects of heart attacks, which can be both significant and
detrimental to their long-term recovery. But perhaps cardiac rehabilitation is best described by those who have
attended it and call it a life-changing and life-saving decision.”
The podcast series is available on https://irishheart.ie/services-for-you/its-cardiac-rehab-podcast/
Apple and Spotify
