After a heart-related hospital stay, cardiac rehabilitation can improve your recovery. Now is the time to learn more about heart surgery rehab and other forms of cardiac rehabilitation. Knowing your options will help you plan ahead and feel more prepared going into your procedure.
Should You Consider Cardiac Rehabilitation?
The care and rehabilitation you receive following your hospital stay makes a difference for your long-term health, whether you’ve been in the hospital for surgery or for another cardiac event. Moving into a supervised cardiac rehabilitation program after release from the hospital can reduce your chances of needing another hospital stay. It will also help you receive the specialized care you need to recover.
Common surgeries that are candidates for heart surgery rehab include:
- Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG)
- Transmyocardial Laser Revascularization (TMR)
- Angioplasty
- Heart transplant
Cardiac rehabilitation can also benefit you if you:
- Have had a heart attack
- Are living with heart failure
- Have coronary artery disease (CAD)
Transitioning from the Hospital
Your doctor will determine when it is time to transition from a hospital stay to a cardiac rehabilitation program.
When your doctor feels you are strong enough, it’s time to transition out of the hospital. Enrolling in a cardiac rehabilitation program at a community like Wesley Place is an alternative to going directly home — but one that may allow you to get back to your daily life more quickly. If you choose our HeartBeats cardiac rehabilitation program, a member of our team will come to see you in the hospital before your move to get to know you and make sure everything goes smoothly.
What Will Heart Surgery Rehab or Other Cardiac Rehabilitation Be Like?
Typically, your rehabilitation plan will be focused on recovery, diet, exercise, medication and scheduled progress check-ups. Your care team will create a personalized program designed to stay within your limits and help you improve over time. Depending on how your healing progresses, your doctor can adjust this plan during your stay.
If you come to CMSS for heart surgery rehab, you can be confident that you’ll receive personal attention from both your doctor and our nurse practitioner. While most rehabilitation programs require a doctor’s visit once a month, HeartBeats gives you access to our Cardiologist every week. You’ll also have the opportunity to check in with your nurse practitioner several times a week
The average heart surgery rehab program lasts around two months, but it’s important to keep up with your heart-healthy habits even after leaving rehabilitation. Your care team will craft a post-rehabilitation program just for you.
Do you have more questions about cardiac rehabilitation? We sat down with CMSS cardiologist, Dr. Sanjay Gill, to learn more about it. Read more in our blog post, “Cardiac Therapy and Heart Health.”