Cardiac Rehabilitation Program

Image

Cardiac Rehabilitation is a program to support your heart health and management of cardiovascular risk factors to decrease your risk for cardiac events.  There are many benefits to attending cardiac rehab such as, decreased symptoms of angina, improved energy and fitness and much more. 

Cardiac Rehab is personalized to address your individual needs and includes:

• Individual assessment by our team of health professionals including nurses, physiotherapists, dietitians, kinesiologists and other healthcare providers
• Supervised group exercise (up to twelve weeks, once or twice per week) and/or Home-based individualized exercise planning,  based upon your personal assessment, medical history and goals 
• Nutrition assessment, education and counseling with an ongoing focus on your individual nutrition needs and preferences
• Realistic goal setting
• Motivational educational sessions designed for your lifestyle and health   
• Guidance for self-managing your health, (for example; diabetes testing and management, heart rate monitoring, etc.) 
• Medication recommendations by the medical director

Depending on your individual needs a virtual program may be available. 

Virtual Cardiac Rehab is home-based and provides one-on-one consultations, online education sessions and cardiovascular risk factor management with the health professional team.  

The program is offered in a variety of locations throughout Nova Scotia (see below for locations). 

Who Is the Program For?

Cardiac Rehab is a program for people with Heart & Vascular Disease.  This includes people who have a history of:

• Heart Attack, Angina, Heart Failure, Cardiac Surgery & Interventions (such as Coronary Bypass Surgery, Angioplasty, Heart Transplant, Heart Valve Surgery)
• Non-Disabling Stroke, and/or Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIA) (mini stroke)
• Peripheral Artery Disease

Please note that enrollment criteria may differ slightly between the Nova Scotia Cardiac Rehab sites, and each Cardiac Rehab team will review referrals before enrollment into our programs.

Some programs may also accept referrals for people who have high risk for heart disease due to having at least three of the major cardiovascular risk factors, including diabetes, abnormal cholesterol, high blood pressure and smoking.