New heart health scheme for Pembrokeshire

HEART patients in Pembrokeshire can benefit from a major new Cardiac Rehabilitation Programme designed to reach the whole community.

The programme aims to help patients maintain their physical, mental and psychological wellbeing.

The scheme will be launched on Tuesday, September 13 at Haverfordwest Leisure Centre.

"The rehabilitation programme is an active process," said Councillor Rob Lewis, Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Sport and Leisure.

"It aims to support patients to take responsibility for their own health and wellbeing - and help them to realise their potential to lead an active lifestyle."

The launch follows a successful pilot run by Pembrokeshire County Council, Pembrokeshire and Derwen NHS Trust, the British Heart Foundation and Community GPs.

British Heart Foundation Cardiac Liaison Nurse Paula Emery of the Pembrokeshire and Derwen NHS Trust, said: "The pilot was very beneficial for those who took part.

"All the sessions were fully subscribed with 80 per cent of the patients attending."

The Cardiac Rehabilitation Programme is operated by a partnership made up of Pembrokeshire and Derwen NHS Trust, Pembrokeshire Leisure, and the Pembrokeshire Local Health Board.

It has received funding from the Big Lottery Fund, together with the partner agencies, to train six Pembrokeshire Leisure fitness instructors with the British Association of Cardiac Rehabilitation (BACR) and to develop an outreach programme.

The BACR instructors will be based at Pembrokeshire’s Leisure centres at Crymych, Fishguard, Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, Pembroke, and Tenby.

After completing an eight week programme at Withybush General Hospital, Haverfordwest, patients are then invited to their nearest leisure centre for a further eight week exercise programme and onto a six month maintenance programme before going on to main stream exercise.

Throughout these stages the patient will be supervised by an instructor who has specialised in the delivery of exercise for cardiac patients and they will be supported by a specialist cardiac nurse.

"At the same time, a community team will operate an outreach programme where rural isolation may be a barrier to participation," said Sarah Williams, Director of Service Innovation at the Pembrokeshire Local Health Board.

"We also want to break down the barriers to participation by introducing programmes in socially or economically deprived areas for the first time.

"The outreach sessions will take place in Narberth, Pembroke Dock, Neyland and Fishguard."

They will be facilitated by the Cardiac Nurse and a peripatetic BACR fitness instructor. The patient will be invited onto the programme via the Cardiac Nurse and will automatically go onto the next stages.

Cardiovascular disease accounts for almost one in two deaths, and is the leading cause of premature death in both men and women in the UK.

Coronary heart disease is the most common form of cardiovascular disease and every day it kills about 450 people, disabling many more.