Cardiac Rehabilitation

We may not be able to change the past, but MercyOne experts are here to help the heart lead a healthy and happy future.

What is cardiac rehabilitation?

Cardiac rehabilitation is a comprehensive, medically supervised program personalized to improve your cardiovascular health if you have experienced a heart attack, bypass surgery, balloon angioplasty, stents or unstable angina.

Coordinating care with you and your doctor, our cardiac rehabilitation team will design a personalized recovery plan of exercises, education and medical treatment.

Exercise: A regular exercise program gets your heart pumping and your entire cardiovascular system working. With MercyOne experts, you will learn healthy ways to focus on heart health and well-being.
Education: There is nothing more important than understanding your own individual situation. Understanding risk factors and working with experts to make the right food and lifestyle changes is an important part of the rehabilitation process.
Counseling: It’s important to understand stress and triggers placing unneeded pressure on the heart. MercyOne programs aim to work with everyone to identify unique factors that they may have.

Your cardiac rehabilitation team includes registered nurses, certified exercise specialists and dietitians.

What are the goals of cardiac rehabilitation?

Get stronger
Feel better faster
Return to former activities
Reduce the risk of future heart problems
Live a healthier and longer life
Improve quality of life

How does cardiac rehabilitation work?

You are referred to the program by your cardiologist or primary care provider.

There are generally three phases to the program:

Phase I begins during your hospital stay where you work with specially trained team members on daily exercises and education
Phase II occurs in an outpatient setting where you continue cardiac rehabilitation training and monitoring.
Phase III offers programs to help you maintain healthy lifestyle and exercise habits.

You may enter cardiac rehabilitation at any of these phases. Each phase builds on dietary, stress management and exercise guidelines. Your families and friends are invited to share in this learning experience.