Ten years ago America was consumed with the infamous Y2K threat. Would all the computer systems fail? Would we be thrown back to the year 1900? Would giant monsters take over New York City? The panic is humorous now as we look back, but amid all of the millennium chaos, an exercise physiologist, a nurse and a physician at North Fulton Hospital were busy planning a new program that would prove to be successful in helping to change many people’s lives for the better.
Ten years ago last month, Deb Jeskey, Certified Exercise Physiologist, cut the ribbon on the new Cardiac Rehabilitation Program at North Fulton Hospital. As the current coordinator of the program, Jeskey also is proud to be one of its originators.
“I along with another nurse and Dr. Thomas Jordan [Cardiologist] started this program over on the second floor of the hospital. When we began, we had just six patients, but we were glad to help them!” Jeskey explains. In the ten years that have passed, the program has grown to service now over 100 patients in the newer outpatient setting of the Medical Office Building (adjacent to the hospital). “We always have a packed house it seems. All the staff and the patients get so close; we really become a family.”
And a family they remain. Many of the patients in the Phase III maintenance program have been loyal attendees for years, some of whom have been patients since the beginning. Similar to a gym membership, this phase of the program allows people to exercise on the various pieces of equipment in the Cardiac Rehabilitation Department. What makes it so special is that the members are consistently monitored by the Cardiac Rehab Nurses and Exercise Physiologist. This monitoring can detect potentially dangerous changes in the member’s heart rhythms, allowing for early intervention.
“We’ve been able to catch many issues before they had a chance to become problematic,” Jeskey said. “Had these patients been in a different exercise setting, without close staff supervision, who knows what could have happened?”
As the program has grown in terms of patient volume, it has also expanded in the area of education. In addition to the extensively trained cardiac rehab nurses and exercise physiologist, the program also utilizes pharmacists and dietitians to educate patients. It has also managed to maintain its national certification, something it received two years on the day after it began serving patients.
“This is a wonderful program, largely due to staff who provide care,” Jeskey said. “Over the course of the last ten years I’ve only had to add people to the team. We don’t see turnover down here.”
About the program:
North Fulton Hospital's Cardiac Rehabilitation Program is designed for people recovering from various heart issues, including heart attack, bypass, transplant, and chest pain. The two-phase program includes outpatient services that utilize exercise, education, and counseling to help patients with cardiovascular conditions reduce their risks and help prevent further complications from heart disease.
Cardiac Rehabilitation typically begins while the person recovering from the respective heart issue is in the hospital (Phase I). North Fulton Hospital offers an outpatient program for cardiac patients once they have gone home from the hospital. This outpatient program also is appropriate for people who are at high risk for cardiac disease.
The outpatient program is staffed by a team of professionals who are expert at dealing with a patient’s physical and emotional well being. The team works with cardiac patients to design a personalized educational program of recovery that includes exercise, nutrition, weight control, smoking cessation, emotional support, and pharmacy as well as many other areas relevant to rehabilitation.
Phase II: Beginning Outpatient Rehabilitation
The beginning outpatient rehabilitation phase is for individuals who have recently experienced a cardiac event and have been discharged from the hospital. Through a physician’s referral, nurses assess the patient and design a program to meet his or her individual needs.
A typical patient attends Phase II three times a week for up to 12 weeks, depending on the patient’s needs and insurance plan. During each session, the patient’s heart rate and rhythm are continuously monitored by EKG. Telemetry and blood pressure are frequently checked. Regular progress reports are sent to each patient’s referring physician. Individual education is offered to help the patient and family adopt a heart-healthy lifestyle.
Phase III: Advanced/Maintenance Outpatient Rehabilitation
Phase III is for patients who have completed the Phase II program. It also may be a starting point for those who are at risk for a cardiac event. This phase may continue indefinitely. As in Phase II, patients exercise in a medially supervised setting where blood pressure and heart rates are monitored at each exercise session, and an EKG is monitored monthly.
The Cardiac Rehabilitation Program is certified by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation. Most insurance plans will cover all or part of the cost of cardiac rehabilitation. Services are located in the Medical Office Building.
North Fulton Hospital (NFH), part of Tenet Georgia, is a 202-bed, acute-care hospital located on Highway 9, Alpharetta Highway, in Roswell. Opened in 1983, NFH serves North Fulton and surrounding counties through its team of over 1000 employees, 400 staff physicians and 200 volunteers. NFH is a state-designated Level II trauma center and provides a continuum of services through its centers and programs, including neurosciences, orthopedics, rehabilitation, surgical services, bariatric surgical weight loss, gastroenterology and oncology. The hospital is fully accredited and also is certified as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the nation’s oldest and largest hospital accreditation agency.
For more information about the Cardiac Rehabilitation Program at North Fulton Hospital, call 770-751-2785, or visit www.northfultonregional.com/rehab.